The Standard

After just 44 days in the job, Liz Truss announced she informed the King of her resignation and will stay Prime Minister for one week until her successor is announced. Truss becomes Britain’s shortest-serving prime minister after an open revolt by Tory MPs against her crisis-hit premiership and chaotic scenes in Westminster. So, who's in the running to take over and - whisper it - could Boris John...

Behind the West End homage to GBBO with writer Jake Brunger, and assessing the post-lockdown health of London’s theatreland with ES arts correspondent Rob Dex. The GBBO musical joins the likes of Only Fools and Horses, Friends, Fawlty Towers and the Eurovision Song Contest in hoping it’s got the star ingredients to tempt fans off the sofa to watch a play of a show they’ve already enjoyed on the TV...

Just 42 days in the job, and the PM joins the pantheon of British prime ministers publicly apologising. But away from her economic mea culpa, households now face up to £5,000 energy bills once the government’s cap ends in April. To discuss the latest developments on where this leaves the UK’s finances - and the PM’s future - we’re joined by Dr Fran Boait, executive director of campaign group Posit...

The newly-minted Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, has set out his emergency plans he’s hoping will mend the chaos wrought by his predecessor’s mini-budget - by scrapping “almost all” of Kwasi Kwarteng’s tax-cutting measures. So, will Hunt be seen as a steady hand to bring UK finances under control, and where does this all leave the political future of PM Liz Truss?  On this fast-moving day in Westmin...

Steve O'Hear is Strategy VP at Zapp, one of the earliest quick commerce companies that bring snacks and groceries to your door. This is a cut-down version taken from our How to be a CEO podcast. To hear the full episode click here. In this episode we talk about:   The complex supply chain that powers instant grocery services  Opportunities for disabled people in the post-pandemic remote...

Former Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt is the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Kwasi Kwarteng is out after spending barely enough time in Number 11 Downing Street to measure up the curtains. The former Chancellor has been ditched along with another cornerstone economic policy from his mini-Budget, the corporation tax freeze, signalling another u-turn by the Prime Minister. Kwarteng was in post for on...

While millionaire minister Jacob Rees-Mogg moans about his mortgage repayments going up, how about us mere mortals - are there any silver linings to this financial Gordian knot the government’s got the country into? The inverse impact of the Bank of England interest rate hikes mean savers are being offered fairly decent deals after years of paltry offers. Savers are also now being encouraged to re...

Data released by the Office for National Statistics shows the UK economy shrank by 0.3 per cent in August, meaning we’re on the brink of a recession. ONS figures also showed GDP - a measure of the health and size of a country’s economy - fell more sharply than had been predicted. While the majority of experts expected a flat August, news of the 0.3 per cent shrinkage follows growth of just 0.1 per...

As commuters headed for morning trains, the Bank of England made a bombshell announcement - it’s stepping in again to try and restore market conditions following the chaos after the Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-Budget. The Bank announced at 7am it would expand buying emergency gilts, amid “material risk” warnings to the UK economy’s stability caused by “dysfunction” from the mini-Budget fallou...

The scale of the hunger crisis facing Londoners is revealed in a joint investigation by the Evening Standard and the Independent. As winter approaches, headteachers and youth workers tell how the cost of living crisis is leading many families in London and other parts of the country to increasingly desperate measures. There reports of the teenager who didn’t want to worry his heavily indebted mum...

Ann Francke is the Chief Executive of the Chartered Management Institute, which is celebrating 75 years raising management standards in Britain.   This is a cut-down version taken from our How to be a CEO podcast. To listen to the full thing click here.   On this episode, we talk about:   What Ann would tell the first CMI CEO and why today's business world isn't so different The hug...

In the first episode of the Evening Standard’s year-long series of monthly specials called ‘Let Girls Learn’, we’re going to Zimbabwe.  Street Set Football Club in Bulawayo, equips girls not only with skills in dribbling and passing, but also helps them to navigate adolescence in an environment where early marriage, teen pregnancy and drug abuse are rife.  Journalist Farai Shawn Matiashe...

Nurses paid ‘a pittance’. Staff leaving the NHS ‘in their droves’. Many moving to Australia for better pay and conditions. How will the government respond to the Royal College of Nursing’s first ever ballot for strike action ? Our Health Reporter Daniel Keane explains what has led to this ballot, and how the Prime Minister might respond. And practising Nursing Associate Maxine Wade explains why wa...

Halifax has raised interest on its average mortgage deals to almost 6% as Liz Truss admitted the UK faces ‘tough times’. So how bad could things get? And are we looking at a serious mortgage crisis? Our Business Editor Jonathan Prynn examines how the latest mortgage rate increase will impact the market, and how high rates could get over the next year. In this episode: Reaction to Halifax mortgage...

Ofgem is preparing for a gas supply emergency this winter, amid a ‘significant risk’ of gas shortages. Will we have to ration our gas and electricity usage? Can we avoid blackouts? Energy Economist Carole Nakhle from Crystol Energy discusses the gas crisis we’re experiencing, and ECIU Analyst Simon Cran-McGreehin explains why we’re in for a ‘bumpy’ winter. In this episode: Why the winter weather w...

The “disbelief” at the Chancellor’s tax U-turn. Does the public respect Kwasi Kwarteng for ‘listening’ to them? Is Liz Truss lacking support within the Tory party? Our Political Editor Nicholas Cecil discusses the government’s controversial U-turn on plans to scrap the 45% top tax rate. Plus Julia Davies from Patriotic Millionaires UK explains why the wealthy should be taxed even more. In thi...

Timo Boldt founded Gousto when few knew what a meal kit delivery subscription was, now he's running a company valued at $1.75 billion. This is a cut-down version taken from our How to be a CEO podcast. To listen to the full thing click here. In this episode we talk about:    Why he left the Dragon's Den with no money, but Duncan Bannantyne became one of their first customers Advice on ho...

Could Liz Truss OBR talks be a turning point? They may have lasted less than an hour, but were the OBR crisis talks significant? And could they push PM Liz Truss to alter her mini-budget? Our Economic Expert Stephen King explains what the talks were all about, what the OBR’s statement about them might mean, and what our Prime Minister might be thinking after a tough week. In this episode: What was...

Liz Truss’s local radio performance reviewed: doubling-down on mini budget , investors continue to sell gilts, and are Conservative MPs frustrated behind the scenes? Can the PM reinstate some confidence ahead of the Tory Party conference? Our Deputy Political Editor David Bond discusses the PM’s performance on local radio this morning, and explores what options she has on the table to secure suppo...

The Bank of England’s emergency action to stabilise markets . How the bank is effectively ‘creating money from nothing’. Could Keir Starmer’s energy plan save us ? Our economic expert Stephen King explains the Bank of England’s decision in layman’s terms, plus energy expert Dr Aidan O’Sullivan from UCL discusses the feasibility of Keir Starmer’s Great British Energy Company. In this episode: The B...

Why have some lenders withdrawn mortgages ? Will interest rates hit 6%? What to do if you’re a first-time buyer. Our Deputy Political Editor David Bond discusses why some mortgage deals have been pulled, and why Labour are calling this latest development the 'tip of the iceberg' for the economy. And Sam Richardson , Deputy Editor of Which? shares tips for worried first-time buyers and home-owners....

The biggest drop in the pound since 1971 , rumours of hedge funds shorting the currency , and claims Tory MPs are not happy about it. But is it time to worry? The Evening Standard’s Political Editor Nicholas Cecil explains what has happened, and the impact a drop in the pound could have. Plus Matthew Lesh from the Institute of Economic Affairs explains why some good could come from the fall in Ste...

Recorded during the 2022 Formula E season How to be a CEO met with the founder, Alejandro Agag. From an idea on the back of a napkin in 2011 to one of the fastest growing sports in the world, the Formula E story is one of risk-taking, set backs and extraordinary success. We speak to its founder Alejandro about:   How Formula E's innovating commercial electric vehicles Gigamine and battery rec...

Will tax cuts help us get through the winter? Is more borrowing the answer? How effective will the government’s mini-budget be? Should we still be addicted to growth? We speak with Fran Boaite, Executive Director of research and campaign group Positive Money . In this episode: Does trickle-down economics work? Will tax cuts boost the economy as we head into a recession? Why hasn’t the government o...

Brace yourselves, the Bank of England says we may already be in recession. It comes following the announcement of a hike in interest rates - for the 7th consecutive time - to 2.25%. It’s up by half a percentage point and takes borrowing costs to their highest levels since 2008. But, what exactly does this all mean for us? The Evening Standard’s Business Editor, Jonathan Prynn, explains.  Host...