Canada’s Weston family buys Boots for $8.9bn
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

Former Selfridges owners buy UK high street institution from long-term backer Stefano Pessina

The Canadian family that once owned Selfridges department store has bought the UK pharmacy and beauty retailer Boots for $8.9bn (£6.74bn).

Wittington Investments, the holding company of the Weston family that controls the Loblaws grocery chain and Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacy outlets in Canada, will own Boots’ UK and Irish retail operations and opticians chain, the No7 beauty brand and a franchise arm in Thailand.

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Royal Mail to cut up to 2,500 jobs amid restructure and fall in letter deliveries
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

Postal service says cuts will focus on head office and ‘support function roles’

• Business live – latest updates

Royal Mail is to cut up to 2,500 jobs as the embattled company seeks to restructure its business amid intense competition and the continuing decline in letter deliveries.

The postal service, which has been fined a total of £37m since 2023 for missing delivery targets set by the regulator Ofcom, said the job cuts would focus on head office and “support function roles” with the restructure to be completed by the end of next year.

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Tories accused of prioritising rich voters as Badenoch lays out inheritance tax cut plan
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

Party hopes to win over affluent middle-class voters as leader rejects calls to ‘unite the right’ in conference speech

Kemi Badenoch has announced that the Conservatives would abolish inheritance tax on family homes if elected, prompting criticism that she is prioritising cutting taxes for the rich.

The Tory leader also said couples would be able to leave an additional tax-free sum of £1m to their families, as the party attempts to shore up its traditional base in southern England.

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The Jaguar Type 01: a £150k gargantuan getaway vehicle utterly useless in the city
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

Too costly for most, too large for UK car parks, and wheels bigger than a warlord’s pickup truck. But it does come in ‘London red’

• Jaguar targets young Americans with Type 01 EV

The cutting-edge car du jour, even while very few will ever buy one, is a good index of what the world’s coming to. It’s a dress-for-the-job-you-want principle, on wheels: drive for the world you want to inhabit.

That’s why when Tesla launched the Model X with a bioweapon defence mode (2016!), we should have been much more worried than we were, and it’s why the Jaguar Type 01 Grand Tourer EV has a lot to say.

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OpenAI’s release of mathematical findings draws concerns from experts
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

Leaders worry OpenAI is not doing due diligence to vet results and that AI models aren’t accessible to broader field of mathematicians

OpenAI has astounded mathematicians after releasing hundreds of new mathematical findings on Tuesday.

The company published over 370 mathematical results across a variety of topics such as algebra, theoretical computer science and mathematical logic, showcasing what some of its most advanced artificial intelligence models are capable of.

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Police routinely failing to investigate ‘revenge porn’, research reveals
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

Lawyers launch super-complaint over finding that officers in England and Wales frequently dismiss image-based abuse

Police forces are routinely failing to investigate complaints about the circulation of image-based abuse, previously known as “revenge pornography”, according to research that has triggered a super-complaint over the way such crimes are handled.

Lawyers have gathered evidence from 100 people who reported intimate images being shared online without their consent. Their research suggests that image-based abuse is still frequently dismissed or not recognised as criminal offending, despite being described by the former prime minister Keir Starmer as a national emergency.

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Jon Rahm’s LIV exit set to trigger mass exodus of players from stricken tour
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

• Tyrrell Hatton and other big names likely to follow

• Tour filed for bankruptcy after Saudi funding withdrawn

Confirmation that Jon Rahm will play no part in LIV Golf in its post-Saudi Arabian form is likely to be only the start of a mass exodus from the breakaway circuit.

A bankruptcy hearing on Wednesday heard Rahm’s lawyer say “unacceptable” terms proposed by LIV 2.0 mean the Spaniard will shortly walk away from a tour which has lingering hopes of continuing as a going concern. Rahm’s departure from LIV, which he joined in 2023, was inevitable, but still a significant blow and moment in time given his status in his sport.

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Eckert’s Spygate ban may be lenient, but no sane manager will try the same trick again
Posted on Wednesday October 07, 2026

Verdict has been a long time coming and the Southampton head coach has recaptured hearts and minds at St Mary’s

“Hi Tonda, are you a cheat?” That simple, succinct, question cut to the heart of a matter that has vexed the Football Association all summer. It was posed by the Northern Echo’s Dominic Shaw after Southampton overcame Middlesbrough in the second leg of May’s Championship playoff semi‑final and proved the cue for Tonda Eckert to walk out of his press conference at St Mary’s.

Although Southampton’s manager subsequently admitted to authorising spying on opponents, England’s football authorities struggled to decide what punishment best fitted an act some regard as heinous but which others fail to take seriously. Now, in autumn, we finally have an FA verdict, with Eckert given a six-week ban suspended until the end of the 2027-28 season, a £28,000 fine and a reprimand.

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