Betfred brothers, Alex Gerko, Mike Ashley: Top UK taxpayers revealed January 31, 2026 Betting entrepreneurs Peter Done and Denise Coates, traders Alex Gerko and Chris Rokos, and high street kingpins Tim Martin and Mike Ashley are among the top taxpayers in the UK, new analysis has revealed. Betfred founders Fred and Peter Done paid the most cash into HMRC over the past year, according to The Sunday Times’ [...]
‘Absolutely bonkers’: Labour minister hits back at Trump’s criticism of China trade January 30, 2026 A Labour minister has hit back at comments from President Donald Trump that trading with China was “very dangerous” for the UK. Sir Chris Bryant, who has served as trade minister since September 2025, said it would be “absolutely bonkers” for the UK not to do business with China. “You have to challenge China on [...]
Business confidence drops in blow to Labour January 30, 2026 Business confidence fell again at the start of the year, according to a tracker frequently cited by Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves, dealing a blow to the government in its hopes of boosting the UK economy before difficult elections in May. Starmer and Reeves have frequently pointed to the Lloyds Bank business barometer when speaking [...]
‘Woke’ banknotes: Bank of England orders money printer to follow ESG rules January 29, 2026 The Bank of England is facing backlash over its plans to make a new banknote printer comply with ESG and diversity standards under a “pass or fail” regime. Bank officials have attracted criticism from shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith over their plans to make applicants for the UK’s new money printing contract follow stringent criteria [...]
Exclusive: Starmer’s opponents receive largest donations in parliament January 29, 2026 Keir Starmer’s fiercest opponents have received the largest sums of cash donations since the General Election, City AM analysis has shown, as moves to weaken the Labour leader’s dominance in Westminster attract financial backing. The Prime Minister has faced intense criticism from all sides of the House of Commons in his first year and a [...]
Banks cool on interest rate cut expectations amid forecasting clash January 28, 2026 Top City banks have pushed back their predictions for the Bank of England’s next interest rate cut as forecasters are split on whether high inflation could upend monetary policy decisions. UBS Investment Bank economist Anna Titareva pushed back a call for the Bank’s next cut from February to March after the Office for National Statistics [...]
Dollar slides as ‘loss of confidence’ in US policy spikes debasement fears January 28, 2026 The US dollar had its worst day since President Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariff onslaught on Tuesday as investors dumped their exposure to the greenback. The DXY index – which tracks the dollar against a basket of other currencies – has slumped over two per cent since the beginning of the year. Amidst the dollar [...]
Starmer warned on ‘severe’ risk of trading with China January 28, 2026 Keir Starmer has been warned about the “severe” risk of trading with China as he said building economic relations with the world’s second largest economy would drive growth. The Prime Minister landed in Beijing on Wednesday for meetings with Chinese officials including President Xi Jinping in the coming days. He has been joined by City [...]
Starmer is wrong to say he doesn’t have to choose between the US and China January 28, 2026 Is Keir Starmer a geopolitical genius? As he jets off to China for the first visit by a UK Prime Minister since 2018, we must at least consider the possibility that he is. Ahead of his departure Starmer said “I’m often invited to simply choose between countries [but] I don’t do that.” The countries in [...]
Public finance bodies need more clarity, says boss of Reeves’ wealth fund January 28, 2026 The boss of Rachel Reeves’ flagship wealth fund has admitted British entrepreneurs want more clarity across public finance bodies as concerns rise over the growing number of institutions. Former RBS boss Oliver Holbourn, who the Chancellor appointed last July to lead the National Wealth Fund (NWF), said “people want more confidence in who they’re going [...]