By: Felix Armstrong

Retail Reporter Felix Armstrong is City AM's retail reporter, covering retail, hospitality and property news. He has previously written for The Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph and The i Paper. Email Felix at Felix.Armstrong@cityam.com

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Brits booking holidays last minute over Iran war fears, says Jet2

April 29, 2026

Budget airline Jet2 said Brits are leaving holiday bookings until the very last minute as the Iran war threatens to wreak havoc on summer tourism plans. The UK’s third-largest package holiday provider said on Wednesday: “Since commencement of the conflict in the Middle East, the booking profile has become increasingly close to departure.” But the [...]
Aston Martin turnaround stalls as carmaker posts loss

April 29, 2026

Aston Martin’s turnaround under billionaire Lawrence Stroll remains stuck in first gear as the car manufacturer posted another loss. The FTSE 250 firm posted a £66m pre-tax loss in the first three months of this year, which is 18 per cent narrower than this time last year, though total car sales dropped by one per [...]
‘Slightly unnerving’: Greene King enlists AI to answer pub phones

April 29, 2026

Greene King has turned to AI-generated assistants to staff its bars as hospitality firms battle to absorb rising costs, City AM can reveal. The Chinese-owned pub chain, one of the UK’s largest, is using a “virtual assistant” named “Charlie” to answer the phone at a number of sites, including in London. The shift to digital [...]
Whitbread hopes to win back investors with £1.5bn property sell-off

April 29, 2026

Premier Inn owner Whitbread will hope to win back investors when it announces a £1.5bn sell-off of a shedload of its property portfolio on Thursday. The FTSE 100 giant is gearing up for its full-year results later this week, and aims to please its investors with a cash injection to turn the corner on a [...]
Londoners wait far longer to sell homes as stamp duty weighs on confidence

April 29, 2026

The wait for a London house sale is six days longer now than last year, as the capital sees the “greatest impact” from stamp duty and the Iran war’s hit to property confidence. The average time it takes for a house in the capital to be snapped up once it is listed on the market [...]
Chaos: Now Downing Street rules out rent freeze after backlash over ‘reckless’ rumours

April 28, 2026

Downing Street has ruled out a rent freeze just hours after the Chancellor refused to distance herself from the policy while speaking in the Commons. The apparent kite flying sparked 24 hours of panic among residential landlords and economists, who dubbed the rumoured policy a would-be “disaster”. Reeves had reportedly been considering the policy to [...]
Reeves rent freeze: How did Chancellor turn to a Mamdani-style policy controversy?

April 28, 2026

Reports of plans in Downing Street for a rent freeze came as a shock after a housing minister said Labour opposes the policy. Felix Armstrong explores why rent controls stoke so much controversy, from New York to Sweden. Rumours that Rachel Reeves is considering slapping a freeze on private rents shocked the property market on [...]
Taylor Wimpey sales fall as Iran war pushes up building costs

April 28, 2026

Leading housebuilder Taylor Wimpey is bracing for rising costs in its supply chain as the industry warns of soaring building inflation caused by the Iran war. The housebuilder’s warning prompted its stock to dip in early trading, pushing its share price down as much as 4.7 per cent on Tuesday. The FTSE 250 firm’s order [...]
Reeves rent freeze proposal dubbed ‘disaster’ for renters and landlords

April 28, 2026

Rachel Reeves has fuelled rumours she is considering a rent freeze as leading economists said the policy would be a “disaster” for renters and landlords. Addressing the Commons on Tuesday afternoon, the Chancellor was asked by a Labour MP to implement a freeze on private rents. “I will do everything in my power and use [...]
Tories pledge to scrap mandatory time off for union reps

April 27, 2026

The Conservative Party has pledged to scrap the legal requirement for employers to offer paid time off for union representatives. Tory shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith will announce the policy on Monday, which he says will free up taxpayer cash to be spent on cutting NHS waiting lists and filling potholes. Union reps are currently [...]

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By: Felix Armstrong

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