Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned by the UK government as part of attempts to crackdown on wealthy Russians with assets in the country. The Chelsea Football Club owner is one of seven more Russian oligarchs who have had sanctions placed on them by ministers on Thursday. Last week, Mr Abramovich announced that he intends to
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Rishi Sunak must choose to either borrow billions more or allow households to suffer an income squeeze that could be the worst since the 1970s, a leading think-tank has warned. The Institute for Fiscal Studies said the likely impact of the Ukraine crisis on inflation and public finances may force the chancellor to act when
The two British board members of Huawei’s UK subsidiary are to resign over the Chinese telecoms giant’s refusal to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Sky News has learnt that Sir Andrew Cahn and Sir Ken Olisa notified the company on Wednesday that they intend to step down from their positions as non-executive directors. City sources
Boris Johnson has announced he will set out an Energy Independence Plan in the “course of the next few days” as April price hike looms. At Prime Minister’s Questions, Mr Johnson said his government “need to meet the long term impact of the energy price spike”. The announcement came as the prime minister was pressed
Russia has warned it could cut its gas supplies to the West if there is a ban on Russian oil imports. It has said it may stop the flow of gas through pipelines from Russia to Germany in response to Berlin’s decision last month to halt the opening of the new Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
British taxpayers are facing a bill for the rescue of Bulb, the collapsed energy company, that could hit £3bn or more after Russia’s war with Ukraine sent wholesale gas prices surging to unprecedented highs. Sky News has learnt that industry executives and government officials now expect Bulb’s special administrator to request hundreds of millions of
The cost of Brent crude oil has surged by 10% to its highest level since 2008 after the United States said a ban on Russian crude imports was being considered as a further sanction following president Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The international oil benchmark hit $130 a barrel early on Monday – with its US
PricewatwerhouseCoopers (PwC) is to cut its Russian firm adrift from its global network in arguably the most significant exit so far by a multinational company since the Putin government’s decision to invade Ukraine. Sky News has learnt that PwC, one of the world’s big four accountancy firms, will announce publicly on Monday that it is
Visa and Mastercard have announced they are suspending operations in Russia. Credit and debit cards issued by Russian banks will no longer work outside of the country. Russian businesses and cash machines will also be unable to accept cards issued abroad. Both companies handle 90% of all debit and credit card payments outside of China
A pack of suitors from international sport, property and finance are this weekend exploring bids to take control of Chelsea Football Club from the Russian-Israeli billionaire Roman Abramovich. Sky News has learnt that the owners of the Chicago Cubs Major League Baseball (MLB) team have begun considering an offer for the West London club, and
Facebook and Instagram are blocking RT and Sputnik for users in the UK following a request by the British government. It follows a letter by Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries in which she urged Meta, TikTok, and Twitter to restrict access to the Russian state-owned organisations which she accused of spreading “damaging propaganda into Britain”. “I
Microsoft has announced that it is suspending all new sales of its products and services in Russia. In a blog post on Friday, the company said: “Like the rest of the world, we are horrified, angered and saddened by the images and news coming from the war in Ukraine and condemn this unjustified, unprovoked and
Russia’s former deputy prime minister and a billionaire who previously held a major stake in football club Arsenal have become the latest oligarchs to be sanctioned by the UK, the Foreign Office said. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said Alisher Usmanov, who owned more than 30% of Arsenal before selling up to current owner Stan Kroenke,
The impact of Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine on oil and gas prices is now very apparent. The price of Brent crude surged to $119.84 a barrel on Thursday – a level last seen on 1 May 2012 – while the price of wholesale gas remains close to the record highs it hit just before
The cost of Brent crude oil and natural gas have surged sharply as markets eye the chance of crucial Russian supplies being cut off – either through tighter Western sanctions or by a defiant President Vladimir Putin. As UK households already fret over wide-ranging hikes to bills, with a leap of almost £700 in the
Russia’s war on Ukraine has sparked many extraordinary developments, among them the sanctions unleashed by the west on Moscow, which have been far more extensive and more rapidly mobilised than anyone could have been expected. Another is the changes it is bringing about in the energy policies of many European countries. Chief among them is
British Gas owner Centrica says it is planning to cancel its contracts with Russian gas suppliers, including Gazprom, as a matter of “urgency”. The company is attempting to do this voluntarily, as it is not required to end its agreements as part of any sanctions regime – making it an outlier as other energy companies
as many as 2,000 Sainsbury’s workers could lose their jobs as 200 instore cafes are set to close, the supermarket giant has said. It comes as part of a wider shake up by the retailer to cut back on costs and transform its dining, takeaway and home delivery services. Staff at 200 instore cafes were
Homes that are less energy efficient could cost hundreds of pounds more to heat after the energy price cap rises next month, according to new research. People living in homes with an E-rating or worse on their energy performance certificate (EPC) could see their annual heating bills rise by at least £320 more than those
Oil titan Shell has announced that it will exit all of its joint ventures with Gazprom, an energy company controlled by the Russian state, following BP’s decision to pull out of the country yesterday. “We are shocked by the loss of life in Ukraine, which we deplore, resulting from a senseless act of military aggression