UK inflation cooled to 3.4% in May, with core and services inflation also easing. The Bank of England is expected to hold interest rates at 4.25% as underlying pressures persist.
Category: News
The latest news affecting small and medium sized (SME) businesses in the UK
Nissan unveils new electric car to be built in UK
Nissan has revealed its third-generation electric Leaf, to be built in Sunderland with UK-made batteries and a range of up to 375 miles, as part of its EV36Zero sustainability project.
Ed Miliband says Labour will ‘win fight’ against UK net zero critics with offshore wind jobs push
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband says Labour will defeat critics of net zero by creating jobs in offshore wind, as the government unveils £1bn to boost the UK’s clean energy supply chain.
UK watchdog fines 23andMe for ‘profoundly damaging’ data breach
DNA firm 23andMe fined £2.31m by UK regulator for a 2023 data breach that exposed sensitive health and family information. Sale to TTAM Research to include stricter privacy commitments.
Reviews show Tories wasted billions of pounds on HS2, transport secretary to say
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander to reveal billions were wasted on HS2 by the previous Conservative government due to poor management, bad contracts and scrapped designs, as project costs head towards £100bn.
Global investors ‘turning away from US stocks and dollar’ amid Trump-era market unease
Bank of America survey finds investors pulling out of US stocks and the dollar, rotating into eurozone and emerging markets amid fading recession fears and softening Trump trade rhetoric.
Rachel Reeves reconsiders non-dom tax changes to halt exodus of wealthy individuals
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is considering softening Labour’s flagship plans to scrap the non-domiciled tax regime, amid rising concern over the growing exodus of wealthy individuals and business leaders from the UK.
Give us subsidies or lose CO2 production, warns UK’s biggest bioethanol firm
Ensus, the UK’s largest supplier of food-grade CO₂, warns its Teesside plant could close without urgent government support after the UK-US trade deal removed tariffs on cheaper US bioethanol imports.
Tax changes ‘threaten future of horse racing’, warns parliamentary group
MPs and peers warn that tax changes and affordability checks risk damaging British horse racing, calling on the government to rethink gambling policy to protect jobs and the £4bn industry.
Poundland to shut 68 stores in restructuring that puts 2,000 jobs at risk
Poundland is shutting 68 stores, ending online sales, and closing two distribution centres after its £1 sale to Gordon Brothers, putting over 2,000 jobs at risk.
Emma Jones CBE appointed UK small business commissioner to tackle late payments and champion SMEs
Emma Jones CBE, founder of Enterprise Nation, becomes the UK’s new small business commissioner, pledging to tackle late payments and champion SMEs across the country.
Metro Bank shares surge on talk of private equity takeover by Pollen Street Capital
Metro Bank shares hit a two-year high following news of a potential takeover by private equity firm Pollen Street Capital, raising uncertainty for customers and staff after recent job cuts.
UK bank TSB could be sold off by Spanish owner Sabadell amid BBVA takeover battle
Spanish bank Sabadell confirms interest from potential buyers for UK lender TSB as it fends off a £9.4bn hostile takeover from rival BBVA, signalling a possible sale of the British high street bank.
AI could lead to more job cuts at BT, says chief executive
BT boss Allison Kirkby signals more job losses could follow AI rollout, adding to plans to cut up to 55,000 roles by 2030 as part of a £3bn cost-saving strategy.
Rachel Reeves accused of leaving devolved nations in the red after NICs rise
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is accused of underfunding Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland after applying the Barnett formula to cover rising employer NICs, leaving multimillion-pound public sector gaps.