Business

The government’s plan to ban smoking in pub gardens and other outdoor venues is a “sensible approach” to help people stop, a minister has said. Sir Keir Starmer confirmed leaked reports on Thursday his government is considering the smoking ban, which would also include outdoor restaurants and outside sports venues, hospitals, nightclubs, and in some

The number of mortgages approved reached a near two-year high, according to Bank of England figures, as hopes of cheaper borrowing encouraged would-be buyers. Mortgage approvals increased to 62,000 in July, a level not seen since September 2022, a sign that buyers were waiting for hopes of reduced interest rates and the associated lower mortgage

Older people are having to fill out a 243-question form to access pension credit and winter fuel payments – a task that will be “daunting” for some, charities have said. The government has launched a campaign urging eligible people to apply for pension credit after Rachel Reeves announced last month that the winter payments would

The government will not defend the legal challenges brought against plans to develop the UK’s largest untapped oil and gas field and a second North Sea site. Rosebank, 80 miles west of Shetland, contains around 300 million barrels of oil and is the UK’s last major undeveloped oil site. It is twice the size of

Smoking could be banned in pub gardens, outdoor restaurants and outside stadiums, according to reports. The measures are currently being considered by ministers according to The Sun newspaper. Smokers would also been prohibited from lighting up outside sport venues, nightclubs and in small parks, the newspaper said – citing “secret Whitehall papers”. Read more:How would

The water industry has warned that firms will be unable to deliver reforms such as stopping sewage outflows without even greater bill rises, with crisis-hit Thames seeking more cash from customers than it originally proposed. A letter from industry trade association Water UK to Ofwat set a collision course between them as firms covering England

One in two LGBT+ employees are facing “shockingly high levels” of bullying and harassment at work, a survey has found.  A survey of 1,000 LGBT+ people by the TUC suggested one in five lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people had been exposed to verbal abuse at work in the last five years. More than a

Thousands of Next workers have won an equal pay claim against their employer. An employment tribunal said the mostly female sales consultant floor staff should not be paid less than warehouse staff, the majority of whom are male. It’s the result of a more than six-year legal battle involving 3,540 claimants working at the high

Sir Keir Starmer will vow on Tuesday to “reverse a decade of decline” and to “fix the foundations” of the UK economy. Delivering a much-trailed speech in the gardens of Downing Street ahead of parliament’s return next week, the prime minister will acknowledge the state of the public finances but pledge to “do the hard

The jersey Babe Ruth wore when he “called the shot” in the 1932 World Series before hitting a home run has sold at an auction for over $24.1m (£18.1m) – making it the most expensive sports memorabilia ever. The shirt, which sold at Heritage Auctions, tops the previous record held by fellow Yankee Mickey Mantle’s

Unilever, the FTSE-100 consumer goods behemoth behind Marmite and Lynx, is trying to slim its portfolio of personal care brands by putting two of them up for sale. Sky News has learnt that Unilever is working with advisers on the disposal of Kate Somerville, an upscale skincare brand it acquired in 2015. City sources said

A court-appointed armed guard tasked with ensuring Mike Lynch did not flee while facing fraud charges has paid tribute to the tech tycoon and his daughter, who both died after the Bayesian superyacht they were holidaying on sunk. The 59-year-old Briton was confirmed dead by local authorities on Thursday after the superyacht he was holidaying

A British fraud detection company backed by Mike Lynch, the technology entrepreneur who died this week, is in talks about a sale to Visa, the American payments giant, worth hundreds of millions of pounds. Sky News has learnt that Featurespace, which was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Cambridge, is in advanced negotiations about

The pound has hit its highest level against the US dollar since March 2022 after the chair of the Federal Reserve declared that “the time has come” for an interest rate cut. Jay Powell’s remarks to the US central bank’s annual economic conference at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, did not specify when rate cuts would begin

The energy price cap will rise in October to an annual average of £1,717. Industry regulator Ofgem said the 10% rise was largely due to higher wholesale gas prices and urged bill-payers to “shop around” for fixed-rate deals. Money latest:Warning £2,500 will be added to stamp duty ‘overnight’ But the latest increase – which means

The energy price cap will rise to an average annual £1,717 from October, the industry regulator has confirmed as the clock ticks down to the loss of winter fuel payments for millions of pensioners. The new figure represents a 10% a year – or £12 per month – leap in the typical sum households face

Consumers are feeling more optimistic about their personal finances – but worse about the overall state of the UK economy, according to a closely watched survey. Falling inflation and the Bank of England’s recent decision to cut interest rates are likely to be major factors in the mood shift, commentators said. July’s general election is

One of Mike Lynch’s neighbours has described him as “generous, humble and full of integrity”, telling Sky News he will “leave a hole that cannot be filled” after his death was confirmed on Thursday. Mr Lynch, 59, was confirmed dead by local authorities on Thursday after the Bayesian superyacht he was on with his wife

You remember that “dire economic inheritance” the new government keeps talking about? Earlier in the summer Rachel Reeves produced a document suggesting the state of Britain’s economy and public finances was so dismal – so much worse than expected – that she would be forced into introducing significant measures (which read: lots more tax rises)

Government borrowing rose to the highest amount since the pandemic in July, official figures show. Not since 2021 has there been a July with such high borrowing, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It means that there was a £3.1bn difference between what the government took in from things like taxes