Labour to introduce new licensing rules to boost high street venues July 26, 2025 The Labour government has pledged to simplify the opening process for new high street venues in a bid to ramp up British hospitality prospects. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said new licensing framework, which comes as part of Labour’s overhaul on planning, plans to fast-track permissions for al fresco dining, helping to “protect pavement pints”. The [...]
Shell: FTSE 100 giant in line for profit hit after oil woes July 26, 2025 Shell is expected to report lower profits for recent months as the energy giant continues to battle oil price volatility and strives to return cash to its shareholders. The FTSE 100-listed company is predicted to report adjusted earnings of 3.74 billion US dollars (£2.78 billion) for the second quarter, when it publishes its latest figures [...]
Breadmakers Hovis and Kingsmill butter up £75m merger July 26, 2025 Bread producers Hovis and Kingsmill are set for a historic merger with their owners expected to ink an agreement after months of discussion. Kingsmill, whose immediate parent Allied Bakeries is owned by London-listed Associated British Foods (ABF), and Hovis could benefit from up to £50m of annual cost savings from a merger. The proposed agreement, [...]
Rachel Reeves urges cabinet to boost British jobs as employment slides July 26, 2025 Rachel Reeves has told cabinet ministers to ensure government contracts go to companies that will boost British workers as employment figures continue to struggle. The Chancellor, along with Chancellor to the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden, told their colleagues that the billions in public spending on transport and infrastructure projects must be utilised as an [...]
Businesses to pay £1.1bn in new packaging fees to councils July 26, 2025 Councils in England are set to receive a share of £1.1 billion in recycling funding taken from money charged to companies for the packaging they produce. Under the current system, local councils have footed the bill for disposing of items such as milk bottles, cereal boxes and soup tins using taxpayers’ money. But the new [...]
Exclusive: Industry chiefs urge MPs to accept workers’ rights amendments July 26, 2025 Seven of Britain’s most influential industry bodies have urged MPs to accept an array of House of Lords amendments to the government’s workers’ rights package, warning the overhaul is already having a “chilling” impact on jobs and the economy. The cohort of heavyweight lobby groups – which includes all the so-called ‘Big Five’ business bodies [...]
UK hits Big Tech with online safety crackdown July 25, 2025 The UK’s biggest tech platforms are under new legal pressure from Friday as sweeping new child protection laws come into force, requiring firms to deploy strict age verification for harmful content – or face fines of up to £18m, or 10 per cent of global turnover. The new rules, part of the government’s long-trailed Online [...]
IMF warns UK faces ‘significant challenges’ amid trade war July 25, 2025 The Chancellor could be left at risk of breaking her fiscal rules by unexpected economic shocks and faces “significant challenges” in delivering the government’s agenda, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned. The IMF said the UK’s “limited” so-called headroom on its public finances gave little room to manoeuvre and called on Rachel Reeves to [...]
Chetwood Bank surpasses £5bn after strong growth July 25, 2025 Chetwood Bank’s balance sheet has exceeded £5bn for the first time, City AM can reveal, after growing by £1bn in just three months. The digital challenger bank surpassed the milestone in July, with chief executive Paul Noble noting the bank’s “great growth trajectory” and expanding customer base to the rise, after the balance sheet stood [...]
Law firm partner hiring surges in City amid private equity boom July 25, 2025 Demand for new partners with private equity expertise has reached an all-time high, as top US law firms continue to dominate lawyers appetite