Inflation has slowed to a two-year low of 4.6 per cent on the back of falling energy prices that will all but ensure that Rishi Sunak meets his pledge to halve price growth by the end of the year. In January the government said it wanted to halve inflation, implying an end-of-year target of 5.3 […]
The high street beauty retailer Body Shop has agreed to sell its 250 stores in a £207million deal after struggling with profitability. The retail outlets are being sold to a private equity group after owner Natura & Co reached a deal with Aurelius Group today. The Brazilian cosmetics maker says the sale is set to be finalised […]
UK law and accounting firms are being invited to take advantage of funded support to explore how they can make better use of digital technology and artificial intelligence. A range of support packages are now available as part of a £1.8million accelerator project, led by Lancaster University Management School (LUMS) and working with Oxford Brookes […]
Wages continued to grow at one of the fastest paces on record in the three months to September, underlining that inflation in the UK will take time to return to the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target. Regular pay excluding bonuses increased 7.7 per cent, down slightly from the 7.8 per cent growth in […]
Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden has announced plans to streamline and enhance the business-friendliness of the UK’s investment screening powers, just under two years since their inception. Dowden is set to launch a review aimed at “narrowing and refining” the National Security and Investment Act — a legislation enabling the government to scrutinise and potentially […]
Natwest Group has cleared former chief executive of misconduct over the fallout of the Coutts debanking scandal. Dame Alison Rose stood down as group chief executive in July after she admitted she was the source of a BBC story about Nigel Farage’s finances with Natwest-owned Coutts. Earlier this week the UK’s data watchdog apologised to […]
Tom Kerridge is leading calls from the hospitality industry for Jeremy Hunt to freeze taxes for pubs and restaurants, warning of mass closures without action. The TV chef and more than 200 of Britain’s most senior hospitality chiefs have signed a letter to the Chancellor warning that businesses will close their doors for good if […]
Banks have been accused by a senior MP of “dragging their feet” when it comes to refunding victims of fraud. Harriett Baldwin’s comments come as newly published figures name, for the first time, individual banks to show how much money they refund. Mrs Baldwin, the Conservative chair of Parliament’s influential Treasury Committee, says banks are […]
Britain’s economy topped analysts’ expectations to grow slightly in September putting the UK on course to narrowly escape the risk of a recession this year, according to official figures. Gross domestic product increased 0.2 per cent month-on-month in September, above City analysts’ expectations and higher than August’s downwardly revised 0.1 per cent expansion, according to […]
The Government has announced a £200 million digital skills training package to help people across the UK launch careers in growing sectors such as digital, green energy and construction. The investment will be targeted at specific skills for each region, driven by local businesses in their local skills improvement plans, with a view to creating […]