30th anniversary of VCTs celebrated as 2024 raise approaches £240m December 1, 2024 The total amount of money raised through venture capital trusts (VCTs) this tax year is approaching £240m, 20 per cent higher than last year, as the investment industry celebrates the vehicle’s 30th birthday. The VCT was unveiled in the 1994 Budget, where Chancellor Ken Clarke launched the scheme, and have since raised £12.5bn, funnelling money [...]
Stellantis closure: UK carmakers face ‘global’ challenges, Reynolds warns November 27, 2024 UK carmakers are facing “global challenges”, Jonathan Reynolds has warned, in the wake of Vauxhall owner Stellantis announcing plans to close its Luton plant. The business secretary said issues in the industry amid the shift to electric vehicles weren’t limited to the firm and insisted ministers did “everything we possibly could” to avert closure. Dutch [...]
Ford boss: UK incentives needed to boost uptake of EVs for net zero November 27, 2024 The automotive industry “urgently” needs government-backed incentives to improve customer uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) or the UK faces missing its net zero targets, the boss of Ford UK has said. Speaking the morning after the government announced a consultation into its EVs sales targets for automakers, Lisa Brankin said the move was welcome but [...]
Lamborghini Urus SE 2025 review: The super SUV goes hybrid November 23, 2024 The ground quakes and the air seems to crack as 30 unsilenced V10 engines explode into life. There’s a moment of tension, then the lights change, the track becomes a blur of clashing colours and the sound builds to a furious crescendo as the cars race towards the first corner. The Lamborghini World Finals are [...]
Jaguar rebrand shows the risk of embracing the fleeting ‘now’ November 22, 2024 The Jaguar rebrand has been dreadfully misconceived. The fatal mistake? Throwing away their heritage, writes Eliot Wilson.
Hospitality firms are bracing for the return of inflation November 21, 2024 October’s inflation figure has worried hospitality firms. While it is not too far above target – 2.3 per cent versus the sweet spot of two per cent – and one month does not constitute a trend, it has exacerbated concerns companies already had about the future of their industry. There are two reasons hospitality is [...]
Ford to cut hundreds of UK jobs in sweeping round of European layoffs November 20, 2024 The cuts will take place by the end of 2027 and make up around 14 per cent of the firm's workforce in Europe, which totals 28,000.
Why a 24 per cent drop in insolvencies is not all it seems November 19, 2024 At first glance, the Government’s new figures on insolvencies appear cheery, with the number of companies going bust over the last year down 24 per cent, from 2,293 to 1,747. But analysts have suggested figures may have more to do with falling interest rates than the general health of the economy, in addition to warning [...]
Kwik Fit restores hundreds of jobs as sales and profit accelerate November 19, 2024 Sales and profit at Kwik Fit accelerated during its latest financial year as the company created restored the 200 jobs it had previous shed. The Letchworth Garden City-headquartered business has posted a turnover of £633m for the 12 months to 31 March, 2024, according to newly-filed accounts with Companies House. The latest total comes after [...]
Time for England’s wilting roses to blossom against Boks November 15, 2024 When penning this column the niggling thought in my mind is that there’s no possible way that England beat the Springboks. Steve Borthwick’s wilting roses are struggling across the board, and shipped a record points total against a southern hemisphere side at home under his tenure in last week’s loss to Australia. Meanwhile South Africa, [...]