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    Oliver Barnes

    Leisure Industries Correspondent

    Oliver Barnes is the FT’s leisure industries correspondent based in London. He covers hospitality, gambling, tourism, tobacco and cannabis companies. Oliver previously covered health and science for the FT. He was awarded a journalism prize by the Royal Statistical Society for his coverage of the pandemic.

    Before joining the FT, he worked for BBC News, writing articles for Reality Check, the fact-checking arm of the BBC, and reporting for radio outlets including Radio 4 and the World Service.

    Email Oliver Barnes @mroliverbarnes  on Twitter (link opens in a new browser window)

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    • Friday, 24 March, 2023
      J D Wetherspoon PLC
      Wetherspoons hit by ‘ferocious’ inflation

      UK pub chain ekes out small profit but sales still lag pre-pandemic level

      3 hours ago
    • Tuesday, 21 March, 2023
      Travel & leisure industry
      Ennismore founder accused of ‘sabotage’ in rival hotel deal

      Sydell Group sues hotel company and founder Sharan Pasricha for allegedly interfering in sale of billionaire Ron Burkle’s stake

    • Friday, 17 March, 2023
      UK business & economy
      Visits to UK’s top tourist attractions struggle to recover after pandemic

      Cost of living fears and drop in Chinese visitors hitting most-popular sites

    • Thursday, 16 March, 2023
      British American Tobacco PLC
      British American Tobacco urged to quit London for US

      Top-five shareholder GQG says it ‘makes no sense’ for cigarette group to be listed in UK

    • Wednesday, 15 March, 2023
      UK Budget
      Hunt hails ‘Brexit pubs guarantee’ with extra tax relief on draught beer

      Hospitality groups warn demand will be hit by inflation-linked rise on other alcoholic drinks in August

    • Wednesday, 15 March, 2023
      UK Budget
      Budget 2023: what it means for your money

      Moves to boost tax breaks on pensions, ease childcare costs and support household energy bills

    • Tuesday, 14 March, 2023
      Cannabis industry
      Celadon becomes first UK medical cannabis group to win right to sell in Britain

      Update to Home Office licence will allow London-listed pharmaceuticals group to pursue supply deals

    • Monday, 13 March, 2023
      FT News Briefing podcast11 min listen
      SVB’s cardinal sin

      Critical raw metals inside disposable e-cigarettes are more likely to be dumped than recycled

    • Thursday, 9 March, 2023
      BBC
      Gary Lineker confident of position despite remarks over UK migration policy

      Ex-footballer says he ‘looks forward’ to presenting flagship BBC show on Saturday amid debate over impartiality rules

    • Thursday, 9 March, 2023
      FT Alphaville
      Soho House rebrands as Soho House

      Wannabe hotspot no longer tech hotspot wannabe

    • Wednesday, 8 March, 2023
      UK employment
      Britain plans looser foreign worker rules to plug labour gap

      Ministers to tackle chronic shortages by easing restrictions for construction sector

    • Wednesday, 8 March, 2023
      The Restaurant Group PLC
      Wagamama owner to close 35 sites as pressure by activist investors grows

      Shares in The Restaurant Group fall after the company denies speculation over an imminent asset sale

    • Tuesday, 7 March, 2023
      Greggs PLC
      Greggs to open 150 stores despite high costs

      UK bakery chain warns of persistently high energy and wage bills

    • Tuesday, 7 March, 2023
      The Big Read
      The environmental cost of single-use vapes

      Critical raw metals inside the disposable e-cigarettes enticing Gen Z are more likely to be dumped than recycled

    • Monday, 6 March, 2023
      Retail & Consumer industry
      Activist investor threatens to push for removal of The Restaurant Group boss

      Warning follows TRG’s refusal to grant a board seat to Hong Kong hedge fund

    • Monday, 6 March, 2023
      Starbucks Corp
      Starbucks to open 100 outlets in UK after abandoning sell-off plan

      Chain shelves proposed sale of owner-operated UK coffee shops after opposition from franchise partners

    • Sunday, 5 March, 2023
      InterviewLeadership
      Philip Morris’s CEO on quitting smoking and detoxifying the brand

      Jacek Olczak says he is steering the tobacco group away from cigarettes towards ‘healthy solutions’

    • Sunday, 5 March, 2023
      Gambling industry
      Austrian gamblers struggle to recoup money lost on ‘illegal’ betting sites

      Gaming groups face thousands of claims after ruling they contravene federal monopoly

    • Saturday, 4 March, 2023
      Altria Group Inc
      Altria exits vaping group Juul after stake plummets in value

      Marlboro maker’s $12.8bn investment is now worth just $250mn after legal setbacks

    • Thursday, 2 March, 2023
      Anheuser-Busch InBev SA
      AB InBev offsets falling beer sales as consumers switch to premium products

      World’s largest brewer outpaces analysts’ growth estimates

    • Tuesday, 28 February, 2023
      Gambling industry
      UK gambling groups braced for sweeping reforms to protect customers

      Long-delayed white paper expected to try to curb football sponsorship and ban VIP packages on betting sites

    • Monday, 27 February, 2023
      Tobacco
      Altria nears deal to buy e-cigarette maker Njoy for at least $2.75bn

      Tobacco group targets vaping company after writing down investment in Juul

    • Wednesday, 22 February, 2023
      Philip Morris International Inc
      Tobacco group Philip Morris admits it may never sell its Russian business

      Company signals ‘no hope’ of a deal because of Kremlin terms on foreign companies’ asset sales

    • Wednesday, 22 February, 2023
      Cineworld Group PLC
      Cineworld yet to receive firm offers for entire business

      Chain has contacted a ‘broad universe’ of about 40 potential suitors since early January

    • Thursday, 16 February, 2023
      The Restaurant Group PLC
      The Restaurant Group rejects Oasis push for board seat

      Activist investor accuses the Wagamama owner of mismanaging the company

    Previous page You are on page 1 Next page

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