Farage’s Reform UK backtracks on key benefits policy to support pubs February 3, 2026 Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has ditched its backing of Labour to support the scrapping of the two-child benefit cap as it set out policies to back pubs facing rising costs. In May last year, Farage said the party backed lifting the two-child benefit cap as part of a string of proposals to boost birth rates [...]
Rolls-Royce: FTSE 100 giants shares eye all-time high in tariff comeback February 3, 2026 Shares in aerospace giant Rolls-Royce were back on the march to an all-time high after a tariff salvo from the US sent the City giant’s stock tumbling. The FTSE 100 titan’s stock was up 1.6 per cent to 1,250.50p on Tuesday morning, making it one of the top risers on the blue-chip index. The Derbyshire-headquartered [...]
Mandelson eyes ‘outsider’ role after quitting Labour over Epstein fallout February 3, 2026 Lord Peter Mandelson had declared a “sea change” in his career after resigning from the Labour Party following the latest batch of Epstein files released last week. Speaking to The Times, Mandelson, freshly departed from Labour after 40 years at the top, said he now wants to “contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and [...]
London fintech Teya launches in Spain and Italy amid European expansion February 3, 2026 Payments business Teya has added two new countries to its operations as it marks the next phase in its global expansion. The London-based fintech, which is incorporated in the Cayman Islands, is this week launching in Spain and Italy after successful pilot projects in both countries began in July. The move means Teya, which was [...]
Why has no one in the Cabinet run a business? February 3, 2026 It is in all our interests that politics remains an attractive proposition for people who have worked in business writes Kiki McDonough.
GDP set to soften in 2026 as tax hikes bite February 2, 2026 The UK is set for another year of soggy growth, according to new forecasts from EY, with the government’s tax hikes and ongoing worries about a global trade war hamstringing momentum. The Big Four firm predicted that GDP would rise 0.9 per cent in 2026, slower than the 1.4 per cent recorded last year, as [...]
Salons could ‘pull down shutters for good’ as business rates bite February 2, 2026 The British Beauty Council has urged the government to extend support on business rates to hair and beauty salons, or watch firms up and down the country “pull down their shutters for good”. Victoria Brownlie, chief policy and sustainability officer at the British Beauty Council, warned that the profitability of beauty salons has been “hollowed [...]
UK payments stuck with ‘bolted on’ European regulation, says PSR boss February 2, 2026 The boss of the UK’s payments regulator has said the body’s consolidation with the City watchdog will allow it to ditch overhanging red tape from Europe. David Geale, who heads up the Payments System Regulator (PSR) and leads on payments at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), said: “There are bits of payments regulation that have [...]
Employment falls despite manufacturing output hitting new high February 2, 2026 Employment across the manufacturing sector dropped despite output jumping to its highest level in 17 months, new data has shown. Manufacturers continued shedding staff due to high pay and tax pressures, according to S&P Global’s latest purchasing managers index (PMI). The poor reading for the labour market came in direct conflict with more positive results [...]
Urban Pubs and Bars defies hospitality gloom with doubling of profit February 2, 2026 One of London’s biggest pub chains has defied hospitality gloom after posting a more than doubling of profit. Urban Pubs and Bars, which operates more than fifty venues across the capital including The Wren in Bank, the Commercial Tavern in Spitalfields and the Punch Tavern in Fleet Street, saw pre-trax profit climb to £1.7m for [...]