Better workplaces will make Britain more productive October 11, 2025 The UK’s significant productivity crisis is exacerbated by outdated and inefficient office environments, and improving these workplaces is a practical and cost-effective starting point for businesses to boost national output, employee efficiency and staff retention, says Phil Bentley Last Friday, The Office for Budget Responsibility submitted its latest estimates for the UK economy to the [...]
How Reeves could ‘trigger’ bond market fright and collapse UK economy October 9, 2025 Poor decisions made by Rachel Reeves at the next Budget could send the UK economy into a crisis if her announcements trigger a collapse in bond markets’ confidence, according to a scenario played out by analysts at Oxford Economics. Rachel Reeves has pledged to drive growth in the UK and lower the cost of living [...]
Take it from someone homeless, cutting stamp duty will improve lives October 9, 2025 The Conservatives will make homeownership easier, but we must make it easier to build too, says Laurence Fredricks I am a senior researcher at Onward, leading our work on housing policy, and a Policy Fellow at Conservative YIMBY. But as a consequence of London’s housing affordability and availability problem, I am also homeless. Months of [...]
Yodel: Losses double at UK’s second-worst parcel delivery firm October 8, 2025 Losses at Yodel, which was named as the second-worst parcel delivery firm in the UK in 2024, have more than doubled as its revenue was slashed. The Liverpool-headquartered business has reported a pre-tax loss of £105.2m for its latest financial year. The total comes after Yodel also lost £48.2m in 2023. New accounts filed with [...]
Goldman warns Japan fiscal plans could spark UK bond sell-off October 7, 2025 The fiscal plans touted by the woman poised to become Japan’s first female Prime Minister will trigger a sharp jump the country’s borrowing costs that could spill over into the price of UK and US government bonds, Goldman Sachs has said. Sanae Takaichi, an admirer of Margaret Thatcher, was swept to victory in her Liberal [...]
IPO woes: Can LED face masks and tinned tuna IPOs revitalise London? October 4, 2025 The City heaved a sigh of relief on Friday morning, as two companies ploughed ahead with their plans to list on the London market, signalling that an IPO drought that has long plagued the London bourse may soon come to an end. The Beauty Tech Group announced the successful pricing of its initial public offering [...]
Investors beware: The Net Zero consensus is dead October 3, 2025 Opposition to decarbonisation is gaining momentum, and it’s starting to feel like a new consensus is emerging, writes Andrew Montford.
Green is good: How has Blank Street taken over London? October 3, 2025 Given the ubiquity of Blank Street’s pastel green branding across the capital, it is almost surprising to think the New York-based company only opened its first London shop in the summer of 2022. In fact, it only opened its very first shop in Williamsburg in 2021, after spending nearly a year housed in a Brooklyn [...]
Bosses’ inflation expectations highest in two years amid employment freeze October 2, 2025 Fears that inflation will remain well above the Bank of England’s two per cent target intensified on Thursday, after a closely watched survey of businesses revealed bosses plan to raise prices at their fastest rate since the height of the cost-of-living crisis. British businesses also have the weakest hiring intentions since 2020 with firms expecting [...]
Hotel demand ‘holds strong’ while staff costs eat into profit October 1, 2025 Demand for UK hotels rose in August, although higher staff costs means that hoteliers saw profit drop. Occupancy increased from 81.4 per cent to 82.1 per cent in August year-on-year, and rose slightly from 84.2 per cent to 84.5 per cent in London, according to RSM and Hotstats. But room rates remained flat as consumers [...]