Retail giants warn Reeves her tax plans risk UK living standards August 21, 2025 Tesco, Sainsbury’s and John Lewis, along with other UK retail heavyweights, have issued a direct warning to chancellor Rachel Reeves, arguing that her government’s tax policies could undermine its key promise to raise living standards. The retailers claim they are being forced to raise prices in the face of mounting costs, and that additional taxes [...]
Streeting’s junk food crackdown labelled ‘nanny state mission’ June 29, 2025 Retail bosses have hit out at a government plan to stop supermarkets from selling junk food in favour of fruit and vegetables as a “nanny state” policy that would add to red tape faced by high street shops. Under new plans to tackle the NHS’s £11.4bn obesity bill, the government will set supermarkets a “healthy [...]
Sunny spring boosts grocers as Brits buy 2,400 packs of strawberries every minute June 24, 2025 The UK’s unusual burst of sun boosted purchases of fruit and ice lollies this spring, although food inflation continued to soar at the UK’s grocers. Higher prices for fresh meats, chocolate and butters drove food inflation to 4.7 per cent, its highest level since February 2024, according to data insights group Kantar. But Fraser McKevitt, [...]
Tesco and Sainsbury’s supplier hit in latest cyber attack May 20, 2025 A key logistics supplier to several of the UK’s major supermarkets, including Tesco and Sainsbury’s, has confirmed it is being held to ransom by hackers following a cyber attack that disrupted operations this week, following a string of assaults on UK retail in the last month. Peter Green Chilled, which also supplies Aldi, said it [...]
Asda’s confident new boss is a boon for shoppers, and a threat to rivals March 19, 2025 Asda's bold new boss may have spooked rivals, but shoppers will come out on top, writes Susannah Streeter in today's Notebook.
Broker questions Asda’s turnaround plan March 17, 2025 London broker Jeffries has questioned whether Asda’s sales will rise quickly enough to meet the demands of its turnaround plan. Last week, UK supermarket giant Asda announced a drop in yearly sales, alongside a significant turnaround plan aiming to bring the supermarket back to its roots. Key to this plan is a significant investment in [...]
Time to breakup? Which UK stocks might benefit from selling assets January 27, 2025 Selling assets is a fashionable activity for UK stocks: WH Smith announced this morning that it is exploring a possible sale of its high street business to focus on its travel trade, following in the footsteps of Reckitt Bensicker, Marston’s and DCC, all of which have sold assets to unlock value recently. The news from [...]
Lidl boss warns retailers are ‘reeling’ after Budget tax raid November 20, 2024 The boss of budget supermarket Lidl has warned retailers are “reeling” following Labour’s tax raid in the Autumn Budget. The German supermarket’s UK boss Ryan McDonnell said the discount brand was staring down the barrel of “tens of millions of pounds” in extra costs. This comes after the Chancellor unveiled a £25.7bn tax-raising package, with [...]
Badenoch claims Reeves’s Budget was designed to ‘milk private sector’ November 13, 2024 The Labour government’s “ideological” Budget was “designed to milk the private sector”, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has claimed. Quizzing Sir Keir Starmer during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) today, the Conservative leader accused the Labour leader of “having nothing to offer but platitudes”. She said: “Their ideological Budget was designed to milk the private sector and [...]
Price rises loom as Budget hits Sainsbury’s with £140m costs November 7, 2024 Sainsbury’s chief executive Simon Roberts has cautioned that new government measures will hit shoppers with higher prices by adding £140m to the supermarket’s costs. These include a National Insurance hike, and a rise in the UK minimum wage. The increased National Insurance contributions, as announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in her Autumn Budget, will surge [...]