Britain should ignore Trump’s tariffs and unleash unilateral free trade April 8, 2025 A UK conversation focused on a trade deal with the US is depressingly small-minded. The best way to beat tariffs is to lower our own barriers and trade with the world, says Tim Focas The global trade war is now an all-out economic slugfest, with Britain caught in the middle. President Trump has slapped a [...]
Labour’s tunnel tax will make driving an unaffordable luxury for Londoners April 7, 2025 From today, Londoners will have to pay as much as £35 to get to work via the Silvertown or Blackwall Tunnels. The message from this Labour government is clear: drive less and pay more, says Gareth Bacon MP It used to be that the family car symbolised freedom, whether that be the school run, the [...]
Michael Kors to lower prices as sales suffer huge hit April 7, 2025 The UK arm of luxury fashion brand Michael Kors has revealed plans to lower its prices after suffering a significant hit to its sales. The division’s revenue took a 20 per cent hit in the year to 30 March, 2025, as it closed stores and it felt the impact of the cost-of-living crisis. Michael Kors [...]
Tariff response: slash red tape and lure the non-doms back April 7, 2025 Shadow Business Secretary Andrew Griffith on the five steps the government should now take A few years before he died, Henry Kissinger described Trump as “one of those figures in history who appears from time to time to mark the end of an era and to force it to give up its old pretences”. It [...]
Trump’s Liberation Day has delivered what he loves most: Phone calls April 4, 2025 Like all businessmen, Trump loves being on the phone. Liberation Day was a grab for attention, and boy did it deliver, writes Helen Thomas.
How will Trump’s tariffs impact the UK economy? April 3, 2025 The US president holds up a sandwich board in the Rose Garden. On it is a list of countries. Next to each country are two columns: one for “tariffs charged to the USA” and one for “USA Discounted Reciprocal Tariffs”. The leader of the free world is cooking up a storm. “Our country has been [...]
UK grocery sales slow in March but there are ‘reasons to be optimistic’ April 3, 2025 Total sales at UK supermarket tills slowed in March, but analysts pinned this to a later-than-usual rather than a structural slowdown. Sales growth at tills slowed to 2.7 per cent in the four weeks to April 2, down from a four per cent rise in February, according to NIQ. In-store visits grew 6.8 per cent [...]
Russians eye up London mansions – but what might they come back to? April 2, 2025 The UK government is sitting on around £1.1bn of sanctioned London housing stock from Russians accused of corruption or Kremlin links. Many Russians have withdrawn from new purchases in the capital due to the difficulty of getting a mortgage. There are still Russians who own property, and live, in London, but – and this is [...]
House prices continue their steady upward climb April 1, 2025 House prices continued to rise in March as easing affordability pressures – alongside the end of the stamp duty holiday – boosted demand. UK house price growth remained stable in March at 3.9 per cent, the same as in February, according to Nationwide’s house price index. “These price trends are unsurprising, given the end of [...]
Harvey Nichols: Losses near £100m at luxury department store chain as sales fall April 1, 2025 Harvey Nichols has now lost almost £100m since it last made a pre-tax profit, it has been revealed, after being hit by the cost-of-living crisis and high inflation during its latest financial year. Delayed accounts for the iconic retailer, which was founded in 1831, have revealed its pre-tax loss went from £21.2m to £35.3m in [...]