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Scotland data centre moratorium warning hits investment

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Rimkus has warned that a proposed moratorium on new data centre developments in Scotland would deter investment and weaken the country’s position in digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence.

The intervention follows reports that the Scottish Government is considering national planning guidance that could lead to a pause in new projects. The SNP is weighing action after objections from communities, local authorities and campaign groups over the scale of planned schemes and their impact on the electricity network.

More than a dozen hyperscale data centre proposals are moving through Scotland’s planning system. If approved, they would add significantly to electricity demand and increase pressure on long-term grid planning.

Rimkus argued that these issues should be addressed through infrastructure planning rather than by halting developments, warning that investor confidence could suffer if Scotland appears to be retreating from support for data centre construction.

Robert Eadie, data centre director at Rimkus, said the policy debate comes at a sensitive time in competition between locations seeking digital investment.

“Scotland has a genuine opportunity to establish itself as a leading destination for digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence investment, but that opportunity depends on creating the conditions for businesses to invest with confidence. A moratorium on hyperscale data centres would send a concerning signal to the market that Scotland is stepping back from supporting the infrastructure that underpins the modern economy.

“Investors looking to deploy capital into digital infrastructure have choices, and if projects cannot proceed here, they will simply move elsewhere in the UK or Europe.

“Data centres are often misunderstood as standalone developments that serve little purpose locally. In reality, they are fundamental to almost every aspect of modern life, supporting financial, healthcare, government and streaming services, advanced manufacturing, and the AI technologies that are rapidly transforming industries worldwide.

“If Scotland wants to participate fully in the AI revolution and attract the high-value industries of the future, it cannot simultaneously restrict access to the infrastructure those industries depend on.”

Grid pressure

Concerns over power demand are central to the debate. Large-scale data centres consume substantial amounts of electricity, and the concentration of proposed schemes in Scotland has raised questions about whether the existing grid can cope without major investment.

Eadie said those concerns were legitimate but manageable. He argued that the main constraint is not generation but the network needed to move and use electricity, pointing to Scotland’s renewable energy base.

“The scale of some of these developments undoubtedly raises important questions around energy supply, grid resilience and sustainability, but those are exactly the kinds of challenges that strategic national planning and infrastructure investment are designed to address.

“Scotland already has abundant renewable energy resources, with wind generation regularly curtailed when the grid cannot accommodate it. The challenge is not simply generating more electricity, but investing in the infrastructure needed to convert that renewable advantage into jobs, investment and long-term economic growth.

“A blanket pause risks oversimplifying a complex issue. The conversation should instead focus on how Scotland converts its renewable energy advantage into long-term economic value by accelerating grid investment, supporting renewable generation and attracting industries that increasingly want to locate alongside abundant low-carbon power.

“Locating data centres close to renewable generation makes better use of Scotland’s clean energy than exporting it elsewhere. While individual facilities require cooling, most modern hyperscale data centres use closed-loop cooling systems that recirculate water, resulting in significantly lower water consumption than many traditional industrial processes.

“Other countries are actively competing to attract data centre investment because they recognise the wider economic benefits these developments bring. The construction and delivery of hyperscale facilities support skilled jobs while creating long-term opportunities throughout local supply chains.

“Scotland possesses many of the attributes global investors are looking for, including a highly skilled workforce, significant renewable energy potential, and ambitious technology and innovation sectors. There is a real opportunity to position the country as a major player in the digital and AI economy. The question facing policymakers is whether Scotland wants to lead that transition or watch investment and opportunity flow elsewhere. Pulling the plug on data centre development would make that decision for us.”

Investment debate

The warning highlights a broader tension in economic policy. Governments want to attract AI-related spending and the industries linked to it, but the infrastructure needed to support that ambition can provoke local opposition over land use, energy demand and environmental concerns.

Data centres have become a focal point of that tension across Europe. Operators and investors are looking for sites with access to land, fibre connectivity and low-carbon electricity, while policymakers are under pressure to show that expansion will not overwhelm grids or clash with climate goals.

In Scotland, the debate is sharpened by the country’s renewable energy profile. Supporters of further development argue that this gives Scotland a route to attract facilities seeking cleaner electricity, while critics question whether the network is ready for a wave of power-hungry projects.

What happens next will be closely watched by developers already in the planning process and by international investors comparing the UK with competing European markets. More than a dozen proposed projects are already testing how Scotland balances electricity constraints, planning policy and its wider ambition to capture a larger share of digital and AI investment.



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PayPal adds new Pay in 30 Days option for UK shoppers

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KAREN JOY BACUDO

Finance Editor

PayPal has launched Pay in 30 Days for eligible UK customers, adding a new buy now, pay later option to its British checkout offering.

The service lets shoppers make an online purchase with PayPal and pay the full amount up to 30 days later. It is available on eligible transactions worth between £1 and £900, with no interest, sign-up fees or additional charges.

The launch expands PayPal’s existing buy now, pay later range in the UK, which already includes Pay in 3. That product lets customers split a purchase into three payments, with one taken at checkout and two more over the following two months.

Pay in 30 Days is available to eligible users across PayPal’s nearly 30 million-strong UK customer base. Customers can access the option through the existing PayPal checkout flow without opening a separate account or downloading another app.

Purchases and repayments are handled through PayPal’s own system. The 30-day window is intended to give customers more flexibility to pay at a point that better aligns with payday or other household bills.

Consumer demand

The launch comes as deferred payment products continue to gain ground with British shoppers. PayPal cited market data showing that 25% of UK adults used a buy now, pay later service at least once in the previous year.

It also linked the launch to changing expectations around how these products are offered, saying consumers want more flexible and transparent payment choices as regulatory scrutiny of the sector increases.

“British customers are smart. They want the flexibility to pay on their terms – but they’re also more discerning than ever about who they trust with their money. We’ve seen that in how our customers use PayPal, and our BNPL product offering, including both Pay in 3 and now Pay in 30 Days, is our response: genuine flexibility, zero fees, and the reassurance of a brand that’s been part of UK shopping for over two decades,” said Tamer El-Emary, General Manager UK at PayPal.

“As BNPL becomes regulated by the FCA, and continues to grow in the UK, the bar for trust and transparency will only rise – and we think that’s a good thing. For businesses, it means customers will increasingly gravitate toward payment options from names they recognise. PayPal’s Pay in 30 Days gives merchants a way to meet that demand, backed by a checkout experience their customers already know and trust.”

Merchant angle

For retailers, PayPal is positioning the new option as an addition to its current checkout rather than a separate technical project. Merchants that already use PayPal checkout do not need a new integration to offer Pay in 30 Days.

The company also cited research among 1,000 UK business owners and senior representatives who offer buy now, pay later services. In that survey, 64% said customer trust in their provider mattered most, while 50% said offering a broad range of payment options at checkout directly supported conversion.

This forms part of a wider battle among payments groups to retain a visible place at online checkout, where instalment products and short-term deferred payment options have become more common. Providers are trying to appeal to both consumers seeking flexibility and merchants seeking to reduce friction before a sale is completed.

PayPal’s approach in the UK centres on expanding the range of choices available under one brand. Alongside Pay in 3 and the new 30-day deferred payment option, customers enrolled in PayPal+ can earn PayPal+ Points on eligible Pay in 30 Days purchases.

The UK is an important market for the group, and buy now, pay later remains a closely watched area across consumer finance and digital commerce. Businesses in the segment are under pressure to demonstrate that their products are clear to use and easy for customers to manage as official oversight intensifies.

Pay in 30 Days is designed to sit within the same account and payment environment customers already use for online shopping. Eligible shoppers can select the option at checkout, complete the purchase and then settle the full amount within 30 days.

The product arrives as payment groups compete over trust, ease of use and checkout placement in a market where short-term credit has become a routine part of online spending. Pay in 30 Days is being made available to eligible customers across PayPal’s nearly 30 million-strong UK user base.



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Intruder launches AI pentesting for web apps on demand

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Intruder has launched an AI pentesting service for web applications, adding on-demand penetration testing to its security platform.

The service lets customers connect source code repositories through GitHub or GitLab so tests can be scoped and started automatically. Results and audit-ready reports are produced within hours, rather than the weeks or months often associated with manual engagements.

The launch builds on Intruder’s earlier use of AI for issue-level investigations, where autonomous agents validated scanner findings. With the new release, the company is moving into full-scale white-box testing, using access to a codebase to search for weaknesses across an application.

Intruder says the system was built and trained by CREST-certified pentesters and is intended to mirror how experienced human testers work. The agents reason through applications and adapt their approach as they test.

Cost pressure

Pricing starts at USD $3,500 per test. According to Intruder, automated web application tests cost 25% or less of a traditional manual engagement.

That pricing is aimed in part at smaller businesses that may struggle to pay for frequent manual pentests. Existing customers can view web application pentest findings alongside attack surface, cloud, and vulnerability data in the same platform.

The move comes as security teams face pressure to review software released more frequently by engineering groups using AI coding tools. Intruder cited its own survey of security leaders, which found that 49% named AI and automation as their top investment priority for 2026.

Intruder argues that annual pentests no longer match software release cycles in many businesses, where major deployments may happen weekly. It also points to a shrinking window between the disclosure of vulnerabilities and their exploitation by attackers.

The service is designed for security, IT, and development teams that want more regular application testing without the scheduling overhead of conventional pentest projects. Reports generated by the service can be used as evidence for compliance frameworks including SOC 2 and ISO 27001.

Andy Hornegold, Chief Security Technologist at Intruder, said the launch reflects the company’s long-standing aim to broaden access to security testing.

“Our mission at Intruder has always been to make robust cybersecurity accessible to everyone,” said Andy Hornegold, Chief Security Technologist at Intruder. “Providing web application testing marks an exciting step on that journey. By delivering the depth of a pentest on demand and at a fraction of the price, we’re helping businesses keep up with an accelerating threat environment.”

Broader shift

The launch comes as suppliers across the market try to use AI to automate more of the work traditionally carried out by security consultants. Intruder pointed to recent industry attention on AI systems that can identify software flaws, while warning that attackers are using similar tools to speed up offensive activity.

For customers, the main operational change is the ability to run tests more often and closer to release cycles. Rather than commissioning a one-off annual review, organisations could use automated pentesting as part of routine software delivery.

Chris Wallis, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Intruder, framed the argument around time and budget constraints for smaller organisations.

“Historically, the cost of a pentest has been very high and has taken a long time,” said Chris Wallis, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Intruder. “In today’s accelerated threat environment, that timeline and cost don’t hold up. We’re ensuring that resource-constrained small and medium-sized businesses aren’t excluded from good security purely based on budget.”

One customer cited by Intruder said the appeal lies in filling the gap between formal annual assessments. Yembo, which continues to use human pentesters, said more continuous testing is needed to reduce exposure between scheduled reviews.

“Securing a global AI platform requires continuous defense,” said Zach Rattner, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of Yembo. “While Yembo continues to leverage human pentesters, annual assessments alone leave dangerous windows of exposure. Intruder’s AI pentesting bridges that gap by delivering human-grade depth at machine speed to keep our platform permanently hardened.”



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Oxfordshire sandwich shop slammed with poor food hygiene rating

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Matsho Africaribbean in unit 6, 7 and 8 in Victoria Cross Gallery Market Place in Wantage was visited by Vale of White Horse District Council‘s Environmental Health team on Monday, June 8.

Inspectors were not impressed with what they found and stated that ‘major improvement’ was necessary at the shop.

As a result, the supermarket was given a one-out-of-five hygiene rating after the inspection.

The report outlined one key issue at the eatery which was highlighted as a cause of concern.

Management of food safety at the venue required ‘major improvement’ according to inspectors.

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This refers to whether there is a system or checks in place to ensure that food sold or served is safe to eat.

It also concerns whether there is evidence that staff know about food safety and if the food safety officer has confidence that standards will be maintained in future.

The cleanliness and condition of both the facilities and the building were then rated as ‘good’.

This includes having an appropriate layout, ventilation, hand washing facilities and pest control to enable good food hygiene.

This refers to the preparation, cooking, re-heating, cooling and storage of food.

Meanwhile, the hygienic food handling was also deemed as ‘improvement necessary’.

The Oxford Mail have contacted Matsho Africaribbean for a comment.





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