Government
This coverage examines government actions, policies, and regulations affecting the UK retail industry. Reporting highlights legislation, consultations, economic measures, and public statements with direct implications for retail operations, employment, taxation, and consumer behaviour. Tailored for executives and managers, it offers analysis to support strategic planning and compliance in a changing regulatory and economic environment.
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Dec- 2025 -9 DecemberGovernment
Government sets out £725m apprenticeship reforms
The government has announced a £725m package of apprenticeship reforms intended to expand training routes for young people and address rising youth unemployment over the next three years. Under the plans, ministers expect about 50,000 young people to benefit from new apprenticeship and training opportunities. The programme includes a £140m…
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8 DecemberSupermarkets
Iceland boss to be appointed Labour peer
Iceland chairman Richard Walker is set to be appointed to the House of Lords as a Labour peer, according to reports from the BBC. Walker left the Conservative Party in 2023, and was later seen at the launch of Labour’s manifesto for the 2024 general election. Labour party sources told…
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3 DecemberDIY
Wickes colleagues to benefit from £14.1m Sharesave
Colleagues at UK home improvement retailer, Wickes, will share £14.1m of Wickes shares from the company’s Save As You Earn (Sharesave) scheme which matured on 1 December 2025, based on a share price of £2.33. The three year scheme, which began in November 2022, was open to all Wickes colleagues.…
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Nov- 2025 -28 NovemberGovernment
BRC welcomes unfair dismissal u-turn
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has welcomed news that the government is no longer planning to include unfair dismissal from day one in its Employment Rights Bill. Under the proposals, employees would have been able to take their employers to tribunal for unfair dismissal from their first day of employment…
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28 NovemberEconomy
Half of Britons say Budget leaves them worse off, YouGov finds
Britons view the 2025 Budget as unfair and unaffordable, with only a small minority believing the measures will leave the country or their own finances better off, according to new YouGov polling. Half of those polled say the measures will leave the country worse off, with 50% saying the same…
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27 NovemberEconomy
Budget reaction: Retail split as business rates and import rules shift
The retail industry has labelled the Autumn Budget as a “mixed bag” for retail, offering relief for many shops, but bringing in new costs for others Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered Labour’s first Autumn Statement, outlining permanent business rates reductions for 750,000 retail, hospitality and leisure businesses and confirming new customs…
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26 NovemberEconomy
Budget business rates plan ‘an attack on London and the Southeast’, says Colliers
Business rates changes announced in the November Budget 2025 amount to “an attack on London and the Southeast”, according to Colliers, which said most of the firms facing higher charges under the new system are based in the two regions. The comments came as the government confirmed that overall business…
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26 NovemberEconomy
BUDGET: Income tax bands frozen, minimum wage to increase, NI-exempt pension threshold scrapped
Income tax and NI thresholds will be frozen while the minimum wage will rise by 50p from April 2026, the chancellor Rachel Reeves said in her Autumn Budget statement today. Reeves announced a series of tax changes in other areas, including salary-sacrificed NI contributions on pensions, as part of measures to…
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26 NovemberOnline & Digital
France seeks three-month Shein suspension over illicit products
France will ask a Paris judge today (Wednesday 26 November) to suspend Shein’s website for three months after officials said that childlike sex dolls and banned weapons had been identified on the platform, Reuters has reported. The request follows the disabling of Shein’s marketplace in France on 5 November, though…
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25 NovemberSupermarkets
Co-op to open record 11 stores in one week
Co-op has announced that it is set to open 11 stores this week (24 November), a record for the supermarket. The move is part of the retailer’s investment in more than 200 new and transformed stores over 2024/25, and among the 50 stores Co-op has confirmed will open this November…
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