Business

South East Water has been fined £22m for repeated supply failures, watchdog Ofwat has said. The fine relates to the water company’s supply interruptions in Kent and Sussex between 2020 and 2023, which affected more than 286,000 people. It is also under investigation for outages over the last four months. Ofwat said the fine “reflects…

Donald Trump’s offer of US-backed insurance and naval escorts for shipping travelling through the Strait of Hormuz has not prevented maritime premiums soaring as underwriters scramble to reassess the risks to oil, gas and cargo vessels. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed to shipping following the US attack on Iran, on Tuesday the president…

On the first Wednesday of every month, we interview top chefs from around the UK, hearing about their cheap food hacks, views on the industry and more. This month, we speak to last year’s Great British Menu finalist Jean Delport, of the Michelin-starred Interlude in West Sussex. I don’t think people realise just how much…

The UK’s economic forecast has been downgraded for 2026 but will then improve – and unemployment will peak this year, the chancellor has revealed. Giving her spring statement in the House of Commons, Rachel Reeves said gross domestic product (GDP) will now grow “slightly slower in 2026” than forecast at November’s autumn budget, but will…

The economic impacts of the Iran war are already being felt in global markets, and could raise energy prices and wider consumer bills in the UK before long. The immediate impact of American and Israeli attacks on Iran, and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes on numerous neighbours in the Middle East, has been to push up oil…

Nearly 500 jobs are expected to be lost when craft beer giant BrewDog is taken over by an American cannabis firm. One MP has branded the move “disastrous” for workers, while crowdfund investors look set to be left empty handed. Tilray Brands, which produces medicinal cannabis and craft beer in the US, has acquired the…

Rachel Reeves will insist she has “the right economic plan for our country” and that “working people are better off” thanks to Labour when she delivers her spring forecast to the Commons today. Addressing MPs, the chancellor will set out the need to ensure “stability in public finances”, as the world becomes “yet more uncertain”,…

Fresh conflict in the Middle East threatens to make the cost of petrol more expensive for motorists in the UK, experts have warned. Escalating oil prices could see higher costs for consumers across the British economy – and the first place those rises will show up is at the fuel pumps. Will the cost of…

Global oil prices have risen sharply after Iran’s response to US and Israeli airstrikes disrupted shipping, raising the prospect of a new energy-led surge in inflation. Early trading in Asia, the first main financial market activity since Saturday morning’s airstrikes on Iran, saw the international benchmark Brent crude climb 13% to $82 a barrel –…

Joint US-Israel strikes on Iran – and a subsequent retaliation from Tehran – has caused widespread disruption on air travel. Whether it’s a man-made problem or a weather issue, flights are often prone to lengthy delays or cancellations. The average delay for flights from major UK airports was 18 minutes and 24 seconds in 2024,…