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Tesla, run by Elon Musk, would be welcome to invest in the UK, the prime minister has said.
Sir Keir Starmer said he didn’t want to be misunderstood after the BBC reported that the tech tycoon had not been invited to the UK’s International Investment Summit due to his social media posts during last month’s riots.
“Obviously, I encourage investment from anywhere,” he told the BBC.
He added: “Good investment into the UK is what I’m very, very keen to promote.”
Sir Keir made his comments while speaking to journalists on his recent visit to New York, where he addressed the United Nations and met with Donald Trump and US business leaders.
“Every time I’m abroad, every time on an international trip, we do these investment breakfasts, because I’m absolutely determined to get the investment that we needed into the economy.
“And I do think we’ve got a real opportunity with a new chapter now,” he said.
The summit next month is the key moment that the prime minister hopes will drive tens of billions of pounds in inward funding for business from the world’s biggest investors.
Mr Musk was invited to last year’s event but did not attend. However, he took a starring role in November’s artificial intelligence (AI) Summit, including a fireside chat with then-prime minister Rishi Sunak.
Jeremy Hunt, the former Conservative chancellor and now the shadow chancellor, told the BBC it was a “big loss” not to have Mr Musk at the summit.
“He told me last year he was planning a new car plant in Europe and had not decided where but the UK was a candidate,” Mr Hunt claimed.
Mr Musk lashed out on social media after reports that he had not been invited to the UK government’s International Investment Summit.
“I don’t think anyone should go to the UK when they’re releasing convicted pedophiles in order to imprison people for social media posts,” Mr Musk claimed on X.
Following disorder and rioting across the UK in August, some people were jailed for encouraging unrest on social media.
During the August riots, Mr Musk posted on X, formerly Twitter, predicting civil war in the UK and repeatedly attacking the prime minister.
He also shared, and later deleted, a conspiracy theory about the UK building “detainment camps” on the Falkland Islands for rioters.
At the time, ministers said his comments were “totally unjustifiable” and “pretty deplorable”.
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HOMEOWNERS could get free or cheap energy-saving up-grades to their homes and slash up to £3,334 a year off their bills.
Energy bills are set to rise again on Tuesday when regulator Ofgem’s new price cap takes effect.
The average household paying by direct debit for dual fuel will see a £149 annual increase, or about £12 a month.
But making your home more energy-efficient can pay off.
The average power bill for a three-bedroom house with an energy performance certificate (EPC) rating of G is £5,674 a year — but the same house with a D rating averages £2,340, says property site Rightmove.
Homes with good insulation and LED lighting typically have higher EPC ratings, with A the best and G the worst. But around 55 per cent of UK housing is rated D or below.
Charles Roe, mortgages director at trade body UK Finance, says: “The UK has some of the oldest, least energy-efficient housing in Europe.
Upgrading our homes is a huge challenge, with key barriers being lack of confidence among homeowners and costs.”
Harriet Meyer looks at five simple home improvements that could cut your bills and sources of funding for your upgrades . . .
SAVE UP TO £340 A YEAR
THIS could save £340 a year for a detached home and £180 in a mid-terrace house, says the Energy Saving Trust.
You can do it yourself with mineral wool rolls if your loft is accessible.
According to Which?, loft insulation is around £20 for a 100mm-thick roll, covering about 8.3 square metres. Hiring a pro for an average semi could cost around £950.
The EST’s Joanna O’Loan says: “An uninsulated home loses about a quarter of its heat through the roof. If your insulation is less than 150mm, top it up to 270mm.”
Some energy firms offer free loft insulation through the energy company obligation scheme.
SAVE £120 A YEAR
UPGRADING your windows with A-rated double glazing could save around £120 a year on energy bills for the average semi-detached property, reckons the EST.
But be prepared to fork out around £15,000 to get this done.
If money is tight, a more affordable alternative is to buy ready-made secondary-glazing film online for about £10.
Use a hairdryer to shrink it to fit your frame.
You could also fit a layer of glass or plastic inside your frame and do this work yourself.
Get a few quotes if getting an expert to do the work.
SAVE UP TO £280 A YEAR
IF your boiler is more than ten years old, it may be less efficient and it could pay off to get it replaced.
Efficient A-rated condensing boilers could save up to £280 a year if you live in a mid-terrace house and are replacing a G-rated boiler, according to the EST.
If you do not qualify for the government assistance, getting a new boiler installed is likely to set you back around £4,000.
SAVE £100s A YEAR
PUTTING draught-proofing around your windows and doors could save you £35 a year, says the EST.
You can buy a cheap brush draught excluder online to fit under your front and back doors.
For internal doors, try rolled-up towels, old tights filled with clothes, or get a second-hand draught excluder on eBay.
If you have an unused chimney, block it with a cheap inflatable chimney balloon or DIY with old pillows. This can save you another £50 a year.
Don’t forget to plug other draughty spots such as floorboards, loft hatches and wall cracks too.
SAVE UP TO £75 A YEAR
REMOVING your old halogen light bulbs and replacing them with energy-efficient LED bulbs is one of the simplest ways to reduce your bills.
Light-emitting diode bulbs use significantly less energy — up to 90 per cent less than standard bulbs.
According to the EST, replacing all the bulbs in your home with LEDs could save you up to £75 a year on your energy bills.
You can buy basic ones for as little as £1 to £3 each.
SIDNEY and Elaine Regan are saving £200 a month after making energy-efficient changes.
Their energy bill doubled to over £500 a month because their boiler was getting old – so they invested in a new one, costing £5,000.
Retired care home receptionist Elaine said: “The bills were cheaper in winter after the up-grade. We’re gradually making the cost back.”
In addition to their Worcester Bosch combi boiler, the couple had a smart meter fitted in their three-bedroom terrace in Borehamwood, Herts – at no extra cost through their energy supplier, Octopus.
Elaine, 67, added: “We can now watch our usage and see what makes a difference.”
Taxi driver Sidney, 77, and Elaine have also made smaller changes, such as running the dishwasher less often, using draft excluders, and fitting LED light bulbs.
I read with some surprise the piece by Amy Kazmin and Susannah Savage about coffee price hikes (“Italians in a froth over cappuccino bill after coffee bean prices hit record high”, Report, FT Weekend, September 14) and would like to highlight a few points.
When it is stated that Italians drink “some of western Europe’s least expensive coffee”, it should also be emphasised that in bars, Italians — or at least the majority of us — consume very low-quality blends from untraceable lots, often prepared with dirty, poorly maintained machines, leaving only a burnt aftertaste on the palate.
It’s worth noting that every year there are numerous police interventions imposing fines and sanctions on the owners of these “convivial coffee bars” for irregularities in coffee management.
This is to say that paying €1.20 for a cup of this type may certainly be a fun way to start the day, but it represents a price that is completely out of line with the intrinsic value of the product being consumed.
Alessandro Lusi
Helsinki, Finland
A MAJOR high street discounter has apologised for closing a branch after it was open for just one year.
The store in Maidenhead, Berkshire will close permanently next month due to issues surrounding the lease of the building.
Poundland’s store on Maidenhead High Street had already closed temporarily earlier this week after water damage caused part of the ceiling to collapse.
Despite this being fixed, the budget retailer has confirmed that the store will shut its doors forever in mid October.
A spokesperson for the company said: “I’m afraid we’ve been unable to secure an agreement with our landlord that would enable us to keep the store trading in Maidenhead.
“We know this will be disappointing to customers and we’re sorry we’ll be closing on 18 October.
“It goes without saying we’ll be doing all we can to look after colleagues that work there.”
Poundland had moved in to the building last year after the company stepped in to take over a number of Wilko shop leases, following the latter’s collapse.
Maidenhead High Street has also seen other casualties in the losses of both its Clarks and Barclays stores.
Clarks shut its doors on the street in June this year while the Barclays branch closed for the final time in May.
Poundland had undergone an expansion last year when it took over 71 ex-Wilko stores after the retailer fell into administration.
Since then however, several have closed down, including in Ellesmere Port, Galashiels, Scotland, and the Sailmakers Shopping Centre in Ipswich.
On top of this, in August a Poundland store in south Macclesfield closed for good.
A month before that, the discounter pulled down the shutters on a store in Altrincham, Greater Manchester, after taking it on from Wilko.
Despite this, earlier this year the retailer pledged to revamp 150 stores by end of August with new signage, flooring, lighting and ranges.
It also aimed to have staff areas made over to make them better places to work.
RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.
High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.
The high street has seen a whole raft of closures over the past year, and more are coming.
The number of jobs lost in British retail dropped last year, but 120,000 people still lost their employment, figures have suggested.
Figures from the Centre for Retail Research revealed that 10,494 shops closed for the last time during 2023, and 119,405 jobs were lost in the sector.
It was fewer shops than had been lost for several years, and a reduction from 151,641 jobs lost in 2022.
The centre’s director, Professor Joshua Bamfield, said the improvement is “less bad” than good.
Although there were some big-name losses from the high street, including Wilko, many large companies had already gone bust before 2022, the centre said, such as Topshop owner Arcadia, Jessops and Debenhams.
“The cost-of-living crisis, inflation and increases in interest rates have led many consumers to tighten their belts, reducing retail spend,” Prof Bamfield said.
“Retailers themselves have suffered increasing energy and occupancy costs, staff shortages and falling demand that have made rebuilding profits after extensive store closures during the pandemic exceptionally difficult.”
Alongside Wilko, which employed around 12,000 people when it collapsed, 2023’s biggest failures included Paperchase, Cath Kidston, Planet Organic and Tile Giant.
The Centre for Retail Research said most stores were closed because companies were trying to reorganise and cut costs rather than the business failing.
However, experts have warned there will likely be more failures this year as consumers keep their belts tight and borrowing costs soar for businesses.
The Body Shop and Ted Baker are the biggest names to have already collapsed into administration this year.
ISRAEL has been in conflict with Hamas since it was attacked on October 7, 2023, but now tensions have been raised even higher in the region.
The threat of greater conflict with Iran-backed Hezbollah has cast doubts about whether UK nationals should be travelling to Israel. Here’s everything you need to know.
Several flight companies, including easyJet, have stopped flights to Tel Aviv in light of the conflict between Israel and Lebanon.
“Safety is always our top priority, and we’re contacting customers to advise them of their travel options.”
Ryanair has cancelled flights to Israel until at least October 26 while easyJet has cancelled them until March 2025.
United Airlines has cancelled all flights to Israel until further notice, while American Airlines has cancelled them until at least March 2025.
On September 17 and 18, 2024, thousands of pagers and hundreds of walkie talkies belonging to members of Hezbollah exploded.
Several sources blamed this on Israel, who sent strikes into Lebanon in the following days.
As a result of this increased tension, travel against Israel is not considered completely safe.
The UK government has advised travellers against travelling to Israel, due to conflict in the region.
This includes travel to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, with Hezbollah launching a missile at Tel Aviv on September 25, 2024.
The missile was intercepted by the IDF.
Even before this event, the UK Foreign Office has warned against the threat of exchanged rocket fire between the two countries.
The website currently warns: “Your travel insurance could be invalidated if you travel against advice from the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).”
As mentioned, several flight companies have already cancelled flights to Israel.
If your flights are still planned to go ahead, you should get in touch with your airline or tour operator about your options if you want to cancel your flight.
Regarding John Burn-Murdoch’s Data Points column “Young women are starting to leave men behind” (Opinion, FT Weekend, September 21), it’s hard to deliver a narrative about a complex and important issue in less than 900 words, so I realise why it’s told through the singular lens of gender.
The reality is much more nuanced than a straight “girls vs boys” discussion, which is reductive and zero sum in nature.
Educational achievement is also affected by geographic disparities, culture and upbringing, and social class. For example, working-class, white native British boys tend to do worst — male children from other cultures tend to do better — according to a 2021 education committee report entitled “The forgotten: how White working-class pupils have been let down, and how to change it”.
Finally, the education deficit has been going on for decades, particularly in areas where there has been historically low educational attainment and employment opportunities. There is a clear correlation between communities let down for decades by all political parties and educational underperformance.
The main political parties have chosen to abandon these communities as a matter of tacit policy and I don’t see that changing in the future.
Gearóid Carroll
London E3, UK
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