Business

Almost half of UK SMEs are optimistic about the year ahead, but cost pressures remain the biggest obstacle to growth, according to new research from Simply Asset Finance released ahead of the Autumn Budget. The study shows SME confidence is climbing: 49% of decision makers feel positive about the next 12 months, up from 43% a year ago. Notably, 19% …

Karachi, Pakistan Dr. Naveed Yousuf, Chief Executive Officer of the Aga Khan University Examination Board (AKU-EB), has been appointed Vice President of the International Association for Educational Assessment (IAEA) — a leading global organization that advances quality, innovation, and best practices in educational assessment worldwide. Dr Yousuf’s two-year term as Vice President will begin on July 1, 2025. This appointment …

The Government has confirmed that Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) will be scrapped, with ministers claiming the move will save at least £100 million that can instead be channelled into frontline policing, artificial intelligence and cybercrime capability. The announcement forms part of a wide-reaching overhaul of policing in England and Wales aimed at raising national standards, improving performance monitoring and …

Aviva chief executive Dame Amanda Blanc has urged the chancellor to rethink plans for a major clampdown on salary sacrifice schemes, warning that the move would penalise both employers and workers while damaging long-term pension saving across the UK. Speaking ahead of Rachel Reeves’ 26 November budget, Blanc said Aviva was “very concerned” about the Treasury’s intention to cap the …

More than 100 senior business leaders gathered in London this week as B Lab UK — the organisation behind the B Corp certification — marked ten years of the UK B Corp movement with a high-profile breakfast summit. The event, Take 10: The Future of Better Business, unveiled findings from B Lab UK’s first 10-year impact report, which shows B …

There is something exquisitely British about watching a government try to sweet-talk the very people it is about to fleece. Like putting out the good biscuits before the bailiffs arrive. And so we have Sir Keir Starmer — a man whose natural habitat is somewhere between a Select Committee hearing and an apologetic queue at Pret — inviting the grandees …

Leaders from some of Britain’s most influential companies were ushered into Downing Street on Wednesday evening as Sir Keir Starmer sought to shore up relations with business ahead of what is widely expected to be a painful, tax-raising budget later this month. Chief executives from NatWest, the banking giant; FTSE 100 software group Sage; Marks & Spencer; housebuilder Taylor Wimpey; …

New research from the International Diabetes Federation reveals that more than 1 in 2 employees with diabetes in Pakistan have considered leaving their job due to concerns about how they might be treated at work: NOVEMBER 14, 2025: More than 2 in 3 employees living with diabetes in Pakistan reported negative treatment in the workplace because of their condition, according …

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has abandoned plans to raise income tax in this month’s Budget, backing away from what would have been a dramatic break with Labour’s manifesto pledge after warnings it risked sparking a backlash among MPs and voters. According to officials briefed on the decision, Reeves and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer have “ripped up” the proposal, which had …

Scottish salmon farming is now adding £1 billion a year to Scotland’s economy, according to a major new independent study that underscores the sector’s growing importance to rural communities, the national supply chain and Scotland’s global reputation for high-quality food production. The report, produced by BiGGAR Economics for Salmon Scotland, reveals that the industry’s overall economic contribution has risen by …