PwC slapped with multi-million fine for audit failures at FTSE 100 firm Babcock July 16, 2026 Big Four giant PwC and a former partner have been fined over £5.5m for the audit failures of London-listed engineering giant Babcock International. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) issued disciplinary action against the firm and its audit partner, John Waters, following numerous serious audit breaches during the financial years 2019 and 2020 audits of the [...]
Foxtons shares tumble as estate agent takes £3m knock from Renters’ Rights Act July 16, 2026 Foxtons shares have tumbled after the firm said it took a knock of as much as £3m from the introduction of the Renters’ Rights Act, amid a sharp uptick in tenancy terminations. The Act abolished fixed tenancy terms and increased tenant flexibility to terminate tenancies, sparking “elevated levels of tenancy terminations.” Foxtons, which also bemoaned [...]
Engineering group picked off London Stock Exchange in £4.1bn deal July 16, 2026 Rotork is set to become the latest company snapped off the London Stock Exchange by a foreign buyer after agreeing to a £4.1bn takeover by Swiss rival ABB. The engineering group agreed to pay 506p per share in cash for the FTSE 250 firm, comprising 503p in cash and a dividend of up to 3p. [...]
We should all get behind this wealth tax July 16, 2026 A wealth tax is once again rising up the agenda as Andy Burnham prepares to enter Downing Street. The tax is remarkably popular. YouGov polling last year found 75 per cent of Brits would be in favour of the introduction of a wealth tax, with only 13 per cent opposed. There are three clear reasons [...]
Sport expects true fan Andy Burnham to take a leaf out of John Major’s book July 16, 2026 Andy Burnham was Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport for 16 months in Gordon Brown’s cabinet. This was a time in which shirt and tie was the required political dress code for swinging in a children’s playground in Brixton with the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Family, one Ed Balls. Burnham’s [...]
Elite English firms face uphill battle in fierce New York market July 16, 2026 Elite City law firms face major financial and strategic hurdles breaking into the US legal market, as fierce competition for top talent and high partner compensation make organic growth and brand-building especially challenging, writes Maria Ward-Brennan Breaking into the US has been on the agenda of many elite English law firms, most notably four-fifths of [...]
Sushidog investor pumps seven-figure sum into golf sim brand ahead of Open July 16, 2026 A firm with investments in Sushidog and Smash Padel has pumped a seven-figure sum into a UK golf simulator company ahead of the Open Championship. Middleton Enterprises, the family office of HomeServe co-founder Jeremy Middleton, will invest upwards of £1m into TeeGo, a simulator firm looking to drive growth in indoor golf. The injection will [...]
Shabana Mahmood set to be named Chancellor by Burnham July 15, 2026 Shabana Mahmood is set to be named Chancellor by Andy Burnham next week when the former Manchester mayor takes the keys to Number 10, according to reports. The home secretary has now pipped Ed Miliband, Yvette Cooper and Wes Streeting to Rachel Reeves’ post, the Financial Times reported. A source told the paper: “Shabana is [...]
Jamie’s Italian is awful but don’t worry, there are some great new Mediterranean restaurants too July 15, 2026 This week I talk about two Italians, one Greek, a talented Cypriot and an irritating Englishman. Prepare to read about two restaurants you should visit (Bancone and Zylia) and one you should reserve for your worst enemies (Jamie’s Italian)… ZYLIA Covent Garden is a part of London that you only go to for a specific [...]
Finsbury lines up Games Workshop splurge using merger windfall July 15, 2026 Nick Train’s Finsbury Income and Growth fund is preparing to launch a spending spree on Games Workshop shares after pocketing a windfall from a string of acquisitions in its portfolio. The FTSE 250 investment trust – which can trace its roots back over a century – unveiled plans to use both debt and returns from [...]