London skyscraper given green light after Roman Basilica forced planning revamp July 8, 2025 The City of London has approved plans for 85 Gracechurch Street, which had to be reworked in light of the discovery of a historic Roman Basilica under the site. It also approved plans for a 45-storey tower at 63 St Mary Axe, which will sit at the edge of the City of London’s Eastern Cluster. Continuing with 85 Gracechurch’s [...]
M&S chair: UK needs to muscle up to tackle cyber threats July 8, 2025 M&S chair Archie Norman has said the UK is probably underresourced to tackle cyber threats and needs to boost its security level to encourage investment. Speaking to lawmakers on Tuesday, Norman said that the UK is “just not resourced up to operate at [the US] level.” “It’s very advantageous if we in this country have [...]
Rio Tinto hunts for dealmaking chief July 8, 2025 The news that Rio Tinto is seeking a dealmaking specialist as its new chief executive has reignited speculation about its deal-making abilities as it tries to draw a line under past mistakes in the mining industry. Chair Dominic Barton is reportedly seeking someone capable of delivering large-scale acquisitions while cutting costs and increasing productivity —a rare [...]
Unite boosted by growing student numbers but warns on Renters’ Rights Bill July 8, 2025 Student of accommodation provider Unite has posted an uptick in the value of its two property portfolios, buoyed by high occupancy and growing rents, but warned the upcoming Renters’ Rights Bill will increase costs for students. Unite said the value of its UK-wide portfolio grew by 0.6 per cent to £2.9bn, while its London portfolio [...]
Longest-ever Prime Day to see Brits spend nearly £2bn on Amazon July 8, 2025 A four-day-long Prime event is set to see Brits spend £1.9bn as consumers increasingly look to deals and discounts for their shopping. Retailers are hoping the discount bonanza will be a boon after a tough first half of the year, and a chance to get ahead of what is expected to be a tough second [...]
Transport for London offers up first chance to sponsor tube line July 7, 2025 Transport for London (TfL) has for the first time offered businesses a first of its kind opportunity to sponsor a whole tube line. London’s transport body has promoted a sponsor partnership for the Waterloo and City Line, which is traditionally used by commuters travelling from Waterloo to the City of London. TfL said the offering [...]
Labour moots breaking Heathrow third runway ‘doom loop’ with new powers July 7, 2025 The Labour government is exploring how to break Heathrow’s third runway “doom loop” via new parliamentary powers that would fast-track big projects. Ministers are examining whether legislation could be enacted to enable the UK’s biggest hub to bypass parts of the planning process. The proposals, first reported by the Times, would also apply to other [...]
UK housing market faces ‘considerable upheaval’ as sellers lose confidence July 7, 2025 Estate agents have warned that a turbulent global economy and changes to stamp duty have caused upheaval in the housing market after prices flatlined in June. UK house prices were stagnant in June, according to the latest data from Halifax, after a 0.3 per cent drop from April to May. “Today’s news suggests that house [...]
Octopus’s Greg Jackson: We have been gaslit by vested interests July 7, 2025 Octopus Energy founder Greg Jackson has accused his opponents of “gaslighting” ahead of an imminent decision by ministers on whether to split up the UK’s power market. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is expected to draw a line under the zonal pricing debate as early as this week after months of increasingly fierce lobbying from [...]
Plus500 profit rises amid expansion drive July 7, 2025 Fintech firm Plus500 has reported a rise in quarterly profit as it continued an expansion drive into markets including Canada, the UAE and India. Quarterly earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased 12 per cent to $91.3m (£67m) on revenue of $209.3m. Plus500 said active customers on its platform had jumped to 132,602 [...]
