Business
Thousands more university jobs cut as financial crisis deepens
Hayley ClarkeEducation reporter and
Emily Doughty
PA MediaUniversities have collectively announced more than 12,000 job cuts in the last year, new analysis from the University and College Union (UCU) suggests.
Additional cost savings announced in the same period are equivalent to a further 3,000 jobs, the union says, but universities have not confirmed whether these savings will be made by cutting staff.
UCU members will vote on potential UK-wide strike action later this month over a 1.4% pay offer made over the summer.
Employers say that offer “clearly does not reflect the true value employers place on staff”, but that it is the “only prudent option” given the scale of the financial challenge facing the higher education sector.
Four in 10 English universities are now believed to be in financial deficit, according to the Office for Students.
Raj Jethwa, chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA), says difficult decisions like redundancies and restructures are having to be “carefully considered” by all institutions, but that they were striving to do so in an “open and fair way”.
But Jo Grady, UCU general secretary, described the cuts as “brutal”, adding that staff had become “demoralised, exhausted and furious” and that “undervalued and poorly served” students were feeling the impact too.
She told the Today programme there was “no replacement for stable funding from government” to address the financial challenges and that the current model was “destroying higher education”.
The government said it had taken the “tough but necessary decision” to increase tuition fees last year to boost income for universities, and would soon set out further plans for reforms in new legislation.
‘I will have to live with my mum in my forties’
Zak HughesDr Zak Hughes, a chemistry lecturer at the University of Bradford, is at risk of redundancy.
“There are a lot of stressed and upset people who are struggling to deal with it, both within the school but also more widely within the institution,” he says.
Zak, who has worked at the university since 2018, says he now faces the prospect of having to move back home to live with his mum if he loses his job.
“I won’t be able to pay my rent, I will be in my forties and living back at home,” he says.
Even if the 44-year-old retains his job, the chemistry course at the university is being phased out, with similar closures happening across the country.
Zak says this limits the opportunities for him and his colleagues.
“People could, even if they lost their job, get a job at another institution. That’s not happening now,” he says.
“They’re probably looking not only at the end of the a job, but really the end of their career in academia.”
Sanskrity Baraili, sabbatical officer at the students’ union in Bradford, says she has already seen the impact of cuts on students, especially in support services such as cleaning teams and disability services.
While she believes the cuts come from a wider issue within higher education, she says “students are worried about what’s going to happen next”.
Sanskrity BarailiA spokesperson for the university said: “Like many other universities, we are having to make cost-savings to protect the student experience and ensure we deliver meaningful outcomes for graduates.”
They said they had expanded the support services available to students, adding that “our priority remains putting students first and widening access to higher education.”
They said the university had a responsibility to ensure it remained financially stable, including regularly reviewing courses with “persistently low intake such as chemistry”.
They called on the government to take “swift and decisive action” to tackle the challenges faced by the sector.
‘I’d have had second thoughts about uni if I knew’
The University of Edinburgh has announced it plans to make £140m in cuts, equivalent to about 1,800 jobs, according to the UCU.
Caspar Cubitt, who is studying theology, says the uncertainty has “put all of us on edge”.
“There’s a lot of gossip which swirls around you,” he says.
“It’s when you write back to your mum and dad and they ask how uni is going, you say, ‘Well, my degree is in trouble.'”
While the 22-year-old says he is still receiving the same level of support from his department, he has found that access to study spaces and module choices has been affected.
Caspar CubittWith two years left at university, he is now worried what further cuts may mean.
“I would have had second thoughts [about going to Edinburgh] if I knew that this is how they handle budget crisis and this is how they run finances,” he says.
Professor Sir Peter Mathieson, principal and vice chancellor of the University of Edinburgh, said the university had been “fully transparent about the necessary steps we need to take to safeguard the future of our university”.
“We remain firmly committed to ongoing dialogue as we take the necessary steps to enable us to deliver excellence and continue to be a bold, imaginative and world-leading university.”
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Business
Private sector data: Over 2 lakh private companies closed in 5 years; govt flags monitoring for suspicious cases – The Times of India
NEW DELHI: The government on Monday said that over the past five years, more than two lakh private companies have been closed in India.According to data provided by Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Harsh Malhotra in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, a total of 2,04,268 private companies were shut down between 2020-21 and 2024-25 due to amalgamation, conversion, dissolution or being struck off from official records under the Companies Act, 2013.Regarding the rehabilitation of employees from these closed companies, the minister said there is currently no proposal before the government, as reported by PTI. In the same period, 1,85,350 companies were officially removed from government records, including 8,648 entities struck off till July 16 this fiscal year. Companies can be removed from records if they are inactive for long periods or voluntarily after fulfilling regulatory requirements.On queries about shell companies and their potential use in money laundering, Malhotra highlighted that the term “shell company” is not defined under the Companies Act, 2013. However, he added that whenever suspicious instances are reported, they are shared with other government agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate and the Income Tax Department for monitoring.A major push to remove inactive companies took place in 2022-23, when 82,125 companies were struck off during a strike-off drive by the corporate affairs ministry.The minister also highlighted the government’s broader policy to simplify and rationalize the tax system. “It is the stated policy of the government to gradually phase out exemptions and deductions while rationalising tax rates to create a simple, transparent, and equitable tax regime,” he said. He added that several reforms have been undertaken to promote investment and ease of doing business, including substantial reductions in corporate tax rates for existing and new domestic companies.
Pakistan’s textile exports surged to $6.4 billion during the first four months of the 2025-26 fiscal year, marking the highest trade volume for the sector in this period.
According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), value-added textile sectors were key contributors to the growth.
Knitwear exports reached $1.9 billion, while ready-made garments contributed $1.4 billion.
Significant increases were observed across several commodities: cotton yarn exports rose 7.74% to $238.9 million, and raw cotton exports jumped 100%, reaching $2.6 million from zero exports the previous year.
Other notable gains included tents, canvas, and tarpaulins, up 32.34% to $53.48 million, while ready-made garments increased 5.11% to $1.43 billion.
Exports of made-up textile articles, excluding towels and bedwear, rose 4.17%, totaling $274.75 million.
The report also mentioned that the growth in textile exports is a result of improved global demand and stability in the value of the Pakistani rupee.
UK investment bank Peel Hunt has given some support to under-pressure Chancellor Rachel Reeves over last week’s Budget as it said efforts to boost the London market and invest in UK companies were “positive steps”.
Peel Hunt welcomed moves announced in the Budget, such as the stamp duty exemption for shares bought in newly listed firms on the London market and changes to Isa investing.
It comes as Ms Reeves has been forced to defend herself against claims she misled voters by talking up the scale of the fiscal challenge in the run-up to last week’s Budget, in which she announced £26 billion worth of tax rises.
Peel Hunt said: “Following a prolonged period of pre-Budget speculation, businesses and investors now have greater clarity from which they can start to plan.
“The key measures were generally well received by markets, particularly the creation of additional headroom against the Chancellor’s fiscal rules.
“Initiatives such as a stamp duty holiday on initial public offerings (IPOs) and adjustments to the Isa framework are intended to support UK capital markets and encourage investment in British companies.
“These developments, alongside the Entrepreneurship in the UK paper published simultaneously, represent positive steps toward enhancing the UK’s attractiveness for growth businesses and long-term investors.”
Ms Reeves last week announced a three-year stamp duty holiday on shares bought in new UK flotations as part of a raft of measures to boost investment in UK shares.
She also unveiled a change to the individual savings account (Isa) limit that lowers the cash element to £12,000 with the remaining £8,000 now redirected into stocks and shares.
But the Chancellor also revealed an unexpected increase in dividend tax, rising by 2% for basic and higher rate taxpayers next year, which experts have warned “undermines the drive to increase investing in Britain”.
Peel Hunt said the London IPO market had begun to revive in the autumn, although listings activity remained low during its first half to the end of September.
Firms that have listed in London over recent months include The Beauty Tech Group, small business lender Shawbrook and tinned tuna firm Princes.
Peel Hunt added that deal activity had “continued at pace” throughout its first half, with 60 transactions announced across the market during that time and 10 active bids for FTSE 350 companies, as at the end of September.
Half-year results for Peel Hunt showed pre-tax profits jumped to £11.5 million in the six months to September 30, up from £1.2 million a year earlier, as revenues lifted 38.3%.
Peel Hunt said its workforce has been cut by nearly 10% since the end of March under an ongoing savings drive, with full-year underlying fixed costs down by around £5 million.
Steven Fine, chief executive of Peel Hunt, said: “The second half has started strongly, with the group continuing to play leading roles across both mergers and acquisitions and equity capital markets mandates.”
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