MFS collapse prompts surge in national insolvency rates Insolvency Service reports 82% year-on-year rise in administrations last month across England and Wales

Fun data story: collapsed lender MFS appears to have caused a sudden spike in the national insolvency rate.

The government's Insolvency Service said an 82% rise in administration was because of "more than 100 connected companies in the real estate sector”.

w/ Euan Healy
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Delighted to say that our spring issue will be out May 6!

This was a very surprising, insightful & motivating issue to edit. On everything from Big Tech's ever-growing Cloud empire to community-led fights for clean air in Beirut & The Bronx.
Plus a chat w/the great @dwallacewells.bsky.social (!)

Man used AI to make false statements to shut down London nightclub, police say Heaven club neighbour admits offences under Licensing Act, as Met says fictitious AI-generated complaints a growing issue

Quite aside from using AI to fake other complaints, in his own complaint this guy described EMBANKMENT as a "residential neighbourhood". Nightclub NIMBYism is out of control. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

How a London teenager shoplifted £140,000 What was unusual was not just the value of the goods — it was the fact that the boy was caught

Had fun reporting on the private security groups using open source intelligence to catch organised shoplifting groups
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Interesting detail from student housing developer Unite's trading update today. They're selling £600mn worth of student accommodation, focus seems to be on disposing of assets in weaker performing student towns/cities.

Wrote about the market earlier this week: as.ft.com/r/4e0e94b9-3...

The hangover from Britain’s student housing boom [FREE TO READ] Concerns about affordability and community impact are mounting, even as purpose-built accommodation gains traction elsewhere

For investors, student housing is an appealing de-risked asset: constant stream of students, backed by public institutions, exempt from various planning requirements, w/ rents increasing every year.

Now there are concerns about over-saturation and councils are kicking off.
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Renters’ Rights Act brings big changes to UK property market [FREE TO READ] New rules aim to provide safety and security for tenants, but landlords are anxious

Property lawyers are seeing a surge of evictions in the run-up to the implementation of the Renters Rights Act.

Landlords say they're re-pricing risk to deal with the new regulations. as.ft.com/r/d70fafb3-0...

‘Steroid Olympics’ company to start selling peptides after Kennedy signals deregulation [FREE TO READ] Enhanced Games, backed by Donald Trump Jr and Peter Thiel, is moving into consumer products

The Enhanced Games, the 'steroid olympics' backed by Peter Thiel, Don Jr and others, are the first to dive into peptide commercialisation off the back off an RFK Jr. appearance on the Joe Rogan podcast.

Story with @mikepeeljourno.bsky.social and Patrick Temple-West

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Reining in data centers sparks rare bipartisanship in statehouses With voters wary of AI and both parties’ ability to tackle it, the issue has not fallen along usual partisan lines, even in an election year.

"A rare source of bipartisanship has broken out in state capitols across the country: tackling data centers."

A fun Companies House find, someone appears to have accidentally inputted a Google search query about offshore jurisdictions into the 'Governing Law' section.

Hereditary peer Lord Mancroft: ‘They don’t care about fox hunting. It’s about us’ [FREE TO READ] The Conservative politician and former master of hounds on House of Lords reform, the pros and cons of privilege — and his numerous tattoos

"Mancroft seems supremely unembarrassed"

Genre-defining 'Lunch with the FT' by @henrymance.ft.com
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Great opener from @willdunn.bsky.social in this piece about the 'expo-expo' and the UK's conference economy. www.newstatesman.com/politics/eco...

UK high streets turn to facial recognition in fight against shoplifting Theft and threats against shop floor workers have risen sharply since the Covid-19 pandemic

Facial recognition cameras are much more prevalent among retailers than they are among law enforcement.

Privacy campaigners are worried about the lack of oversight. Providers and users of the cameras say they're filling a gap left by unresponsive police forces.
. as.ft.com/r/4e840ce8-e...

London landlord begins evictions ahead of new renters’ rights law [FREE TO READ] Asif Aziz’s Criterion Capital owns several apartment blocks in capital as well as Trocadero centre in Piccadilly

Wrote about Asif Aziz's Criterion Capital and how landlords are changing strategies - with more evictions and changes in tenancies - ahead of the Renters Rights Act.

Building on great reporting by @jim.londoncentric.media @pollysmythe.bsky.social and others as.ft.com/r/97c52505-0...

London landlord begins evictions ahead of new renters’ rights law Asif Aziz’s Criterion Capital owns several apartment blocks in capital as well as Trocadero centre in Piccadilly

Asif Aziz evictions story is going mainstream. Telegraph and Independent have covered in recent days. Now the FT has done a brilliant piece - including finding another property affected, where a Ukrainian refugee and their disabled son are being evicted by Aziz. giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

Trump says he will decide in next 10 days if US will strike Iran Oil price rises as aircraft carrier and refuelling planes head to region in one of biggest build-ups since 2003 Iraq invasion

The continual use of these countdown-style deadlines feels a whole lot like the structure of reality TV. We're all barrelling towards a commercial break
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RIP Michael Silverblatt, a public radio great.

Also incredible detail in this obit about the staked faculty list at SUNY Buffalo.
www.latimes.com/california/s...

Pressure grows on Keir Starmer’s chief of staff over Peter Mandelson ambassador appointment [FREE TO READ] Multiple MPs in Labour Party question Morgan McSweeney’s judgment as revelations shake Westminster

"One UK official insisted, however, that Mandelson’s appointment had made sense at the time — and that he had been instrumental in securing the UK tech and trade deals."

Interesting detail that might explain how Mandelson stuck around for so long.
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Anomaly in UK rental reforms would leave thousands paying stamp duty The government said it is ‘aware’ of the issue facing tenants and working on a solution

fascinating FT story via @danneidle.bsky.social

UK ministers are working to resolve an anomaly in the Renters’ Rights Act that would otherwise leave hundreds of thousands of private tenants having to pay stamp duty in the coming years

www.ft.com/content/c260...

The employees secretly working a four-day week [FREE TO READ] Some businesses have adopted it as policy while many employees are embracing a more casual attitude to working on Fridays

In December the Labour government sent a letter to all councils warning them explicitly against adopting an official 4-day week. The fact is that many office workers are already working some version of an unofficial 4-day weeks thanks to casual work-from-home Fridays.
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James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth

For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith

www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...

Broke: Squaddies love a Friday night Chinese

Woke: A CULINARY CONSPIRACY TO SPY ON OUR TROOPS

Hosted today's FT News Briefing, featuring segments on Chinese demographics, EVs, Saudi Arabian bank borrowing and an interview with @marymcd.bsky.social on Europe's pension woes.
www.ft.com/content/ae01...

We're just a few exotic polymarket derivatives away from a generation defining Liar's Poker/F.I.A.S.C.O. for prediction markets

Data centre plan provokes anger over future of former Truman Brewery [FREE TO READ] East London landmark is latest site in capital to be identified for high-tech redevelopment

Wrote about a new data centre proposed as part of the Truman Brewery redevelopment. Bit of a sub-plot here: a battle between the independent Tower Hamlets mayor and the Labour central government
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From steel to guns: inside Britain’s newest arms factory Sheffield was once the UK’s centre of steelmaking. Now a rising tide of defence spending promises revival

Visited the BAE Systems factory and Forgemasters steelworks in Sheffield for a story about whether the arms industry can be a driver of new jobs for post-industrial England, or if there are reasons to be sceptical about the investment push.

w/ @sylviapfeifer.bsky.social
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UK watchdog bans social media ads promising ADHD and autism treatment Advertising Standards Authority issues enforcement notices related to 11 different supplements and tests

Some great example of ADHD and autism "supplement" sales in a new Advertising Standard Authority crackdown announced today. Comes off the back of gov review of over-diagnosis...

"The perfect gift for anyone with ADHD”
www.ft.com/content/7511...

Defying death: The longevity lab Does Singapore have the blueprint for a longer, healthier life?

Travelled to Singapore to learn about how an affluent + ageing society + technocratic government has produced the ideal conditions for the mainstreaming of "longevity" healthcare.

Presented by @mikepeeljourno.bsky.social, who also got to sample the longevity wares
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Can't fit a rattan outdoor dinning set in an Uber though...and nothing compares to the feeling of frantically trying to parallel park a Zipvan without the benefit of a rear view mirror

Defying death: The origins of ageing Why do we age? Can it be stopped?

Where did all the enthusiasm about longevity come from? Have scientific breakthroughs made the possibility of life extension viable, or has the commercial hype outpaced the research?

First episode of our new Tech Tonic series out now.

www.ft.com/content/a33d...