Category: News

US drugmaker Merck scraps plans for a £1bn London research hub and cuts UK discovery operations, criticising government undervaluation of innovative medicines and NHS pricing policies.

Keir Starmer tightens control of economic policy by creating a cross-government Budget Board ahead of November’s Autumn Statement, aiming to restore business confidence.

Formula 1 drivers Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson launch a £500 Airtasker challenge for fans to design special edition helmets as a surprise for their pit crew.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has warned ministers that access to the Treasury’s emergency funding pot will be sharply curtailed in the run-up to the government’s first Budget this autumn.

The UK’s automotive sector remains a £115bn global trading powerhouse five years after Brexit, with EV exports to Europe soaring 424%. But looming 2027 battery tariff rules could derail growth unless urgent action is taken.

The Universities of Kent and Greenwich will merge in 2026 to form the UK’s first regional ‘super-university’, spanning London and the South East.

Cefinn, the womenswear label founded by Samantha Cameron and worn by the Princess of Wales and Queen Camilla, is to close after years of losses amid wholesale turmoil, rising costs and post-Brexit trading pressures.

More than 5,800 Countryside Stewardship agreements are set to end in December, leaving farmers warning of environmental damage and financial uncertainty as they await new government schemes.

HMRC staff took more than half a million sick days last year, new figures show, as the tax office also admitted four million calls from taxpayers are going unanswered annually.

Britain has recorded the sharpest fall in hiring intentions across Europe, with recruiters warning of a “tough outlook” as Rachel Reeves prepares another multi-billion-pound tax raid on employers.

British workers are taking more sick days than at any time in the past 15 years, with staff absent for nearly two weeks on average. Mental health is now the leading cause of long-term absence, CIPD research finds.

Tottenham Hotspur have confirmed they rejected preliminary takeover interest from Amanda Staveley’s PCP International Finance and a Chinese investor group, insisting majority shareholder Enic has “no intention” of selling.

The gold price has climbed to a record $3,614 an ounce as investors anticipate a Federal Reserve rate cut and weigh uncertainty over US trade policy, inflation, and the dollar’s role in global markets.