Business

A deal that will create the country’s biggest mobile phone operator has been struck by Vodafone and the owner of Three UK, CK Hutchison. The combined group, which will comprise only their respective UK operations, will be majority-owned by Vodafone with 51% of the equity. The deal, if approved by regulators, will create a group

Cineworld’s London-listed holding company is preparing to file for administration as part of a comprehensive financial restructuring that will wipe out its shareholders. Sky News understands that the multinational cinema operator is lining up AlixPartners to act as administrator to help effect a transfer of ownership to its lenders. An announcement is expected to be

Next weekend’s security staff strikes at Heathrow have been postponed as Unite, the union, considers a pay offer. Last week security staff at the UK’s largest airport announced an escalation of strike action, with walkouts to take place nearly every weekend from mid-June to the end of August. Two thousand staff were due to strike

Basic wage increases picked up pace at a higher rate than expected in the 12 months to April, according to the latest official figures. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said average earnings, excluding bonuses, grew at 7.2% over the 12 months – up from the 6.7% recorded in March and higher than the 6.9%

Some military personnel and their families have been forced to use food banks as high inflation and rising costs tip members of the Armed Forces into crisis, Sky News can reveal. An unofficial food bank even exists at a large Royal Air Force base in Lincolnshire, a defence source said. The voluntary facility at RAF

The prime minister is lining up a technology entrepreneur who co-founded the music industry business Songkick to spearhead a £100m government taskforce set up to forge Britain’s future artificial intelligence capability. Sky News has learnt that Ian Hogarth, who is now an investor in dozens of start-ups, is a leading candidate to chair the Foundation

Homeowners are being hit with a “Tory mortgage penalty” of £7,000, Labour has claimed, with interest rates triple what they were two years ago. Pat McFadden, shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, blamed what he called the “reckless economic gamble” taken by Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng during their short stint in power. Labour’s analysis

The crisis-hit hedge fund Odey Asset Management has offloaded its stake in AO, the London-listed electrical goods retailer, suggesting that it may be unable to stall a fire-sale of assets amid a wave of sexual misconduct allegations against its founder. Sky News has learnt that the firm set up by Crispin Odey was the seller

Greggs says it wants to open new stores in Cornwall and the South West of England – in a move that could put the bakery chain toe-to-toe with traditional Cornish pasty makers. The company’s boss, Roisin Currie, says the company is on track to open 150 new shops nationwide this year – and could open

The government has wobbled on the oil and gas windfall tax, reflecting a growing government concern about the effect of the 75% marginal rate on a sector that supports over 200,000 jobs. It is worth pointing out that the promised relief is dependent on fossil fuel prices falling beyond a certain level for two consecutive

A consumer group has reported Tesco to the competition regulator as officials continue their inquiry into whether the grocery sector is ripping off shoppers. Which? said it had gone to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to complain about a lack of clear pricing on the “vast majority” of the retailer’s food and drink promotions

The former owners of The Daily Telegraph have tabled a proposal to restructure its debt to Britain’s biggest high street lender in a last-ditch attempt to regain control of the right-wing newspaper. Sky News has learnt that the Barclay family submitted an offer to Lloyds Banking Group on Wednesday that would have entailed the bank

The UK jobs market had more candidates going for fewer jobs last month with wages increasing more slowly than before, according to a closely watched survey. May had the highest number of jobseekers in two and a half years as more people were made redundant and hiring slowed, a survey of 400 UK recruitment and

The Daily Telegraph newspaper has inched closer to a sale after Lloyds Banking Group seized control of its parent firm over unpaid loans and placed it in the hands of receivers. Sky News has previously reported how the bank was understood to have undertaken the drastic move and was in the process of appointing investment

Britain’s biggest high street lender is lining up bankers to launch a £600m auction of the Telegraph newspapers and The Spectator magazine within days amid a bitter row with the titles’ long-standing owners. Sky News has learnt that Lloyds Banking Group is being advised by Lazard on its options for some of Britain’s best-known media

The scandal-hit CBI has secured support in its battle for survival by winning a crunch membership vote on plans aimed at restoring trust in the business lobby group. The UK’s largest employers’ organisation needed a simple majority to win the vote in an extraordinary general meeting in London and won 93% in favour of its

The CBI director general Rain Newton-Smith will appeal for members to approve reforms ahead of a finely balanced vote that could decide the future of the scandalised business lobby group. The 59-year-old body, traditionally the voice of big business, faces a potentially existential referendum at an extraordinary general meeting in London, where members will be

British Airways (BA) has revealed all its staff who are paid in the UK have been caught up in a cyber incident that has exposed personal data including bank and contact details to hackers. It emerged last week that a so-called zero-day vulnerability – a flaw – in the file transfer system MOVEit, produced by

Apple is expected to announce a mixed reality headset – its first brand-new product for eight years – at its annual event for developers. The tech giant’s WWDC showcase is usually reserved for software reveals – notably the next major updates for its iPhones, iPads, and Macs – but this year fresh hardware is on

Siemens, the German-based industrial technology giant, is this weekend leading a last-ditch rallying cry to save the CBI, the ailing business lobbying group. Sky News has learnt that Siemens, which employs 11,000 people in Britain, is coordinating a letter among a group of CBI members to urge them to publicly endorse its survival. The letter,