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John Healey to end standing charges on gas bills for 23m homes
business

John Healey to end standing charges on gas bills for 23m homes

On budget day chancellor says he will ask Ofgem to remove ‘unfair and outdated’ fixed daily fee, and also reportedly looking to scrap it from electricity bills Business live – latest updates What to expect from the budget: who wins, who pays? John Healey will abolish standing charges on gas bills for 23m homes to help almost two-thirds of households an average of £45 a year, and will consider steps to remove standing charges on electricity bills in the future too.

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FG moves to secure farms, attract investors
business

FG moves to secure farms, attract investors

The Federal Government has moved to address insecurity threatening agricultural investments, signing a partnership agreement to develop security arrangements for farms and attract investors to multibillion-dollar soybean and sugarcane projects in Yobe and Jigawa states. The Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI), Integranium Holdings and Defence Agricultural Assets and Projects Development Company (DAPCO), supported by Defence Holding Company Limited, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Abuja.

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Cooking gas supply rises 18% to 4.5m litres daily — NMDPRA
business

Cooking gas supply rises 18% to 4.5m litres daily — NMDPRA

By Ediri Ejoh Domestic supply of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), popularly known as cooking gas, rose by 17.78 per cent year-on-year, YoY, to 4.5 million litres per day in September 2026, from 3.7 million litres per day in September 2025. Reacting, former National President of the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers, NALPGAM, Mr. Oladapo Olatunbosun, attributed the increase to improved local production but called for sustained investment and government support to prevent shortages.

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What to expect from John Healey’s first budget: who wins, who pays?
business

What to expect from John Healey’s first budget: who wins, who pays?

Struggling households, new homebuyers and small shops stand to gain, while banks and online marketplaces could face higher levies You be the chancellor: play our budget game to see if you can balance the books John Healey will present his first budget on Wednesday, which will set the tone for Andy Burnham’s premiership. Despite the chancellor’s promises in the summer that the tax and spending event would not be beset by the leaks that preceded those of his predecessor, Rachel Reeves, both official and unofficial sources have indicated much of what Healey is likely to announce.

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FG kicks off $100m Southeast gas pipeline project
business

FG kicks off $100m Southeast gas pipeline project

Tinubu says S’East must rise from potential to reality …Mbah, governors hail Tinubu, pledge support for 400km pipeline The Federal Government, through the South East Development Commission (SEDC) has kicked off a $100 million gas distribution pipeline project to boost industrialisation, attract investments and create jobs in the South East. The President said the pipeline would benefit manufacturers in Aba, strengthen industrial clusters in Nnewi and Onitsha, attract productive enterprises to Enugu, expand agro-processing and manufacturing in Ebonyi and connect Imo’s gas resources to the…

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Safaricom confirms nationwide M-Pesa outage
business

Safaricom confirms nationwide M-Pesa outage

NAIROBI, Kenya Oct 28 – Kenyans woke up to challenges accessing M-PESA on Wednesday morning, with users reporting difficulties completing mobile money transactions as Safaricom confirmed a system issue affecting the service. In a response to the complaints, Safaricom acknowledged the problem and said its technical team was working to restore normal service.

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Cenpower clears 600 tonnes of waste from Sega Beach
business

Cenpower clears 600 tonnes of waste from Sega Beach

Cenpower Generation Ltd says it removed 600 tonnes of waste from Sega Beach during the fourth edition of its annual KIPP Clean Project, highlighting the scale of shoreline pollution. The Director of Environmental Services at the Kpone Katamanso Municipal Assembly, Freeman George, commended Cenpower for maintaining the initiative.

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OWO 2026: The Or Foundation, Reggie Rockstone promote healthy living at Kantamanto
business

OWO 2026: The Or Foundation, Reggie Rockstone promote healthy living at Kantamanto

The Or Foundation, Reggie Rockstone promote healthy living at Kantamanto. The Or Foundation, in collaboration with Ghanaian Hiplife legend Reggie Rockstone, has organised a four-kilometre health walk for traders at Kantamanto Market in Accra to promote physical fitness, encourage healthy lifestyles and raise awareness about preventive healthcare as part of activities to mark the fifth anniversary of the Obroni Wawu October (OWO) Festival.

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Luxury cruise passengers stranded in Cambodia due to soaring fuel costs
business

Luxury cruise passengers stranded in Cambodia due to soaring fuel costs

A luxury cruise ship on a years-long voyage around the world suspended operations because of extraordinarily high fuel costs, leaving passengers stranded in Cambodia. Bloomberg reported that around 200 passengers were on board when they were ordered to disembark in Cambodia, citing the cruise operator’s founder.

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CS Kagwe Opens World Potato Congress, Courts Investors to Replace Imports
business

CS Kagwe Opens World Potato Congress, Courts Investors to Replace Imports

NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 27 — Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has called on investors to expand potato processing, replace imported potato products with locally manufactured alternatives and unlock idle public land for commercial farming as Kenya hosts the 13th World Potato Congress. The Cabinet Secretary highlighted research by the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and the International Potato Center to develop a late blight-resistant biotechnology potato using the popular Shang

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IERPP demands full account of 24-hour economy spending
business

IERPP demands full account of 24-hour economy spending

The Institute of Economic Research and Public Policy (IERPP) is demanding that the government publish a comprehensive financing and implementation report on the 24-Hour Economy programme, detailing funds disbursed, expenditure incurred and projects completed. Speaking at a news conference in Accra on Tuesday, October 27, he questioned the difference between the GH¢90 million allocation in the detailed expenditure tables of the 2026 Budget and the GH¢110 million cited in the Budget Speech.

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Plan for multibillion-pound Sizewell nuclear plant a ‘terrible deal’ for UK taxpayers, MPs say
business

Plan for multibillion-pound Sizewell nuclear plant a ‘terrible deal’ for UK taxpayers, MPs say

The public accounts committee has said the risk to billpayers is ‘extraordinary’ The government’s plan to fund a multibillion-pound nuclear plant at the Sizewell site in Suffolk represents a “terrible deal” for the UK taxpayer over the rest of the century, according to the government’s spending watchdog. MPs on the public accounts committee (PAC) have warned the government that the cost of the Sizewell C nuclear reactor could spiral to almost £48bn, leaving bill payers on the hook to provide an extra £9.8bn to construct the plant before 2040 and a further £12bn over its 60-year operating life.

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Chancellor targets cost of living crisis in budget for a ‘difficult moment’
business

Chancellor targets cost of living crisis in budget for a ‘difficult moment’

Healey hopes to give ‘hope for the future’ but only modest policies are expected with important decisions deferred John Healey has acknowledged the UK faces a “difficult moment” but insisted he would put the country on a better path as he delivers his first budget on Wednesday against a turbulent global economic backdrop. But despite the international uncertainty, the chancellor will signal “fresh hope for the future” as he attempts to sound a more optimistic note, by providing households with breathing space from rising cost of living pressures.

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Ecobank Group profit before tax hits US$737 million for first nine months of 2026
business

Ecobank Group profit before tax hits US$737 million for first nine months of 2026

Central, Eastern and Southern Africa (CESA) delivered a 20% increase in profit before tax, while Anglophone West Africa (AWA) recorded 10% growth, offsetting softer results in Francophone West Africa (UEMOA) and Nigeria. The strength of our diversified business model was evident as profit before tax increased by 20% in Central Eastern and Southern Africa (CESA) and by 10% in Anglophone West Africa (AWA), offsetting softer results in Francophone West Africa (UEMOA) and Nigeria,” he explained.

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