For Britain's pubs and restaurants, 2025 has been a year of adaptation rather than celebration. While the sector has traditionally thrived on late-night trade, rising costs and operational pressures are forcing many businesses to rethink their hours — and for some, "last orders" is coming earlier than ever.
For Britain's smallest businesses, the coming financial year doesn't feel like an economic cycle at all. It feels personal.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has unveiled a long‑awaited reform that will reshape the retirement landscape for hundreds of thousands of pensioners. In a statement to Members of Parliament, Pensions Minister Torsten Bell confirmed that the government will extend inflation protection to defined benefit pension service accrued before April 1997—a change many campaigners have sought for decades.
Over 837,000 payments have been made to people across the country to help with heating costs this winter - thanks to a unique package of support that provides more for people in Scotland than anywhere else in the UK. More than 268,500 payments for Child Winter Heating Payment and Winter Heating Payment – support only available in Scotland – have been paid and are likely to have already landed in people's bank accounts.
As the UK heads into the next financial year, employers are not talking about expansion or opportunity. They are talking about cost, risk and uncertainty.
The fall in employment over both the past 12 months and the past five years is entirely accounted for by higher unemployment, not rising economic inactivity as many people assume. Young people are bearing the brunt of Britain's jobs downturn, according to the Resolution Foundation's latest Labour Market Outlook published this week.
The World Bank cut its 2025 global growth projection to around 2.3%, the slowest outside major recessions, citing trade tensions and policy uncertainty. Organisations like the OECD and IMF also noted slower expected expansion compared with previous years, with bumps caused by tariff effects but some resilience in investment and tech sectors.
Patients at all GP practices in Scotland are benefiting from a digital dermatology service designed to reduce waiting times and improve outcomes. Since the national rollout in September, GPs have referred more than 12,000 patients.
Rolls-Royce (LSE: RR., ADR: RYCEY) has begun AE 1107 engine testing to support prototype delivery for the U.S. Army MV-75 Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) program.
A £1.49m project to build a brand-new Screen Machine - Scotland's mobile cinema, will ensure that rural and island communities can enjoy the latest films close to home. For almost 30 years, Screen Machine has served more than 34,000 people across 44 communities, half of them on islands, offering a digital cinema experience where no permanent cinema exists.
Since the Bank of England Base Rate (BBR) was cut in August 2025, more than 90% of savings providers have cut rates, but mortgage rates have only reduced marginally, according to Moneyfactscompare.co.uk analysis. Cuts to the Bank of England Base Rate (BBR) hit savers the hardest, with more than 90% of providers cutting savings rates since August 2025.
An up-to-date summary of the Employment Rights Bill (often referred to as the UK Employment Bill) as it completes its passage through Parliament. It is expected to receive Royal Assent today (18 December 2025) with a focus on what it contains and how it will affect employees and employers once it becomes law.
Scottish businesses will pursue new export opportunities and investment support during a three-day trade initiative taking place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) next month. UAE Scotland Week aims to connect Scottish companies with investors and partners across renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, cyber security, agritech and food and drink sectors.
Actions to combat sexual abuse set out alongside next steps in national review. Immediate action will be taken to address any harms or risks identified in the first part of an independent inspectorate-led review of responses to group-based child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE).
There are nearly one million young people in the UK who are not in employment, education or training (so-called Neets). After falling in number during the 2010s before the pandemic, this cohort of 16 to 24-year-olds has grown from 750,000 only six years ago.
16 grants totalling £2,164,121 for community asset projects across Scotland announced today by the Scottish Land Fund. The Category-A listed Winter Garden, that has occupied Rothesay's waterfront since 1924, is to pass into community hands following an award of £120,500 from the Scottish Land Fund.
Projects aimed at protecting homes at risk of flooding and tackling the impacts of extreme heat in towns and cities are some of the initiatives benefitting from Scottish Government funding to guard communities against the impacts of climate change. A total of £550,000 is supporting local authorities, health boards, community groups and businesses to work together to address climate risks such as increased flooding, coastal erosion, extreme heat and water scarcity.
Is tax theft? Many people think so — and that belief shapes how we vote, how we treat public services, and how democracy functions. In this video, I explain why the popular claim "it's my money, why should the government take it?" is based on a fundamental mistake.
Most people think that economics is about money, that government spending is constrained by tax, and that public services must always come second to "balancing the books". All of that is wrong.
The latest quarterly Scottish Government Workforce Information statistics have been published today by Scotland's Chief Statistician. These statistics cover the numbers of workers, staff sickness rates, and the diversity of staff up to the most recent quarter ending September 2025.