Uplift in patrols: West End businesses fund major Christmas crime crackdown November 19, 2025 The largest single private-sector investment in enhanced security and policing in London’s West End was launched, involving over 600 businesses in the busy section of the capital. Operation West End, an initiative from the New West End Company, which represents over 600 West End businesses, including on Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street, works [...]
Recession fears as insolvencies creep up amid construction woes November 18, 2025 The number of insolvencies crept up in October, official data has shown, amid further pressures on the construction industry and worries that Budget measures may sound the death knell for struggling companies. Data released by the Insolvency Service showed a 1.7 per cent month-on-month rise in insolvencies. On a year-on-year basis, official numbers show insolvencies [...]
Rachel Reeves’s caution could prove as damaging as Liz Truss’s recklessness November 18, 2025 Reeves is trying her best to avoid any comparisons to Truss's infamous mini-budget, but her excessive caution could prove just as damaging.
On this day in 1987: 31 killed in King’s Cross fire November 18, 2025 On this day in 1987, a dropped match in King's Cross Station set a wooden escalator ablaze, costing 31 lives. Eliot Wilson looks back.
Black Friday morphs into Black November November 18, 2025 ‘Black Friday’ has been around since the 1950s, when Philadelphia police to describe the chaotic day after Thanksgiving. Since picked up by retailers, it has now morphed into a crucial day of shop discounts in the retail calendar – and (for better or worse) become synonymous with online giant Amazon in the process. But this [...]
Treasury ‘buries’ farming report until after Budget in inheritance tax blow November 16, 2025 A government-commissioned review that shows the financial pressures on the farming industry has been “buried” by the Treasury until after the Autumn Budget, Whitehall sources claim. The review which was carried out by a former president of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), Baroness Batters, is understood to lay bare concerns among farmers over Chancellor Rachel [...]
Will the Budget push the economy off the cliff? November 13, 2025 Downing Street is in chaos and the economy has flatlined. Now, with just a couple of weeks to go until we find out what’s really in Rachel Reeves’ Budget, Britain’s bosses are getting restless. It used to be the case that Chancellor’s went quiet in the run-up to a Budget, keeping their powder dry and [...]
Christmas comes early for Young’s as party bookings surge November 13, 2025 One of the UK’s biggest pub groups has seen a surge in festive parties as the London-listed firm reported rising sales. Young’s, which operates nearly 300 pubs across London and the south of England, reported a 22 per cent rise in Christmas bookings compared to last year. “Christmas seems to be getting bigger every year,” [...]
Sherry cask whisky: Five top sherry bombs for the perfect winter dram November 13, 2025 Sherry cask whisky is one of the most popular and sought-after styles of whisky on the market, with sherry casks being used by Scotland’s distilleries for well over 200 years. These casks, typically Spanish oak, were used to transport sherry from Spain to the UK and arrived in the ports of Glasgow and Leith in [...]
Business leaders bemoan Budget uncertainty as tax hikes loom November 13, 2025 Business leaders up and down the country have poured scorn on the Chancellor after months of Budget uncertainty damaged consumer confidence and forced firms to hold off key investment decisions. Scores of chief executives, from retail to hospitality to telecoms and manufacturing, have voiced their concern over the lack of a clear fiscal plan after [...]