6:55 am, June 28, 2022
UK at ‘significant risk’ of heading into recession, report warns
The UK is at ‘significant risk’ of heading into a recession due to the mounting cost-of-living crisis and the Ukraine conflict, a new report has warned.
The latest UK economic outlook from KPMG predicts that growth will more than halve to 3.2 per cent this year from 7.4 per cent in 2021, before tumbling to 0.7 per cent in 2023.
Global growth is being hampered by the ongoing Ukraine war and lockdowns in China, which have affected commodity prices and restricted supply, while in the UK the knock-on effect on prices is set to see a sharp drop in household and business spending.
Fuel firms accused of ‘rocket and feather pricing’ as petrol hits new high
Fuel retailers were accused of a ‘classic example of rocket and feather pricing’ as the cost of petrol reached a new record.
The RAC claimed significant reductions in wholesale costs for petrol mean companies have a ‘clear opportunity’ to stop continuously hiking pump prices.
Data firm Experian said the average price of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts reached a new high of 191.1p on Sunday.
MPs launch investigation into self-driving vehicles
MPs have launched an inquiry into the development and deployment of self-driving vehicles.
The Transport Select Committee announced it is investigating what needs to happen for them to become a common sight on public roads.
This will include assessing safety issues and the perception of safety, considering the relationship with other road users such as pedestrians, cyclists and users of conventional vehicles.
Johnson’s plan to rip up Northern Ireland Brexit deal clears first Commons test
Boris Johnson’s bid to effectively tear up parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol has cleared its first Commons hurdle, amid Tory warnings the plans are illegal.
MPs voted 295 to 221, majority 74, to give the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill a second reading, which clears the way for it to undergo detailed scrutiny in the coming weeks.
The Prime Minister claimed the proposed legislation, which gives ministers powers to override parts of the post-Brexit deal on Northern Ireland, could be carried out ‘fairly rapidly’, with the proposals in law by the end of the year.
FTSE finishes higher again during calm start to week’s trading
London’s markets moved steadily higher as investors ignored recent concerns over interest rate rises and the potential for recession.
The FTSE 100 ended the day up 49.51 points, or 0.69 per cent, at 7,258.32.
The German Dax increased by 0.67 per cent by the end of the session, while the French Cac fell 0.18 per cent.
Monday’s Car Dealer headlines you might have missed
- Used car prices dipped again in June as market cooled due to low demand and supply
- Police investigating after We Buy Any Car dealership smashed up by yobs in failed burglary attempt
- Donnelly Group announces new charity partnership with Air Ambulance NI
- Dealer group Snows celebrates 60th anniversary with special charity challenge
Ghislaine Maxwell facing up to 65 years in prison for sex trafficking
British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is facing up to 65 years in prison for luring young girls to massage rooms for disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein to molest.
The 60-year-old, who was labelled ‘dangerous’ by the prosecution during her three-week trial last year, helped entice vulnerable teenagers to Epstein’s various properties for him to sexually abuse between 1994 and 2004.
Victims of Maxwell are set to tell the court in the Southern District of New York of her ‘relentless and insatiable drive to meet the sexual needs of Epstein’ and their ‘retraumatisation’ over having to give evidence during the trial.
PM urges Russian scientists to apply to come to the UK to escape Putin
Boris Johnson has urged Russian scientists to defect to the UK to escape Vladimir Putin’s oppression as he also set out a package of support for Ukrainian researchers.
The Prime Minister said experts who no longer feel safe in Russia should apply to come to a country that ‘values openness, freedom and the pursuit of knowledge’.
Meanwhile, he unveiled funding and partnership deals to help Ukrainians experts – whose research has been hit by the Russian invasion – carry on their work in the UK.
Emma Raducanu and Andy Murray both start Wimbledon with Centre Court victories
Emma Raducanu and Andy Murray made it an opening day to remember for the British fans on Centre Court.
The two biggest home stars were given top billing as play got under way at Wimbledon and responded with crowd-pleasing victories.
Both have struggled with injury in the build-up, Raducanu with a side strain and Murray an abdominal problem, but the greater doubt surrounded the former, who made her debut on Wimbledon’s main stage.
Volkswagen’s ID.Aero is a 385-mile flagship EV
Volkswagen has added to its ID. range of electric vehicles with a new flagship.
Previewed in concept car form, the production version of the ID.Aero is set to arrive in Europe next year.
Measuring five metres long and showcasing an aerodynamically efficient exterior design, the ID.Aero features a 77kWh battery which enables an electric range of 385 miles.
Read the full story here.
Weather outlook
Today will be unsettled with spells of persistent rain in western and northern areas. N Ireland will see rain clear to heavy showers later on. It will be drier elsewhere with sunshine in the south-east, the BBC reports.
Tonight will see rain in western Britain spread to the east, leaving a mix of clear spells and scattered showers behind. It will be drier in south-eastern England, N Ireland and the far north with easing winds.
Tomorrow will have variable cloud, sunny spells and scattered, heavy showers, these merging into longer spells of rain at times. It will turn dry by the evening with late sunshine becoming more widespread.
