This week’s rate rise: Brits face immediate jump in interest payments of £1.67bn August 6, 2022 With the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee confirming its base rate will rise by 0.5 per cent to 1.75 per cent, UK households face an immediate increase in interest payments of £1.67bn. UK households are currently paying £24.1 billion annually in interest payments on floating rate debt that are likely to be immediately impacted by [...]
Insolvencies more than double as rampant inflation and rising interest rates hit firms April 22, 2022 Company insolvencies more than doubled last month as soaring inflation and rising borrowing costs pushed firms over the edge.
Hospitality hit ‘from both sides’ of energy price crisis as number of insolvent firms shoots up September 18, 2022 There has been a huge spike in the number of company insolvencies in the past year by 72 per cent, as hospitality bears the brunt of soaring energy bills. New figures from the Insolvency Service show pubs, bars and restaurants have been the worst affected, being “from both sides” by the cost of living crisis. [...]
More businesses to go bust after today’s rate rise as £2bn is added to borrowing costs overnight August 4, 2022 With the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee increasing its base rate by another 0.5 per cent to 1.75 per cent, UK businesses face an immediate increase in interest payments of more than £2bn. Analysis of Bank of England data shows UK businesses are currently paying £14bn annually in interest payments on their £409bn in floating rate [...]
UK must balance innovation with safety to help firms adopt AI, tech bosses say June 19, 2023 The UK must not let safety concerns about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) fall by the wayside as it pushes for a pro-innovation model for regulating the technology, tech bosses have warned. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has reportedly told ministers to speed up the adoption of AI across the private and public sector, including the [...]
Regulators should measure ‘burden’ of decisions after legislative overhaul, industry says July 5, 2023 Finance groups have called for regulators to report on a new range of metrics to ensure they are meeting their statutory obligations. After the Financial Services and Markets Bill passed into law last week, regulators will have hugely increased responsibility for adapting and amending onshored EU regulations. As part of the Bill, regulators will have [...]
UK travel bankruptcies on the rise as Omicron and staycations scupper sector’s recovery February 14, 2022 The UK’s travel sector is still suffering from the impacts of Covid, according to new figures from accountancy company Mazars, which show that travel sector insolvencies are on the rise. In January, 15 travel companies went into insolvency, up from nine in December, Mazars’ figures show. The recent rise in the number of insolvencies comes [...]
UK mortgage arrears hit highest level in more than 12 years as debts to banks creep past record £2bn June 15, 2022 The value of mortgage arrears in the UK has reached its highest level since 2010, with £2.05bn of mortgage debt delinquent at the end of the first quarter of 2022, according to new data shared with City A.M. this morning. As interest rate rises and the cost-of-living crisis hit household finances, more families are now [...]
Exclusive: UK government partners with Kindeva in £33m inhaler technology revolution post-pandemic August 3, 2023 The UK government has joined forces with inhaler manufacturers Kindeva Drug Delivery, in a £33m injection to revolutionise inhaler technology post-pandemic. The joint investment aims to produce “eco-friendly” inhalers and create over 250 “high-skilled” jobs in the UK after the Covid-19 exposed a window of opportunity. In the March 2020 dawn of the pandemic, demand [...]
“Stumbling from lamppost to lamppost”: Making sense of the UK’s GDP figures January 12, 2024 New GDP figures out this morning showed a better than expected economic performance in November - but it's more complicated than that.