‘Ever-widening gap’: Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin urges Burnham to cut more pub taxes Hospitality JD Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin has called on the Prime Minister to go further to reduce the soaring tax burden faced by pubs. The chairman of the UK’s best-known pub chain said Burnham’s decision to slash business rates for pubs is an “implicit recognition that the hospitality sector is over taxed”. The Prime Minister announced [...]
Thames Water creditors expect Burnham talks despite legal contigency plans Politics The creditors bidding to rescue Thames Water remain confident they will be able to present a revised takeover proposal to Andy Burnham’s government, despite preparing for the possibility ministers reject the deal, a source told Morning Wire. People close to the London & Valley Water (L&VW) consortium said they expected to engage with the new [...]
Thames Water in the dark as Burnham mulls embattled utility’s future Politics Thames Water and the group of creditors vying to buy it have had no engagement with Andy Burnham’s team as the incoming prime minister weighs whether to take full public control of the struggling utility, Morning Wire understands. Burnham said earlier this year that Thames Water should be nationalised and has repeatedly called for greater [...]
Thames Water to run out of money by end of the year July 15, 2026 Thames Water is set to run out of cash by the end of the year as the UK’s largest private utility company struggles to secure a finalised rescue deal. The embattled water firm – which serves around 16m customers, mostly in London and the South East – said in its latest financial report that it [...]
Exclusive: Reynolds never met Thames Water investors before rejecting rescue deal July 1, 2026 Environment secretary Emma Reynolds never met the investors behind a proposed Thames Water rescue package before slapping down their deal out of hand last month, Morning Wire can reveal. Reynolds, who is the minister responsible for water policy, has left officials in her department to meet representatives of a large creditors’ group, which includes investment [...]
Thames Water on cusp of public ownership after ‘weak’ deal June 16, 2026 Thames Water is on the cusp of being placed in temporary public ownership after the government raised concern with a proposed £10bn rescue by its lenders. It was reported last night that the environment secretary Emma Reynolds had outlined a number of concerns to the industry regulator Ofwat ahead of a final decision on the [...]
‘Politically toxic’ holiday tax could turn voters against Labour, hospitality leaders warn May 4, 2026 The “politically toxic” holiday tax could turn hordes of voters against Labour if it is pushed through, hospitality leaders have warned the government. The proposed tax could threaten the fragile majorities of a host of Labour big beasts including health secretary Wes Streeting and foreign secretary Yvette Cooper, trade body UK Hospitality (UKH) has claimed. [...]
Firms scramble to keep up as the UK prepares to align with EU food standards March 25, 2026 Fans of Clarkson’s Farm will know that, for British farmers, dealing with the EU presents an endless stream of headaches and paperwork. But things are changing fast – too fast, many worry – in the UK’s complex web of food production, and farmers and manufacturers are scrambling to meet changes in legislation coming down the [...]
Environment secretary: I will fix the water sector December 10, 2025 This government will reform the water sector to provide stability for investors and confidence for customers, says Emma Reynolds It’s no secret that our rivers, lakes and seas are in dire need of attention. There has been a whole system failure from water companies to regulators, underpinned by short-term thinking and a lack of strategic [...]
Treasury ‘buries’ farming report until after Budget in inheritance tax blow November 16, 2025 A government-commissioned review that shows the financial pressures on the farming industry has been “buried” by the Treasury until after the Autumn Budget, Whitehall sources claim. The review which was carried out by a former president of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), Baroness Batters, is understood to lay bare concerns among farmers over Chancellor Rachel [...]