Business News Round Up (17/06/2025)
North West start-ups fall to 2025 low, new R3 research
The number of start-ups set up in the North West hit the lowest level of 2025 so far in May, according to new research from R3, the UK’s restructuring, turnaround and insolvency trade body. R3’s analysis of data provided by Creditsafe shows there were 6,413 new businesses established in the North West in May – the lowest monthly total in 2025 so far. Start-up numbers dropped by 10.9% in May when compared with the previous month’s total of 7,194. However, despite being the lowest monthly total so far this year, May’s figure was 14.5% higher than in May 2024, when 5,599 new businesses were established. Fran Henshaw, chair of R3 in the North West, said: “The drop in start-up numbers last month may reflect a period of reassessment for many potential entrepreneurs, particularly following April’s increases to employer National Insurance and the minimum wage.“
Scottish Investment Zones secure £320m UK Gov backing
The Glasgow and North East regions are set to become innovation powerhouses under new UK Government plans, aiming to boost local economies and support nearly 30,000 jobs. The UK Government has released more details regarding two new investment zones in Scotland, with hopes that they will support thousands of jobs and bring in millions in investment. Following initial plans laid out in the Chancellor’s Spending Review last week, the Government has confirmed the focus of both the Glasgow City Region and the North East Scotland Investment Zones (IZ), each backed by £160 million in public funding. The Investment Zones, which are joint projects between the UK and Scottish Governments alongside the Glasgow City Region and North East Scotland Regional Economic Partnerships, have been designed to ‘turbo-charge’ each region’s innovation economy, taking advantage of the skills and business infrastructure already in place.
https://www.digit.fyi/scottish-investment-zones-secure-320m-uk-gov-backing
R3: Scottish businesses insolvencies surge to 29-month high
Insolvency-related activity in Scotland hit a 29-month high in May 2025, according to new research from R3. The insolvency and restructuring trade body’s analysis of data provided by Creditsafe shows there were 141 cases of insolvency-related activity in Scotland in May – the highest number on record since December 2022’s figure of 142. Insolvency-related activity, which includes administrator and liquidator appointments along with creditors’ meetings, rose by 30.6% in May when compared to the previous month’s total of 108, and by 18.5% compared to May 2024’s total of 119. Compared to the rest of the UK, Scotland saw both the largest monthly and yearly percentage increase in insolvency-related activity numbers.
North West continues to attract Foreign Direct Investment – Manchester was the best performing UK city outside of London
The North West was among Europe’s best-performing regions for attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects in 2024, a new report has found, with Manchester being the UK’s best-performing city outside of London for DFI for the third time in the last five years. The EY 2025 UK Attractiveness Survey ranked 259 regions across Europe according to the number of FDI projects each attracted in 2024. The North West secured 86 projects in 2024, a 27 per cent increase on its 2023 total, ranking as Europe’s joint-fourteenth best-performing region for investment, alongside the West Midlands. Manchester attracted a total of 44 FDI projects last year, while Liverpool ranked joint-ninth, up from 16th in 2023. The North West’s year-on-year rise in FDI meant that its overall share of UK projects increased significantly to 10.1 per cent in 2024.