UK bans pet shop sales of puppies, Deliveroo under fire for mass sackings, and more top news

The news professionals in Europe are talking about now, curated by LinkedIn’s editors. Join the conversation on today's stories in the comments.

British pet shops will be banned from selling puppies and kittens under six months old. Animal welfare minister David Rutley announced the ban on third-party sales on Saturday, saying the government is committed to ensuring “the nation’s much-loved pets get the right start in life”. Public consultation on the ban found 95% of people were in support of cracking down on puppy farms. ? Here’s what people are saying.

Food delivery company Deliveroo has come under fire for sacking 100 riders right before Christmas. The riders — who are accused of committing fraud by marking undelivered orders as complete — were sent identical emails notifying them of their job losses. IWW Couriers Network says 99% of the drivers deny the allegations. Last month, the company‘s riders, classified as self-employed, lost a high court battle to gain union recognition. ? Here’s what people are saying.

The world’s richest people lost a combined $511 billion this year. The 500 people on the list finished 2018 with a combined net worth of $4.7 trillion — marking just the second decline since the Bloomberg Billionaires Index started in 2012. International trade tensions and growing concerns around a possible a US recession have seen markets plummet in recent weeks. ? Here’s what people are saying.

Fans of Beyoncé have fallen victim to a hoax on Spotify and Apple Music. Two albums uploaded to the streaming services under the moniker Queen Carter were initially believed to be clandestine releases from the pop superstar — causing a stir from fans who assumed Beyoncé had sneakily dropped her long-awaited new albums online. However, they turned out to be unauthorised releases primarily comprised of “old tracks and demo recordings,” and were quickly removed. ? Here’s what people are saying.

“123456” continues to be the most popular worst password, according to digital security company SplashData’s 2018 ranking. The six digits held the top spot for the fifth consecutive year. Similarly, “password” remained in the second spot. “12345678” was knocked to fourth place by “12345789,” which climbed three spots to third place. “12345” remained in fifth place. New additions to the top 25 include “111111,” “sunshine,” “princess,” “654321” and “donald”. ? Here’s what people are saying.

Idea of the Day: It’s often while relaxing on vacation that our best ideas come to us, says author and podcast host Linda Coles.

“Keep your notepad handy while you ponder so you can file those thoughts and ideas away for when you return to work.”

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— Capucine Yeomans