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Surrey could find themselves on a collision course with English cricket’s main broadcast partner, Sky Sports, over their desire to take control and rebrand their successful Hundred franchise, Oval Invincibles. Along with the other seven host venues, Surrey are set to be gifted a 51 per cent stake in their franchise by the England Wales Cricket Board, which last week began the formal process of selling off the other 49 per cent of the eight teams to private investors. While most of the host counties are exploring selling their 51 per cent to raise short-term funding, wealthy Surrey have no need to cash in and are instead focusing on taking greater control of the Invincibles, who have won either the men’s or women’s Hundred every year since its launch in 2021. Continue reading 👇 https://lnkd.in/ezSRhDMk

MK Dons say they are investigating dozens of misogynistic, racist and homophobic posts written by the mouthpiece for the League Two club’s Kuwaiti ownership. Moath Al Manayes, whose now deleted profile on X stated that he was the “owner’s representative at Milton Keynes Dons”, is understood not to be a direct employee of the club but acting on behalf of the ownership group headed up by Fahad Al Ghanim until a new chief executive is in place. A spokesperson for MK Dons said: “MK Dons are aware of a social media post featuring historic comments allegedly made by the owner’s representative Moath Al Manayes. ✍️ Matt Hardy Read more 👇 https://lnkd.in/evEEpRZD

Autumn can be about taking stock; enjoying long walks on the Heath and cosying up on the sofa. But it’s also the season when some of the most exciting new cultural events launch, from theatre to exhibitions and festivals. With A-Listers hitting the West End, major art shows and a creepy festival of death, this fall might just be busier than summer. ✍️ Adam Bloodworth Tuck in, here’s the best things to do in autumn 👇 https://lnkd.in/ewRT4Rbj

Work is the third biggest cause of stress for UK employees, after lack of sleep and money worries, according to new research. Over two-thirds (70 per cent) of the 1,238 employed adults surveyed by HR software provider Ciphr, identified at least one aspect of work that contributes to their stress levels. Work in general is the biggest cause of stress for around one in three (37 per cent) employees, with workload pressures (35 per cent) coming a close second. ✍️ Laura Forsyth Continue reading 👇 https://lnkd.in/eFGXjDJT

The planned £15bn merger between Vodafone and Three could lead to price increases for tens of millions of mobile customers, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has warned. The watchdog added that the deal, which was first announced last year, could also see customers get a reduced service such as smaller data packages in their contracts. The CMA also said that it has “particular concerns” that higher bills or reduced services would negatively affect those customers least able to afford mobile services as well as those who might have to pay more for improvements in network quality “they do not value”. Following an in-depth investigation, the organisation also provisionally found that the merger could negatively impact ‘wholesale’ telecoms customers such as Lyca Mobile, Sky Mobile and Lebara which rely on the existing network operators to provide their own mobile services. ✍️ Jon Robinson Read the full story here 👇 https://lnkd.in/eTskih_b

High business rates and other bills have led to an overtaxing of the retail industry compared to its size in terms of GDP, according to fresh data. The British Retail Consortium found that retail pays 7.4 per cent of all business taxes – £33bn – a share 1.5 times greater than its share of the overall economy, which is five per cent of GDP. The tax bill is 55 per cent of the industry’s pre-tax profit, the highest proportion of all main business sectors. Business rates make up 11 per cent of this, or 5.75 per cent of pre-tax profit. Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said that the government has a “golden opportunity” to fix business rates. ✍️ Amber Murray Read the full story here 👇 https://lnkd.in/e2Natk8S

The government must “have and offer hope” in order to attract global investors to bet on and back Britain, the chief executive of the Confederation for British Industry (CBI) will argue. In a rejection of No10 and the Treasury’s gloomy economic language, Rain Newton-Smith will use the CBI’s annual dinner in Glasgow to call for a more aspirational attitude. She will warn: “We get the need to take a hard look at the economy. We know how difficult the last few years have been. “But at the same time, I think the more we focus on that difficult inheritance, the harder it is in global boardrooms to make the pitch to invest in, come to, and stay in the UK." It comes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves again stressed that her October Budget would “require difficult decisions on tax, spending and welfare” – after a sombre summer of economic caution from No11 and the Prime Minister. ✍️ Jessica Frank-Keyes Read the full story here 👇 https://lnkd.in/ekm7FXfP

SPONSORED CONTENT || UK's strategic role in Latin America's Open Finance revolution. Seven Latin American countries – Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and Bolivia – participated in the Finance of Tomorrow event in Rio de Janeiro this August. Their presence highlights that the region is now a key market for the UK's strategy to promote financial innovation and regulatory frameworks. Each country is taking a different approach, but all are seeing impressive results. In 2023, Brazil, the regional leader, had 4.8 billion successful API calls, demonstrating the rapid adoption of Open Banking services. Mexico, on the other hand, was an early mover in establishing Open Banking regulations. These figures, combined with the participation of Latin American regulators in Rio de Janeiro, further solidify the growing interest in Open Finance across the region. Read the full article to learn how the UK has been a strategic partner in Latin America's Open Finance journey 👇 https://lnkd.in/e58jC-hP

OPINION || New capital rules will give banks certainty and stability, writes Tulip Siddiq ✍️ As City Minister, I know that our financial services will underwrite the growth our country needs in the decade to come. The facts speak for themselves. More than £20bn worth of equity capital has been raised in London alone this year, which is over three times what has been raised in the next three European exchanges combined.  But if we want to deliver the financing for growth, we need the right rules – ones that inspire confidence in our financial institutions and enable them to lend.  That’s why the new package of capital rules for UK banks and building societies announced by the Bank of England today doesn’t just mark the end of the road for post-2008 crisis reforms, they also pave the way towards a more prosperous country. Continue reading 👇 https://lnkd.in/e9pmSaVj

London markets, led by the FTSE 100, received a boost on Thursday morning following a strong performance from US stocks and the Bank of England watering down proposals for new bank capital rules. The blue-chip FTSE 100 jumped 1.01 per cent at 8,276.64, while the mid-cap FTSE 250, which is more closely aligned with the health of the UK economy, rose 1.15 per cent to 20,773.38. The S&P 500 closed 1.07 per cent higher on Wednesday, helped by fresh consumer price index (CPI) data that has all but secured the US Federal Reserve’s first rate cut in four years next week. US inflation fell to its lowest level since February 2021 in August, but stickiness in underlying inflation could dissuade the Federal Reserve from making a jumbo 0.5 per cent interest rate cut at its next meeting on 18 September. ✍️ Lars Mucklejohn Read the full story here 👇 https://lnkd.in/enzTxept