World wine consumption dropped to its lowest level since 1996 last year, with production down 10 per cent, after the world’s worst grape harvest in 62 years, a new report has revealed. While the rising cost of living has put a dent in consumption trends, experts at the Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV), monitoring […]
MPs have cast doubt over the UK government’s readiness for post-Brexit border control checks, which are due to come in next week, arguing that a scaling back of its plans appeared to represent a sixth delay to their long-awaited introduction. The environment, food and rural affairs select committee (EFRA) has written to the government demanding […]
Tata Steel has rejected a plan from unions to keep one blast furnace running at Britain’s biggest steel plant in Port Talbot while it transitions to greener steel production. The company’s chief executive and managing director, TV Narendran, said the unions’ proposal was not “financially or operationally viable”. About 2,800 jobs are likely to go […]
Google has been accused of taking advantage of its market dominance to make it harder to search for a rival email service. Tuta Mail – which says it has more than ten million users worldwide – alleges that, since March, it hasn’t appeared prominently in Google searches for “encrypted email.” The company has made a […]
Microsoft’s strategic focus on artificial intelligence (AI) is yielding substantial returns, as evidenced by its impressive third-quarter revenue performance, surpassing Wall Street expectations. The company reported revenue of $61.9 billion, a 17% increase, and net income of $21.9 billion, a 20% rise compared to the previous year. A significant factor driving Microsoft’s success is its […]
Barclays has shown promising signs of progress in its ambitious turnaround efforts, with quarterly profits falling less than anticipated by the markets. Coimbatore Sundararajan Venkatakrishnan, known as Venkat, Barclays’ CEO, has been working to address years of underperformance in the stock market, and the recent results suggest that the bank’s overhaul strategy is beginning to […]
Shoplifting incidents reported to the police have surged to their highest level in at least two decades, according to recent data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Last year, a staggering 430,104 shoplifting offences were recorded in England and Wales, marking a significant 37% increase from the previous 12 months. This figure represents the […]
Labour has announced its intention to renationalise most passenger rail services within five years if elected, aiming to bring them under public control as contracts expire. Despite this move towards nationalisation, the party asserts that there will still be a place for the private sector in the rail industry. Among Labour’s railway pledges are commitments […]
John Barnes, the former England footballer, has been barred from serving as a company director due to unpaid taxes amounting to over £190,000 after his media firm, which provided media representation services, failed to pay taxes on income exceeding £400,000. Barnes, renowned for his football career with 79 caps for England and stints at prestigious […]
Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, has pledged that a future Labour government will adopt a more pro-business stance than Tony Blair’s administration. Speaking to The Times, Reeves outlined Labour’s ambition to position the UK as the fastest-growing economy in the G7, aiming to secure £22 billion of private sector investment in green energy initiatives. Reeves […]