The latest Prism SME Barometer reveals UK’s small and medium-sized businesses face a massive $42 trillion in working capital trapped in global supply chains. This capital constraint severely limits SMEs’ ability to expand internationally. It shows access to capital ranks among the top barriers to SME participation in global trade. Over 30% of SMEs surveyed […]
Tim Davie, the Director General at the BBC, and his team found themselves under the intense scrutiny of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) yesterday regarding the corporation’s implementation efforts across the UK. Among the topics discussed during the session, the issue of IR35, particularly pertinent in light of the recent Atholl House case, took centre […]
One of the major trends in business in recent years has been the role of the workplace. Some companies are making the office a destination to encourage employees in, while there have been grandiose exclamations that the office is dead. Yet it was only eight years ago that the first major report to explore the […]
The Made Smarter Innovation Challenge, part of UKRI’s Made Smarter Innovation (MSI) Challenge, has awarded significant grants totalling £3.7 million to advance smart factory projects in the UK. These grants, ranging from £107,000 to £535,000, have been allocated to 11 late-stage robotics and automation projects aimed at enhancing energy efficiency, productivity, and growth across manufacturing […]
Facing a bloc-wide farmers’ uprising, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has boldly taken a major ‘Farm to Fork’ policy off the table. Addressing the EU Parliament on 6 February, von der Leyen announced that she would withdraw the Sustainable Use of Pesticide Regulation (SUR) – a flagship Green Deal file that aimed to […]
Restaurateur and chef Heston Blumenthal OBE is calling for greater urgency in tackling fraud on Companies House after an investigation revealed more than 750 fake firms using restaurant names have been set up in the past six weeks. His business was one of those targeted and he is writing to Louise Smyth, Chief Executive at […]
Airbnb is charting a course towards diversification beyond its core offerings, unveiling a $6 billion share buyback scheme alongside a mixed set of fourth-quarter results. The home rental platform is set on “reinventing” itself and venturing into new business territories, with plans to expand into markets like Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands. “Airbnb is at […]
Two key groups of lawmakers at the European Parliament on Tuesday ratified a provisional agreement on landmark artificial intelligence rules ahead of a vote by the legislative assembly in April that will pave the way for the world’s first legislation on the technology. Called the AI Act, the new rules aim to set the guardrails for a […]
Almost one third of UK business owners plan to sell their businesses to help fund their retirement, according to new research. Business owners across the country have been fighting rising costs from energy bills to higher living wages and it seems for many, now is the time to contemplate retirement. However, planning for retirement and […]
A potential clash is looming between two prominent plush toy manufacturers as they prepare to address a copyright dispute. Squishmallows, produced by Jazwares, has raised concerns regarding Skoosherz, a newly introduced toy by Build-A-Bear Workshop, citing striking similarities to its own egg-shaped cushion animal characters. Despite the cuddly nature of the toys involved, the impending […]