Associated said it was an overwhelming victory for its newspaper and journalists, and “for a free press generally”, while the prince, 41, described the ruling as a “complete and obvious whitewash”

International News via Reuters:

Days after it was revealed he will return to Britain, Prince Harry will learn on Friday how many millions of pounds he might have to pay towards the legal costs of the Daily Mail publisher after losing a high-profile privacy lawsuit.

Last month, judge Matthew Nicklin at London’s High Court comprehensively rejected the case brought by King Charles’ younger son alongside singer Elton John and five other British figures, rejecting allegations that the Mail titles had engaged in widespread unlawful activities, such as phone hacking.

Associated said it was an overwhelming victory for its newspaper and journalists, and “for a free press generally”, while the prince, 41, described the ruling as a “complete and obvious whitewash”.

On Friday, Nicklin will rule on how much the claimants should pay on an interim basis towards the Mail’s legal costs, and, more significantly, whether Harry and the others should be paying the outstanding amount on an “indemnity basis”.

If he decides to do this, it will mean that as the losing party the prince and the others must pay towards Associated’s costs without the publisher needing to show these were reasonable and proportionate.

Nicklin will make a written judgment, so neither Harry nor any of the other parties will be present.

INTERIM PAYMENT SOUGHT

The court was told at a hearing in July that Associated had incurred a legal bill of £34.5 million ($45.8 million), while Harry and other claimants only had an insurance policy which covered £16 million.

The Mail’s publisher is seeking an interim payment of £10 million while Harry and the six others have offered £8 million.

The court ruling comes after the shock news that Harry, his wife Meghan and their two children would be relocating to Britain this month from their home in California.

The couple, who stepped down from official duties in 2020 when they moved to the U.S., will not resume any royal roles nor receive any public money.

COSTS HEARING

At last month’s hearing about costs, Associated’s lawyer Antony White argued the claimants had made wide-ranging and serious “egregious” allegations without supporting evidence which had added to their costs.

He also said Harry’s statement following the ruling was an abuse of his position and celebrity status.

Nicholas Bacon, the lawyer for the claimants, said in their submissions that Associated’s £34.5 million legal bill was “eye-watering”, far exceeding an agreed budget.

He said it had been reported that Associated wanted to teach the claimants a lesson, and that it would be unjust to award indemnity costs.

In rejecting Harry and the others’ lawsuits following an 11-week trial, Nicklin had said the claimants had needed to prove that information published about them had been obtained unlawfully, but they had failed to do so, and that suspicion alone was not enough.

No decision has yet been made on whether the claimants will appeal.

($1 = 0.7527 pounds)

Reporting by Michael Holden;Editing by Alison Williams

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said public sector net borrowing was £1.8 billion ($2.5 billion) in July, as higher government spending caused by inflation counteracted record self-assessed income tax receipts for the month

International News via Reuters:

Britain’s government recorded an unexpected budget deficit last month, a reminder of the financial constraints facing new finance minister John Healey ahead of his October budget in spite of recent better news on the economy.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said public sector net borrowing was £1.8 billion ($2.5 billion) in July, as higher government spending caused by inflation counteracted record self-assessed income tax receipts for the month.

A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to a balanced budget, while the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) projections had pencilled in a £500 million surplus — which would have been the first for any July since before the COVID-19 pandemic.

But the ONS said central government expenditure on social benefits was up £2 billion in July compared with a year ago, while spending on goods and services — which includes staff costs — was up £1.2 billion.

The deficit for June was revised down sharply to £12.8 billion from £16.0 billion. Still, borrowing for the first four months of the 2026/27 financial year remains higher than the OBR’s forecast, at £56.7 billion versus £54.4 billion.

“We expect government borrowing to exceed the OBR forecast over the rest of the year as spending continues to rise,” said Thomas Pugh, chief economist at tax and consulting firm RSM.

“Higher gilt yields, stubborn inflation, and a government determined to spend more means borrowing is on course to remain above 4% of GDP this year, instead of falling to 3.6% as projected.”

The current budget deficit, which measures day-to-day spending against tax revenues and must be balanced in 2029/30 according to the current fiscal rules, stood at £34.7 billion over the April-July period, against the OBR’s projection of £36.7 billion.

“Fiscal discipline is the bedrock of our UK economic stability and national security which is why we are committed to meeting our fiscal rules, with a buffer against global uncertainties,” Healey said in a statement.

Future revisions to the data could help Healey. The ONS has revised down its estimates for public sector net borrowing compared with the initial reading in every month this calendar year.

Borrowing in May and June has been revised down by £7.5 billion combined.

The debt interest bill was £700 million higher than a year ago. An ONS statistician said he expected this to rise sharply when data are released for September, reflecting inflation trends and the timing of interest payments on bonds.

($1 = 0.7324 pounds)

Reporting by Andy Bruce; Editing by William James and Emelia Sithole-Matarise

The biggest drag came from clothing and footwear sales, which fell by the most since May 2025, down 2.7% on the month, after many stores began summer sales in June rather than July

International News via Reuters:

British retail sales fell back as expected in July after a surge in June when hot weather boosted demand for fans and air conditioners and supermarkets offered promotions alongside the men’s soccer World Cup, official figures showed on Friday.

Retail sales volumes last month dropped 0.5% from June, in line with economists’ median forecast in a Reuters poll, while annual sales growth slowed to 1.6% in July from a downwardly revised 3.8%, slightly below expectations for a fall to 2.2%.

The biggest drag came from clothing and footwear sales, which fell by the most since May 2025, down 2.7% on the month, after many stores began summer sales in June rather than July.

Sterling was little changed against the dollar after the data, which came alongside figures showing more government borrowing than expected in July.

“July’s 0.5% fall in UK retail sales volumes should probably be read as a pause rather than the start of a renewed consumer downturn,” said Martin Beck, chief economist at WPI Strategy.

ROBUST CONSUMER SENTIMENT

Consumer sentiment surveys suggest demand has proven robust, despite higher energy costs caused by the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, offering a boost to new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who has tried to mollify voter anger about the cost of living since taking office in July.

Beck said the government’s decision to remove value-added tax from household electricity bills from October was likely to boost demand later in the year, and that global energy prices looked less threatening than a few weeks ago.

But there was a risk households could worry about the prospect of higher taxes in finance minister John Healey’s October budget, he said, despite Burnham’s pledge to stick with Labour’s promise to keep the rates of all major taxes unchanged.

GfK’s long-running confidence indicator, released earlier on Friday, rose to a two-year high in August — its highest since just after Burnham’s predecessor Keir Starmer came to power.

However, Jacqueline Windsor, head of retail at PwC UK, said headwinds to consumer spending were likely to strengthen later this year when regulated household energy prices look set to be increased.

“We do not expect the current run of retail sales outperformance to last into autumn and the critical run-up to Christmas,” she said.

Recent updates from major British retailers have revealed mixed fortunes.

Clothing retailer Next edged up its annual profit outlook for the third time this year, with sales boosted by the country’s prolonged period of hot weather.

However, sportswear and fashion retailer JD Sports issued a profit warning, though it was weakness in U.S. markets, rather than in Britain, which prompted it.

Reporting by David Milliken; Editing by Kate Holton, Sharon Singleton and Emelia Sithole-Matarise