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Business Disability Forum has opened nominations for its 2026 Disability Smart Impact Awards. The rebranded awards, announced on 3 December, highlight organisations and individuals creating measurable change for disabled employees and consumers through inclusive practice and innovation.
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Pantheon Regeneration secures investment from Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund. The funding will support the expansion of Pantheon’s ecological restoration projects, which aim to revive biodiversity and remove carbon from the atmosphere, enhancing their capacity to deliver landscape-scale climate solutions and carbon credits.
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Eight North of England startups have secured investment through PraeSeed. The six-week accelerator, backed by the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II and PXN Ventures, has invested £200,000 in each company, taking total funding to £3 million and expanding its support for Northern innovation.
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Half of Gen Z workers face criticism due to stereotypes. A report by Kahoot reveals that nearly 50% of young UK workers experience workplace criticism, leading to stress. Judgements often stem from their passion, informal language, or attempts to set boundaries, causing some to consider quitting.
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London ranks second globally for tech innovation, Zurich leads. The latest Z/Yen Smart Centres Index highlights London’s tech prowess, surpassing San Francisco. Zurich tops the list, while Singapore climbs to third. Oxford and Cambridge remain key players, bolstered by university spin-offs.
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November’s US M&A tape did not look busy. It did, however, look big. A handful of multi-billion-dollar deals in consumer health, cancer diagnostics, industrials, and AI infrastructure underscored how 2025’s deal cycle is being driven by scale, category leadership, and infrastructure for an AI-intensive economy.
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November’s M&A tape in Europe shrank, but deals swelled dramatically. From coatings and chemicals to energy and financial infrastructure, November’s largest transactions show boards leaning into selective, high-stakes bets in a market defined by sovereign capital, tougher subsidy rules, and more creative deal structures.
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The FCA proposes new rules for ESG ratings providers. The Financial Conduct Authority aims to enhance transparency, governance, and conflict management in the ESG ratings sector, building on international recommendations to improve market trust and support the UK’s sustainable finance ambitions.
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AI meets fragrance discovery in Jo Malone’s latest innovation. The Estée Lauder Companies and Jo Malone London have unveiled an AI-powered Scent Adviser experience designed to recreate the brand’s signature in-store consultation online, helping consumers find their ideal fragrance through natural language interaction.
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November’s UK dealflow was quiet, but anything but complacent overall. From a scrapped £5.3bn infrastructure merger to a contested fintech tie-up, the month’s biggest transactions showed investors rewarding infrastructure-style cash flows, disciplined storytelling, and targeted digital bets over indiscriminate empire-building, for boards weighing whether to buy, build, or partner.
