6:50 am, August 12, 2026
Harrods swings back to profit after Al Fayed abuse compensation
Harrods has rebounded to a profit after compensation payments linked to alleged abuse by former owner Mohamed Al Fayed had driven it to loss last year.
Latest accounts show the historic London department store reported an £84.9m pre-tax profit for the year to January 31. It bounced back into the black from a £34.3m loss a year earlier.
Harrods’s previous loss was linked to tough trading conditions and £62.5m of compensation payments to victims of Al Fayed.
Burnham says he wants to go ‘further’ on business rates at the budget
Andy Burnham has said he wants to go ‘further’ in supporting high street businesses at the budget with their business rates, after announcing plans to slash the tax for pubs, clubs and venues.
The 20% rates relief for pubs and other similar venues was among the first announcements the Prime Minister made when he came into office, as part of a series of cost-of-living related measures.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live’s Wake Up To Money programme, Mr Burnham suggested he wanted to go further with business rates relief at the budget on October 28.
Volkswagen’s California concepts show future of in-van adventures
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has created a new modular concept for its California camper.
Made in collaboration with partner Stuff Bubble, the van has been fitted out with a fully inflatable kitchen and a flexible bed system designed to make long-distance travel easier and more comfortable.
Volkswagen says that unlike a traditional camper conversion, the modules can be installed by a single person and removed when not in use. When not needed, they can then be stored elsewhere, freeing up space inside the van itself.
The markets
The FTSE 100 closed lower on Tuesday with gains in oil stocks, amid ongoing uncertainty in the Middle East, offset by caution ahead of US inflation data and weak insurers.
The FTSE 100 index closed down 18.31 points, 0.2%, at 10,844.19.
In European equities on Tuesday, the Cac 40 in Paris closed down 0.1%, while the Dax 40 in Frankfurt ended 0.3% higher.
Vape crackdown to give towns ‘power to turn things around’, Prime Minister says
A crackdown on the setting up of new betting and vape shops is to give ‘local communities the power to turn things around’, the Prime Minister has said.
Andy Burnham visited Ilkeston in Derbyshire on Tuesday, where he said high streets ‘have been hollowed out, particularly in former industrial areas’.
He announced changes to planning policy, so retailers who want to set up shop selling e-cigarettes will need to ask their local council for permission.
Burnham ‘increasingly confident’ PC Harper’s killers will not be freed early
Andy Burnham said he is ‘increasingly confident’ the killers of Pc Andrew Harper will not be released early from their sentences, as he set out plans to ease the prison capacity crisis.
The Prime Minister said action can be taken to free up prison space to reduce the number of people released early.
Mr Burnham said: ‘I understand the depth of public concern about the potential early release of those involved with the killing of PC Andrew Harper – and I share it.’
Summer 2026 on course to be UK’s hottest on record, Met Office says
The UK is on course for its hottest summer on record, with only average conditions needed for the rest of August to beat the record set just last year, the Met Office said.
Some parts of the country face a fifth heatwave of the summer, with amber “extreme heat” warnings in place for parts of England on Thursday when temperatures could hit 38C in some spots.
Nearly three quarters of England and the whole of Wales are in drought, after a record dry July and very dry start to August has combined with high temperatures to put pressure on water resources for households, agriculture and the environment.