Business

Sky is preparing to slash hundreds of jobs in the UK as the broadcaster continues to grapple with the shift away from satellite television towards streaming.

The company has launched a consultation affecting 900 roles, with around 600 expected to go. The move marks the third major round of cuts at the business in less than two years, as it adjusts to declining demand for satellite-TV packages and ramps up its digital offerings.

Sky, owned by U.S. media giant Comcast, employs about 23,000 people across the UK. It has invested heavily in new products such as its streaming-focused set-top box and smart TV Sky Glass in a bid to compete with Netflix and Disney+. But the pressure is mounting, with HBO’s Max service due to enter the UK market next year, ending Sky’s long-standing exclusivity on hit shows such as The White Lotus.

In a statement, the company said it would scale back on developing new products to focus instead on improving existing ones. “As we look ahead, we are shifting our approach to bring customers the next generation of experience by investing in digital-first service, unbeatable content and even better performance from our products, powered by the best of global innovation,” a spokesperson said.

The cuts form part of a broader turnaround strategy for Comcast, which paid £31 billion to acquire Sky in 2018 but has since taken an $8.6 billion (£6.3 billion) write-down on the investment. Sky reported UK revenues of £11.2 billion and profits of £256 million in 2024, but its satellite business has been in steady decline.

In the past two years, Sky has axed around 1,000 jobs linked to dish installation and 2,000 call centre roles, with three regional centres due to close. The group’s recovery has also been complicated by an embarrassing miscalculation in its advertising division that left partners underpaid, a mistake that could cost hundreds of millions of pounds.

With competition intensifying and its core business shrinking, Sky now faces the challenge of cutting costs while convincing subscribers to stay loyal in an increasingly crowded streaming market.

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Sky to Cut Hundreds of Jobs as Streaming Shift Forces Restructure

Unemployment in Britain is on course to climb to its highest level in five years as businesses brace for another round of tax rises under Chancellor Rachel Reeves, according to new forecasts.

KPMG said the jobless rate is expected to reach 4.9% in 2026, up from the current 4.7% and well above the 4.1% recorded in August last year, as the labour market struggles with falling vacancies. The consultancy warned that the market was “unlikely to see a reversal in fortune in the near term” amid fears the Government will tighten the squeeze on employers.

Reeves is grappling with a potential £50bn hole in the public finances caused by weak growth and costly policy U-turns. She has already overseen a record £40bn tax raid on business, including a hike in employer National Insurance contributions branded a “jobs tax”. But with her fiscal rules under pressure, speculation is mounting that she will need to go further—potentially targeting companies, landlords and investors while maintaining Labour’s pledge not to raise taxes on “working people”.

KPMG’s forecast added to concerns that Labour’s workers’ rights reforms, which strengthen union powers, could have a “chilling effect” on hiring. It expects vacancies to continue falling through the rest of the year, with many firms holding back on recruitment until there is more clarity in Reeves’s Autumn Budget in November. “As a result, we expect unemployment to gradually rise further over the coming year, increasing from 4.7% in July and peaking at 4.9% in 2026,” it said. GDP growth is forecast at 1.2% this year, slowing slightly to 1.1% in 2026.

The numbers pose a serious challenge for Reeves, who faces spiralling borrowing costs, weak productivity and accusations that Labour’s tax-and-spend policies risk choking off growth. Mel Stride, the shadow chancellor, said Reeves was “asleep at the wheel”, adding: “She now has a black hole to fill just to keep to her own rules—the rules she already rewrote to allow even more borrowing. The price? Yet more tax rises in the Autumn. More pain for working people.”

Although Reeves has rejected claims she is facing a £50bn shortfall, analysts believe tens of billions will still need to be found. Options under discussion include freezing income tax thresholds for longer, a move that could raise £8bn, and fresh levies on wealth, property and dividends. Economists have also suggested windfall taxes on gambling companies and reform of council tax bands for homes worth more than £1m.

James Nation, a former Treasury adviser under Rishi Sunak, warned that increasing capital gains tax would be “a hard political sell”. He compared it to inheritance tax in its unpopularity, saying: “You’d be saying to someone that, in theory, if you improve the state of your property, there is a world in which the taxman would be able to come and take away some of that gain.”

Despite the speculation, a Treasury spokesman insisted the Government remained “pro-business”, highlighting trade deals with the EU, US and India, reforms to business rates, and a corporation tax cap at 25%. “We are delivering on our Plan for Change to put more money in people’s pockets by increasing the national living and minimum wage, and real wages have grown more since the election than the first decade of the previous parliament,” the spokesman said.

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Reeves tax raid to ‘drive unemployment up to five-year high’

Yaso, a UK ecommerce firm that helps British beauty brands sell in China, has raised more than £8 million to expand into new consumer sectors including supplements, fashion and food.

Founded in 2022 by Jonny Plein, James Campbell and Adam Knight, Yaso provides a software-based platform that integrates brands into leading Chinese social media and ecommerce channels such as Douyin, Tmall and RedNote. The model allows British exporters to sell directly to Chinese consumers, navigating payments, logistics, tax and compliance through one system.

The fresh investment, led by private equity firm Puma Growth Partners, will allow Yaso to scale beyond beauty and build on its current roster of clients, which includes Cowshed, Pixi Beauty, Faith in Nature and Nip + Fab. The founders said they expect ten companies to be trading on the platform by the end of the year.

Plein said the business is capitalising on a shift to social commerce: “It’s not new that Western brands want to sell in China. The big change is how. Social commerce – livestreaming, influencer-driven sales – is five years ahead in China compared to the UK or US. That’s what we’re tapping into.”

Campbell added that while British heritage helps, it is not enough on its own: “Chinese consumers are among the most demanding in the world. They expect top quality and exceptional service – customer service must be near-instant and deliveries within one to two days. Simply putting a Union Jack on a product isn’t enough.”

The trio bring experience in both tech and Chinese markets. Plein co-founded Pouch, a browser voucher extension business acquired in 2019, while Campbell and Knight previously co-founded Tong, a Chinese marketing agency.

With the new funding, Yaso is also exploring partnerships with world-famous athletes to promote British products in China, reflecting the company’s ambition to broaden its reach across multiple consumer categories.

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Yaso raises £8m to expand beyond beauty with new products in China

Vodafone was warned by its franchisees four years ago that commission cuts were having a “massive impact” on their mental health, long before dozens of small business owners launched a £120 million High Court case against the company.

In a 2020 survey conducted weeks after Vodafone reduced fees paid to franchisees for selling its products and services, participants reported suffering stress, anxiety and depression. The cut followed months of uncertainty caused by the Covid pandemic.

Franchisees scored the company just 1.75 out of 5 on whether they trusted Vodafone’s word, and 1.67 out of 5 on whether they felt valued as business partners. Many said the changes had left them fearful of losing their livelihoods, homes and savings.

One respondent wrote: “My mental health has become very poor as I am suffering from anxiety and spells of depression.” Another added: “I am ill from stress and it has affected my home life.”

In December last year, 62 franchisees – representing nearly 40% of Vodafone’s total franchise network – launched a High Court claim alleging that the company “unjustly enriched” itself by slashing commissions. The claim seeks up to £120m in damages.

Some franchisees have since said the pressure they faced triggered suicidal thoughts. MPs have compared aspects of the dispute to the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, highlighting the scale of alleged mistreatment of small business owners.

Vodafone said it regretted any franchisee having a difficult experience. A spokesperson added: “At Vodafone UK we encourage anyone to raise issues in the knowledge they will be taken seriously, and we always seek to resolve any issues raised. We continue to run a successful franchise operation, and many of our existing franchisees have expanded their business with us by taking on additional stores.”

The telecoms company has launched its fourth investigation into historical conduct within its franchising division. It has also said it “strongly refutes” the allegations in the High Court claim, describing the case as a commercial dispute it intends to defend.

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Vodafone franchisees raised mental health concerns years before £120m legal claim

President Donald Trump has claimed that Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan are expected to join a U.S. consortium seeking to acquire TikTok’s American operations from its Chinese owner, ByteDance.

Speaking during a Fox News interview, Trump said the Murdochs would join Oracle founder Larry Ellison and Dell Technologies founder Michael Dell in the group. He suggested that the Murdochs’ involvement would likely come through their Fox Corporation media business rather than personal investment.

“These are great people, very prominent people, American patriots,” Trump told the network. “I think they’re going to do a really good job.”

The proposed deal is part of efforts to prevent TikTok from being banned across the United States. Congress last year passed legislation requiring ByteDance to divest the app over national security concerns, but the enforcement of that law has repeatedly been delayed while negotiations continue.

The White House said over the weekend that it expected the takeover to be completed “in the coming days.” Trump added that he had spoken with Chinese President Xi Jinping to help secure approval for the deal.

TikTok, which has more than 130 million U.S. users and over a billion worldwide, has long been in the crosshairs of Washington over fears that its Chinese ownership could compromise user data. Oracle is expected to handle data and security functions as part of the arrangement.

While the financial terms and ownership structure have not yet been disclosed, the inclusion of the Murdoch family would bring one of the world’s most influential media groups into the deal. News Corp and Fox declined to comment on the president’s claims.

The revelation comes just months after Trump launched a $10 billion libel suit against the Wall Street Journal, owned by Murdoch’s media empire, over an article about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

Despite that legal battle, Trump framed the involvement of Murdoch, Ellison and Dell as proof the TikTok deal would be in “patriotic American hands” – though much still depends on how regulators in Washington and Beijing respond in the weeks ahead.

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Murdoch and Dell said to join US consortium for TikTok takeover, Trump claims

Fenyx Bridging, a newly established specialist property lender, has secured a £10 million block facility from Shawbrook to support its launch and growth strategy in the UK bridging finance sector.

The funding line will enable the lender to back professional property investors and developers across England and Wales with short-term finance solutions for residential and mixed-use transactions.

Led by a management team with a proven track record, Fenyx Bridging has been designed to deliver scalable, flexible solutions underpinned by strong legal frameworks. The business was introduced to Shawbrook by Tempus, a longstanding client, and sought a facility to establish an immediate market presence and meet demand from a growing pipeline of transactions.

Shawbrook’s Specialist Finance team worked under tight deadlines to structure and complete the deal before Fenyx’s go-live date, highlighting the bank’s reputation for agility in complex funding arrangements.

Maurice Adler, chief executive of Fenyx Bridging, said: “We are delighted to have partnered with Shawbrook to launch Fenyx Bridging. Their deep understanding of the specialist lending market and ability to move quickly on complex transactions were essential in helping us hit the ground running. The tailored facility, delivered ahead of an ambitious deadline, gives us the scalable platform required to serve clients from day one and pursue our growth ambitions with confidence.”

Emran Mohammad-Ali, associate director at Shawbrook, added: “Maurice and his team demonstrated robust processes, proven expertise and solid legal frameworks – all of which confirmed their commitment to innovation in bridging finance. We delivered a bespoke funding solution at speed, reflecting Shawbrook’s agility and expertise in specialist lending.”

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Shawbrook backs Fenyx Bridging with £10m facility to fuel launch and growth

BMW’s UK motor finance division has sharply increased the money set aside to cover potential compensation for drivers mis-sold car loans, allocating nearly £207 million in provisions.

The move underscores the growing cost of the industry-wide scandal as regulators prepare a formal redress scheme.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is expected to outline shortly how it will compensate millions of consumers caught up in the mis-selling of discretionary commission arrangements — deals that rewarded car dealers with higher commissions if customers paid higher interest rates on finance. The practice, banned in 2021, has been under investigation since January 2024.

The FCA estimates that lenders could face total liabilities of between £9 billion and £18 billion, drawing comparisons with the £50 billion payment protection insurance (PPI) scandal. Banks including Lloyds and Santander UK, along with the finance arms of major carmakers, are preparing for significant hits to their balance sheets.

BMW’s disclosure, made in accounts filed at Companies House, shows its provision has nearly trebled from the £70 million reported last year. The figures were signed off in April, before the FCA confirmed it would push ahead with forcing lenders to compensate affected consumers.

In its annual report, BMW’s UK finance arm admitted there was “considerable uncertainty” around the final scale of compensation. It warned that even a five per cent increase in claims could add a further £31 million to its provision, which also covers administrative and legal costs.

Although a Supreme Court ruling in July largely sided with the industry over motor finance arrangements, the FCA has signalled that it will still enforce wide-ranging redress. Chief executive Nikhil Rathi has said he wants a “critical mass” of consumer complaints resolved by next year.

A BMW spokesperson declined to comment beyond the accounts.

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BMW sets aside £200m for UK car finance mis-selling claims

The UK risks a “long, slow death” of its economic engines if businesses continue to trail international rivals in adopting artificial intelligence, according to Matt Clifford, the prime minister’s former AI adviser.

Clifford, who also chairs the Advanced Research and Invention Agency (Aria), said Britain is guilty of “dangerous complacency” despite its reputation as a hub for technology and innovation.

Speaking at the Royal Television Society’s conference in Cambridge, Clifford warned that sectors where Britain has clear strengths, such as life sciences, financial services and media, could lose their edge if firms remain slow to integrate AI. “We kid ourselves that, because we have some good tech firms, Britain is good at tech,” he said. “The truth is we’re probably the worst adopter of new technology in the developed world.”

A government review earlier this year found that AI could add £47 billion annually to the UK economy over the next decade, boosting productivity by 1.5% each year if adopted widely and safely. Yet adoption remains patchy. Only 8% of manufacturers had deployed AI or machine learning, while most creative industry companies were considered too small to commit significant capital. In life sciences, limited access to high-quality health data has slowed innovation. The review concluded that the main barriers are high upfront costs, lack of workforce skills, poor information on use-cases, and regulatory uncertainty.

A spokesman for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said the government is working with industry to train a fifth of the UK workforce in AI by 2030. It is also appointing “AI sector champions” and implementing an action plan to break down barriers to adoption.

Separate research highlighted infrastructure as another pressing challenge. A survey of FTSE 250 executives by the Energy Networks Association found that nearly nine in ten believed upgrading the national grid was essential for unlocking growth in high-demand industries such as AI. Eight in ten warned the UK would be unable to compete globally without reliable, high-capacity power for data centres.

Clifford’s warning underlines a growing consensus that Britain’s research strength and entrepreneurial talent risk being undermined by weak execution. Unless adoption accelerates and infrastructure improves, the UK could lose market share in industries already being rapidly reshaped by artificial intelligence.

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British firms ‘falling behind global rivals’ in adopting AI, warns government adviser

Rachel Reeves is under mounting pressure from senior policymakers and economists to target wealthier pensioners and homeowners with new taxes as she seeks to stabilise the public finances ahead of November’s Budget.

In a letter to the Chancellor, signatories including Lord Gus O’Donnell, the former cabinet secretary, and Lord Jim O’Neill, the former Treasury minister, argued that the government should reform property and wealth taxes to ensure “better-off older people” make a greater contribution to funding health, social care and pensions.

The letter, also signed by high-profile economists Mariana Mazzucato, Mohamed El-Erian, Sir Anton Muscatelli, Simon Wren-Lewis and Jonathan Portes, warned that the UK’s fiscal position is “not sustainable” without structural changes to the tax base.

The Chancellor is facing a deficit of between £20bn and £30bn against her main fiscal rule, which requires day-to-day spending to be funded by tax revenues rather than borrowing. Some estimates suggest the shortfall could reach £40bn once weaker growth and productivity forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility are factored in.

Reeves has already ruled out raising VAT, national insurance or income tax, but the letter warned that “progressive, pro-growth options” remain, particularly around wealth, property and pensions. Treasury officials are already considering reforms to stamp duty and council tax as part of their preparations.

The economists argued that the only route to fiscal sustainability lies in boosting long-term growth, and called on Reeves to significantly increase public investment rather than allow it to remain flat as a share of GDP over this parliament. They also backed reforms to the fiscal framework, including the International Monetary Fund’s recommendation to move to a single Office for Budget Responsibility forecast each year, to avoid policy volatility.

“The fiscal constraints that the UK faces are real, but they are not inescapable,” the letter said. “A credible strategy to boost economic growth and prosperity, strengthen fiscal sustainability, and enhance business and investor confidence is within reach if the government is prepared to act.”

The Letter

Dear Chancellor,

Since coming into office last year, this government has taken a number of welcome steps to address the substantial, longstanding under-investment in the UK economy.

At the Comprehensive Spending Review, the government brought forward changes to the fiscal framework which enabled £113 billion of additional capital investment in the current Parliament, cancelling out the previously planned cuts. This provided a crucial boost across the fundamental infrastructure that forms the bedrock of our economy, from research and development to schools and hospitals.

While this represents a useful first step in addressing the investment gap that has held back growth and prosperity for over a decade, a much bolder approach is required to meet the economic, environmental and geopolitical challenges we face as a country.

As highlighted by the recent Office for Budget Responsibility report on long-term risks, the UK finances are not on a sustainable path. Yet rather than grappling with the fundamental challenges posed by issues such as climate change or our ageing population, the fiscal policy debate is focused on whether or not the government can hit arbitrary, short-term targets determined by highly volatile forecasts.

The only route to fiscal sustainability lies in finding a more sustainable growth model for the economy as a whole. This will not be achieved without a significant further increase in public investment. On the current trajectory, public investment is set to remain flat as a share of GDP over the course of this Parliament, substantially lower than both the OECD and the UK’s own post-war averages.

Having set out clear priorities across the missions, the Industrial Strategy and the Ten Year Infrastructure Plan, the government must now invest in these at the higher level needed to provide the foundations for a credible, serious plan for growth.

To deliver the stability you have rightly emphasised, you must find additional tax revenue at the coming Budget. There are progressive, pro-growth options available if the government is willing to undertake more fundamental reforms to the tax system. Above all, the tax and pension system needs to be rebalanced so that better-off older people, especially those with substantial property and pension wealth, make a much larger contribution to addressing the fiscal pressures that result from increasing spend on the NHS, social care and pensions. These and other pressures on public spending must also be managed in a more sustainable way.

To minimise volatility, the government should also adopt the IMF’s recommended changes to the UK fiscal framework, including moving to one assessment against the fiscal rules per year. Pro-investment reforms to the fiscal framework could also boost fiscal credibility, for example by requiring governments to address long-term risks, like climate change, at fiscal events. Furthermore, with appropriate safeguards in place, the government could make more use of the opportunities created by last year’s move to a debt rule based on public sector net financial liabilities.

The fiscal constraints that the UK faces are real, but they are not inescapable. We have set out the elements of a credible strategy to boost economic growth and prosperity, strengthen fiscal sustainability, and enhance business and investor confidence.

Lord Gus O’Donnell
Former cabinet secretary

Lord Jim O’Neill
Former commercial secretary to the Treasury

Professor Mariana Mazzucato
Founding director of the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, University College London

Mohamed El-Erian
President of Queens’ College, Cambridge

Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli
Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow

Professor Simon Wren-Lewis
Emeritus professor of economics, University of Oxford

Professor Jonathan Portes
Professor of economics and public policy, King’s College London

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Policymakers urge Rachel Reeves to tax wealthier pensioners to stabilise public finances

The US has collected $1.36 billion in tariffs on British exports in just four months, six times more than in the same period last year, highlighting the toll of President Donald Trump’s duties on UK manufacturers.

According to estimates from the US International Trade Commission, American buyers of British goods paid significantly more in tariffs between April and July than importers of French or Spanish products, despite concessions negotiated under the UK–US trade deal that came into effect at the end of June.

The figures show UK goods faced the 12th-highest level of tariffs of any country, well ahead of Spain ($615m) and slightly above France ($1.35bn). British exports attracted $211m in duties during the same four-month stretch in 2024.

While Britain secured lower rates on key exports such as autos and steel, the tariff rate on UK goods remains 10%, compared with the 15% imposed on EU exports from 7 August.

A government spokesperson said: “The UK was the first country to agree a deal with the US on key sectors, secured the lowest tariffs of any country on autos and steel and has received one of the lowest reciprocal tariff rates in the world. We will only ever sign trade deals in the national interest.”

The US tariff take has risen sharply overall. Imports from China generated $36bn in duties between April and July—more than double the prior year—followed by Mexico ($7.6bn) and Japan ($6.5bn).

The Peterson Institute for International Economics estimates that the US collected around $122bn in tariff revenue between January and July this year, driven by rising effective tariff rates now averaging 18.6%—the highest since 1933.

Analysts warn that while tariff revenues may continue to climb in the short term, they risk suppressing overall trade volumes. Sam Lowe, partner at Flint Global, said growth will eventually flatten: “You could expect tariff revenue to continue to grow, but volumes either grow at a slower rate or fall because the tariff itself will have an impact on the amount of trade as well.”

Much of the US revenue has come from industrial intermediates ($40bn) and consumer goods ($39bn), with capital goods and raw materials far less affected.

For UK exporters, however, the latest data underscores that even with concessions, Britain remains exposed to the sharp edge of Trump’s trade strategy.

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US collects $1.36bn in tariffs on British goods as Trump’s trade duties bite