Business

Royal Mail has come under renewed fire after research found it failed to deliver Christmas letters and cards on time to around 16 million people, the worst festive performance in five years outside periods of strike action. The findings, published by Citizens Advice, suggest the number of people affected by delays over Christmas 2025 was 50 per cent higher than in 2024, highlighting what campaigners describe as a persistent deterioration in postal services. Anne Pardoe,...

The struggling British fashion brand LK Bennett has been bought out of administration by US restructuring specialist Gordon Brothers, raising the prospect that its remaining nine UK shops could close with the loss of around 380 jobs. Gordon Brothers, which acquired Poundland for £1 last year, confirmed it has purchased LK Bennett’s global brand and intellectual property assets for an undisclosed sum after the retailer collapsed for the second time in six years. The Boston-based...

More than 3,400 jobs and billions of pounds of private investment are set to flow into Lanarkshire after the UK government named the region as Scotland’s first AI Growth Zone, a flagship initiative under its Modern Industrial Strategy. The Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone, announced on 29 January, will be delivered by Scottish data centre operator DataVita at its Airdrie site, in partnership with AI cloud specialist CoreWeave. The project is expected to generate more than...

Pornhub will restrict access to its website for UK users from next week, effectively blocking new visitors in protest at tougher age-verification requirements introduced under the Online Safety Act. From 2 February, only people who already hold a Pornhub account will be able to access the site. The same restrictions will apply to other adult websites owned by its parent company Aylo, including YouPorn and Redtube. Aylo said the UK’s age-check regime had failed to...

The government will create a new cross-department Future of Work Unit, expand its ambition to upskill 10 million workers in AI by 2030, and invest £27 million in a new TechLocal programme aimed at entry-level tech roles, the Science and Technology Secretary has announced. Delivering her first major speech on artificial intelligence at Bloomberg on Wednesday, Liz Kendall set out how the government intends to position Britain to “win for Britain on AI”, while supporting...

Almost £162 billion of British exports are at heightened risk because UK firms are shipping goods to markets where collecting payment is most difficult, according to new analysis. Research from Allianz Trade shows that nearly a quarter (24%) of all UK exports are destined for three countries, the United States, China and India, which pose the greatest challenges for debt collection among the UK’s top 20 export markets. Together, exports to these three destinations account...

Litestream Ventures recorded $78.1 million (£61.5m) in non-binding investor pledges during World Economic Forum week in Davos, after hosting its fourth annual Family Office & Venture Capital Forum. The closed-door event, held during the World Economic Forum, brought together more than 120 investors, founders, venture funds and philanthropic partners. Pledges were signalled in support of 12 companies focused on addressing major global challenges, alongside backing for the charitable initiative Star for Life. The pledges were...

Modern Milkman has secured a £10 million investment to accelerate growth across the UK, expand its US footprint and develop new sustainable doorstep services, taking its total funding to more than £60 million. The Manchester-based business said the funding will support the continued evolution of its doorstep delivery model, as it builds out a broader logistics platform designed to make sustainable grocery shopping easier and more convenient for households. The investment comes from Salica Investments,...

Disappointing full-year results from LVMH suggest that the global luxury sector is facing more than a short-term slowdown, with challenges likely to persist into 2026, according to new analysis. Commenting on the figures for the year ending 31 December 2025, Sharon Iles, senior apparel analyst at GlobalData, said the performance underlined “persistent struggles within the overall luxury market”. LVMH reported a 4.6% fall in full-year revenue to €80.8bn, while fourth-quarter sales declined by 5.1%, marking...

Amazon has announced a further 16,000 job cuts worldwide as it presses ahead with plans to slim down management layers and “remove bureaucracy”, putting an unspecified number of UK roles at risk. The latest round of layoffs follows the elimination of 14,000 white-collar jobs in October and forms part of Amazon’s broader ambition to shed around 30,000 corporate roles. While the majority of the new cuts will fall in the United States, teams in the...