Plans for minimum service levels during rail strikes could worsen industrial relations and outcomes for passengers, train operators have told MPs, while unions said the proposed laws were a “recipe for disaster”. Legislation that would force some staff to work during strikes is going through parliament, sponsored by the business secretary, Grant Shapps. Questioned by […]
Ocado Group is to close its oldest warehouse, in Hatfield, putting about 2,300 jobs at risk. The online grocer, which runs the Hertfordshire site in a joint venture with Marks & Spencer, said it hoped to redeploy as many staff as possible to other customer fulfilment centres, including its new Luton site, which is expected […]
Bitcoin could reach $100,000 by the end of next year, an analyst at Standard Chartered has claimed. Geoffrey Kendrick said he expected investors to pile their money into cryptocurrency markets now that the “crypto winter” was over. This month the digital currency’s value rose above $30,000 for the first time since June, although it has […]
Prezzo has said it is to close 46 loss-making restaurants as it struggles with soaring energy and food costs. The move will put around 810 workers at risk of redundancy, the Italian restaurant chain said, although it will try to redeploy “as many staff internally as possible”. The private equity-owned business said the cuts will […]
Outstanding bank loans to SME’s in the UK fell by £14bn in the year to March with concerns that this figure could fall further due to March’s banking turmoil and mooted regulatory changes. In the year to March, outstanding bank loans fell to £195bn from £209bn according to Bank of England data sourced by debt […]
Some of Britain’s biggest companies are this weekend scrambling to fill the void left by the crisis at the CBI as they consider backing a new body being set up after talks with Conservative and Labour officials. Sky News are running reports that it has learnt that businesses from across a range of sectors including […]
UK tech tycoon Mike Lynch lost his bid to appeal his extradition to the US to face criminal charges over the Hewlett Packard sale. The Autonomy Corp. founder had tried to block his transfer to the US after the British government approved the move in January 2022. This followed a separate court judgment that he […]
Sky Sports tennis presenter has lost an IR35 tax case against HMRC on a technicality. Barry Cowan had appealed a previous decision by HMRC that he should be treated as an employee of Sky for tax purposes, relating to work carried out between the 2014 and 2019 tax years. The appeal was made by a […]
The UK’s shrinking and ageing population is limiting economic growth, with “outdated and static” working practices, MPs have warned. An “exodus” of over-50s from the labour market has worsened shortages, a cross-party House of Commons Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) committee report said. Chairman Darren Jones said: “Our shrinking and ageing UK labour market, and […]
Extinction Rebellion has promised to avoid disrupting the London Marathon as it prepares for “40,000 to 50,000” activists to protest in the capital while the race is on. The group is staging a four-day protest outside Parliament Square from Friday but has been in talks with the marathon race director to ensure minimal disruption. Earlier […]