The UK’s unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest in nearly fifty years but workers are still suffering sharp falls in real income as wage growth lags behind soaring inflation. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that the country’s jobless rate dropped to 3.7 per cent from 3.8 per cent in the […]Read More

Greggs has revealed that its sales in large cities and locations near offices are lagging behind those elsewhere in the UK as a result of the shift to home working. Roger Whiteside, the outgoing chief executive of the bakery chain, said transaction numbers in city centres were 10% below pre-Covid levels. “There are less people […]Read More

The average price of a litre of diesel has hit a high of just over £1.80 a litre – and could rise even further if the EU ban on Russian oil goes ahead. The RAC reported that the price a litre in the UK has outstripped the previous record of £1.79, set in March after […]Read More

A Cotswold-based authentic Italian food business set up by a couple who initially dreamed of sharing the classic flavours of Italy with the local community is showing no signs of stopping — having expanded its operation to two professional kitchens in just four years, alongside its first restaurant opening next month. Business owners Clara Cardillo […]Read More

Tesco is to hand pig farmers £6.6m in additional support, taking the total to £10m, after warnings that a slew of producers could go out of business. The UK’s biggest supermarket said farmers would get £6.6m until August on top of £3.4m handed out since March under an “accelerated and enhanced payment plan”, after being […]Read More

Elon Musk has suggested that he could seek to pay a lower price for Twitter, as the social media company’s would-be owner expressed further concerns about the presence of fake accounts on the platform. The Tesla CEO said reducing his agreed $54.20 per share offer wouldn’t be “out of the question”, days after putting the […]Read More

Tens of thousands of apprenticeships could be created and hundreds of millions of pounds saved if the flawed apprenticeships levy were reformed, according to a survey of members by the British Retail Consortium. Five years on from the levy’s introduction, 26 national retailers have told the business lobby group that they could each create about […]Read More

Workers should “think and reflect” on whether to ask for pay rises because they risk fuelling inflation, the governor of the Bank of England has said. Speaking at the treasury select committee, Andrew Bailey said there was a “societal question” about whether people should be pushing for pay rises. Bailey, who earns £575,000 a […]Read More

Ofgem has come under fire for extending rules that will effectively prevent energy suppliers from offering deals that are significantly cheaper than the price cap if wholesale costs fall. Martin Lewis, of MoneySavingExpert, said that the changes “sell consumers down the river” and were “killing hopes of firms launching cheaper deals”. Citizens Advice, the […]Read More

Working from home is more popular in Britain than in continental Europe and North America, with commuting journeys down by more than a fifth since pandemic restrictions were eased. Figures from Google’s Mobility Report show that journeys to work were 22 per cent lower last Thursday, the busiest day of the week for commuting, relative […]Read More