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Businesses warn Budget cap on salary sacrifice pensions would remove “one of the few tools employers have to manage rising costs”

Businesses and financial experts have sharply criticised a potential clampdown on salary sacrifice pension benefits in the upcoming Budget, warning that the move would amount to a stealth rise in Employer National Insurance and leave companies with even fewer ways to manage rising employment costs. Rumours are circulating that the Chancellor could introduce a dramatic cap on the amount employees can sacrifice into their pensions, with some suggesting the annual allowance could be cut to...

Fine dining’s death by a thousand cuts, and at least a £250 bill

When I first started taking clients out for dinner, you could sit under the copper dome of Le Gavroche, order a bottle of claret you’d never dare drink at home, and—after a couple of courses, a soufflé, and a few discreet nods from the maître d’—leave only mildly lighter in wallet and spirit. Today, on the same site, you can do much the same thing at Matt Abé’s new venture Bonheur. Only now, the bill...

Serviced office operators warn chancellor that property tax changes threaten thousands of small businesses

More than 60 leading operators of serviced offices, business centres and co-working spaces have warned Chancellor Rachel Reeves that recent changes to the business rates system could force thousands of companies to the brink and place jobs across the UK at risk. In a letter seen by Business Matters, the group, which collectively hosts over 27,000 businesses nationwide,  expressed “urgent and deeply serious concern” over what they described as a quiet but dramatic shift in...

15-year-old Harrison Nott named Grand Winner of Alibaba.com’s CoCreate Pitch, taking home $200,000 prize

A 15-year-old British entrepreneur has been crowned the Grand Winner of Alibaba.com’s CoCreate Pitch, securing a $200,000 prize for his innovative small business, CoolTowel, at the platform’s flagship B2B event in London. Held on 14 November, CoCreate Europe brought together thousands of SMEs from across the continent, with 30 finalists shortlisted to pitch their product innovations to a panel of global business leaders. Each finalist was tasked with delivering a 90-second pitch to win the...

Trump calls on House Republicans to vote to release Epstein files: ‘We have nothing to hide’

President Trump is calling on House Republicans to vote to release files related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, insisting he has ‘nothing to hide’ and accusing Democrats of using the case as a distraction from GOP accomplishments. In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump urged House Republicans to vote in favor of releasing the documents, describing the controversy as a ‘Democrat hoax perpetrated by radical left lunatics.’ ‘As I said on Friday night aboard...

Marco Rubio says Nicolás Maduro’s Cartel de los Soles to be designated a terrorist organization

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Sunday that the Cartel de los Soles, a powerful criminal network tied to Venezuela’s top leadership, will be labeled as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO).  The move appears to be an escalation in Washington’s stance toward the Venezuelan government and could lead to military action against the Maduro regime.  In a statement, Rubio confirmed the U.S. will formally designate the cartel as an FTO later this month. The designation,...

Skies at stake: Inside the US-China race for air dominance

From new stealth bombers to AI-enabled drones, the U.S. and China are reshaping airpower for a Pacific showdown – each betting its technology can keep the other out of the skies. The U.S. is charging ahead with its next-generation F-47 fighter, while China scrambles to catch up with jets designed to match the F-35 and F-22. After a brief program pause in 2024, the Air Force awarded Boeing the contract in March for the F-47,...

Zelenskyy moves to ‘clean up’ Ukraine’s energy sector as corruption scandal rocks leadership

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced new efforts to ‘clean up’ the nation’s energy sector amid a corruption scandal and near-constant attacks from Russia. Zelenskyy met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko on Sunday morning, saying he called on lawmakers to revamp the leadership at the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate and the State Energy Supervision Inspectorate, in addition to other efforts to expunge Russian influence in the sector. ‘In full coordination with law enforcement and anti-corruption...

Skies at stake: Inside the U.S.–China race for air dominance

From new stealth bombers to AI-enabled drones, the U.S. and China are reshaping airpower for a Pacific showdown — each betting its technology can keep the other out of the skies. The U.S. is charging ahead with its next-generation F-47 fighter, while China scrambles to catch up with jets designed to match the F-35 and F-22. After a brief program pause in 2024, the Air Force awarded Boeing the contract in March for the F-47,...

Britain’s largest pub operator is preparing £1 billion sell-off of more than 1,000 venues

Stonegate Group, owner of the Slug & Lettuce and Be At One chains, has opened preliminary talks with advisers about a disposal of part of its estate, according to industry sources. The move comes as the company struggles with more than £3 billion of debt built up largely through its £3 billion takeover of rival Ei in 2019. The pubs under review — 1,034 sites internally known as Stonegate’s “platinum” collection — are regarded as...