Rail firms have announced plans for the mass closure of England’s ticket offices to “modernise” the railway, ramping up the battle with unions and infuriating disability and passenger groups. The move, pushed by the government to save costs, was confirmed by the industry body, the Rail Delivery Group. Train operators told staff on Wednesday morning […]
The services sector expanded at its slowest pace in three months in June, but growth remained resilient despite rising interest rates and economic uncertainty weighing on demand, a closely watched survey has shown. The S&P Global/CIPS UK services purchasing managers’ index eased to 53.7 last month, down from 55.2 in May, well above the 50 […]
Supermarket giant Iceland is to close even more stores following a string of closures this year. The frozen foods specialist has already axed 11 shops this year as big brands look to cut costs amid rampant inflation and the cost of living crisis. Now the budget chain has revealed it was be shutting down a […]
Michael Gove has said people “expect” council staff to be working a full five-day week, amid a row over the government telling a local authority to cease a four-day week trial. The levelling up secretary has said he is a “strong believer” in the rule that council employees should be working Monday to Friday. It […]
The government is drawing up plans to drop the UK’s flagship £11.6bn climate and nature funding pledge with the prime minster accused of betraying populations most vulnerable to global heating. The disclosure provoked fury from former ministers and representatives of vulnerable countries, who accused Rishi Sunak of making false promises. A leaked briefing note to […]
Article content Apple Inc. is slashing production targets for its Vision Pro headset because manufacturers are struggling with the novel gadget’s complex design, the Financial Times reported. Article content Apple is now preparing to make fewer than 400,000 units of the US$3,499 headset in 2024, the Times said, citing unidentified people close to Apple and […]
Article content The Calgary real estate market set another record for sales in June and benchmark prices ticked up for the sixth consecutive month as persistently low inventory levels kept conditions tight by historical standards. Article content The total number of units sold in June was 3,146, slightly surpassing the previous month’s figure of 3,121, […]
More than half of UK broadband customers have experienced problems with their connections, according to a report that says telecoms providers are adding “insult to injury” after forcing inflation-busting price rises on to their customers. Many of the UK’s mobile and telecoms companies have been accused of “greedflation” for pushing through mid-contract price increases of […]
The average five-year, fixed-rate mortgage has topped 6 per cent for the first time since November as banks and building societies continue to push up rates. Five-year fixes have risen from 4.97 per cent to 6.01 per cent between the start of May and today, according to the financial data analyst Moneyfacts, adding £1,488 a […]
With many industries facing staff shortages, just over half of small business owners surveyed want more migrant workers to come to the UK. New data from iwoca, one of Europe’s largest small business lenders, reveals that 52% of SMEs are in favour of opening the UK’s doors to more workers from overseas with the expansion […]