Author: SKYNEWS

A specialist lender to the agricultural sector has secured a fresh £100m loan guarantee from the UK’s economic development bank.Sky News understands that Oxbury Bank, which focuses on lending to farmers, food producers and the rural economy, has signed a new deal with the British Business Bank that will be announced within days. City sources said the extended agreement, which doubles the sum guaranteed by the BBB late last year, would accelerate Oxbury’s lending into the sector.The new deal includes a feature stipulating that lending activity which meets environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria will be eligible for reduced pricing,…

Eamonn Holmes addressed his split from Ruth Langsford as he opened his Tuesday morning show on GB News.The pair announced on Saturday that they were divorcing after 14 years of marriage. Holmes spoke about the news briefly to thank people for their support.He said: “Just before we move on I would just like to thank people for your support for Ruth and I over the last few days as to the news of our separation.”Your support for both of us is very much appreciated.” Earlier in the show, he had referenced having an “emotional” weekend watching the FA Cup final…

Labour will be both “pro-worker and pro-business” if it wins the general election, Rachel Reeves will pledge on Tuesday.The shadow chancellor will seek to reassure the corporate world of her credentials in her first major speech of the campaign, promising to “lead the most pro-growth Treasury in our country’s history”. But speaking to an audience of company bosses, she will say their success depends on that of their workforce, claiming only Labour can deliver on both.It comes after more than 120 business leaders, including chef Tom Kerridge and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, signed an open letter giving their backing to…

More than 120 business leaders have written an open letter giving their backing to Labour in the general election. Senior figures, including chef Tom Kerridge and former CEOs of Heathrow, JP Morgan and Aston Martin, said the party had “shown it has changed and wants to work with business to achieve the UK’s full economic potential”. They said the public should now “give it the chance to change the country and lead Britain into the future”.Politics live: Sunak denies he is planning to flee to the USBoth Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and his shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves have long…

Regulators for artificial intelligence in the UK are “under-resourced” compared to developers of the technology, the Commons science committee chief has warned.Outgoing chairman of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, Greg Clark, said he is “worried” by the gap between regulators and the “finance that major developers can command”. In a report produced by the committee into the governance of AI, the group said the £10m announced by the government in February to help Ofcom and other regulators respond to the technology’s growth was “clearly insufficient”.The next government should announce further financial support “commensurate to the scale of the task”,…

Nicki Minaj has announced the new date for the Manchester concert which she was forced to cancel last Saturday after being arrested in the Netherlands.The rapper and singer, 41, was due to perform for thousands of fans at the Co-op Live but the show was called off at the last minute as Minaj was kept in custody in Amsterdam for hours. Announcing the new Manchester date on X, she said: “OK guys, I was JUST RE-ADVISED that we actually CAN NOT do any other date for the make up #gagcityMANCHESTER date besides JUNE 3rd.Read more: Nicki Minaj apologises to fans…

The Conservatives have promised to cut taxes for pensioners by creating a new “age-related” tax-free allowance – dubbed “triple lock plus”. Currently, people can receive £12,570 a year of their pensions before they start paying income tax on them – the same figure as the personal allowance for those who work. But if the party wins the next election, a pensioner’s allowance would rise in line with either average earnings, inflation or by 2.5% – whichever is higher – from next April, echoing the rules on annual state pension increases.Rishi Sunak said the move “demonstrates we are on the side…

The house famously used when Kevin McCallister was left Home Alone at Christmas is on sale.The five-bed, six-bathroom mansion in Winnetka, Illinois has been put on the market for a staggering $5.25m (£4.1m). It is the first time since 2012 that the property has been put on the market, according to American estate agents, Zillow.Since the release of the 1990 classic film directed by Chris Columbus, the house has gone under extreme renovation.Posting a walkthrough of the interiors, estate agents The Dawn Mckenna Group, said the current owners have doubled the living space with the addition of a large conservatory…

Rishi Sunak will meet leading Conservative Party donors on Monday evening as he seeks to mobilise financial support for the surprisingly timed general election campaign he triggered last week.Sky News understands that the prime minister will have dinner with a small group of long-standing and more recent donors as the Tories target millions of pounds in fresh contributions to fund their push to retain power. This weekend, Lord Spencer, the City billionaire, said he was giving £250,000 to the Conservative campaign, although a leaked party memo reported by The Times on Monday suggested it was so far struggling to raise…

Lizzo says being referenced in a South Park episode is her “worst fear” – and shared her reaction to the joke in real time on social media. The popstar was namechecked in the latest episode of the long-running cartoon, The End of Obesity, which parodies the popularity of weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro. Lizzo shared a clip from the show alongside her reaction to the scene – opening the video by saying: “I’m so scared.”The clip features a conversation between Sharon and Sheila, the mothers of Stan and Kyle.Sharon says her doctor wouldn’t prescribe her any weight-loss injections because…