Business confidence has risen to its highest level in ten months as companies become increasingly optimistic about filling staff shortages, according to the latest Lloyds Bank business barometer. An easing of wage demands from last year’s highs boosted optimism among business leaders that they will be able to recruit staff, according to the survey of […]
A gas-fired power station and plants making low-carbon hydrogen will be among Britain’s first projects to capture their carbon emissions under plans unveiled by the government yesterday. A cement works, a lime plant and energy-from-waste projects were also among eight winning carbon capture and storage schemes across Teesside, the northwest and north Wales that have […]
UK car production rose 13.1% in February, up to 69,707 units, according to the latest figures published today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). Factories made an additional 8,050 cars, with volumes buoyed by an easing of supply chain shortages – notably of semiconductors – which have bedevilled the global industry since […]
Eamonn Holmes has lost an appeal over a tax ruling associated with his earnings as a presenter on This Morning. Upper Tribunal judges upheld a previous decision that the 63-year-old broadcaster should pay tax as an ITV employee for his work on the programme, rather than as a freelancer. In a judgment given on Wednesday, […]
Twitter has reversed course on plans to limit presence on its “for you” timeline to paying users only, with Elon Musk claiming he “forgot to mention” that other users would be visible as well. When the company’s owner first announced the plan on Tuesday he said it would limit the tab that algorithmically curates tweets […]
Start-ups backed by venture capital (VC) could be wiped out in droves this year as cash dries up and investors turn off the taps, analysts have warned. The venture capital sector globally has been buffeted by rapid interest rate hikes and wild market gyrations in the past 12 months, with investors dramatically scaling back investment […]
Next has bought the Cath Kidston brand name for £8.5m, after the vintage-inspired British retailer fell into administration for the second time in two years. It is understood that about 125 jobs are at risk as administrators from PricewaterhouseCoopers are set close the four UK Cath Kidston stores – in London, Ashford, Cheshire Oaks and […]
Cheap imported products made in polluting factories abroad may face new green import taxes and middle-income families will be given grants to make their homes more energy efficient under updated government plans to hit net zero by 2050. The measures are part of a package of proposals that will be unveiled on Thursday by the […]
Long-running talks between Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union are on the brink of collapse, with the company’s board thought to have threatened to put the loss-making postal service – the regulated UK entity that delivers to every address in the country – into a form of administration if a deal cannot be agreed. […]
Retailers are becoming more optimistic about their near-term trading outlook after a “challenging winter”. For the first time since last September, a majority expect their sales to rise over the next month, according to the latest distributive trends survey from the CBI. Of the 135 companies polled by the business organisation, a net balance of […]