Ofwat: Water regulator courts investors with refreshed PFI deals May 16, 2025 Ofwat is courting investors with plans to guarantee risk and minimise competition as it looks for more than £50bn to upgrade the water sector’s second-rate infrastructure. Private investors will have the “right to collect” revenue from customers, “opportunities for upside”, “capped liabilities” and “investment positive” support from the government, according to a briefing paper seen [...]
Rachel Reeves plans ISA review May 10, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves is planning to launch a review of the ISA market in the coming weeks amid City calls to cap the amount that can be held tax-free in cash. The Treasury will kick-off a consultation to get a feel for views across the City of London on how to reform the ISA regime, [...]
US tariffs: Reeves stresses ‘imperative’ to improve UK-EU trading relations April 9, 2025 Rachel Reeves has stressed it is “imperative” for the UK to improve its trading relationship with the European Union (EU), amid US President Donald Trump’s global trade tariff war. The Chancellor’s comments emerged in an interview with the Financial Times (FT) ahead of a crucial summit with EU leaders in London next month. Reeves told [...]
Grangemouth: Green projects at oil refinery site could cost £13bn March 12, 2025 Plans for new green projects at the Grangemouth oil refinery site in Scotland could reportedly cost up to £13bn. A feasibility study of possible options for the site – dubbed Project Willow – has listed nine opportunities including recycling plastics and producing biomethane, to create a “flourishing low carbon hub” over the next two decades, [...]
Tulip Siddiq reportedly given London flat linked to deposed Bangladeshi leader January 4, 2025 City minister Tulip Siddiq was reportedly given a London flat by a person with links to the deposed Bangladeshi leader. Siddiq, who serves as economic secretary to the Treasury with a brief including “countering economic crime, money laundering and illicit finance” was reported to have been given the two-bedroom property near King’s Cross in 2004, [...]
Reform UK supporters to gather in Kemi Badenoch’s constituency as ‘gloves off’ January 4, 2025 Reform supporters will gather in Kemi Badenoch’s constituency on Saturday, after their leader promised “the gloves are off” in the next election bout against her. Nigel Farage will host a Reform UK rally at Chelmsford City Racecourse, his second this year after a similar event in Leicester. The MPs – who both represent areas of [...]
Crispin Odey suing Financial Times for £79m in libel damages, documents show December 30, 2024 Hedge fund manager Crispin Odey is seeking at least £79m in damages from the Financial Times (FT) after suing the publication for libel, documents filed at the High Court show. Odey began legal action against the FT in May over four articles published in 2023, which contained allegations that he had sexually assaulted multiple women. [...]
Badenoch urged to apologise or face ‘action’ from Farage over Reform row December 28, 2024 Nigel Farage has urged Kemi Badenoch to apologise or face “action” after she accused Reform UK of “fakery” over its membership numbers. The Reform UK leader will spend the weekend weighing up what action to take if the Conservative leader ignores his calls for an apology over the “crazy conspiracy theory”. Farage pushed back against [...]
Financial Times battles misinformation and rising costs as readership drops October 10, 2024 The number of people picking up a physical copy of the Financial Times has dropped amid the title battling rising costs – including hiring more journalists. The broadsheet said its operating profit fell by £4.56m year on year, from £13.41m to £8.95m, in newly-filed accounts with Companies House. The dip was “in part the result [...]
Thames Water creditors in funding drive to dodge special administration September 6, 2024 A group of Thames Water’s creditors are devising backup plans for a renewed injection of cash in a bid to prevent the firm from being effectively renationalised. The UK’s biggest water company is struggling under an £18.7bn debt crisis, and is in talks with lenders to provide it with fresh funding. The floundering utility firm [...]