London SXSW in review: Where was the vibe? June 10, 2025 A lot to love, but a lot to improve. Was the first year of London SXSW a success? Paul Armstrong gives his verdict.
Unemployment creeps up as firms cut jobs following Reeves tax raid June 10, 2025 The unemployment rate has crept up to 4.6 per cent from 4.5 per cent, official data has revealed, putting Chancellor Reeves’ ambition of growing the UK economy and getting people into work under threat. It is the highest unemployment rate in three years, with the UK economy then recovering from the pandemic. Figures released by [...]
Green light for Sizewell C as £14.2bn to go to major nuclear project as part of Spending Review June 10, 2025 The UK’s nuclear energy capacity is set to receive a major boost after the government confirmed it would put up the funds for the Sizewell C plant, ending months of uncertainty. Funding for the project is set to be announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves alongside a decision on the Small Modular Reactor (SMR) competition at [...]
Ouch: Three tech firms bail out of the UK in a single day June 10, 2025 The Prime Minister did his best to sound bullish about the future of the UK tech sector yesterday as he opened London Tech Week. Some awkward technical issues with his autocue didn’t put him off his stride as he declared that Britain was “unequivocally, unashamedly and defiantly open for business.” Leaving aside the bizarre idea [...]
Government urged to add AI minister to every department June 10, 2025 The UK government has been urged to create an AI oversight body with ministerial posts dedicated to advanced technology, with former Tory leader William Hague calling on the “very structures of government” to be re-imagined in the coming years. A new Policy Exchange report calls on the government to create a new Office for Superintelligence [...]
Exclusive: Nikhil Rathi’s FCA is ready to go on the offensive June 10, 2025 Nikhil Rathi’s first five-year term at the helm of the FCA was dominated by difficult situations – most beyond his control, some firmly in it. But after being reappointed by Rachel Reeves in April, and with the added pressure of a new growth mandate from government, he outlines to Ali Lyon what he hopes his [...]
London Tech Week day 1: why the world comes to London June 9, 2025 With speakers from Keir Starmer to Jensen Huang, London Tech Week demonstrates the convening power of the capital, says Russ Shaw London Tech Week 2025 is officially underway, with over 30,000 attendees from 125 countries descending on the capital for a week of big ideas, ambitious founders and frontier technologies. As investors, policymakers and global [...]
Winter fuel U-turn could lead to ‘unfair’ and ‘complex’ tax system June 9, 2025 Treasury calculations on savings made from a means-tested winter fuel payment for nine million pensioners may be significantly reduced due to a “new complexity in the tax system”, an economics think tank has warned. The government has claimed that £1.25bn budgeting for winter fuel payments represents a cost reduction of up to £450m compared to [...]
London Tech Week: Accenture warns of AI divide as Starmer launches tech skills plan June 9, 2025 Sir Keir Starmer may sound like he is making the right noises for the tech sector with his flagship pledge at London Tech Week to train one million students in AI – but new data highlights a stark regional divide has already taken shape. London is rapidly pulling away from the rest of the country [...]
Labour to give HMRC £500m for AI boost June 9, 2025 The British tax agency, HMRC, is set to receive £500m in funding, which will see the introduction of an AI tool to assist the public with enquiries