News

Uber has announced the nationwide expansion of its pioneering childcare support scheme, offering more than 100,000 drivers across the UK access to free, flexible childcare through a partnership with on-demand childcare platform Bubble. The move follows a successful pilot launched in 2023, which provided 1,000 drivers with a total of 10,000 hours of fully funded childcare. Building on that positive response — with 96% of participating drivers saying the support made it easier to work...

We’ve talked a lot about purpose, and while it should be at the very heart of your organisation, it’s been long debated what should come first – a clear purpose or the ‘right people’? It’s ‘the chicken or the egg?’ equivalent for business. Wait – here comes the bus! Jim Collins’ famous concept of “getting the right people on the bus”, introduced in his book Good to Great, endorses getting the right people around the...

More than 200,000 jobs in family-run businesses and farms could be lost as a result of upcoming changes to inheritance tax rules, according to new research that warns of a substantial hit to investment, employment and long-term economic growth. A nationwide survey of 4,200 family-owned firms and agricultural businesses — commissioned by lobby group Family Business UK and conducted by CBI Economics — found that the government’s decision to cap relief on business and agricultural...

UK consumer confidence saw a marginal improvement in March, rising by just one point to -19, according to the latest GfK index. While the figure beat analysts’ expectations of a fall to -21, experts warned there is still “little evidence of a recovery” as households remain cautious in the face of persistent economic pressures. The slight uptick was largely driven by a more positive view of the economy’s performance over the past year and cautious...

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to unveil £1.5 billion in savings from civil service administration budgets as part of a broader effort to rein in government spending and demonstrate fiscal discipline ahead of the next general election. In her Spring Statement on Wednesday, Reeves will announce a 10 per cent cut to the administration budgets of Whitehall departments. These reductions will focus on back-office functions, including HR, communications and policy roles, rather than frontline public...