Fewer transport & storage firms saw an increase in turnover in July than any other comparable sector, but that's not stopped many predicting an increase in September. Transport companies are on a rollercoaster ride, says the home delivery expert Parcelhero.
Over 60 Chief Executives of Britain's biggest retailers have written to the Chancellor to ask for action ahead of the Autumn Budget. The letter from retailers can be found below.
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said, "Food sales did well in early July thanks to warm weather and a packed sporting schedule, though this momentum failed to hold for the rest of the month. Rising food inflation meant increased spending was more a result of higher prices than improved demand.
Responding to the latest CPI inflation figures, which show headline inflation rising to 3.8% and food inflation rising to 4.9%. Kris Hamer, Director of Insight at the British Retail Consortium, said, " Households are once again seeing the cost of their weekly shop climb, with food inflation now up by 1.9 percentage points in just four months.
It has been incredibly hot recently. Many people will have gone months without using their radiators.
More than 450 have joined since 2020. Health Secretary Neil Gray has welcomed an increase in the number of newly qualified paramedics joining the Scottish Ambulance Service, with 360 new recruits joining the service since 2023.
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the BRC, said: "Shop price inflation hit its highest rate since March last year, fuelled by food price rises. This adds pressure to families already grappling with the cost of living.
It is now four years since The Protection of Workers (Retail and Age-restricted Goods and Services) (Scotland) Act 2021 came into force. The Legislation, brought forward by Labour MSP Daniel Johnson and backed by the SRC, Trades Union, and retailers, aimed to start tackling the appalling abuse far too many shopworkers face daily.
SCOTTISH SPENDING REVIEW CRUCIAL TO ADDRESSING FISCAL CHALLENGES. In its Fiscal Update published today, the Scottish Fiscal Commission has said that the Scottish Spending Review due this December provides an opportunity for the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament to address both the immediate budget pressures and, crucially, long‑term fiscal sustainability challenges.
The price of gold reached a historic high in April and remains close to that value. Conventional investing wisdom puts gold as a "safe-haven" asset - one that investors move towards in times of crises as they desert higher-risk assets such as stocks.
Extension supports UK's objective of supporting Ukraine to defend itself from Russian attack, while developing its Armed Forces to deter Putin in future. Ukrainian soldiers will receive a further boost from the British military's expert training, as the Government announces the extension of the UK’s world-leading training programme on Ukrainian Independence Day.
Under the Fiscal Framework agreed between the UK and Scottish Governments in 2016 and reviewed in 2023, the Scottish Government's funding is initially based on forecasts of Income Tax and updated once actual Income Tax revenues are available. Actual Income Tax data for 2023-24 replaces forecasts of Scottish Income Tax (made by the Scottish Fiscal Commission) and forecasts of the associated Block Grant Adjustment (based on forecasts of UK Government Income Tax made by the Office for Budget Responsibility).
Richard Murphy has highlighted a newsletter from Robert Reich. Robert Reich, at the age of 79 and just after retiring from university teaching, is one of the most outspoken critics of Trump in the USA right now.
On August 22-23, 2025, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. government would acquire a 9.9% stake in Intel, roughly valued at $8.9 billion, by converting funds previously allocated under the CHIPS and Science Act along with the Secure Enclave program into equity.
Criminals will be barred from pubs, concerts and sports matches under new sentencing powers. Judges given new powers to punish offenders with bans that curtail freedom.
Employment statistics are designed to tell us what's going on in the labour market, but problems with the Labour Force Survey since the pandemic have muddied the waters. FAI economists Hannah Randolph and Allison Catalano discuss the quality issues with the LFS in recent years and alternative indicators constructed from administrative data.
A new independent body will be set up to speed up decision making on asylum appeal cases. Asylum appeals will be overhauled and speeded up to clear the backlog, accelerate returns and end hotel use under some of the most significant changes to the asylum system in decades.
First what is the OBR. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is the UK's independent fiscal watchdog.
The debate around wages is often dominated by London and the big cities. But in rural Britain, where margins are thinner and workforces smaller, changes to the National Minimum Wage and the National Living Wage carry very different implications.
