Britain’s national debt projected to triple over next 50 years

📍Top line: The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has issued a stark warning that the UK's national debt could soar to over 270% of its national income within the next 50 years. 

Driven by an ageing population, climate change, and rising geopolitical risks, debt levels could even exceed 300% of GDP by the 2070s, a rate of debt inflation deemed unsustainable by experts. “With unchanged policies and mediocre growth, something’s got to give,” an OBR board member stated. 

💷 The OBR's report comes at a critical time, just ahead of the government's upcoming budget next month. PM Sir Keir Starmer has already hinted at "tough choices" regarding tax and spending, signaling that the budget could include significant measures to address the UK's fiscal challenges.

UK’s high streets facing devastating crisis

📍 Top line: The first six months of 2024 have seen the closure of nearly 7,000 stores on Britain’s High Streets, signalling the serious challenges they are facing. The changing retail landscape, driven by the rise of online shopping, increased operating costs, and lingering effects of the pandemic, has led to 38 shops closing daily, according to research by PwC.

🏥 Pharmacies have been hit particularly hard, with 18 closing each week on average, followed by 16 pubs and nine banks. This trend has left a noticeable gap in many communities, where only a few new businesses, like convenience stores and café chains, have opened to fill the void.

Elsewhere in the economy

🏠 Speculation surrounding a potential increase in capital gains tax (CGT) in the upcoming October budget appears to have spurred a rise in larger homes being listed for sale, according to Rightmove, the UK’s largest property website. In the week ending 9 September, Rightmove reported a notable uptick in listings at the higher end of the market.

🇬🇧 UK banks have pledged to establish 350 high street “banking hubs” over the next five years to address the closures of local branches. Announced after a meeting with City minister Tulip Siddiq, the hubs—operated jointly by the Post Office and banks—offer face-to-face services like cash deposits and personal banking advice.

John Lewis predicts bumper year of profits

📍Top line: John Lewis has announced that it expects profits to grow "significantly" this year after a challenging period, thanks to a refocus on its core retail business. Revenue rose 2% to £5.2 billion, and the £30 million loss so far in 2024 is set to be overturned due the fact that the majority of its annual profits typically come in the second half of the year.

Beauty products at John Lewis performed well, but demand for clothing and high-ticket home items was weaker due to financial pressures and unusual weather patterns. However, cooking supplies, smart wearables, and mobile phones were strong sellers.

Elsewhere in business:

🍫Tony’s Chocolonely has accused Lidl of copying the unique design of the company’s chocolate bars without adopting the brand’s ethical standards. Tony’s, known for its uneven chocolate pieces highlighting cocoa industry inequality, called on Lidl to match its “five sourcing principles,” which include fair pay and direct trade with farmers.

💳 Revolut founder Nik Storonsky has reportedly sold shares worth up to £230 million. Revolut announced last month that the sale, which generated around £380 million for company staff including Storonsky, was intended to provide "employee liquidity." This sale valued Revolut at $45 billion, surpassing the market value of established UK banks like NatWest.

Lime, the world’s largest shared electric vehicle company, has opened applications for its Transportation Policy and Analytics internship in London. Known for its electric bikes and scooters, the firm offers interns the opportunity to work closely with the Central Policy team in developing key company operations and data analysis. Apply now here.

OpenAI launches new AI software with ‘reasoning abilities’

📍Top line: OpenAI has launched a new AI product that it claims possesses reasoning capabilities, enabling it to solve complex problems in mathematics, coding, and science. This marks a significant advancement in the pursuit of humanlike cognition in machines, suggesting that AI could be on the verge of achieving more advanced forms of logical thought and problem-solving.

Starting today, both ChatGPT Plus and Team users can access o1-preview and o1-mini, while Enterprise and Edu users will gain access early next week. OpenAI plans to eventually extend o1-mini access to all free ChatGPT users, though no release date has been set.

Elsewhere in tech

🚀 Billionaire Jared Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis completed the first ever commercial spacewalk on the daring Polaris Dawn mission, operated by Elon Musk’s space exploration company. Floating 435 miles above Earth in slimmed-down SpaceX suits, the duo became the first ever private citizens to experience the vacuum of space.

📱 Elon Musk has branded Australia’s government “fascists” over proposed legislation to slap fines on social media firms for failing to limit misinformation online. The new laws could charge internet platforms up to 5% of their global revenue for failing to establish adequate codes of conduct to counter the spread of falsehoods.

📺 Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May are back for one last epic road trip! After 22 years of wild motoring adventures from Top Gear to The Grand Tour, the trio will bow out with an emotional African journey. The final episode releases today on Prime Video!

🍔 Junk food ads will be banned on TV before 9pm and completely banned online from October 2025, the government has confirmed. Health Minister Andrew Gwynne has declared the move it aimed at tackling childhood obesity.

🇺🇸 Donald Trump has declared that he will not participate in another debate with Kamala Harris before the November election, suggesting that Harris should concentrate on her role as Vice President instead. Kamala Harris, however, has argued that both candidates owe it to the voters to engage in a second one.