The Times

The number of millionaires in the UK has fallen to the lowest level since the financial crisis, according to new analysis. The Adam Smith Institute, a centre-right think tank, found that the number fell to 442,000 in 2025 — down by 7% year-on-year and the lowest since 2008. Its “millionaire tracker”, which uses data from the Office for National Statistics, measures the number of adults living in Britain with a net worth of at least £1m. It includes assets such as property, pensions, cash and investments

Artificial intelligence will not “kill” large numbers of jobs and will instead help to boost productivity, according to the chief executive of AstraZeneca, one of Britain’s biggest public companies Sir Pascal Soriot said AI was making operations “faster and smarter” and that he does not expect a “big reduction of headcount” at the pharmaceutical group or in the life sciences industry. The comments from the veteran FTSE 100 leader come as companies around the world race to invest in AI and deploy it, fuelling fears that the technology could lead to widespread job losses

A grieving husband has said “no punishment” of the funeral director Robert Bush can replicate his family’s suffering after discovering he scattered a stranger’s ashes over his stepson’s resting place. Bush, 48, is to be sentenced this week after admitting 67 charges, including fraud and preventing lawful burials. Unburied bodies and ashes were discovered at his funeral parlour in Hull in 2024. Christopher Paxton KC, for the prosecution, told Hull crown court that Bush, the former director of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors, breached the trust of families “on an almost industrial scale” while spending their money on himself

A Manchester-based company that was spun out of BAE Systems has raised an initial £15m to develop the first reactor that can be powered by gas turbines, promising to make nuclear power faster to deploy and cheaper to produce. The fundraising — led by IQ Capital, a venture capital firm — is the first from Nuclear Turbines since it was carved out of the FTSE 100 defence giant last October and will help to finance detailed design work on the technology

Before this week, most people would not have heard of ChangXin Memory Technologies. On Monday, the chipmaker rose from obscurity to become China’s most valuable company after its shares rose 466% on their stock market debut

Five decades after Dame Agatha Christie penned her final mystery, the trail has not gone cold — and neither has the cash flow. Modern revivals such as Netflix’s Seven Dials prove that the world’s hunger for the queen of crime’s deadly intrigue is as potent as ever. Agatha Christie Limited, led by the author’s great-grandson James Prichard, made pre-tax profits of £20m in the year to the end of December, up from £13.7m the year before. The company, whose ownership is split between her family and the US-based film company RLJ Entertainment, paid out a dividend of £9.25m, compared with £5.3m the year before

Police fired rubber bullets and charged protesters with batons as tens of thousands took to the streets to demand greater controls on tourism in Palma de Mallorca on Sunday. Organisers of the march, which police said was attended by 25,000 people, called for the right to better housing for residents and fewer tourists to be allowed to visit the island. Those behind the march said 70,000 had attended. 🔗 Tap the link below to read the full story: https://lnkd.in/eSQ3PEXE

There have been days when I still want to scroll in bed and let the hours while away. I admit I have exceeded the ten minute rule more than once, but at least I’m no longer sneaking off to do it in a bathroom cubicle on a night out | ✍️ Ella Hodson 🔗 Tap the link below to read more: https://lnkd.in/e7pSnj5V 📸 Jennifer S Altman for The Times

With an estimated £2.1 bn in holiday pay withheld from UK workers every year, the government's new Fair Work Agency is stepping up its crackdown on rogue employers. Speaking to The Times, chief executive Lisa Pinney OBE outlines a carrot-and-stick strategy aimed at making compliance simpler for legitimate businesses while taking firm legal action against workplace exploitation. Read the full story ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/eiiizjNg

Doubling London rents, shipping containers stranded overseas, and a summer heatwave threatening to melt an entire warehouse of popcorn—running a business in Britain is rarely as smooth as social media suggests. In his first column for The Times, Adam Sopher, co-founder of Joe & Seph's, reveals the daily, unvarnished realities facing founders today. Read his dispatch from the frontline of UK business to discover what really happens behind the scenes ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/e2ntPTEd