Business

Businesses grappling with rising energy costs could see higher bills under Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer’s proposal to link the UK’s emissions policy with the European Union’s carbon pricing scheme. Critics—including Tory MPs, leading Brexiteers, and energy analysts—warn that adopting stricter EU rules could inflate manufacturing and power-generation expenses, potentially passing higher costs on to consumers. Starmer is in Brussels this week, five years after Brexit, aiming for what he calls a “reset” of the...

Mark Stewart, chief executive of Gloucester-based Stewart Golf, has resigned from his role as one of the government’s “export champions,” citing frustration with what he calls Labour’s “anti-business policies” under Sir Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves. Stewart’s company, which manufactures electric golf buggies, exports half of its £7 million turnover to the United States. His departure comes after the speech from the chancellor on Wednesday, where announcements on airport expansions, updated regulations, and investment in...

How does a globally acclaimed actress, producer and entrepreneur juggle all her responsibilities? Nicole Kidman spoke with Paycom, a leading provider of cloud-based human capital management software, in an exclusive webinar about how automated technology helps save time and resources, her leadership approach and how she supports and inspires women in the workplace. Paycom offers a range of valuable resources designed to enhance companies’ workforce operations and keep them up to date with the latest...

US President Donald Trump has reaffirmed plans to impose 25% border taxes on imports from Canada and Mexico, effective 1 February, but left open whether the measures will extend to oil shipments. He said the decision, aimed at curbing undocumented immigration, fentanyl trafficking and trade deficits, is necessary to safeguard US interests and borders. Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump indicated he would also press ahead with new tariffs on China—ten per cent, by previous...

Roman Abramovich, the sanctioned Russian oligarch, is facing renewed scrutiny after a group of MPs urged HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to investigate allegations that he may owe up to £1 billion in unpaid taxes. The intervention follows reports by the BBC and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism indicating that offshore investments worth billions of pounds may have been effectively managed from the UK, thereby incurring a domestic tax liability. In a letter to HMRC,...

Millions of UK taxpayers remain at risk of a £100 fine if they fail to file their online self-assessment tax returns by midnight tonight, according to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The warning comes as more than three million people have yet to submit their returns for the 2023-24 tax year, prompting HMRC to advise last-minute filers to go online for help and to use the HMRC app to pay any outstanding balance once their...

From Saturday, the cost of wine and spirits will climb as the government raises alcohol duty in line with inflation and implements new rules linking tax levels to the strength (ABV) of each drink. While trade bodies warn that this will be a “bitter blow” for the sector, the duty on draught pints is set to fall by a modest 1.7 per cent—resulting in roughly 1p off an average-strength pint. Under the revised system, taxes...

For a while now, the steady increase in the price of coffee has been subject to worldwide discussions—and yet the tail end of November brought an unprecedented price surge with it. It was during this period that the price of green arabica reached €6.5 per kilogram, despite dropping to €4.47 earlier this year. Experts now say that the volatility of coffee prices is starting to resemble the state of cryptocurrency. “While the coffee and the...

Innovate UK has temporarily halted its Smart Grants programme—worth £25 million a year—to overhaul how it supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The pause aims to address oversubscription issues, with success rates reportedly falling below 10 per cent for applicants, and possibly as low as 2 per cent according to some. Under the existing scheme, SMEs could claim up to 70 per cent of costs for commercially viable research projects. The latest round of successful...

Premium mixer maker Fevertree has secured a deal with US beverage giant Molson Coors that will see the latter take an 8.5 per cent stake in the British-based company for £71 million, or 654.2p per share. The move, underpinned by an exclusive licensing agreement, aims to boost Fevertree’s sales, distribution and production footprint across the United States. Shares in Fevertree, which floated at just 134p in 2014, leapt by 20.2 per cent on Thursday to...