5 important things happening in the UK today

Here are 5 important things happening in the UK today, Monday (2 February 2026):

Harry Styles and Anthony Joshua among the UK’s top taxpayers: The billionaire brothers behind gambling giant Betfred have topped a list of the UK’s 100 biggest taxpayers, which also features Harry Styles, Anthony Joshua and JK Rowling. Fred and Peter Done, who founded the Warrington-based business in 1967, lead the annual Sunday Times Tax List, external for the first time, having paid an estimated £400.1 million tax bill over the past year. Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, 25, is the youngest person to appear on the list – at number 72 – with a projected £16.9 million tax payment, while Liverpool’s Mo Salah is believed to have a £14.5 million bill. [The Times]

UK hospitality firms demand more help with business rates: Struggling hotels, restaurants, and nightclubs are calling for more financial help with business rates after it emerged that Heathrow is among the biggest beneficiaries of a multibillion-pound package of state support. The UK’s biggest airport is in line for a discount of nearly £900 million on its rates bill over the next three years. That is a fifth of the total £4.3 billion “transitional relief” fund announced by the chancellor in the budget for all businesses facing big bill increases. [The Guardian]
Reeves’s tax rises to drag on growth this year: Rachel Reeves’s Budget tax rises will drag on growth for at least a year, economists have warned. The UK economy is expected to grow modestly by 0.9pc in 2026, according to new forecasts from the EY Item Club. “While this represents a marginal upgrade from the 0.8pc growth forecast in November, experts warned that Labour’s decisions to increase taxes and cut public spending were partly to blame for the economic stagnation. [Telegraph]
Gold and silver resume slide after Friday’s plunge: Gold and silver prices have continued to fall after a dramatic reversal of a rally that had pushed precious metals to record highs. In Asia trade on Monday, spot gold prices fell more than 7% to $4,506 (£3,297) an ounce, while silver slumped by 10% to around $76 an ounce. Prices hit fresh record highs in January after central banks added more bullion to their reserves and investors put money into. [BBC]
On Monday, Oil was trading lower at $64.52. The pound is trading at $1.37, €1.15, and ¥9.50.