Business

London Underground drivers have been suspended planned strikes over pay after saying they received an “improved offer”. Members of Aslef were due to walk out on Thursday and again next Tuesday – which would have heavily impacted Tube services. The Rail, Maritime and Transport union had already called off strikes by its members after resolving

Post Office campaigner Sir Alan Bates is yet to receive a reply from Sir Keir Starmer, despite writing to him over a month ago. Sir Alan said he had written to the prime minister to remind him the “clock is still ticking” on a financial redress deadline for victims. In his letter, he demanded a

NatWest Group, the high street banking group, has struck what is thought to be the UK’s biggest-ever deal to outsource pension payments to a specialist insurance company. Sky News has learnt that pension trustees at NatWest, which is on track to become wholly owned by private sector investors after more than 15 years in partial

Whitbread, the FTSE-100 owner of the Premier Inn hotel chain, has kicked off the search for a successor to Adam Crozier, its chairman. Sky News has learnt that headhunters acting for Whitbread have begun sounding out possible candidates for the post. Mr Crozier, who has chaired the company since 2018, is expected to step down

A £15bn merger between two of the UK’s biggest mobile networks could get the green light – if they stick to their commitments to invest in the country’s infrastructure, the competition watchdog has said. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the merger of Vodafone and Three had “the potential to be pro-competitive for the

Business leaders expressed frustration with ministers on Monday amid a growing budget backlash that bosses said would trigger an “avalanche of costs” and leave them with no choice but to slash investment and increase prices. Sky News has learnt that bosses of large retail and hospitality companies and trade associations told Jonathan Reynolds, the business

The group of financial heavyweights offering Britain’s biggest water supplier a £1.5bn lifeline is calling on the company’s other backers to accept the plan in a last-ditch bid to save the utility. Thames Water has been fighting to stay afloat since March when its investors declined to give it more money, raising the prospect of

Ryanair – Europe’s largest budget airline – has reported a significant profit decline and scaled back its growth expectations amid challenges from Boeing aircraft delivery delays, lowered fares, and consumer spending pressures. For the six-month period ending in September, Ryanair’s net profit dropped by 18% to £1.5bn, down from the same period last year. The

Two of Britain’s biggest food retailers will this week face pressure to publicly disclose whether they expect a fresh spike in prices next year as the industry grapples with huge tax hikes imposed in last week’s budget. Sky News understands that Marks & Spencer (M&S), which will unveil half-year earnings on Wednesday, and J Sainsbury,

The former Conservative chancellor Nadhim Zahawi is in talks to smooth the path to a takeover of The Daily Telegraph being led by the New York-based media investor Dovid Efune. Sky News has learnt that Mr Zahawi has been working for several weeks with LionTree, Mr Efune’s investment banking adviser, on the deal, which is

Britain’s biggest energy retailers have told ministers that they will provide more than £500m of extra help for households as the government tries to deflect criticism over the winter fuel payments row. Sky News has learnt that EnergyUK, the industry body, is planning to make a joint announcement with the Department for Energy Security and

The Premier League is drawing up plans to present its clubs with fresh proposals for a financial settlement with the English Football League (EFL) as soon as next month. Sky News has learnt that a meeting of the top flight’s shareholders on November 22 is expected to include a discussion on a range of new

Mitie Group, the London-listed outsourcer, has kicked off a search for a successor to Derek Mapp, its long-serving chairman. Sky News has learnt that the FTSE-250 company is working with the search firm MWM Consulting on a hunt for Mr Mapp’s replacement. Potential candidates have started being sounded out in the last few weeks, according

Rachel Reeves will rewrite the government’s fiscal rules in next week’s budget to allow her to increase borrowing for public investment by around £50bn. Speaking to Sky News in Washington DC, the chancellor said that the self-imposed rule under which borrowing must be falling by the fifth year of economic forecasts will be redefined from

Frasers Group, the owner of Sports Direct, House of Fraser and Flannels, has written to Boohoo ordering it to sack its chief executive and appoint Frasers founder Mike Ashley instead. Boohoo, the online fast fashion retailer, had ignored a private Frasers request to install Mr Ashley, according to an open letter from Frasers Group to

The energy supplier which rescued rival Bulb after its collapse in 2021 has repaid the final tranche of government support provided to secure the deal, delivering what it will say this week amounted to an unexpected £1.5bn profit for taxpayers. Sky News has learnt that Octopus Energy will announce on Thursday that it has paid

GoCardless, the digital payments platform, is to become the third British fintech in as many months to orchestrate a share sale that will result in a £100m-plus windfall for its employees. Sky News understands that GoCardless, which was founded in 2011, is in the advanced stages of co-ordinating a secondary share sale. Banking sources said

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has upgraded its projection for UK growth this year by 0.4% to 1.1% – the largest upward revision for any advanced economy. In a boost to Chancellor Rachel Reeves as she prepares to travel to Washington for the IMF’s annual meeting this week, its latest world economic outlook predicts strengthening

The prospects of a rescue deal being struck for a British hypersonic aviation pioneer appeared to recede this weekend when it emerged that talks with a Gulf-based state fund had stalled. Sky News has learnt that negotiations between Reaction Engines and the UAE’s Strategic Development Fund, the investment arm of the UAE’s Tawazun Council, about

Ministers are exploring plans to hand ownership of the Post Office to thousands of sub-postmasters across Britain in an historic shake-up at the 364 year-old institution. Sky News has learnt that the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has asked BCG, the management consultancy, to examine options for mutualising the Post Office. The work is