The only thing that’s growing in Britain is the civil service February 4, 2026 The salary bill for the civil service rose to £21bn last year, up more than seven per cent in a year when economic growth was anaemic at best. The private sector is funding a pay bonanza while businesses are ground down with higher taxes and more regulation, says John O’Connell While Britain’s businesses struggle with [...]
Fix Hammersmith Bridge to jolt Britain out of degrowth daydream February 4, 2026 The seven-year closure of Hammersmith Bridge is emblematic of British decline. The government must now take responsibility, says Neil Garratt “When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.” We might picture a bewhiskered Victorian Londoner contemplating those words in Arthur Conan Doyle’s latest novel, The Sign of the Four, [...]
Is Guinness Bristol City deal a sign of football shirt sponsorships to come? February 4, 2026 Looming exit of betting companies from football front-of-shirt sponsorship opens the door for more consumer brands like Guinness to return, writes Matthew Fletcher-Jones. Having made the often-regrettable decision to support Tottenham Hotspur in the 1980s, I’m still pleased to see any corner shop selling Holsten Pils – the club’s shirt sponsor throughout my youth. Chelsea [...]
Exclusive: PSG in talks with Netflix show Emily in Paris over appearance February 4, 2026 Paris Saint-Germain are in discussions with the makers of hit Netflix show Emily in Paris about a potential collaboration in the future, City AM can reveal. The talks could see the Champions League holders and Club World Cup finalists feature in a future episode of the series, which follows the adventures of an American marketing [...]
New Years optimism wears off as economic expectations drop February 4, 2026 New Year’s optimism is beginning to fall away with the number of people expecting the economy to improve this year falling at the start of February. According to the latest City AM/Freshwater Strategy poll of UK voters, the number of people expecting the economy to improve in the next 12 months has fallen by four [...]
Hayes and Purton can continue Amazing partnership February 3, 2026 DAVID Hayes has been a trainer to follow in the past fortnight in Hong Kong, with the stable firing in winners left, right and centre. Whisper it quietly, but the legendry Australian Hall of Fame inductee has put himself in a position to make a strong challenge in the trainers’ title race, which he last [...]
Time for All In You to show true Couleurs for Greatrex February 3, 2026 KNOWN as Super Saturday, Newbury’s card this weekend features a host of quality contests, including the valuable William Hill Hurdle (3.20pm), a race that is often considered the best handicap hurdle run outside the Cheltenham Festival. Having already advised an ante-post selection in this race a few weeks ago, hopefully many readers are sitting on [...]
Auto-enrolment closed the gap but more needs to be done, says pension minister February 3, 2026 The introduction of auto-enrolment in 2012 helped boost pension savings, but more needs to be done to encourage people to save for retirement, a leading government official has said. Speaking at the Association of British Insurers conference, pensions minister Torsten Bell acknowledged the importance of auto enrolment, with savings rates for eligible workplace employees doubling [...]
American Psycho musical at the Almeida review: Bloody brilliant February 3, 2026 American Psycho at the Almeida | ★★★★★ A lot has happened over the years Rupert Goold has been artistic director of the Almeida. In 2013 he opened his tenure at the Islington theatre with this wickedly amoral musical: six British Prime Ministers and one pandemic later, he completes the oroborus with the same riotous show. [...]
Cricket lawmakers MCC relax bat rules amid worldwide run on willow February 3, 2026 The soaring cost of English willow has forced cricket’s lawmakers the MCC to rewrite their rule book and allow the use of previously-banned laminated bats. Top-of-the-range Grade 1 bats have more than doubled in price to around £1,000 over the last decade, fuelling fears that swathes of would-be cricketers are being priced out. Those concerns [...]