London could have new bridges for free – but we’re funding Nimbys and woke charities instead July 31, 2025 The City Bridge Foundation is an ancient fund with deep pockets whose specific purpose is to build and maintain London’s bridges – so why is it paying for woke charities and indirectly giving money to Nimby groups? Asks John Murphy “Politics is all about trade-offs,” we’re told. “You can’t please everyone,” says the wizened old [...]
Nationwide wins big in mass switch from FTSE 100 banks July 30, 2025 Nationwide has raided the customer base of Britain’s banking titans as current account switchers flocked away from legacy firms. The building society welcomed nearly 73,000 switchers in the first three months of the year, compared to 17,000 outflows, according to Pay.uk data. This comes after the mutual returned billions to customers in 2024, whilst the [...]
Northern: Cancellations rise as train company’s profit grows July 28, 2025 Government-owned train company Northern cancelled more services as its profit rose during its latest financial year, it has been revealed. The number of trains cancelled by the business increased from 7.2 per cent to eight per cent in the 12 months to 31 March, 2025, new accounts filed with Companies House show. The rise in [...]
UK’s AI vision faces infrastructure reality check July 25, 2025 The UK government has set ambitions to become a global leader in AI research, safety and commercialisation. Over £2.5bn has been committed to compute infrastructure, with new supercomputers being built in Edinburgh and Bristol, and “AI Growth Zones” being launched across regions including Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. But a growing chorus of voices [...]
Swatch moves London headquarters to new Canary Wharf office space July 24, 2025 Swatch has signed a five-year lease for 9,500 sq ft of office space in a multi-purpose office building in Canary Wharf. The watches and jewellery manufacturer will move its London headquarters from Dockside Road to Docklands site Sierra Quebec Bravo (SQB). Swatch did not respond to a request for comment and did not disclose the [...]
Savills cuts estimate for house price growth over next two years July 24, 2025 Savills has cut its estimate for house price growth over the next two years as caution stalls the housing market, but expects looser mortgage rules to boost in the market in the medium term. The real estate giant cut its forecast for house price growth in 2025 from four per cent to one per cent, [...]
Regulator probes Deloitte over Glencore accounts July 23, 2025 The accountancy regulator announced this morning that it has launched an investigation into Deloitte over audits related to the energy giant Glencore.
Burlesque musical review: Christina Aquilera show is a true spectacle July 22, 2025 Burlesque musical review: ★★★★ Was Burlesque going to be the worst musical of the year? Headlines suggest chaos: the director and choreographer exited the production weeks before the West End opening, and the late arrival of costumes forced the actors’ union Equity to put out a statement about a “number of issues,” including to do [...]
The Works: Shares triple in value after ‘living to fight another day’ July 22, 2025 Shares in The Works have more than tripled in price in the space of four months after recovering from investors questioning “its relevancy in modern retail”. Stock in the West Midlands-headquartered company was priced at 20p towards the end of March but their value has rocketed since then and are now changing hands for more [...]
Ministers urged to reinstate tax-free shopping to deliver Brexit boost July 22, 2025 Ministers have been urged to reinstate tax-free purchases for international visitors to make the UK a ‘global shopping capital’ and help the country benefit from its position outside the EU. “With Britain no longer in the EU, we have the opportunity to become the best place in the world for shopping,” Derrick Hardman, chair of [...]