Author: INDEPENDENT

Sign up to IndyEat’s free newsletter for weekly recipes, foodie features and cookbook releasesGet our food and drink newsletter for freeGet our food and drink newsletter for freePizza Express is set to expand its menu beyond its classic pizzas and introduce chicken wings and mac & cheese across its UK sites. This new concept aims to bolster the chain’s growth ambitions.The boss of the pizza chain confirmed a continued “focus” on pizza but acknowledged a “huge appetite” for chicken from customers. The “Mac & Wings” delivery brand will launch in over 300 locations nationwide from March 3.This move reflects significant…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsHSBC saw pre-tax profits fall to 29.9 billion dollars (£22.1 billion) in 2025 – a drop of 2.4 billion dollars (£1.8 billion) on the previous 12 months.Delivering its annual results, the lender said the fall was mainly down to 4.9 billion dollars (£3.6 billion) of adverse impact across items including legal provisions, organisational simplification and the sale of its French-retained portfolio of loans.Profits after tax fell by 1.9…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsProperty portal Zoopla has bought newhomesforsale.co.uk as it continues to expand further into the new build market.Zoopla said the deal – for an undisclosed amount – will see it buy 100% of the new homes property site, which has over 200 developer customers, supports 2,500 active property developments and connects over one million buyers with properties each year.It comes amid a concerted push by Zoopla to grow its…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsNew figures show the recent spike in energy prices cost Scotland’s economy £11 billion, leading to renewed calls for the country to end its “dependence on international fossil fuels”.A new report by the Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) calculated the direct additional costs faced by businesses, households and other “energy consumers” between 2021 and 2024 as a result of the energy crisis.This saw wholesale gas prices soar…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsLatest predictions suggest Ofgem will reduce the energy price cap by £117 to £1,641 a year for a typical dual fuel household from April 1 when it makes its announcement on Wednesday.– What is Ofgem’s price cap?The energy price cap sets a maximum price that suppliers can charge customers in England, Scotland and Wales for each unit of gas and electricity they use.It also sets a maximum daily…

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture emailGet the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter The Metropolitan Opera is set to present its fewest productions in at least 60 years for the 2026-27 season, despite reporting encouraging box office figures for the current period. The decision underscores the financial pressures facing the venerable institution, even as audience engagement shows signs of recovery.Announcing its programme on Thursday, the Met confirmed it will stage just 17 productions, marking its lowest total in a non-abbreviated…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsUS President Donald Trump has announced a 10% global tariff on “all countries” after the Supreme Court struck down his reciprocal levies policy.Mr Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs”, imposed on most of the rest of the world last April under an emergency powers law, were overturned by the US Supreme Court on Friday in a major blow to the president’s economic agenda.But he doubled down on imposing levies following the…

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture emailGet the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Wicked star Cynthia Erivo raised eyebrows after initially using an autocue in her performance of Dracula on the West End – but she’s not letting the critics bring her down. Erivo plays 23 characters in the latest adaptation of Bram Stroker’s Dracula at London’s Noël Coward Theatre, tackling it as a one-woman show. However, her performance was overshadowed during early previews after audience members complained that she…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsStock prices in London closed lower on Thursday as the FTSE 100 broke its winning streak amid a sharp fall for British Gas owner Centrica, though oil majors climbed as Brent surged on uncertainty in Iran.The FTSE 100 index closed down 59.14 points, or 0.6%, at 10,627.04, the FTSE 250 ended down 112.95 points, or 0.5%, at 23,573.49, and the AIM all-share closed down 0.60 points, or 0.1%,…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsYounger workers are driving jobs growth within the construction and trade industry, as Gen Zs turn to blue-collar work amid rising youth unemployment and the looming threat of artificial intelligence (AI), new data suggests.Data from HR platform Employment Hero showed that the hiring of Gen Z workers significantly outpaced other generations last month.Employment for the age group – incorporating those born between 1997 and 2012 – increased by…