Government implements alcohol tax reliefs but critics say it’s not enough January 31, 2025 The government has implemented two tax reliefs aimed at growing the UK’s alcohol sector, although critics have said they won’t be enough to offset other cost hikes this year. Labour will implement a draught relief increase, cutting 1p duty off draft pints, as well as small producer relief, which the government said will help small [...]
UK’s small businesses underestimating risk of cyber attacks January 30, 2025 Small businesses (SMEs) consider themselves too small to be targeted for data theft, severely exposing themselves to cyber attacks. According to a new Association of Business Insurers (ABI) report, SMEs generally consider themselves too small to be targeted by cyber criminals and, as a result, are not using cyber insurance to help mitigate these risks. The [...]
Rachel Reeves says tax-hiking Budget was needed to stop economic calamity January 30, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has defended her tax-hiking Budget today, saying that without the changes to national insurance, the government would have lost control of the economy. Speaking on Time Radio this morning, Reeves said she recognises there are “consequences to increasing National Insurance,” but the “consequences of irresponsibility would have been far greater” had the [...]
Saga hikes profit expectations following Ageas deal January 30, 2025 Saga, the financial services and travel provider for over-50s, has said it expects to report an underlying profit before tax above previous guidance. In a trading update, the firm said it expected underlying profit before tax for the last six months of 2024 to come in marginally higher than the year before. Saga’s travel arm [...]
It’s not the 90s, TNT deal for Six Nations wouldn’t hurt rugby January 30, 2025 On the eve of this year’s men’s Six Nations bursts forth news that TNT Sports is preparing a bid for broadcast rights to the tournament from 2026. Cue mild hysteria at the possibility of rugby’s premier annual competition “disappearing” behind a TV paywall. An accelerant to the decline in mass interest in the sport or [...]
EE: Home nations agree four-year contract extension with telco January 29, 2025 The Football Association (FA) will continue with EE as its lead partner after the telco signed a four-year contract extension. The agreement covers the England men’s and women’s senior teams, the 90,000 capacity Wembley Stadium and the other three home nations football associations up to the 2028 Euros, which Great Britain and Ireland will co-host [...]
‘Not a second to waste’: City of London calls for action to back up Reeves plans January 29, 2025 The City of London has warned the government there “isn’t a second to waste” in pushing through its growth plans today after the Chancellor Rachel Reeves set out proposals designed to kickstart investment into the economy. In a speech in Oxfordshire, Reeves looked to reset the government’s economic agenda in a speech which committed to [...]
Tesco to cut 400 jobs as it moves to ‘more efficient’ working January 29, 2025 Tesco has announced plans to cut more than 400 jobs in a bid to improve efficiency at the grocer, following in the footsteps of Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons. The supermarket giant said that the “more competitive than ever” market means it must “work hard… to offer our customers unrivalled value”. “This means always being open [...]
Howden’s insurance conference disrupted by climate activists January 29, 2025 An insurance conference held at Howden’s City office was disrupted this morning following a slew of protesters from Extinction Rebellion
Next CEO backs Lords battle against National Insurance tax rise January 29, 2025 The chief executive of retail giant Next has backed an attempt in the House of Lords to change the planned change to employer’s National Insurance Contributions (NICs). Lord Wolfson has supported amendments to the bill which have been tabled by Baroness Noakes. In Labour’s Budget last Autumn, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said that the government would [...]