‘The Round’: Huge Bankside wellness hub gets planning permission February 6, 2025 Southwark Council has granted full planning approval for a major mixed-use scheme on Blackfriars Road in Bankside, central London. Real estate investor Hines will develop a “largely vacant” site into a sustainable office and residential neighbourhood by 2030, with construction set to start later this year. It’s one of many developments in the city looking [...]
BBGI Global Infrastructure offered £1bn takeover deal February 6, 2025 BBGI Global Infrastructure has been offered a £1bn takeover from a Canadian pension giant, with the FTSE 250 trust’s board backing the deal. In a stock exchange notice, BBGI said $250bn asset manager British Columbia Investment Management had offered 147.5p a share for the entire trust, 21 per cent above the trust’s share price yesterday. [...]
Free market groups welcome nuclear power planning reform February 6, 2025 Free market groups have welcomed the government’s plans to reform planning rules around building nuclear power plants as “excellent news”. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer today announced the overhaul in a bid to slash red tape, fast-track approvals for new reactors and create thousands of highly skilled jobs. Small modular reactors (SMRs) would be built [...]
Gucci design chief De Sarno steps down as Kering targets turnaround February 6, 2025 Kering has parted ways with Gucci’s creative director Sabato de Sarno, two years after he was hired to lead a turnaround at the beleaguered brand. Sarno joined the brand in 2023 to replace Alessandro Michele, whose maximalist and genderfluid designs had defined the fashion house during his seven-year run. However, Sarno’s more paired-back direction failed [...]
FTSE 100 surges after Bank of England cuts interest rate February 6, 2025 The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 surged higher today after the Bank of England moved to cut interest rates to 4.5 per cent in a bid to breathe life into Britain’s ailing economy. All of the Bank’s nine-strong monetary policy committee voted in favour of a reduction in rates, with two members of the group [...]
Bank of England cuts interest rates despite looming inflation surge February 6, 2025 The Bank of England cut interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday, even though rate-setters expect to see a significant rise in inflation over the coming year. Seven members of the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) backed the decision, while two – Swati Dhingra and Catherine Mann – voted for a larger 50 basis [...]
Tesco considers franchise of axed Post Office branches February 6, 2025 Tesco has shown an interest in acquiring a number of axed Post Office branches as part of a franchise model, according to reports. Post Office chairman Nigel Railton told a group of MPs earlier this week that the UK’s biggest grocer had expressed interest in the 108-site Crown Post Office network, according to Sky News. [...]
Exclusive: Investment platforms flouting tax rules on ISA stocks February 6, 2025 Almost all UK investment platforms have been breaking HMRC rules by allowing stocks ineligible for tax relief to be put in ISAs, a City AM investigation has revealed. AJ Bell, Fidelity, Interactive Investor and many others have been allowing stocks that should not get tax-free status to be added to ISA portfolios, meaning capital gains [...]
Don’t sack the DJ: Group urges government to protect electronic music February 6, 2025 An industry body has called on the government to recognise the power of electronic music in reshaping and revitalising the UK’s struggling nightlife. A slightly unlikely poster child of the UK’s creative industry, electronic music contributed £2.4bn to the UK economy last year, with £646.1m of that from festival revenues. Leading the charge not only [...]
UK construction activity falls sharply as confidence plunges February 6, 2025 UK construction activity fell sharply in January, ending a 10-month streak of expansion as higher borrowing costs, gloomy economic prospects and weak client confidence hit the sector. S&P Global’s UK Construction Purchasing Managers Index fell to 48.1 last month, down from 53.3 in December and well below the 53.4 expected by analysts. “The overall construction [...]
