Business

As a sustainable business owner, I’ve always believed that every choice we make, from the suppliers we trust to the packaging that carries our products, reflects our values.

But the conversation around packaging sustainability is evolving quickly, and 2025 is shaping up to be a defining year for anyone in this space.

The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) will soon change how every business that uses wood or paper packaging operates. Whether you export into the EU or source materials that pass through European supply chains, you’ll soon need to prove exactly where your wood came from, right down to the plot of land where the tree grew.

On paper, this is a hugely positive step. It’s designed to prevent deforestation and ensure that every pallet, crate, box, or sheet of paperboard comes from responsibly managed forests. But for small and medium-sized
sustainable businesses like mine, this new legislation brings both validation and significant Challenges.

For larger corporations, compliance may simply mean hiring dedicated teams or investing in advanced traceability systems. For smaller businesses, the impact is more personal and more complex.

Many packaging suppliers, particularly those sourcing globally, aren’t yet ready to provide the level of GPS traceability that EUDR demands. As buyers, we’re several steps removed from the original forest.

That makes collecting origin data extremely difficult. The reality is that small businesses don’t have the same resources as large corporations.

Gathering, verifying, and documenting the source of every piece of packaging takes time, money, and capacity that many SMEs simply don’t have. Even for companies like mine, built on sustainability from day one, the administrative burden is significant. There’s also a clear imbalance of power.

When small businesses ask large suppliers for detailed traceability information, we’re often met with delays and a lack of data, yet we’re still held to the same legal standards as much larger companies.

The scale of work involved in becoming compliant is immense. Every box, tag, and piece of paper now requires a documented chain of custody which for a packaging company means the majority of our products. For a small business, this isn’t just a quick compliance exercise, it’s an ongoing operational project that touches almost every department.

Teams that were once focused on creative design, marketing, or customer experience now find themselves deep in due diligence, spreadsheets, and certification systems. It’s exhausting work, but it’s necessary if we want to maintain the integrity of our sustainability commitments and continue to trade responsibly in the years ahead.

At Tiny Box Company, we’ve been reviewing what the EUDR will mean for us for months now. We’re working closely with our suppliers to ensure the data we need is being captured at source, and we’re doing our best to gain information that is verifiable.

It’s a huge effort, and at times it feels like we’re trying to rebuild the foundations of something we already thought was sturdy. But we also know that doing this groundwork now will set us up for a stronger, more transparent future.

Despite these challenges, the EUDR represents a powerful opportunity for businesses like ours. It’s a chance to demonstrate what we’ve been advocating for years: that transparency and traceability are not just ideals, but achievable and necessary goals.

For those already committed to sustainability, this regulation provides a platform to prove it. Having verifiable data about our packaging doesn’t just satisfy compliance requirements, it builds trust with our customers, who increasingly care not just about what a product is made from, but where it came from.

The EUDR is also encouraging more meaningful conversations between businesses and suppliers. To meet these requirements, we’ll need closer collaboration and greater openness, which can ultimately strengthen relationships and lead to more resilient supply chains. Over
time, this transparency can help shift the market, rewarding those who operate responsibly and pushing lagging suppliers to catch up.

Another positive outcome is that it’s forcing all of us to reconsider how much packaging we really need. When every gram of wood or paper must be traced to its origin, using less suddenly makes both environmental and financial sense for a lot of businesses.

At Tiny Box Company, we’ve already begun rethinking our designs and processes to reduce complexity, choosing materials that are easier to trace and verify. It’s a continuous process to improve what we’re doing and how we work.

It’s easy to see why some small businesses might feel overwhelmed- the paperwork, the data management, the coordination across global suppliers. But once these systems are in place, the benefits will start to show. We’ll have cleaner data, fewer weak points in our supply chains, and greater confidence in the materials we use.

In time, the hours invested now could translate into reduced risk, smoother audits, and a stronger story for customers who value transparency. The EUDR may feel daunting, particularly for small sustainable businesses that are already trying to do the right thing.

But it’s important to see this as an opportunity to align values with verifiable action. It’s a reminder that sustainability is something that can be measured, proven, and improved upon.

Knowing where our packaging comes from isn’t just about compliance. It’s about integrity and accountability, about running a business that truly understands what it’s selling and where its products come from.

Read more:
The EUDR: A Challenge and an Opportunity for Small Sustainable Businesses

For many UK small and medium-sized enterprises, time is one of the most valuable, and most wasted, resources. While digital tools have streamlined accounting, marketing, and sales, one area still quietly consumes hours every week: meetings and documentation.

Internal meetings, client calls, training sessions, and project updates generate vast amounts of spoken information. Yet much of it is never properly captured, shared, or reused. Notes are rushed, details are missed, and valuable insights disappear once the call ends.

Increasingly, UK SMEs are turning to AI-powered transcription tools to change this.

The Hidden Cost of Meetings in Small Businesses

Meetings are essential, but they are also expensive. A one-hour meeting involving five people doesn’t cost one hour—it costs five. Add the extra time spent writing notes, following up on action items, and clarifying misunderstandings, and the true cost multiplies quickly.

For small teams with limited resources, this creates real problems:

Important decisions are poorly documented
Follow-ups rely on memory rather than records
Admin time increases without adding value

In a challenging economic climate, SMEs are looking for practical ways to reduce this overhead without cutting collaboration altogether.

Why AI Transcription Is Gaining Traction Among UK SMEs

AI transcription tools convert spoken audio or video into written text automatically. What once required manual note-taking or outsourced transcription can now be done in minutes.

For SMEs, the appeal is straightforward:

Speed: Conversations become written records almost instantly
Accuracy: Key points and action items are captured consistently
Efficiency: Teams spend less time on admin and more time on execution

Instead of treating meetings as temporary conversations, businesses are beginning to treat them as reusable assets.

Common SME Use Cases for Audio-to-Text Tools

1. Internal Meetings and Team Updates

Weekly meetings often contain decisions, deadlines, and responsibilities—but these are easily forgotten. Transcription creates a shared reference point, reducing confusion and follow-up emails.

Teams can search transcripts, highlight key sections, and ensure everyone stays aligned, even if they couldn’t attend the meeting live.

2. Client Calls and Sales Conversations

Sales and client-facing teams rely heavily on calls, yet many SMEs still depend on handwritten notes. AI transcription allows teams to review conversations objectively, extract requirements accurately, and maintain better records.

Using audio to text transcription tools helps ensure that no commitments or details are missed, which can significantly improve customer satisfaction and reduce disputes.

3. Training and Knowledge Sharing

Training sessions are often recorded but rarely revisited. Transcribing these sessions turns them into searchable documentation that new hires can use at their own pace.

For growing SMEs, this supports consistency and reduces the burden on managers to repeat the same information.

4. Video Meetings and Recorded Presentations

With remote and hybrid work now standard, many businesses rely on recorded video meetings. Converting video content into text makes it easier to summarise outcomes and share insights across departments.

For SMEs working with recorded briefings or webinars, using an MP4 to text free solution allows them to extract value from existing video content without additional cost or complexity.

SoundWise: A Practical Tool for Busy SMEs

Among the growing number of AI transcription platforms, SoundWise offers a straightforward approach designed for real business workflows rather than technical users.

SoundWise enables SMEs to convert both audio and video files into accurate text quickly, helping teams reduce manual documentation and improve information sharing.

Its core strengths include:

Support for common business formats such as MP3 and MP4
Fast turnaround without complex setup
Clean, readable transcripts suitable for internal records

For SMEs that want to experiment with AI without investing in complex systems, SoundWise provides an accessible entry point.

How SMEs Typically Use AI Transcription in Practice

The adoption process is often simpler than expected:

Record meetings or calls using existing tools such as Zoom or Teams
Upload the audio or video file to the transcription platform
Review and share the transcript with relevant stakeholders

This approach removes the pressure of real-time note-taking and creates a reliable written record that can be referenced later.

Beyond Time-Saving: Better Decisions and Accountability

While saving time is the initial motivation, many SMEs discover additional benefits after adopting transcription tools:

Clear accountability through documented decisions
Improved compliance and record-keeping
Better onboarding and knowledge retention

Over time, this leads to more structured operations and fewer misunderstandings—both internally and with clients.

Final Thoughts

UK SMEs are under constant pressure to do more with less. AI transcription tools are not about replacing people or eliminating meetings; they are about making existing conversations more useful.

By turning spoken information into searchable, shareable documentation, businesses can reduce admin overhead, improve clarity, and make better decisions—without adding complexity.

For SMEs looking to improve productivity in a practical, low-risk way, AI-powered transcription is becoming less of a novelty and more of a necessity.

Read more:
How UK SMEs Are Using AI to Save Time on Meetings and Documentation

American men have lost their work ethic and increasingly feel entitled to a comfortable life without applying themselves, according to Wilbur Ross, who served throughout Donald Trump’s first term.

Ross, the Wall Street investor once dubbed the “king of bankruptcy”, said younger generations have been “coddled” by growing up in a wealthy society, weakening the drive to work that underpinned previous generations and threatening long-term economic growth.

“It used to be that the mantra for any young person was work hard and you can make progress and do better than your parents did,” Ross said. “It never occurred to anyone to not work, at least not anyone I knew. There’s been a whole change in that.”

He argued that a combination of state benefits and parental prosperity had created a sense of entitlement. “I think all these [benefits] programmes, and also the relative prosperity of the current generation’s parents, have created a feeling that they’re entitled to a nice lifestyle, independently of whether they perform any kind of meaningful work,” he said.

“If you’re an able-bodied person who’s not willing to even seek a job, why should you prosper?”

Overall labour force participation among Americans aged 25 to 54, the so-called prime-age workforce, fell sharply during the pandemic but has since recovered to 83.8 per cent, one of the highest levels in nearly a quarter of a century. However, Ross and other economists say that headline figure masks a profound long-term shift among men.

Prime-age male participation has been in structural decline since the 1960s, even as female participation has surged to record levels. The divergence is especially pronounced among younger workers.

Analysis by the Brookings Institution shows that labour force participation among 25-year-old men has fallen in every successive generation since 1969. For men born in the late 1990s, participation at that age stands at about 84 per cent, down from 93 per cent for those born roughly 45 years earlier.

By contrast, participation among women of the same age has climbed steadily, rising from 66.3 per cent to 76.6 per cent over the same period.

Ross said the trend among men was particularly damaging for economic prospects. “I think there are a lot of men who just don’t want to work that hard,” he said.

Workforce participation, he added, was one of the three critical drivers of economic growth. “One is growth in the population of working-age people — that’s something you have no control over in the near term. The other two are productivity and workforce participation. And of the two, for the moment, workforce participation is probably the more important.”

Economists have pointed to several factors behind the decline in male participation, including the loss of industrial jobs, the rise of service-sector roles traditionally dominated by women, higher incarceration rates leaving many men with criminal records, the expansion of disability benefits, and persistent weaknesses in education and skills training.

Together, they warn, these forces risk leaving a growing cohort of men disengaged from work — with long-term consequences for productivity, public finances and social cohesion.

Read more:
Men have lost their work ethic, says Trump’s former commerce secretary

Britain remains stuck at the bottom of the G7 for overall investment, despite Labour’s pledge to inject billions of pounds into public spending over the next two years, according to international data.

Figures from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development show that total investment, combining both public and private spending, stood at just 18.6 per cent of GDP in the third quarter of the year. That leaves the UK trailing all other G7 nations, including the United States, Germany, France and Japan.

The data underlines a long-running weakness in the British economy. The UK has recorded the lowest investment rate in the G7 in 23 of the past 31 years, a factor widely blamed for poor productivity growth and weak long-term economic performance.

By comparison, Japan recorded the highest investment rate among the G7 at 27 per cent, while Germany, despite being in a two-year recession, invested around 20 per cent of GDP over the same period.

Labour has made boosting investment a central plank of its economic strategy, pledging to increase public capital spending on infrastructure, transport and housebuilding. Economists at PwC estimate that public investment will rise by £13 billion in 2026–27, marking the largest two-year increase since the 2008 financial crisis.

However, there are growing concerns that this surge in government spending will not be matched by the private sector. PwC’s chief economist, Barret Kupelian, warned that private investment is expected to stagnate due to weaker business confidence and slower profit growth.

“There will be a much stronger focus on domestic growth levers from the government, particularly public investment picking up at a record pace,” Kupelian said. “But private investment is unlikely to respond as strongly in the near term.”

The scale of the challenge is stark. EY estimates that up to 1,000 major investment projects are planned to start or complete by 2040, with government-backed capital spending on track to reach £1.1 trillion. Yet even this would leave a significant funding gap.

According to EY-Parthenon, meeting Labour’s wider ambitions, including defence spending rising to 3 per cent of GDP by the end of the decade, would leave an investment shortfall of £583 billion. If defence spending increases to 5 per cent of GDP by 2035, the gap could widen to £817 billion, placing further strain on the public finances.

Mats Persson, global leader of EY-Parthenon, said the UK faces mounting pressure from overlapping investment demands. “The government has made progress in unlocking capital for infrastructure, but the long-term funding requirements across energy, defence, health and transport are rising rapidly,” he said.

Economists have long argued that Britain’s low investment levels are a major drag on productivity. Business investment drives innovation and technology adoption, while public investment provides the housing and transport networks needed to support growth.

Louise Haigh, the former Labour transport secretary, said the problem reflected decades of short-term policymaking. “Underinvestment has plagued the UK economy for half a century,” she said. “Our five-year political cycle doesn’t give businesses the long-term certainty they need to commit capital.”

Reform UK’s deputy leader, Richard Tice, accused the government of creating a hostile climate for investors. He said uncertainty and tax changes had pushed capital elsewhere and claimed his party would prioritise deregulation and incentives for wealth creation.

With private investment faltering and public spending under pressure, economists warn that closing Britain’s investment gap will require more than headline funding commitments — and a sustained effort to restore confidence across the business community.

Read more:
Britain stuck at bottom of G7 for investment as private spending stalls

A third of British businesses are planning to invest in artificial intelligence in 2026 as firms sharpen their focus on productivity, skills and technology in an increasingly competitive market.

Research from Lloyds Bank shows that AI is becoming a central pillar of growth strategies, with companies looking to automate processes, improve efficiency and strengthen long-term competitiveness.

The Lloyds Business Barometer, based on a survey of 1,200 firms, found that productivity improvement is the top priority for businesses heading into the next year. Alongside AI investment, 35 per cent of companies said they plan to invest in team training in 2026, recognising that new technologies require new skills to deliver real value.

Paul Kempster, managing director for commercial banking coverage at Lloyds Business & Commercial Banking, said the findings highlighted a shift towards more strategic, future-focused investment.

“These are priorities that will support businesses’ long-term growth,” he said. “They help firms not only capitalise on opportunities in the year ahead, but also build strong foundations well beyond 2026.”

Earlier research from Lloyds underlines why AI is attracting growing attention. In a study published in June, 82 per cent of businesses using AI said it had boosted productivity, while 76 per cent reported an improvement in profitability. Retailers reported the strongest productivity gains, while manufacturers were most likely to see a positive impact on profits.

Despite the momentum, barriers remain. Businesses cited the cost of AI tools, shortages of specialist skills, data privacy concerns and energy usage as factors slowing adoption. Even so, 56 per cent of firms said they intend to make new AI investments over the next year, while a quarter of those yet to adopt the technology said they plan to do so.

The barometer also points to a modest improvement in sentiment. Overall business confidence rose by five points in December to 47 per cent, up ten points over the course of 2025. Optimism about the wider UK economy climbed to a four-month high, with many firms expecting price pressures to continue easing.

However, caution remains evident on the consumer side. Early indicators suggest weaker high-street performance ahead of Christmas, with in-store footfall on the final Saturday before Christmas down almost 7 per cent year on year.

Taken together, the data paints a picture of businesses looking inward, investing in technology and people to drive efficiency, while remaining alert to fragile consumer demand and ongoing economic uncertainty.

Read more:
A third of UK businesses plan AI investment in 2026 as confidence ticks up

Small businesses across the UK have recovered £10 million in late and overdue payments with the help of the Office of the Small Business Commissioner, marking a major milestone in efforts to tackle damaging payment practices by larger organisations.

Almost £1 million has been recovered so far in the current financial year alone, with more than £500,000 secured in December 2025, highlighting an acceleration in enforcement and case resolution compared with previous years.

Since its establishment in 2017 under the Enterprise Act 2016, the Small Business Commissioner’s office has acted on behalf of small firms facing unpaid invoices or unfair payment behaviour. It reviews enquiries, investigates formal complaints and works directly with larger companies to resolve disputes and release outstanding funds.

The scale of the problem remains significant. Government research shows late payments cost the UK economy around £11 billion a year, contributing to the closure of roughly 4,000 businesses annually — the equivalent of 38 firms every day. Earlier this year, ministers launched a consultation on strengthening the powers of the Small Business Commissioner as part of a wider crackdown on late payment culture.

One small IT business supported by the Commissioner this year said intervention proved decisive after months of failed attempts to recover an overdue invoice from a large travel company.

“We’re incredibly grateful to the Small Business Commissioner for helping us recover a long-overdue payment after many unsuccessful attempts through email, phone calls and website forms,” a spokesperson said. “Being a microbusiness of just four people, we simply weren’t high on their radar. Thanks to the SBC’s support, we were able to make payroll this month.”

Emma Jones, the Small Business Commissioner, said the £10 million milestone underlined both the scale of the problem and the importance of small firms coming forward.

“What an incredible achievement,” she said. “Over £10 million retrieved for small firms, with almost £1 million recovered this financial year alone — three times the amount secured last year. Late payment is not only bad for business, it also takes a serious toll on founders’ mental health as they worry about paying bills and keeping their business going.”

Jones added that the office could only deliver results when businesses raised cases and urged more small firms to seek help if they were being paid late by larger customers.

Small businesses with unresolved payment disputes that they have been unable to settle directly are encouraged to contact the Small Business Commissioner for advice and support.

Read more:
£10m in late payments recovered for small firms by Small Business Commissioner

Britain’s electricity demand has risen for the second year in a row after two decades of decline, marking a decisive turning point as electric vehicles, heat pumps and AI data centres usher in a new era of electrification.

Provisional figures for 2025 show electricity consumption rose by 3 per cent, the fastest annual increase since 2001, according to analysis by Imperial College London for Drax Electric Insights. It is the first time the UK has recorded two consecutive years of demand growth since 2002–03.

Electricity use reached an estimated 273 terawatt-hours (TWh) this year, up from 266 TWh in 2024 and 262 TWh in 2023. Demand had peaked at 347 TWh in 2005 before falling steadily as appliances became more efficient, heavy industry declined and parts of the economy de-industrialised.

That long-term trend now appears to have reversed.

“We have reached a turning point after 20 years of demand falling,” said Iain Staffell, associate professor of sustainable energy at Imperial College and lead author of the Electric Insights analysis. “Electric vehicles, heat pumps and the data centres powering AI are now pushing up electricity demand.”

The rise reflects rapid electrification across transport, heating and digital infrastructure. Installations of heat pumps increased by around 20 per cent in 2025, while electric vehicle sales jumped 28 per cent, with roughly one in three new cars sold now electric. Power demand from data centres, fuelled by artificial intelligence, is also accelerating. It is estimated to have doubled since 2020 and now accounts for 3–4 per cent of UK electricity consumption, with projections suggesting it could exceed 10 per cent within a decade.

The Climate Change Committee has previously warned that electricity demand may need to at least double by 2050 if the UK is to meet its decarbonisation targets, a scenario that underpins government plans to expand generation capacity and upgrade the national grid at a cost of tens of billions of pounds.

Crucially, the analysis shows that the extra demand in 2025 was met entirely by cleaner power. Renewable generation rose sharply, led by a 35 per cent surge in solar output following the sunniest year on record and the connection of new solar farms. Solar still accounted for only 7 per cent of the total electricity mix, but wind remained the single largest source at 31 per cent for the second year running.

Gas-fired generation provided 28 per cent of electricity, while nuclear output fell to just 12 per cent — its lowest share since 1980 — after extended maintenance outages and unplanned shutdowns at ageing reactors.

“Our power system got cleaner at the same time as growing,” Staffell said. “Renewables met all the extra demand placed on the grid.”

Carbon emissions from electricity generation fell to their lowest level since 1938 following the final closure of coal-fired power stations in 2024. However, the cost impact was less benign. Wholesale electricity prices rose by 12 per cent over the year, driven by higher gas prices and a sharp increase in carbon costs.

The data underline a fundamental shift in the UK energy system: electricity demand is rising again — not because of inefficiency, but because power is replacing fossil fuels across the economy. The challenge now is whether generation, networks and storage can scale fast enough to keep pace without pushing costs sharply higher for households and businesses.

Read more:
UK electricity demand rises for second year running as EVs, heat pumps and AI drive surge

Over the past ten years, the New Year and Birthday Honours have increasingly reflected the changing shape of British business, from scale-up founders and fintech pioneers to industrial leaders and advocates for responsible capitalism.

These figures stand out for their sustained economic impact rather than celebrity alone.

Sir Richard Branson

Founder, Virgin Group

Already knighted, Branson has continued to receive recognition for services to entrepreneurship, employment and philanthropy. His Virgin ecosystem remains one of the UK’s most globally recognisable business exports.

Sir James Dyson

Founder, Dyson

Honoured for services to design, engineering and innovation, Dyson’s investment in advanced manufacturing and R&D has reinforced the UK’s reputation for high-value engineering, even as production has become increasingly global.

Dame Carolyn McCall

Chief Executive, ITV

Recognised for services to broadcasting and business leadership, McCall is widely credited with modernising legacy organisations, first at easyJet, then at ITV, while championing diversity at senior levels.

Sir Mike Ashley

Founder, Frasers Group

A controversial but undeniable force in UK retail, Ashley’s knighthood acknowledged decades of value creation, job generation and investment in British high streets and sports retail.

Dame Emma Walmsley

Chief Executive, GSK

One of the UK’s most senior female executives, Walmsley has been recognised for services to the pharmaceutical industry and life sciences, a sector increasingly central to Britain’s economic future.

Sir Charles Dunstone

Co-founder, Carphone Warehouse

Honoured for services to business and charity, Dunstone helped shape the UK’s consumer telecoms market and later became a leading figure in philanthropy and social enterprise.

Sir Ian Cheshire

Former CEO, Kingfisher

Awarded for services to business and sustainability, Cheshire has played a pivotal role in embedding environmental responsibility into board-level decision-making across UK corporates.

Dame Sharon White

Former Chair, John Lewis Partnership

Recognised for services to business and the public sector, White’s leadership bridged regulation, retail and governance during one of the most challenging periods for UK consumer businesses.

Taken together, these honours chart a shift away from purely industrial-era recognition towards leaders who combine commercial success with innovation, governance reform and long-term societal impact, a trend reinforced again in the 2026 New Year Honours.

Read more:
Top UK business honourees of the past decade

The 2026 New Year Honours List has highlighted a broad cross-section of UK business leaders, rewarding contributions from high-growth sectors, corporate stewardship, entrepreneurship and efforts to widen business opportunity and investment.

While the honours system casts a wide net across public service, arts, charity and science, several recipients stand out for their direct impact on the UK’s economy and business landscape.

Banking, finance and corporate leadership

Gary Andrew Hoffman — CBE

Appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to the economy and sport, Hoffman is Chair of Monzo Bank Holding Group and Monzo Bank Ltd. His stewardship comes amid a period of rapid evolution in digital banking and a renewed focus on customer trust and regulatory compliance in UK fintech.

Ian Graham King — CBE

Awarded a CBE in recognition of his role as Chief Executive Officer of BAE Systems and as Lead Non-Executive Director for the Department for Transport. King’s leadership at one of the UK’s largest defence and aerospace companies underscores the strategic importance of advanced manufacturing and technology-driven exports to the UK economy.

Entrepreneurship and small business champions

Jonathan Piers Daniel Linney — OBE

Honoured for his services to small business, entrepreneurs, investors, banking and diversity, Linney is the Executive Chair of Implement AI Ltd, a company at the intersection of technology adoption and SME scaling. His recognition reflects the growing profile of AI-enabled services in supporting UK startups and investment readiness.

Akin Onal — OBE

Founder and Chief Executive Officer of MORI, Onal has been awarded for services to entrepreneurship. His work is widely associated with championing the UK’s start-up ecosystem and fostering inclusive paths to business growth.

Marie Sarah Owen — OBE

Owen, Founder and Chief Executive of LS Productions, was recognised for services to the creative industries and economic development, a nod to the increasingly significant role that creative and media businesses play in economic vibrancy and regional growth.

Sector leadership and industry bodies

Mark Bamforth — OBE

Executive Chairman of Kincell Bio and General Partner at Kineticos AMR Accelerator Fund, Bamforth received honours for services to UK life sciences and UK-US business relations. His cross-border work in biotech funding and strategic partnerships reflects the UK’s globalising innovation economy.

Alessandra Bellini — OBE

The past President of the Advertising Association, Bellini was recognised for her contributions to the advertising and marketing sector — industries that underpin UK creative exports and digital media growth.

Safaraz Ali — OBE

As Chief Executive Officer of Pathway Group, Ali has been honoured for his leadership in diversity and inclusion in business. This award highlights how equitable talent and board representation are increasingly prioritised within modern UK corporate culture.

Joanne Liddle — OBE

Managing Director of Industrial Precision Components Ltd, Liddle was recognised for services to the aerospace sector in Northern Ireland, a reminder of the critical role manufacturing expertise plays in regional economies and national supply chains.

Entrepreneurial legacy and scale-up impact

Richard David Harpin — Knight Bachelor

Knighted for his services to business, Harpin (pictured) is the founder and former CEO of HomeServe, a £4.1bn home assistance business that now employs around 9,000 people. His career embodies the scale-up journey from start-up founder to industry disruptor, and his recent work with policy on apprenticeships emphasises business’s role in workforce development.

What this year’s list highlights is both diversity of contribution and the newer nature of business impact in Britain: from tech and fintech to manufacturing and creative industries, the honourees span sectors that collectively shape economic resilience and future opportunity.

This years honours signal areas of growth and influence, and underscore how recognition at the national level often mirrors broader themes in business policy and investment.

Read more:
UK business leaders and innovators honoured in 2026 New Year honours list

Octopus Energy Group is preparing to spin out its technology arm Kraken in a landmark deal that values the business at $8.65 billion, following a $1 billion standalone investment round.

The funding, announced in London on 29 December, is led by D1 Capital Partners, with participation from major global investors including Fidelity International, Durable Capital Partners and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board through its Teachers’ Venture Growth arm.

The move paves the way for Kraken’s formal demerger and independence from Octopus Energy Group, allowing the platform to operate as a neutral, global technology provider to utilities while Octopus sharpens its focus on energy retail, generation and clean technology.

As part of the transaction, new and existing investors are acquiring around $1bn of Kraken equity. In parallel, investors led by Octopus Capital are injecting a further $320m into Octopus Energy Group to support innovation and growth across its wider businesses. After the split, Octopus will retain a 13.7% stake in Kraken.

Originally incubated within Octopus, Kraken has grown into one of the world’s most advanced AI-powered operating systems for energy utilities. It is now contracted to serve more than 70 million customer accounts globally through licensing agreements with major energy providers and processes over 15 billion new data points every day.

In September, Kraken revealed that its contracted annual revenues had exceeded $500m, representing fourfold growth in just three years. The company’s technology is increasingly seen as critical infrastructure for utilities modernising billing, customer service and grid management in support of the energy transition.

Greg Jackson, founder of Octopus Energy Group, said the demerger marked a natural next step. “Kraken is in a class of its own in terms of technology, capability and scale,” he said. “As an independent company with world-class backers, it will be free to grow even faster and is set to be a true UK-founded success story.”

Jackson added that Octopus itself would benefit from the move, pointing to its more than 10,000 staff, 11 million customers, $10bn of generation assets under management and expansion into areas such as EV leasing and heat pump manufacturing.

Kraken’s chief executive, Amir Orad, said independence would allow the platform to accelerate global adoption. “Becoming an independent company gives Kraken the focus and freedom to scale as a neutral, global operating system for utilities,” he said. “Our goal is to positively impact a billion lives within a decade.”

Dan Sundheim, founder and chief investment officer of D1 Capital Partners, said Kraken’s growth and customer retention underpinned the firm’s investment decision. “We believe Kraken is adding significant value to utilities, as reflected in its customer satisfaction, stickiness and growth,” he said.

Following the demerger, Kraken will operate with its own governance structure, leadership team and cap table, marking one of the most significant UK tech spin-outs in recent years and underlining the growing global demand for data-driven energy infrastructure.

Read more:
Octopus Energy to spin out Kraken in $8.65bn valuation deal