Immigration is top voter concern, exclusive poll says August 5, 2025 Reducing immigration became more important to voters in July, polling has shown, amid social instability over anti-migrant protests and more calls from top UK economists for a greater focus on getting Brits into the labour market before hiring overseas workers. Research by City AM/Freshwater Strategy has shown reducing immigration is the single most important issue [...]
Justice for Players: Fifa facing mega lawsuit following Diarra ruling August 4, 2025 Fifa and European national football associations are facing a huge class-action lawsuit after the Diarra ruling deemed the world governing body’s transfer regulations to be unlawful. Dutch foundation Justice for Players (JfP) is bringing the action on behalf of as many as 100,000 professional footballers who have played for clubs in EU member states and [...]
Lionesses’ semi-final drama breaks ITV viewing figures record July 23, 2025 The Lionesses’ dramatic semi-final win over Italy in the 2025 Women’s Euros drew a peak audience of 10.2m, according to TV broadcasting data. The game which saw England take on Le Azzurre averaged 8m viewers, delivering ITV’s highest average audience of 2025. The peak audience figure of 10.2m was achieved in the final minutes of [...]
British and Irish Lions should tour France and Argentina July 4, 2025 While watching the British and Irish Lions take on the Queensland Reds on Wednesday, I started thinking about what other sides across the world would make good opponents for the touring team. The Lions of late have always ventured to the same three nations – South Africa, Australia and New Zealand – and they will [...]
HomeServe: Checkatrade owner in the red despite sales passing £1bn June 23, 2025 HomeServe, the domestic repair and emergency services giant, fell into the red despite its sales surging to more than £1bn last year, it has been revealed. The Walsall-headquartered business has posted a revenue of £1.1bn for 2024 while it reported a pre-tax loss of £31.7m. The figures compare to the revenue of £774m and pre-tax [...]
Stock markets slide on Trump social media missives May 23, 2025 Stock markets across the western world felt the “chill winds” of Donald Trump’s latest trade salvos on Friday after the US President vowed to levy tariffs on imports from Europe and all Apple products made outside the US. America’s S&P 500 index opened down 1.62 per cent as traders pared back bets on US stocks [...]
Paris vs London: which city comes out on top? May 22, 2025 Our front page story yesterday on Paris surging ahead of London in the rankings of tech sector hotspots got people talking, reigniting an ancient debate over the relationship – and rivalry – that exists between these two mighty capitals. Credit where it’s due; Paris has patiently built a deep and high-value tech sector. But it’s [...]
Is HSBC turning its back on Europe? May 20, 2025 When Georges Elhedery took the helm at HSBC, he wasted no time making his mark on the firm. Elhedery plotted a “simpler, more dynamic and agile organisation” in his sweeping restructure first announced in October 2024. One significant change introduced by the new bank chief was splitting the business into “eastern markets” covering the Asia-pacific [...]
Champagne Lanson sales fail to fizz as prices rise May 9, 2025 Champagne Lanson suffered a sharp drop in its UK sales in 2024 as drinkers turned their backs on bars and restaurants amid the cost-of-living crisis. New accounts filed with Companies House show the brand’s turnover was slashed from £45.2m to £35.5m last year while its pre-tax profit also fell from £1.7m to £819,000. The champagne [...]
EU defence: Why ‘buy European’ really means ‘buy French’ March 24, 2025 The EU's 'buy European' defence spending plan is protectionist and short-sighted. And it really just means 'buy French', writes Eliot Wilson.