Minimum wage is lowering standards of living, argues Wetherspoons boss February 21, 2026 The founder and chairman of budget pub chain JD Wetherspoon has warned that minimum wage is making lowering people’s living standards by limiting companies’ ability to increase pay and hire. Sir Tim Martin argued that rather than serve as a safety net to protect workers, minimum wage is now doing more harm than good, following [...]
Leading German group backs bid for Telegraph Media Group February 21, 2026 A leading German media group has backed a £500m bid for the Telegraph Media Group, which could rival the deal struck by the owner of the Daily Mail to acquire the UK titles. Axel Springer, which owns brand including Politico and Business Insider, said it would support a consortium of bidders led by Dovid Efune, [...]
US Supreme Court rules Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs were illegal February 20, 2026 The US Supreme Court has handed down a landmark ruling that the sweeping tariffs President Donald Trump imposed on trading partners last year were illegal. Justices were weighing up a case centred around the Emergency Economic Powers Act that allows a President to regulate imports during a national emergency. The White House had argued the [...]
Buy now, sell-off later: Where did Klarna’s IPO go wrong? February 20, 2026 When Klarna finally kicked off its Wall Street listing in September chatter quickly emerged whether the move would open the floodgates to a fleet of fintech listings. With the likes of Monzo, Zilch, Revolut and Starling all speculated to be eagerly waiting in the wings, all eyes were on the Swedish unicorn as a taster [...]
Private sector axes more jobs amid Reeves’ tax and wage pressures February 20, 2026 The UK’s private sectors culled jobs for the seventeenth consecutive month in February led by a significant drop in the services sector as businesses were still digesting the impact of Labour’s 2024 Autumn Budget. The latest flash Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) from S&P Global described the rate of job shedding in February as at a [...]
Reeves lands £30bn reprieve ahead of Spring Statement February 20, 2026 Rachel Reeves has secured a record-breaking borrowing reprieve in fresh data that comes ahead of the Chancellor delivering her Spring Statement in March. The Treasury has been handed a surplus of £30.4bn in January, new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show, after a surge in tax receipts. The figure is £15.9bn higher [...]
Labour MPs: Britain must help establish a World Bank for defence February 20, 2026 MPs Alex Bailey, Calvin Bailey and Luke Charters make the case for why Britain should help establish an international defence bank.
Antonia Romeo appointed civil service boss February 19, 2026 Sir Keir Starmer has appointed Dame Antonia Romeo to be the first female cabinet secretary to lead the civil service, as part of a reshuffle of the government’s top team. The new civil service chief is currently the most senior civil servant at the Home Office, and was a leading contender for the role when [...]
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested on suspicion of misconduct February 19, 2026 Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office, the BBC has reported. It comes after increasing pressure on the former Prince after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer this morning said “nobody was under the law”. Police were understood to be weighing up allegations that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein had [...]
British Gas owner shares tumble after buyback was paused February 19, 2026 London-listed energy giant Centrica shares plunged nine per cent on Thursday morning after the group paused its share buyback programme in the face of a major earnings hit. The owners of British Gas reported lower 2025 earnings than in the previous year, but the group says it was resilient in a challenging market. The group’s [...]