Codat – the universal API for small business data – and a group of lenders have written an open letter to Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Grant Shapps, calling for the government to support improved data sharing initiatives to tackle the difficulties faced by SMEs in accessing credit. The letter has […]
New data has revealed one in five UK employees are sitting for more than eight hours each day, contributing to the decline in physical or mental health experienced by 79% of employees in the past year. The findings place UK employee health in the ‘high’ to ‘very high’ risk category*. This is particularly concerning as […]
Converge, the premier company creation initiative for Scotland’s universities and research institutes, is dispelling the myth that you need to call yourself an “entrepreneur” to set up a business as it reveals this year’s challenges. The initiative – which helps staff, students, and recent graduates to launch businesses – is instead highlighting the impact that […]
Rishi Sunak has suggested the government cannot afford any immediate tax cuts, saying people are “not idiots” and understand what is unaffordable. But the comments risked opening a fresh conflict with Conservative MPs who have been making the case for tax cuts in the spring budget, in light of improving economic forecasts and as a […]
Lloyds Pharmacy is closing all 237 of its outlets in Sainsbury’s supermarkets amid fears of insufficient government funding for the industry. The group said it was making the closures – which are thought to affect about 2,000 jobs – “in response to changing market conditions”, adding it was “currently exploring options for each individual branch”. […]
Britain is fast losing its reputation as a hub for wealthy investors and businesspeople, with hundreds more millionaires leaving last year. In 2022 a further 1,400 high-net-worth individuals, defined as those with wealth in excess of $1 million, left Britain, according to data from Henley & Partners, the citizenship advisory firm. There are thought to […]
The Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings is stepping aside as co-chief executive of the world’s largest streaming service as it returns to growth. Ted Sarandos, co-chief executive since 2020, is joined by Greg Peters, who had been serving as chief operating officer, with immediate effect. Hastings, 62, said it was the “right time” for him to […]
Building on the success of its launch event, the Evening Standard’s SME XPO 25-26 April 2023 at ExCeL London, once again invites founders, entrepreneurs and business leaders to attend an action-filled two-day programme and exhibition connecting the scaleup community, a vital part of the UK economy. Irene Graham OBE, CEO from The ScaleUp Institute outlined the […]
British Safety Council has re-opened its offer to SMEs and micro-sized employers to apply to attend a free 3-hour workshop to help them develop a wellbeing strategy. In the face of pressures following Covid and in light of the current economic challenges, the health, safety and wellbeing charity has said that micro, small, and medium-sized […]
White Oak UK, one of the UK’s leading non-bank lenders, has pledged to provide £500m to UK SMEs and mid-corporates in 2023, as it continues to support the growth plans of small and medium sized firms across the UK. The pledge follows the firm delivering a record £465m of funding in 2022; businesses in London […]