UK TRADE AND BUISNESS

A s councils tighten their purse strings and strip services back to the basics amid a worsening local authority financial crisis, it is things such as flowerbeds, street cleaning, events and signs that go on the budget chopping block first. That’s where Business Improve­ment Districts (Bids) step in – schemes funded by a levy on local […]

England could produce 13 times more renewable energy than it does now, while using less than 3% of its land, analysis has found. According to the Guardian’s report that onshore wind and solar projects could provide enough electricity to power all the households in England two and a half times over, the research by Exeter University, commissioned […]

The UK’s manufacturing industry has returned to growth and is showing “tentative signs of recovery”, according to a closely-watched survey. Sky says. Both output and new orders increased in March, while business optimism also hit an 11-month high, S&P Global/CIPS UK found. The firms’ manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) score rose to a better-than-expected 50.3 […]

Nearly £60bn is needed to build the British energy grid of the future in order to meet climate change mitigation milestones in just over 10 years, according to the National Grid. The British electricity network needs £58bn in investment to meet 2035 decarbonising targets, National Grid said. New cables need to be built to bring […]

Britain’s Nationwide Building Society (NBS.L), opens new tab has agreed to buy Virgin Money UK (VMUK.L), opens new tab in a potential 2.9 billion pound ($3.7 billion) all-cash deal to create the country’s second-largest savings and mortgage provider. Reuters reports The proposed deal is the latest example of a bounce in merger and acquisition activity among British lenders, […]