State pension to rise by £560 in extra costs to Treasury September 16, 2025 The state pension is set to rise by more than £560 from April as wage growth figures used to calculate the increase will make the elderly the “big winner” from today’s economic data in another extra cost to Rachel Reeves. The triple lock uprating policy, which was introduced 15 years ago, means the pension increases [...]
University funding crisis spreads to wider economy September 16, 2025 UK universities are facing mounting funding crisis that is affecting the country’s wider economy – with regions like Wales and the North East more at risk. According to new analysis from Oxford Economics, universities added £80bn in gross value added (GVA) to the economy and supported 1.2m jobs in 2024, including staff directly employed by [...]
Firms continue to shed workers as jobs market deteriorates September 16, 2025 The collapse of the UK jobs market has deepened, according to official data, undermining the Labour government’s goal to boost employment. Firms continued to shed workers as the number of payrolled employees dropped by 6,000 in July, adding to a collapse of 142,000 over the year. Provisional estimates suggest there was a fall of 8,000 [...]
City AM Shadow MPC votes 8-1 to HOLD interest rates September 16, 2025 Leading economists from academia and the City have voted 8-1 for interest rates to be held at four per cent in City AM’s Shadow Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) ahead of the Bank of England’s own decision this week. Top analysts, who expressed views independently of their organisations, have said that stubborn inflation above the Bank [...]
Rule of law key to UK economic growth, says Attorney General September 16, 2025 The rule of law and trust in British institutions are essential to driving economic growth and attracting global investment, the UK’s Attorney General will say. Lord Hermer KC, Attorney General, is set to speak on Tuesday evening at an event hosted by the Sheriffs of the City of London for the launch of the Legal [...]
How AXA UK&I boss is building a £7bn insurance powerhouse September 16, 2025 If AXA UK&I was listed on the London Stock Exchange in its own right, it would be part of the FTSE 100, its chief executive Tara Foley has said. The AXA group is one of France’s best-known financial services firms, and its financials reflect this, having generated over €110bn (£95bn) in 2024. While back at [...]
Big pharma’s devastating retreat from the UK September 16, 2025 Merck and AstraZeneca’s withdrawal from UK investment is a warning signal to Rachel Reeves – but is she listening? Asks Oliver Dean Both AstraZeneca and Merck’s decision to abandon their respective UK expansions is more than a corporate setback. It is a catastrophic loss of jobs, investment and future innovation and the public are now [...]
Google pledges £5bn investment as it opens first UK data centre September 16, 2025 Google has pledged to invest £5bn into the British economy as it opens its first owned and operated data centre in the UK. The tech giant said the investment, which comprises capital spending and research and development over the next two years, will bolster its AI-powered projects in science and healthcare, creating more than 8,000 [...]
Parents’ secrecy on inheritance plans leaves children facing unexpected tax burdens September 15, 2025 Parents are choosing not to tell their children about their inheritance plans, leaving them at risk of being slapped with unexpected tax bills, new research has found. According to investment manager Charles Stanley, more than a third of Brits have an alarming lack of knowledge of how their parents plan to pass down wealth, despite [...]
Brits risk financial future as they fail to save for retirement September 15, 2025 UK savers are failing to put enough money away to fund retirement, despite growing calls from industry figures for people to get to grips with their pension savings. According to the latest report from Lloyds subsidiary Scottish Widows, nearly a quarter of working age people aren’t currently saving for retirement. Meanwhile, over a third are [...]