The Bank of England is poised to raise interest rates for the 10th time in succession when its policymakers meet this week in a further squeeze on the finances of mortgage holders and businesses. Financial markets expect a 0.5 percentage point increase in the central bank’s base rate to 4%, its highest level since the […]
‘It’ll be up to our members to decide, and they’ll inform the leadership,’ said RMT general secretary Mick Lynch. Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union leader Mick Lynch has said its members will decide whether to accept an offer to end the long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions. The RMT general secretary claimed the […]
Regional carrier Flybe has ceased trading and all scheduled flights have been cancelled. The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) made the announcement the company had gone into administration for the second time in three years, asking passengers booked on Flybe flights not to travel to airports. It urged ticket-holders to instead check its website for […]
The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) raised questions about the government’s proposed targets on water pollution, tree planting and rewilding, calling them “irrational” and “unachievable”, according to documents published by the environment department. Under the 2021 Environment Act, the government was required to set legally binding targets for nature recovery and environmental improvements. It began consultation […]
Britain’s housebuilders are calling for the return of the Help to Buy scheme to light a fire under a slowing housing market and avert a dramatic plunge in the supply of new homes. Trade body the Home Builders Federation (HBF) is writing to the Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, to reintroduce help for first-time buyers at the […]
Rishi Sunak has sacked Nadhim Zahawi for serious breaches of the ministerial code after an investigation found he failed to be honest and open about his tax affairs. Sir Laurie Magnus, the independent adviser on ministers’ interests, said that Zahawi had repeatedly failed to disclose details about an HMRC investigation into his tax affairs. Zahawi […]
Pressure on the Tory Party chairman increases as the head of HMRC says there are no penalties for ‘innocent errors’. Nadhim Zahawi has authorised HM Revenue & Customs to pass details of his tax affairs to the Prime Minister’s ethics adviser – who is investigating if he broke the rules for ministers – as Rishi […]
TSB’s 5,700 staff and executives are to share a 10% bigger bonus pot this year, after rising interest rates pushed the bank’s annual profits to record highs. The high street lender confirmed the pool had risen to £29.8m, up from the £27m distributed a year earlier. For most staff, that will mean collecting bonuses worth […]
NatWest is to shut another 23 branches in England and Wales, adding to a raft of high street banking closures already announced this month. The sites will close in the first half of this year. The bank said the closures were due to more customers moving to mobile and online banking. It comes a week […]
Shell has put more than 2,000 jobs in the UK at risk after launching a “strategic review” of its domestic energy and telecoms supply division. The oil and gas supermajor said on Thursday that it had told staff in Shell Energy, which has operations in the UK, the Netherlands and Germany, that it has begun […]