India and the European Union have announced a landmark trade agreement, ending nearly 20 years of stop-start negotiations as both sides seek to deepen economic ties amid rising global trade tensions. “This is the mother of all deals,” said Ursula von der Leyen at a briefing in Delhi, while Narendra Modi described the pact as “historic”. The agreement will enable ...
Nearly 50 Labour MPs have written to the chancellor calling for an immediate halt to a planned rise in business rates for music venues, warning that the revaluation could push many spaces to the brink of closure. In a letter seen by the BBC, the MPs urged Rachel Reeves to pause the revaluation due to take effect from April, arguing ...
Retail sales growth is expected to slow across the US, UK and major European economies in 2026 as consumers continue to feel financial pressure and discretionary spending remains subdued, according to new forecasts from Bain & Company. In its 2026 Global Retail Sales Outlook, Bain said macroeconomic uncertainty, cost-of-living pressures and cautious shopper behaviour would weigh on growth in the ...
Poundland has joined forces with the retail industry charity Retail Trust to expand mental health and wellbeing support for its 12,000 employees across the UK. Under the new partnership, Poundland staff will gain access to the Retail Trust’s confidential wellbeing helpline alongside a wider package of support, including counselling services, financial assistance and specialist help for young people in their ...
The High Court has granted an urgent hearing to a judicial review challenging the Government’s proposed changes to inheritance tax reliefs for farms and family businesses, in a move that significantly raises the legal stakes around reforms currently passing through Parliament. The claim, brought by Collyer Bristow LLP on behalf of professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal and claimants including ...
More than 330 businesses across Greater Manchester have been supported to grow, innovate and improve productivity through the University of Salford’s Centre for Sustainable Innovation (CSI), which is marking two years since its launch. Established in 2024, the Centre for Sustainable Innovation was created to give small and medium-sized enterprises access to university expertise, specialist facilities and funding opportunities that ...
The owner of Revolution Bars is preparing to enter administration, putting as many as 2,200 jobs at risk across its UK estate. Revel Collective, which operates 62 pubs and bars under brands including Revolution Bars, Revolucion de Cuba and Peach Pubs, confirmed on Monday that it has filed to appoint administrators, with a formal appointment expected within the next 10 ...
The Barbour family has paid itself a £30 million dividend after a fashion-led revival of waxed jackets helped drive a sharp increase in profits at the heritage outerwear group. Accounts filed at Companies House show that J Barbour & Sons posted a £10 million rise in operating profit to £49.5 million in the year to the end of April, as ...
British high streets once featured betting shops on every corner. William Hill, Ladbrokes, Coral, and independent bookmakers occupied prominent retail positions. Punters gathered inside to watch racing, study form guides, and place wagers with staff behind counters. This familiar scene faded as smartphone technology delivered gambling directly into pockets across the nation. The transformation happened faster than industry analysts predicted. ...
For decades, the “discovery phase” of software development followed a predictable, often slow-moving path: workshops, sketches, wireframes, non-functional mockups. But as we move through 2026, that barrier has effectively vanished. We have entered the era of Generative Prototyping, where the goal is no longer to “simulate” a product, but to prompt its functional skeleton into existence. This shift is fundamentally changing ...