Are we all just winging it, all the time? April 2, 2025 There aren’t many decade-old Guardian articles that still resonate with me, but I can recall (and often revisit) a 2014 column by Oliver Burkeman. He was writing in response to the latest example of institutional failure that week (something to do with the bungled sacking of the New York Times editor) and he was able [...]
Boutique Leicester Square hotel handed £42m price tag April 1, 2025 A recently-converted boutique hotel in London’s Leicester Square has been put on the market for £42m. The former office building on 2-5 Charing Cross Road has undergone a significant conversion project and is set to be fully operational by June. The announcement comes as former Natwest bank on London’s Piccadilly is also set to become [...]
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 [...]
Council pay: Westminster tops ‘town hall rich list’ with 73 staff on over £100k March 31, 2025 Westminster City Council has topped a national ‘town hall rich list’ with 73 staff rewarded with over £100,000 last year. The central London borough council also had the most employees nationwide – at eight – receiving more than £200,000 in total remuneration, in 2023-24, according to the Taxpayers’ Alliance (TPA). While 13 more Westminster staff [...]
Boss of Mirror publisher quits to join Jockey Club March 31, 2025 The boss of news publisher Reach has left with immediate effect for a new role at the Jockey Club, the UK’s largest commercial horseracing organisation. Jim Mullen, who has been chief executive at the owner of the Daily Mirror, Daily Express and Daily Star since 2019, is leaving by “mutual agreement”, the firm’s board said [...]
Monzo, Starling, Zilch: The fintech IPOs that could boost London March 30, 2025 London markets have suffered a torrid couple of years, but could fintech help turn the tide? Swedish fintech Klarna marked the latest snub to the City after it announced it was pursuing a US-listing despite hopes the firm would float in London. This followed 88 companies leaving the London Stock Exchange (LSE) last year, including [...]
Why are we all saving so much? March 30, 2025 It’s a question that has been puzzling economists for months. The worst of the cost-of-living crisis is, for most households, moving further into their rear-view mirror. The Bank of England’s rate setters have successfully – if belatedly – reined in the worst of the inflation that caused so many households to tighten their belts after [...]
Thames Water’s finance chief quits as firm continues trying to find a buyer March 28, 2025 Thames Water’s finance boss has quit midway through a key restructuring of the heavily indebted utility giant. Chief financial officer Alastair Cochran told the firm that he was stepping down on Friday morning. His sudden departure comes as Thames Water continues to try to find a buyer for the company to help steady its finances. Thames Water is England’s biggest water firm, with about [...]
Spring Statement 2025: Rachel Reeves’ popularity nears Kwasi Kwarteng levels March 28, 2025 Rachel Reeves’ popularity rating as Chancellor has neared Kwasi Kwarteng levels after the mini-Budget, following the Spring Statement on Wednesday. She set out £14bn in welfare and spending cuts in the House of Commons, including a £4.8bn squeeze on benefits, to restore the £9.9bn headroom she had at the Autumn Budget, which would otherwise have [...]
Rachel Reeves has already lost half of her £9.9bn headroom March 28, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has had £5bn wiped off her headroom less than 48 hours after she delivered her Spring Statement, a calculation by Bloomberg Economics has suggested. Chancellor Reeves has received several warnings from leading economists at the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) and the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) that her headroom risks getting [...]