Here are the business stories making the headlines locally and across the country this morning.
Britain’s energy system will not hit net zero until 2035, National Grid tells Labour
Britain’s electricity networks will not hit net zero until 2035, National Grid has said, undermining a key pledge by Labour to hit that target by 2030.
National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) on Monday set out plans for a massive £58bn expansion of the UK’s high-voltage transmission network, including thousands of new electricity pylons, substations and other infrastructure spread across the countryside.
The project is designed to make the UK’s power networks carbon neutral. However, ESO said this goal would not be reached until 2035 under current plans.
This fits with government targets but not with Labour’s, placing ESO in the front line of a key pre-election battle over energy policy.
Aberdeen office block sells for millions below initial £19m asking price
Aberdeen’s Talisman House office block has sold in a deal worth £8.2 million.
The six-storey building was originally put on the market in 2021 with an asking price of £19.2m.
But the Holburn Street building has now been bought by Shelborn Investments Limited, the asset management team behind Quorum Park and Edinburgh Green.
Marmite maker Unilever to cut 7,500 jobs
Unilever, the consumer goods firm behind brands including Marmite and Domestos, has revealed plans to cut 7.500 jobs across its global operations.
The UK-based firm, which employs around 128,000 staff, said the proposed losses would come mainly from office roles as technology advanced.
It admitted that the UK, where it has 6,000 workers, would be included in the three-year productivity drive.
Unilever said it would begin consultations with those affected once the roles had been fully identified.
Five episodes of GB News programmes presented by Tory MPs found to have broken Ofcom rules
Five episodes of GB News programmes that were presented by Tory MPs have been found by Ofcom to have breached impartiality rules.
The watchdog's probe examined two shows presented by former House of Commons leader Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, and three jointly hosted by former pensions secretary Esther McVey and her husband - backbencher Philip Davies.
Ofcom said that under the Broadcasting Code, news must be presented with due impartiality and "a politician cannot be a newsreader, news interviewer or news reporter unless, exceptionally, there is editorial justification".
It found there was no "exceptional justification" in the five cases they investigated and the news was "therefore not presented with due impartiality".