Rachel Reeves to raise ‘stealth and sin’ taxes to cover black hole August 15, 2025 Rachel Reeves is set to hit British consumers with extra “sin taxes”, leading forecasters have predicted, which are widely seen as regressive taxes that could hit people on lower income. The Chancellor faces having to raise £20bn in taxes at this year’s Autumn Budget to restore her “already paltry” margin of £9.9bn in headroom, according [...]
Hundred: ECB under fire over opt-out data transfer cut-off date August 15, 2025 Hundred organiser the ECB has come under fire for forcing fans to opt-out of having their data transferred to new franchise owners. At least 49 per cent of each of the eight Hundred franchises have been sold to overseas investors, with some teams selling a majority shareholding. And with it, as is common with ownership [...]
Pay boost for finance chiefs as workload ramps up August 15, 2025 Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) are seeing their salaries soar as companies look to soften the blow of steadily increasing their workload. Nearly 80 per cent of finance chiefs received a rise in compensation in 2024, as their responsibilities continue to grow and intensify, according to exclusive research from financial operations platform, BlackLine. In recent years, [...]
Seraphine: Princess of Wales’ favourite owed a king’s ransom August 15, 2025 Seraphine, the maternity fashion retailer whose clothes were worn by the Princess of Wales, owed over £33m as it collapsed into administration before being rescued. The business ceased trading and entered administration in July with consultancy firm Interpath appointed to oversee the process. The move led to the majority of its 95-strong staff being made [...]
Plusnet cuts jobs as sales and profit slashed August 15, 2025 Plusnet cut more than 100 jobs as its sales and profit were slashed during its latest financial year, it has been revealed. The Sheffield-headquartered broadband provider, which is owned by BT, has posted a turnover of £342.4m for the 12 months to 31 March, 2025, down from the £401.8m it achieved in the year before. Plusnet [...]
Breadmakers Hovis and Kingsmill merger agreed August 15, 2025 A deal to merge two of Britain’s biggest bread producers – Hovis and Kingsmill – has been agreed after months of talks. Associated British Foods (ABF), the owner of Kingsmill’s parent company Allied Bakeries, has agreed a deal with investment firm Endless, which owns Hovis to acquire the brand. The financial terms of the deal have not yet [...]
Newcastle Red Bulls can be model for Prem Rugby franchising August 15, 2025 This week Steve Diamond joked that Newcastle Red Bulls – formerly Newcastle Falcons – would not have a motorbike jumping off the roof of one of their stands… yet. But in a week where a major sports player has chosen to invest in Prem Rugby, clubs should be champing at the bit to get their [...]
Uptick in Canary Wharf office values after years of decline August 15, 2025 After several years of declining property valuations in Canary Wharf, the East London area is experiencing a modest recovery as the value of its largest offices rises for the first time in years
Thames Water’s cash crunch intensifies as bailout rumours swirl August 15, 2025 Thames Water faces a race against time to avoid collapse even after securing a short-term cash injection. The UK’s largest water company is set to run out of money as soon as September 2026 should it fail to secure a financial lifeline in the form of a recapitalisation deal. The utility company said the second [...]
Trump teases second Ukraine summit hours before Putin meeting August 15, 2025 European leaders including Sir Keir Starmer could attend a second meeting with Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky which could bring the war in Ukraine to an end, the US president has said. On the eve of the summit, Mr Trump said leaders from Europe, which could include members of the so-called “coalition of the willing” that [...]