OECD slashes UK growth to 0.9% for 2026 and warns unemployment will hit 5.5% — the steepest jobless jump in the G7 — as the US–Iran war squeezes energy supplies and household budgets.
Category: News
The latest news affecting small and medium sized (SME) businesses in the UK
Peers warn UK cannot afford to drag its feet on sterling stablecoin rules
House of Lords committee urges Bank of England and FCA to press ahead with sterling stablecoin rules, warning UK risks losing fintech ground to the US and EU.
Seventh carbon budget: Britain bets £105bn Net Zero economy can shield SMEs from the next fossil fuel shock
Britain’s Seventh Carbon Budget sets an 87% emissions cut by 2042, anchoring a £105bn net zero economy that already supports 22,000-plus SMEs and a million jobs.
“Rearranging deckchairs on a heavily taxed ship”: business owners round on Labour’s tax-and-spend mindset
UK business owners react with fury to Pat McFadden’s leaked “who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others” message to Lord Mandelson, warning Labour is managing decline rather than growing the economy.
Business rates rethink demanded as 104,000 small firms swept into tax net
The FSB has written to the Treasury urging ministers to lift the small business rates relief threshold to £25,000 after 104,000 firms were dragged into the tax net in April 2026.
Zero-hours contract reforms risk pushing bosses towards more insecure work, warns CIPD
The CIPD warns the Government’s zero-hours contract reforms could backfire, pushing employers towards self-employed contractors and fixed-term deals — and leaving young workers worse off.
BCC warns nearly one in five young Britons could be out of work by 2027 as AI and tax rises bite
Youth unemployment in the UK is on course to reach 17.8% by 2027 as AI, higher national insurance and minimum wage rises squeeze entry-level hiring, the British Chambers of Commerce warns.
Royal Mail misses first-class delivery target again as Ofcom prepares fresh probe under Kretinsky ownership
Royal Mail delivered just 75.7% of first-class letters on time in the year to March, well short of its 93% target. Ofcom is poised to open a fresh investigation
Bolland called in as Milburn review warns of a “lost generation” of British youth
Former M&S boss Marc Bolland has been appointed by the government to rally business behind 300,000 placements for young people, after Alan Milburn’s review warned of a “lost generation” of NEETs.
Nvidia takes the AI war to the desktop with RTX Spark superchip
Nvidia has unveiled the RTX Spark superchip at Computex 2026, bringing personal AI agents to Windows PCs from Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Microsoft and MSI from the autumn.
Dragons’ Den’s Tej Lalvani lines up £900m sale of Vitabiotics to Bain Capital
Former Dragons’ Den investor Tej Lalvani is poised to sell family-owned Vitabiotics to Bain Capital in a £900m deal, ending a year-long auction for the UK’s biggest vitamin maker.
Desmond’s Northern & Shell faces £40m bill after ‘fanciful’ lottery claim collapses
Richard Desmond’s Northern & Shell ordered to pay more than £40m after losing ‘fanciful’ £1.3bn National Lottery claim against the Gambling Commission, with 75% due immediately.
Asda turns to Ocado in bid to fix its online grocery problem
Asda has signed a long-term deal to roll out Ocado’s Smart Platform across its website, app, in-store picking and last-mile delivery from 2027, as executive chairman Allan Leighton accelerates his turnaround of Britain’s third-largest grocer.
Temu hit with record €200m EU fine over unsafe baby toys and dodgy chargers
Brussels has handed Temu a record €200m DSA fine after finding dangerous baby toys and faulty chargers on the Chinese marketplace. What it means for online sellers.
London housing slump leaves Labour’s 1.5 million homes pledge looking out of reach
London delivered just 7% of the 88,000 homes it needed last year, says JLL. With buyers squeezed and landlords leaving, Labour’s 1.5m homes pledge is in trouble.
