3+ day, 14+ hour ago (345+ words) Welcome to our gifting issue. Read on and all of your most challenging Christmas gifting dilemmas will disappear in a puff of smoke. Our editors have chosen the cleverest presents for everyone in your life " plus the chicest taste makers, from Zac Posen to Mert Alas, have picked all the gifts they'd like to receive themselves. It's quite the bonanza. In this issue we also publish the shortlist for the 2025 Standard Theatre Awards. Founded in 1955, they are the oldest drama awards in the UK and have celebrated the finest actors, directors and writers across eight decades. Turn to page 20 to see who truly lit up the London stage this year, from Tom Hiddleston in Much Ado at Drury Lane to Cate Blanchett in The Seagull at the Barbican. Elsewhere, don't miss Ed West, one of my favourite writers, on page…...

2+ week, 6+ day ago (606+ words) The Government "only listens to big business, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said as he set out his party's pitch to small business owners. Big businesses "virtually control and own the political arena, Mr Farage said, as he vowed to cut red tape and regulation for business owners who are "literally living in fear about the inspector walking through the door. Speaking at a press event in central London, he told the 300 small and medium-sized business owners joining him that he understood the challenges they face. "We get it. I've been in business, I've run my own businesses, as many of my colleagues have, as thousands of our members have, he said. "Some on the left will tell you "the economy is failing because capitalism is failing'. No. We're not living in capitalism, we're living in an age of global…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago (508+ words) Around "2 million in card chargebacks was claimed by Lloyds Banking Group customers between the start of January and the end of September this year, according to the bank's data. The average transaction was "35, with the bank highlighting customer problems with websites such as purchases failing to arrive, items turning out to be poor-quality imitations, or unauthorised subscriptions being set up. A chargeback is a type of card payment protection which may help shoppers get their money back when something goes wrong. Spending is expected to rise as Black Friday (November 28) approaches. Lloyds said that scammers will identify in-demand items such as Labubu dolls, Jellycat toys and high-end advent calendars " alongside "evergreen" Christmas and Black Friday products, such as jewellery, perfume and gadgets. Fraudsters' websites will purport to sell popular goods, often appearing to be heavily discounted and encouraging shoppers to…...

2+ week, 5+ day ago (705+ words) The rate of unemployment has hit 5% for the first time since the pandemic, official figures show today. The jobless tally rose from 4.7% to 5% in the July to September quarter with almost 1.8million people classifying themselves as unemployed, according to latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) It was last at 5% in the December 2020 to February 2021 quarter when the economy was still reeling from the impact of Covid lockdowns. If the pandemic is excluded unemployment has not been at 5% for almost a decade The unemployment rate fell after Covid restrictions were lifted but has been on the rise since it reached a trough of 4.3% last summer. London had the highest unemployment rate of any region in the UK with 6.5%, up 0.5% since the previous quarter. The 341,000 out of work was the highest since early 2021. Payrolled jobs held by people living in…...

3+ week, 2+ day ago (668+ words) New issues of British Savings Bonds have gone on sale on Friday with increased rates of interest, NS&I has announced, bucking trends seen elsewhere in the savings market. The Treasury-backed savings provider, which offers a range of savings and investments to more than 24 million customers, said the increased interest rates are being made available to both new and maturing customers. British Savings Bonds are fixed-term issues of NS&I's Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds. Among the changes, NS&I is offering one-year Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds at a new rate of 4.20% AER (annual equivalent rate), up from 4.04% AER previously. Two-year versions of the bonds are being offered at 4.10% AER, up from 3.85% AER previously. Savers can get three-year versions at 4.16% AER, increased from 3.88% AER previously. Five-year deals are available at 4.15% AER, having increased from 3.84% AER....

1+ week, 5+ day ago (578+ words) The competition watchdog has opened investigations into StubHub, Viagogo, AA Driving School, BSM Driving School, Gold's Gym, Wayfair, Appliances Direct and Marks Electrical over their online pricing practices. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the cases were the first launched using its new consumer protection powers and followed a "cross-economy" review of online pricing and sales practices. The watchdog said it was also writing to 100 businesses across 14 sectors outlining concerns about their use of additional fees and sales tactics. CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell said: "At a time when household budgets are under constant pressure and we're all hunting for the best deal possible, it's crucial that people are able to shop online with confidence, knowing that the price they see is the price they'll pay, and any sales are genuine. "Whether'you're'spending your hard-earned cash on concert tickets or…...

2+ week, 6+ day ago (429+ words) The Bank of England has partly softened proposals for ownership restrictions on UK stablecoins as it pushes forwards with new rules for the cryptocurrency. On Monday, the central bank said it is planning to temporarily impose caps on holdings of stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies pegged directly to traditional assets such as real currency. The plans indicate that individuals will be limited to owning up to "20,000 in UK stablecoins that are considered systemically important. It said most businesses would have a limit of up to "10 million. The Bank of England has been assessing the potential opportunities and risks linked to digital currencies over the past year. Last month, Governor Andrew Bailey said the UK should "reap the benefits" of stablecoins as part of the country's financial system and said it would be "wrong" to be against them as a matter of…...

2+ week, 2+ day ago (601+ words) Speculation the Chancellor has scrapped plans to raise income tax sparked a sell-off in UK government bonds amid fears over unfunded spending pledges. Britain's long-term borrowing costs were sent soaring as reports suggested the latest U-turn would leave Rachel Reeves scrambling to fill a gaping black hole in the nation's finances just two weeks before the November 26 Budget. Yields on 30-year UK government bonds, also known as gilts, jumped as much as 14 basis points in early trading, and the yield on 10-year gilts also shot up 12 basis points " rising the most since July. The yield moves counter to the price of bonds, meaning that prices fall when yields rise. Yields later eased back a little, with 30-year gilt yields standing seven basis points higher at 5.3% and 10-year gilt yields up six basis points at 4.5%. Sterling initially fell on the political…...

3+ week, 3+ day ago (523+ words) The Bank of England has left interest rates unchanged at 4% in a setback for borrowers and the Chancellor. The Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by 5 to 4 in a knife-edge decision to keep the cost of borrowing on hold for at least one more month. Four members - Sarah Breeden, Swati Dhingra, Dave Ramsden and Alan Taylor - wanted to reduce the rate by 0.25% to 3.75% but they were outvoted by the rest of the MPC. The decision will come as a disappointment for Rachel Reeves who had hoped for one more cut before she reveals what looks certain to be tax increasing Budget on November 26. However, it looks increasingly likely that the MPC is just biding its time until after it has seen the detail of the Budget. Most forecasts expect that the MPC will push through a quarter point reduction when…...

3+ day, 12+ hour ago (749+ words) The owners of Britain's biggest bookies including Ladbrokes, Coral, William Hill and Paddy Power today warned increased gaming duties announced in the Budget will cost them more than "700 million in total. Three gambling giants Entain, Evoke and Flutter, said they were "deeply disappointed" by the Chancellor's announcement and said they would encourage black market operators who "don't pay tax and don't invest in safer gambling." Rachel Reeves revealed in her speech yesterday that the remote gaming duty (RGD), levied on online casinos will rise from 21% to 40% next April while the general betting duty will rise from 15% to 25% for sporting bets -with the exception of horse racing - placed online from April 2027. There will be no change for bets placed in high street bookmakers. The OBR said it expected the changes to raise an extra "1.1 billion a year for the Treasury by…...