British Steel nationalised to protect jobs and supply
British Steel has formally been taken into public ownership 15 months after the government stepped in to prevent the closure of its steelworks in Scunthorpe and the loss of 4,000 jobs. Keir Starmer on Thursday said it was in the national interest for the government to take over the factory from its Chinese owner, Jingye, after the Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Act received royal assent on Wednesday.
The Labour government stepped in with an emergency recall of parliament to prevent the closure of British Steel in April last year, after Jingye threatened to walk away without taking steps to preserve the blast furnaces in Lincolnshire. That would have meant the imminent shutdown of Britain's last remaining producer of primary steel from iron ore.
UK economy shows growth despite Iran war energy costs
The UK economy returned to growth in May, despite the impact of the Iran war on energy costs, official figures show. The Office for National Statistics said GDP rose 0.1% in May, in line with economists' forecasts, after a 0.1% decline in April.
Despite April's dip, the economy appears to have been more resilient in the face of rising energy costs linked to the Middle East conflict than some analysts had feared. Rachel Reeves, who is expected to depart as chancellor on Monday when the prime minister-in-waiting, Andy Burnham, selects a new cabinet, is likely to take the data as fresh evidence that her economic plan was bearing fruit.
Uber to acquire Delivery Hero in $14.8bn global food delivery deal
Uber has reached an agreement to take over the German takeaway company Delivery Hero in a $14.8bn (£11bn, or €12.9bn) deal that would create a global food delivery giant. The US tech firm said it had offered to pay €41.50 a share to Delivery Hero's shareholders, valuing the business at $14.8bn. Uber will pay $13.7bn after accounting for its previous purchases of a quarter of Delivery Hero's shares, most recently in May.
The deal would combine Uber Eats with Delivery Hero's brands across 99 countries, including Asia's foodpanda, Latin America's PedidosYa, and talabat in the Middle East. The combined company booked $236bn in orders in 2025.
Ocado chief denies 'puppet master' role amid succession row
The co-founder and boss of Ocado has said he has “no intention of being a puppet master” exerting control over its staff amid an apparent boardroom row over succession at the grocery technology company. Tim Steiner, who is to stand down as chief executive in 2028, suggested that any successor would be happy to work with him.
Shares in the group slid nearly 15% to their lowest level in more than a decade on Thursday as the group revealed pre-tax profits of £17m in the six months to 31 May, down from £607m in the same period a year before.
