Business

Working people should not be made to pay the price for Conservative political failures says GMB Union amid the sluggish GDP figures today. Economic growth slowed to just 0.3% in the three months to November - the lowest for six months. Meanwhile manufacturing growth has fallen five months in a row now  - the first time this has happened since the global financial crash a decade ago. GMB says this is further proof we are on the wrong economic path. ...

Jagaur Land Rover is feeling the squeeze and is about to slash 5,000 jobs due to a decline in diesel sales in Europe and Chinese sales. However, Brexit could cause the company even worse trouble claims the Business Secretary, Greg Clark. Clark believes that a No Deal Brexit would do “extra damage” to the car maker just as it is going through a troubling period. Thousands of jobs are reported to be cut, mainly in management, marketing and administrative roles,...

As if you weren’t feeling rubbish enough after going back to work, the news that top bosses have already made more than the average salary for the year already, is unlikely to fill you with joy..Unless of course you are a CEO. Chief executives of FTSE 100 firms have average pay packets £3.9 million, around £1,000 per hour and are now paid 133 times more than the average worker. So when the clock strikes 1pm they have made the money most...

UK companies in the manufacturing and service sector have indicated that they are struggling to recruit skilled staff because of uncertainty around Britain's future with the European Union.  Brexit has been blamed as 81 per cent of manufacturers and 70 per cent of service sector firms report difficulties recruiting the right skilled staff for their organisations. At the same time they are being hit with rising costs and a reduction in sales. This perfect storm could send many businesses to...

There has been widespread public outcry after a shipping contract was handed out to a company, with no ships or experience of running a shipping line, in no Brexit deal scenario.  Transport Secretary Chris Grayling claimed it was fine to hand out the £13million contract because "it's a new start-up business" He said it was "no problem" despite Seaborne Freight being expected to run emergency ferries if there's no deal over Brexit and would be running essential services to keep...

Brits take an average of FOUR days to get 'back in the saddle' after the holiday period, according to a survey. A study of 2,000 adults shows the majority of us won’t start functioning properly until almost a full working week has passed. Re-adjusting to early mornings, the mountain of work which has piled up over the festive break and having to deal with challenging clients all take their toll in early January. Others find it hard to get in...

In another Brexit story you couldn’t make up, a very lucrative contract has been agreed with a business that will run extra ferries if a ‘no-deal’ Brexit takes place, but has no ships,and has not previously operated a service. Seaborne Freight was one of three companies awarded contracts totalling £108m last week to lay on additional freight crossings to ease the pressure on Dover. Seaborne’s contract is for £13.8m and they have defended themselves amid criticism it doesn’t currently have any shipping...

Stocks are falling in London, as traders rush to sell following last night’s hike in US interest rates. It is the worst performance since Sept 2016. When the markets opened for trading the FTSE 100 shed 119 points (1.6%), which is a new 28-month low of 6646 points. Over in the US, Wall Street stocks slumped on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve lifted interest rates, sending major indices to fresh 2018 lows, even as the US central bank signaled it...

The Cabinet will today order Britain's six million businesses to start immediate preparations for No Deal Brexit. With just 100 days left until D-Day and negotiations stalled the likelihood of Britain withdrawing from the European Union without a deal in place is looking increasingly likely. Labour MP David Lammy has warned a no deal Brexit would be the "single most destructive government failure in peace time" and would cause "huge damage to the economy and probable recession". But the Prime...