Business leaders’ confidence in the UK economy has fallen sharply, as the full impact of government tax increases and rising cost pressures begins to take hold, according to the latest data from the Institute of Directors (IoD). The Directors’ Economic Confidence Index — a key barometer of UK business sentiment — dropped to -53 in June 2025, down from -35 in May, marking a significant deterioration in optimism among company directors. The survey found that...
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is preparing to unveil a reduction in the tax-free allowance for cash ISAs, as part of a broader move to channel household savings into London-listed firms and reinvigorate the UK’s capital markets. According to the Financial Times, Reeves will use her Mansion House speech to announce a cut to the current £20,000 tax-free cash savings limit available under the Individual Savings Account (ISA) wrapper. While the total ISA limit is expected to...
The ninth day of the ongoing High Court trial between PPE Medpro and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) turned attention to the government’s handling of surplus PPE stock—specifically, why no effort was made to repurpose or sell the £122 million-worth of gowns supplied by PPE Medpro. Two expert witnesses, Andrew New for the DHSC and Igor Popovic for PPE Medpro, gave conflicting views on what could—and should—have been done with the gowns...
Barclays is back in court this week seeking to overturn a landmark Financial Ombudsman ruling concerning undisclosed commission payments in motor finance—a case that could open the floodgates to hundreds of millions of pounds in compensation claims. The appeal comes after the bank lost a High Court challenge in December, when Mr Justice Kerr dismissed its application for judicial review and ruled against Barclays on all three grounds of its case. A costs order was...
The future of tour operators remains uncertain. Once the pandemic ended, people started to travel more, with international tourism revenues projected to grow to $1.2 trillion by 2026, as Statista reports. Still, there are issues that come with growth: customers expect more, other brands offer tough competition, and everyone expects digital services to be simple to use. Travelers wish for easy booking, custom service, and live updates, but not all tour operators can provide those...
Fintevex is entering the online brokerage space with bold promises—low fees, streamlined trading, and multi-asset access from one intuitive platform. But how does it actually perform when put to the test? We opened a real account, placed live trades across forex, crypto, and indices, and reviewed everything from fees and execution to mobile features and safety protocols. Here’s the full breakdown. What Is Fintevex? Fintevex is a global trading platform offering CFD access across forex,...
Adam Benhayoune didn’t take the easy route. He wasn’t a top recruit or a scholarship athlete. But what he lacked in headlines, he made up for in heart. A walk-on for the Louisiana State University (LSU) basketball team, Adam spent four years training, learning, and grinding in one of the toughest college sports conferences—the SEC. Today, he’s setting his sights on a graduate assistant spot at NC State. But his story isn’t just about basketball....
Off The Kerb Productions, the talent agency behind a host of the UK’s biggest comedy stars, including Jonathan Ross, Michael McIntyre and Jo Brand, has swung to a loss of £1.8 million for the year ending 30 April 2024, after posting a £5.1 million pre-tax profit in the previous 12 months. The loss, revealed in delayed accounts filed with Companies House, was attributed primarily to the payment of staff bonuses, which the company said had...
The UK government has confirmed it will introduce a new set of strengthened steel safeguard measures from 1 July 2025, acting on urgent recommendations made by UK Steel amid growing concerns about a spike in redirected foreign imports. Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds announced the changes today, which follow calls from UK Steel to take immediate action to protect domestic producers. The adjustments include a significant tightening of the steel import quota liberalisation rate...
Pottery Barn, the world’s largest digital-first and design-led sustainable home retailer, is set to enter the UK market for the first time, with an online launch planned for Autumn 2025. The move marks a significant step in the global expansion of the iconic American brand and will bring its signature style of classic, high-quality home furnishings to British customers. In an announcement today, Pottery Barn confirmed that its UK website will feature a curated selection...
