Retail sales see July boost but firms warn of tough winter ahead September 5, 2025 British retail sales rose more than expected in July, boosted by good weather and the UEFA Women’s Euros 2025 tournament. However, extensive revisions to previous months’ data have revealed a less volatile but ultimately slower growth picture for the year. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) today released its latest figures, showing that sales volumes [...]
Clock ticking on Making Tax Digital as HMRC struggles to win over SMEs September 4, 2025 With six months until nearly 800,000 self-employed people and landlords join Making Tax Digital (MTD) for income tax, HMRC is intensifying efforts to get more taxpayers to test the system. But the numbers so far paint a sobering picture of the challenge ahead for the agency. Data revealed that 2,400 users have joined HMRC’s beta [...]
Revolut deepens Google Cloud partnership amid ambitious growth plans September 4, 2025 Revolut has announced an expanded partnership with Google Cloud, aiming to scale its services to over 100m customers while enhancing product innovation through AI and machine learning. The fintech giant, which currently serves over 60 million users globally, will leverage Google’s infrastructure to improve back-end operations, fraud detection, and personalised customer experiences. Revolut will harness [...]
Currys kicks off year with strong sales despite high street pressures September 4, 2025 Currys has reported a robust start to its new financial year, with sales growth across the UK, Ireland and Nordics, and a £50m share buyback programme as the electricals retailer looks to reward shareholders. In a trading update for the 17 weeks to 30 August, the FTSE 250 firm said UK & Ireland like-for-like revenue [...]
Peter Kyle sets out tech growth plan as UK AI sector hits £2.9bn September 3, 2025 Technology secretary Peter Kyle has pitched the UK as a “global magnet” for innovation in his keynote speech at Mansion House on Wednesday evening. His pledge comes as investment in British AI companies hit record levels last year. Figures released alongside his address confirm that private investment in UK AI firms reached £2.9bn in 2024, [...]
UK startups at risk of scaling overseas, warns Lord Mayor September 3, 2025 The UK is “in danger of becoming an incubator economy – a place where start-ups develop transformative products and services before selling up or moving abroad”, the Lord Mayor of London is set to warn tonight, urging ministers and investors to act before Britain loses the rewards of its own innovation. Speaking at the innovation [...]
Google dodges Chrome breakup, but faces new pressures September 3, 2025 Alphabet’s Google scored a partial victory in Washington after a US federal judge ruled it will not be forced to sell its Chrome browser or Android operating system as part of a landmark antitrust case. But the court stopped short of giving the tech giant a free pass, ordering it to share search data with [...]
Peter Kyle pushes AI regulation changes to support UK businesses September 3, 2025 Technology secretary Peter Kyle will use his speech at Mansion House tonight to urge UK regulators to adopt AI in a bid to cut approval times for businesses, as Britain seeks to keep pace in the global race for tech leadership. Kyle is set to pledge £2.7m in government funding to help regulators trial AI [...]
Jaguar Land Rover hit by cyber attack forcing production shutdown at UK plant September 2, 2025 Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has been forced to halt production and retail operations after a cyber attack disrupted its global IT systems, with staff at its plant on Merseyside told not to report to work. The incident prompted the UK’s biggest carmaker to take its systems offline as a precaution. In a statement, JLR said [...]
Employment Bill sparks SME fear over costs and red tape September 2, 2025 Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have voiced growing concerns over the government’s sweeping Employment Rights Bill, warning that the reforms could place a disproportionate strain on firms already grappling with rising costs and a challenging economic climate. The legislation, billed as the most significant upgrade to workplace protections in a generation, is due for its third reading [...]
