Business

Campaigners are urging the government to double maternity pay amid fears mothers are making “drastic” choices because they cannot afford to live on the current statutory weekly amount. The amount should be increased to £364.70, according to trade union Unison and charity Maternity Action. Both organisations say they are concerned some women are going back

A UK recession is “in the balance” but there are signs growth is starting to pick up, the governor of the Bank of England has said. Andrew Bailey made the comments as he hailed Wednesday’s inflation data – which revealed it remained at 4% in January – as “quite encouraging” amid the Bank’s ongoing attempts

Takeaway delivery strikes will be held every Friday and on holidays if demands are not met, an organiser has said ahead of the Valentine’s Day stoppage. A group calling itself Delivery Jobs UK says up to 4,000 delivery riders could strike between 5pm and 10pm on Wednesday night as there are four full WhatsApp groups,

The right-to-buy scheme must be reformed to ensure those most in need have access to secure accommodation, councils have warned. The Local Government Association (LGA) said the scheme, that enables social tenants to purchase their homes with big discounts, meant that 7,449 social homes were lost on a net basis during the last financial year.

Bitcoin has returned to the $50,000 level for the first time since December 2021, riding on the coat tails of a wider rally for US stocks. The world’s largest cryptocurrency, which hit one-month highs last Friday, maintained its momentum on Monday by rising almost 5%. Rivals, such as ether, saw similar percentage moves. Analysts credited

A former chief economist at the Bank of England has expressed disappointment at Labour’s decision to axe its £28bn green investment pledge. Andy Haldane, who is now the managing director of the Royal Society of Arts, told Sky’s Sophy Ridge that the original promise “led the world” in its ambition, and would have benefitted the

The UK arm of The Body Shop has entered administration, threatening jobs and stores. As first reported by Sky News, FRP Advisory has been brought in to handle an insolvency process just weeks since the new owners took control of the cosmetics retailer. The Body Shop has roughly 200 outlets across the UK. Inflation to

Bosses of water companies responsible for illegal sewage spills are to face a ban on their substantial bonuses after years of campaigns and public outrage.   Environment Secretary Steve Barclay announced payouts would be blocked to chiefs who oversee the polluting of rivers, lakes, and seas – starting with bonuses in the financial year starting

NatWest Group is preparing to pay out about £350m in staff bonuses as the government draws up plans for a retail share offer that could drastically reduce the state’s remaining stake in the bailed-out lender. Sky News has learnt that NatWest is finalising proposals for the bonus pot ahead of annual results this week that

Adnams, one of the most historic names in British brewing, has drafted in City advisers to raise new funding amid a deluge of insolvencies across the sector. Sky News has learnt that Adnams is working with Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) on a range of options to shore up its finances. People close to the situation

The new owners of The Body Shop are lining up administrators for its British arm just weeks after taking control of the cosmetics retailer, in a move which could threaten significant numbers of shops and jobs. Sky News has learnt that the company founded by Anita Roddick and her husband Gordon nearly half a century

The Premier League is facing a fresh battle over changes to rules governing commercial deals between related parties after it was warned by a club that the proposals were unlawful. Sky News has learnt that the 20 top-flight clubs, which include Arsenal, Brentford, Chelsea and Manchester United, were notified on Thursday that one of them

Tesco has announced the sale of its banking arm to Barclays in a deal worth up to £1bn. The UK’s largest retailer, which had been in discussions with other major lenders including HSBC and Lloyds, said all 2,800 staff at Tesco Bank would transfer to Barclays under the agreement over time. Hundreds of other workers

The Premier League is to inject £20m into elite women’s football as part of a deal to accelerate the sport’s commercial development. Sky News has learnt that Women’s Super League (WSL) and Championship clubs approved the financing at a meeting on Wednesday, following parallel talks with the Football Association about a similar debt package over

Labour has finally confirmed it is ditching a flagship pledge to spend £28bn-a-year on green investments if it wins the next general election. The party says it will now spend just £23.7bn on environmental schemes over the course of its first term in office – equivalent to just under £5bn a year. However, Labour insists

The world’s largest offshore wind developer has scaled back development targets and announced hundreds of job cuts as the renewable industry struggles under the pressure of rising costs. Orsted, the company developing the Norfolk coast windfarm, Hornsea 3, also suspended shareholder payments in an effort to strengthen its balance sheet. In common with the industry

The culture secretary will hold talks this week with the Premier League and its 20 clubs amid the continuing impasse over a financial redistribution deal for English football. Sky News has learnt that Lucy Frazer will attend a dinner on Thursday evening with executives from the top-flight clubs, as well as Alison Brittain, the Premier

The annual cost of enjoying a moderate standard of living in retirement has risen by £8,000 in a year, according to the pensions industry body. The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) put the yearly price of a retirement income deemed “moderate” for a single person at £31,300 for 2023 to 2024 – up from

Retailers suffered a “lacklustre” January as bad weather and cost of living pressures discouraged shoppers from opening their wallets after Christmas, according to new research. Total retail sales across the UK increased by only 1.2% year-on-year in January – down sharply from growth of 4.2% during the same period last year, figures from the British

The company that owns Facebook and Instagram has said it is planning to label all images on its social media platforms that have been created using artificial intelligence (AI). Meta, which also owns the Threads social media site, has already been placing “Imagined with AI” labels on photorealistic images created using its own Meta AI