Business

The UK’s competition regulator has issued three tips for pet owners amid concerns they are paying too much on vet bills and are not given enough information about treatment options. It follows a March update of a review into the UK’s £5bn veterinary services industry by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which said pet

Plans for a multibillion pound mass market sale of the government’s stake in NatWest Group have been derailed by Rishi Sunak’s decision to call a summer general election. Sky News can reveal that a proposed retail offer of shares in the taxpayer-backed bank will be scuppered by the timing of the poll. The Treasury has

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said the UK economy is heading for a “soft landing” but reiterated its message to Jeremy Hunt that he should not have cut national insurance at the last two fiscal events. In its annual check-up on the state of Britain’s economy, the Washington-based Fund also warned of a black

The rate of price rises has dropped to 2.3% in April – the lowest in nearly three years and closer to the Bank of England’s target, according to official data. Inflation is at a low not seen since July 2021, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. Money latest: Do Sunak and Hunt deserve any

There is a “possibility” that G7 nations will support Ukraine’s war effort through the use of billions of dollars in loans linked to seized Russian assets, the US Treasury secretary has told Sky News. In a wide-ranging interview with Sky’s Wilfred Frost, Janet Yellen said she was hopeful of a “united front” on the issue

Traders are facing increased costs and more paperwork due to Brexit border controls, according to a new report from the independent public spending watchdog. The government is estimated to have spent £4.7bn so far but some of that spending was not necessary, the National Audit Office (NAO) has said. Despite the UK voting to leave

Sajid Javid, the former chancellor of the exchequer, has been approached about taking a role at Shein, the online fashion giant which is progressing plans for London’s biggest stock market float for years. Sky News has learnt that Mr Javid is among a number of senior City figures who have held talks with Donald Tang,

Getir, the grocery delivery app which this month confirmed plans to exit the UK, has an outstanding debt to Tottenham Hotspur Football Club running to millions of pounds. Sky News understands that Turkey-based Getir, whose three-year training kit sponsorship deal with Spurs expired at the end of the Premier League season on Sunday, owes close

Taylor Swift’s new album helped fuel the highest weekly vinyl sales in 30 years – but is our rediscovered love of owning records environmentally reckless? PVC (poly vinyl chloride), the plastic from which records have traditionally been made, isn’t great for the planet, and concerns have also been raised over packaging as vinyl sales have

Marks & Spencer’s website and app has not been working for several hours, with a message telling shoppers “you can’t shop with us right now”. “We’re working hard to be back online as soon as possible,” it adds. All the menus and images have disappeared apart from one showing a model in a green jacket.

Bosses at Revolut, Britain’s biggest fintech, are drawing up plans to allow employees to cash in with a sale of stock valued at hundreds of millions of pounds. Sky News has learnt that the banking and payments services provider is lining up investment bankers to coordinate a secondary share sale worth in the region of

The Post Office scandal inquiry has said it will “urgently” review dozens of new documents it has received from former chief executive Paula Vennells. The inquiry heard her legal team had conducted further searches ahead of her appearance next week and found 50 additional documents that had previously not been shared. A spokesperson for the

The Body Shop’s administrators are to launch an auction of the chain after concluding that an alternative restructuring of one of Britain’s best-known high street retailers was not viable. Sky News has learnt that FRP Advisory, which has been overseeing the collapsed business since January, is to begin formally sounding out potential buyers in the

Prosecutions of sub postmasters by the Department for Work and Pensions could be “tainted” as Sky News reveals officials worked with now discredited Post Office investigators to secure convictions. Around 100 prosecutions of Post Office staff were led by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) between 2001 and 2006. It is understood that these

London City Airport will on Thursday name its first permanent female chief executive as it targets approval of an expansion plan that would create nearly 1,500 jobs. Sky News understands that the Docklands airport has told staff that Alison FitzGerald, who has been co-CEO since January alongside finance chief Wilma Allen, has landed the role.

The owner of Royal Mail has said it is “minded” to accept a revised takeover bid by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky. The latest offer from Mr Kretinsky’s investment firm EP Group values the Royal Mail parent company International Distribution Services (IDS) at £3.5bn. An earlier offer had been rejected last month as being too low.

IT systems failures at the UK border have caused major delays to fresh food shipments from the EU, with importers complaining of chaos at the busiest border post as lorries were delayed by more than 24 hours. Sky News understands a key software system crashed at the weekend, leaving shipments of meat, cheese, fresh food

A former Post Office communications director told fellow employees he was at “the heart of a corporate cover-up”, at the same time as sub-postmaster prosecutions were taking place and years before an apology was made to victims. The inquiry into faulty Horizon software, and the associated prosecution of 700 sub-postmasters for theft and false accounting,

The new version of the ChatGPT AI chatbot has been unveiled and offers near-instant results across text, vision and audio, according to its maker. OpenAI said it was much better at understanding visuals and sounds than previous versions. It offers the prospect of real-time ‘conversations’ with the chatbot, including the ability to interrupt its answers.

The prospects for an interest rate cut next month have not been helped by the latest wage growth figures which have come in higher than expected. Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed regular wage growth, excluding the effects of bonuses, was 6% higher over the three months to March compared with a