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Latest News:

  • Retail sales decline slows in July as motor trades rebound, CBI finds
  • Heathrow expansion would move 15,200 aviation jobs to London by 2050, NEF says
  • Shein swings to $99m loss after US scraps duty-free parcel rule
  • Trump orders 301 investigation into EU over Google’s €890m fine
  • Burnham rules out early election as poll puts Labour on 209 seats
  • US regulator rejects Wise application for banking licence
  • Dragons’ Den star bags £900m as Vitabiotics falls to US buyer
  • City bank: Starmer and Reeves left Britain ‘no better off’
  • Burnham opens No10 North, but the SME payoff waits until 2032
  • Musk says AI will surpass human intelligence within five years

Category: News

The latest news affecting small and medium sized (SME) businesses in the UK

Andy Burnham

Rule out a wealth tax or own the exodus, Burnham warned

17 July 2026 News Jamie Young 0 Comments

Andy Burnham urged to rule out a UK wealth tax as advisers warn speculation alone is pushing millionaires, capital and investment out of Britain.

TikTok is under formal investigation by Ofcom over whether its age checks actually keep children off the platform, in the clearest signal yet that the regulator's online safety clampdown is moving beyond pornography sites and on to mainstream social media.

Ofcom investigates TikTok over ‘serious doubts’ its age checks work

16 July 2026 News, Technology Jamie Young 0 Comments

Ofcom launches an investigation into TikTok’s child age checks, casting doubt on age inference tech. Why the clampdown matters for UK platform owners.

British Steel has been taken into public ownership, with ministers arguing the only alternative was to let the country's last producer of virgin steel go bust. For the thousands of smaller firms that rely on Scunthorpe's output, the move ends years of uncertainty, but leaves taxpayers footing a running bill of about £1.3 million a day.

British Steel nationalised as ministers refuse to let it go bust

16 July 2026 News Amy Ingham 0 Comments

British Steel nationalisation secures 2,700 Scunthorpe jobs and the UK’s last virgin steel supply. What public ownership means for SME supply chains.

Britain's biggest pub landlord is under formal investigation over suspicions it mistreated the thousands of small business owners who run its tied pubs, an inquiry that could end in a fine of up to £16 million.

Stonegate faces £16m fine threat over treatment of pub tenants

16 July 2026 News Jamie Young 0 Comments

The Pubs Code Adjudicator is investigating Stonegate over its treatment of tied pub tenants, with fines of up to £16m possible. What tenants should know.

Amidst tumbling energy costs and a fierce price war among supermarkets, food price inflation in the UK has reached its lowest level in almost two years, offering a respite to households grappling with stretched budgets.

Economy grows 0.1% as Burnham inherits ‘stagflationary’ Britain

16 July 2026 News Amy Ingham 0 Comments

UK GDP grew 0.1% in May 2026 as services rebounded. Andy Burnham inherits a stagflationary economy: what slowing growth now means for UK SME owners.

Elon Musk has launched a $134 billion lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft, claiming both companies unjustly profited from his early backing of the artificial intelligence pioneer and abandoned its founding mission.

SpaceX slips below IPO price as UK investors’ £271m bet turns sour

16 July 2026 Get Funded, News Jamie Young 0 Comments

SpaceX shares have fallen below their $135 IPO price for the first time, leaving UK retail investors who spent £271m in the float nursing paper losses.

Exclusive research finds more than 80% of 2,000 UK SME owners are fearful about what an Andy Burnham premiership would mean for their business after his Makerfield by-election win.

Scrap the triple lock and save £60bn, Burnham told

15 July 2026 News Jamie Young 0 Comments

OECD tells Andy Burnham scrapping the pension triple lock would save £60bn, urging broader taxes and deeper devolution. What it means for UK SMEs.

The humble lamp post is about to start paying its way. West Northamptonshire is to host one of the UK's largest local on-street electric vehicle charging programmes, with more than 3,000 sockets, most of them fitted to existing lamp columns, due to start appearing on residential streets from mid 2026.

West Northants streets to gain 3,000 EV charging sockets in £2.85m rollout

15 July 2026 News Jamie Young 0 Comments

West Northamptonshire will install over 3,000 on-street EV charging sockets via lamp posts under the LEVI fund. What the rollout means for local firms.

The billionaire Irish brothers behind Stripe have teamed up with American private equity firm Advent International in a $53 billion-plus bid for PayPal, a deal that would put two of the payment platforms most relied upon by UK small businesses under the same roof.

Stripe and Advent swoop on PayPal with $53bn takeover bid

15 July 2026 Get Funded, News Amy Ingham 0 Comments

Stripe and Advent International have made a $53bn takeover bid for PayPal. What the deal could mean for the fees and payment tools UK SMEs rely on.

London's business community has given the Chancellor's Mansion House speech a warm reception on paper and a stark warning in the small print: almost half of the capital's firms believe the Government's current approach will make economic growth worse, not better.

Half of London firms fear policy will worsen growth, LCCI warns

15 July 2026 News Amy Ingham 0 Comments

Mansion House speech 2026: LCCI welcomes SME finance boost but 49% of London firms fear policy will worsen growth. What Reeves’ plans mean for SMEs.

Britain's biggest companies are getting quicker at paying their bills. New official statistics show the time large businesses take to pay their suppliers has fallen, and the proportion of invoices paid late dropped to 15 per cent in 2025, down from 25 per cent when records began in 2018.

Late payments fall to lowest level on record as landmark bill looms

15 July 2026 News Amy Ingham 0 Comments

New official data shows large firms paid just 15% of invoices late in 2025, down from 25% in 2018, as the UK’s late payments crackdown gathers pace.

Sending cargo into orbit is getting cheaper faster than shipping freight did during the steamship revolution of the 1800s, and the cost could fall by more than 90 per cent again by 2040, according to Cambridge-led research that suggests space is fast becoming a marketplace rather than a moonshot.

$300 a kilo: space cargo costs falling faster than steam ever did

14 July 2026 News Jamie Young 0 Comments

Space launch costs are falling faster than steamship freight in the 1800s and could hit $300 a kilo by 2040. What the space economy means for UK firms.

The small businesses behind Britain's live music industry have been handed a rare piece of good news, as the government's first long-term music strategy promises a £45 million growth fund, lighter-touch festival licensing and a two-year freeze on business rates bills for venues.

Festivals get longer licences and red tape cut in £45m music plan

14 July 202614 July 2026 In Business, News Amy Ingham 0 Comments

The government’s new UK music plan promises festival licensing reform and a £45m growth fund. What Turn It Up means for venues, clubs and small firms.

Exclusive research finds more than 80% of 2,000 UK SME owners are fearful about what an Andy Burnham premiership would mean for their business after his Makerfield by-election win.

Scrap green levies to cut energy bills by a fifth, Burnham told

14 July 2026 News Paul Jones 0 Comments

Business energy costs must be Andy Burnham’s day-one priority, say CBI and Energy UK, with green levy cuts worth a fifth off bills and a £130bn boost.

Families are facing average energy bills of up to £5,000 from April after Liz Truss was forced to rip up her government’s entire economic strategy and issue a public apology to the nation.

Scrap National Insurance and the 45p rate, think tank tells Burnham

14 July 2026 News Jamie Young 0 Comments

Policy Exchange urges Andy Burnham to abolish national insurance, stamp duty, inheritance tax and the 45p rate. What the plan would mean for UK SME owners.

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Latest Content

US tariffs on Japan, set at 12.5%, may make the UK a more attractive investment base, says Blick Rothenberg, as Japan's June exports rose 19.3 per cent.

Blick Rothenberg: US tariffs make UK more appealing to Japanese firms

US tariffs on Japan, set at 12.5%, may make the UK a more attractive investment base, says Blick Rothenberg, as Japan’s June exports rose 19.3 per cent.

East of England growth confidence dips to 83%, KPMG finds

Retail sales decline slows in July as motor trades rebound, CBI finds

Heathrow expansion would move 15,200 aviation jobs to London by 2050, NEF says

Shein swings to $99m loss after US scraps duty-free parcel rule

Trump orders 301 investigation into EU over Google’s €890m fine

Burnham rules out early election as poll puts Labour on 209 seats

US regulator rejects Wise application for banking licence

Utilities

Energy savings

Business Energy Claims recovers £25,000 for UK chocolatier

Energy saving

Manufacturing company recovers thousands from mis-sold energy contracts

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