Legislation to correct an error in law for owners of unoccupied properties' liability to pay non-domestic rates has been published. The Non-Domestic Rates (Scotland) Act 2020 devolved to councils the power to provide discounts to owners of unoccupied properties from 1 April 2023.
Ah, Budget season. That magical time of year when economists, journalists, politicians, Twitter doomers, estate agents, and your Uncle Dave all join hands across the nation to participate in Britain's most cherished ritual: wild, unrestrained, utterly baseless speculation.
High-street shops, cafes, salons, and small local businesses pay business rates based on the rateable value of their physical premises. Online retailers, meanwhile often operate from cheaper warehouses in out-of-town industrial parks.
The UK Government's rail fare freeze announced this week applies only to England and English train operators. Scotland's rail services are run by ScotRail, which has been publicly owned by the Scottish Government since 2022.
Imagine powering long-haul aircraft and heavy ships with fuels derived from just air, water and renewable electricity. This is moving from science fiction to the verge of reality, thanks to the falling price of renewables like wind and solar.
As the Chancellor prepares to deliver the Autumn Budget on 26 November, pensioners across the country are bracing for changes that may not be announced with fanfare but will be felt in their pockets nonetheless. The issue at hand is not a headline tax rise, but something subtler: fiscal drag.
The UK Government has launched the UK's new Critical Minerals Strategy. New Critical Minerals Strategy sets out the ambition to produce 10% of UK's mineral needs domestically and 20% through recycling by 2035.
Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes is to host a summit following a visit to the Exxon Mobil plant at Mosmorran with Scottish Enterprise's Chief Executive, Adrian Gillespie, on Tuesday. This visit and summit follows the Deputy First Minister's announcement to the Scottish Parliament last week that she will convene a taskforce with Scottish Enterprise Hundreds of staff have been told that their jobs are at risk as the petrochemical company prepares to close part of the site in February.
Rail fares frozen for the first time in 30 years in historic intervention to deliver real savings for millions of commuters. The move from the Chancellor and Transport Secretary will keep household costs down for hardworking families and drive economic growth by limiting inflation by keeping travel costs down.
Whatever decisions Rachel Reeves makes in her second budget as UK chancellor, it is clear that she needs to find lots of money. Some argue that the best and fairest way of doing this is to raise the taxes of the country's wealthiest people.
Fraud is now the most common offence in the UK accounting for more than 40% of reported crime. In the year to July 2025, around 4.2 million people reported being defrauded in England and Wales.
Mossmorran (Fife Ethylene Plant, ExxonMobil) - 179 direct staff + 250 contractors = 400-450 jobs lost. Grangemouth refinery (Petroineos) 400 jobs lost when refining ends in 2025.
The UK Government must invest in public services, support economic growth and take action on the cost of living, Finance Secretary Shona Robison has said. Ahead of the UK Budget on Wednesday 26 November, Ms Robison is calling on the Chancellor to: deliver more funding for Scotland's public services, infrastructure, and cost of living support - including actions to lower household energy bills.
The UK will host the G20 in 2027, the Prime Minister has confirmed on Saturday 22 November 2025. UK will host major G20 summit in 2027, UK confirms during South African summit.
The UK's campaign to raise awareness against visa fraud in India is expanding to a second region, Tamil Nadu. It is the latest example of the UK and India working in partnership to protect people from scams and tackle illegal migration.
Alternative energy jobs can replace many of the losses in chemical and oil industries, but the transition is uneven. The UK's clean energy workforce is projected to nearly double from 440,000 jobs in 2023 to ~60,000 by 2030, creating about 400,000 new roles.
Borrowing - the difference between total public sector spending and income - was £17.4 billion in October 2025; this was £1.8 billion (or 9.6%) less than October 2024 but the third-highest October borrowing (not adjusted for inflation) since monthly records began in 1993, after those of 2024 and 2020. Borrowing in the financial year to October 2025 was £116.8 billion; this was £9.0 billion (or 8.4%) more than in the same seven-month period of 2024 and the second-highest April to October borrowing (not adjusted for inflation) on record, after that of 2020.
Energy regulator Ofgem has today [Friday 21 November 2025] announced a 0.2% rise of the energy price cap for the period covering January to March 2026. This change amounts to a small increase of around 28 pence a month for the average dual fuel household.
Engineers and manufacturing workers across the UK will benefit from a flurry of major new aircraft deals announced this week at the Dubai Airshow. Major Airbus aircraft orders including from Etihad and Emirates at Dubai Airshow worth billions to the UK economy.
The Energy Price Cap will unexpectedly rise by £3 a year in January, as a rise in the costs of government policies that are added to energy bills cancels out a small fall in the gas prices. This makes clear that more action is needed in the Budget to significantly cut bills, the Resolution Foundation said on Friday 21 November 2025.
