Business

The government finds its hands somewhat tied at present on measures it can take to boost economic growth. The parlous state of public finances – the government borrowed £25bn alone in April – means that neither meaningful tax cuts nor increases in public spending that lift productivity are feasible just now. So it is no

Britain’s largest building society has made some mortgages more expensive as the Bank of England’s interest rate is now expected to rise higher than previously thought. Nationwide has said interest rates on new fixed-rate mortgages will rise 0.45 percentage points. It follows moves by lenders such as Halifax, Santander and Atom Bank who also upped

Britain is determined to compete in the global race for green investment, the chancellor has told Sky News, days before the expected announcement that Jaguar Land Rover owner Tata will build a major new battery factory in the country. Jeremy Hunt said that he was prepared to deploy subsidy money from the government’s £1bn war

The owners of Asda and petrol stations giant EG Group were on Thursday applying the finishing touches to a £10bn merger of their operations in Britain. Sky News has learnt that the billionaire Issa brothers – Mohsin and Zuber, who launched EG Group – and TDR Capital are aiming to announce the tie-up on Friday.

Microsoft will on Wednesday lodge a formal appeal against British regulators’ decision to block its $75bn takeover of Activision Blizzard, the Call of Duty maker. Sky News understands that the technology behemoth will file its complaint with the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) within hours, sparking the next phase of its fight to secure one of

The rate of inflation is finally back in single digits for the first time since last summer, easing to 8.7% last month but food inflation remains near 20% and core price inflation is at a 30 year high. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the decline in the consumer prices index measure (CPI) was

The head of the Bank of England has said there are “very big lessons” to learn about how the central bank has dealt with the economic shocks that have resulted in persistent double digit inflation and a cost of living crisis. Governor Andrew Bailey’s comments represent a tone change from the Bank, away from defending

Britain is no longer expected to suffer a recession this year, nor will it have the weakest economic growth in the group of seven leading industrialised economies, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said today. Unveiling a dramatic upgrade to its outlook for Britain, the Fund, which previously predicted Britain would face the worst 2023 of

Ireland is set to become the first country in the world to put health warnings on alcohol products. Dublin’s health minister Stephen Donnelly signed new regulations on Monday, which will warn drinkers about the health risks of drinking alcohol, as well as the calorie count of the product. However, the labels will not be mandatory

A growing number of skilled workers from Africa and Asia are moving to Britain to plug crippling staff shortages, according to new figures that reveal the changing picture of migration. Businesses are making use of the new post-Brexit migration system to bring in IT professionals, nurses and accountants. Since January 2021, the new system has

Meta is expected to face a record fine later over its transfer of Facebook’s European user data to US servers, according to reports. Reuters news agency cited two anonymous sources familiar with the matter as saying that the penalty from EU regulators will be higher than the previous record – a €746m (£647m) fine for

The government is to begin the hunt for a new boss of its flagship trade and cultural promotion campaign after the incumbent decided to step down after two years in charge. Sky News understands that Andy Pike OBE resigned as director of GREAT earlier this month, and will leave the post in September. Mr Pike

Executives including a former director of world motorsport’s governing body and the Nectar loyalty scheme founder Sir Keith Mills are in talks to raise $100m (£80m) to finance the rebirth of A1GP, the motor racing series contested by national teams from around the globe. Sky News has learnt that heavyweight names from the sporting and

The energy price cap is set to remain more than £1,000 higher than the average bill before the COVID pandemic, according to a closely-watched forecast. Ahead of the industry regulator’s determination on the price cap level due next week, energy research specialist Cornwall Insight said it saw the cap for a typical household at the

Tesco chair John Allan is to leave next month after the supermarket giant said allegations over his personal conduct “risk becoming a distraction” to the chain. The UK’s largest retailer said he would be “stepping down” from his role as chair of the board and as a director at the company’s AGM on 16 June.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife lost an average of £500,000 a day over the past year, according to The Sunday Times Rich List. The couple are estimated to be £201m poorer due a fall in the value of Akshata Murty’s stake in her father’s IT firm – but are still worth a reported

Asda staff could be threatened with the sack if they don’t agree to a pay cut, according to the GMB union. The supermarket chain confirmed it was considering ending a 60p-per-hour supplement paid to some workers in the South East of England. They have been paid the extra money for many years to make up

The funeral of Queen Elizabeth II and the subsequent period of mourning cost the UK government a total of £162m, according to the Treasury. Her death on 8 September 2022 triggered 10 days of national mourning that was then followed by a state funeral on 19 September. During the period, hundreds of thousands of people

Britain has now missed its window of opportunity to build a battery industry, and the government, including Rishi Sunak, is largely to blame, the head of collapsed cell manufacturer Britishvolt has told Sky News. The company was feted as the jewel in Britain’s manufacturing crown – the first home-grown gigafactory, co-financed by the government and

Plans to scrap “no-fault” evictions will be unveiled by the government today. The Renters’ (Reform) Bill will be published later – three-and-a-half years after the government was elected with a manifesto promise to stop the practice. No-fault – or Section 21 – evictions allow landlords to take back possession from tenants without giving a reason.