Private equity buyouts slump amid AI fears and Middle East conflict April 6, 2026 The value of buyouts by private equity groups fell by more than a third in the first quarter of the year, with dealmakers warning that concerns over AI’s impact on software businesses and the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict could hasten the downturn. In the three months to March, private equity groups agreed acquisitions worth $172bn [...]
The UK is in a ‘toxic relationship’ with the government says Badenoch April 5, 2026 Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has claimed the UK is in a “toxic relationship” with big government, which is stagnating economic growth and holding people and businesses back. In an op-ed in The Times, Badenoch said the relationship is making people “miserable” while proving to some that “Britain is broken”. She wrote: “This isn’t a broken [...]
Labour must reform biodiversity laws to boost housebuilding, trade body says April 3, 2026 Housebuilders are calling on the government to reform its biodiversity quotas for developers to lessen the costs and delays they say it causes to businesses. The Home Builders Federation (HBF), which represents the housebuilding industry, welcomed recent changes to biodiversity laws but said they do not go far enough in lifting the burden on housebuilders. [...]
Mansion tax to hit 165,000 homeowners April 3, 2026 The mansion tax is expected to hit 165,000 homeowners in its first year, more than the 120,000 that was previously thought. The levy will hit 45,000 more properties than had been initially forecast, according to the fiscal watchdog, and thousands could successfully appeal the tax. The mansion tax, introduced at last year’s Budget, will not [...]
Miliband to bow to pressure on North Sea drilling April 3, 2026 Energy secretary Ed Miliband is poised to bow to significant pressure to allow drilling in the North Sea to counter collapsing fuel supply chains and soaring energy costs. Miliband is planning to give the green light to the Jackdaw gasfield, which could supply gas to more than a million homes this winter. This would be [...]
Declining patent filings show Britain has stopped innovating April 3, 2026 There are lots of ways to measure innovation, but if we go by patent filings, it's a sorry image for the UK, writes Ayushma Maharjan.
Bank of England: Businesses sharply raise inflation expectations April 2, 2026 Businesses’ inflation expectations shot up in March according to a closely-watched Bank of England survey, as bosses braced for a surge in energy costs as a result of the Iran war. The Banks’ decision makers’ panel, a monthly poll of thousands of execs, found that the average expected inflation rate in the next year was [...]
Revolut slapped with eight-figure fine in Italy over misleading customers April 2, 2026 Revolut has been slapped with a fine by the Italian competition watchdog after the firm was accused of misleading customers over its fees and terms of its investment products. The London-based fintech giant is expected to cough up €11.5m (£10m) after the Italian regulator found advertisements that implied customers could trade with 0 per cent [...]
Tax instability drives ultra-wealthy to pack their bags April 2, 2026 Tax instability has driven huge swathes of the UK’s ultra-wealthy to consider leaving the country over the past twelve months. Two-thirds of the UK’s wealthiest have mulled fleeing the country for tax reasons, according to the latest research from accountancy firm BDO. But while conversations surrounding tax have focused on the rate Britain’s wealthiest pay, [...]
Farage slammed over pledge to keep ‘unsustainable’ triple lock pension April 2, 2026 Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has come under fire after committing to maintaining the triple lock pension, the financial mechanism that ensures pensioners’ earnings are increased by whatever is higher out of inflation or wage growth even in times of economic crisis. In a press conference on Thursday, Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick said pensioners were worried about [...]