Month: January 2026

CIM to host exclusive launch event in Dubai, advancing GCC marketing excellence

Stuart Mitchell

The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), the world’s leading professional body for marketing, will host an exclusive event in Dubai to mark the opening of its new regional hub in Dubai Knowledge Park. This expansion demonstrates CIM’s commitment to supporting both the UAE and the wider GCC as the region strengthens its position as a global centre for innovation, investment, and economic transformation. The UAE continues to drive forward its UAE Vision 2031, a national agenda focused on sustainable growth, future-ready skills, economic diversification, and global competitiveness. Marketing capability sits…

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UK green ammonia prototype plant tackles energy storage challenge

Stuart Mitchell

A STFC prototype facility has come online, demonstrating how surplus wind energy could be converted into green ammonia for energy storage. The innovative Ammonia Synthesis Platform using Intermittent Renewable Energy (ASPIRE) plant offers a solution to the significant challenge of energy wastage. About one-tenth of all wind generation in Great Britain in 2024 was produced but not used. Innovative approach to renewable energy storage The ASPIRE plant represents a major advancement in the UK’s green energy landscape. Engineers at the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) Energy Research Unit have…

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New report identifies opportunities to unlock c.£37bn in private investment for Scotland’s home efficiency market

Stuart Mitchell

A new report, commissioned by the Green Finance Institute (GFI) and funded by the Scottish Government, titled ‘Scottish consumer attitudes towards green home finance products’, shows that boosting consumer awareness of available finance solutions could unlock up to c.£17bn in private investment when paired with supportive policy. According to the Climate Change Committee (CCC), decarbonising Scotland’s buildings will require an additional £30bn of investment, exceeding what the Scottish Government alone can fund[1]. With buildings accounting for 13% of Scotland’s total carbon emissions and 30% of total energy consumption[2], mobilising private…

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Octopus EV to absorb new EV road tax for existing lease customers

Stuart Mitchell

Octopus Electric Vehicles (‘Octopus EV’) has announced it will cover the new pay-per-mile tax for all existing customers – meaning no extra charges for drivers who have already made the switch to electric. The tax, which was announced in the Autumn Budget 2025, will introduce a 3p per-mile charge for electric vehicles. It is supposed to come into effect in April 2028 and is designed to replace fuel-duty revenue as more drivers move away from petrol and diesel. Customers currently on an Octopus EV lease, who completed an order by…

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Password manager provider fined £1.2m by ICO for data breach affecting up to 1.6 million people in the UK

Stuart Mitchell

ICO have fined password manager provider LastPass UK Ltd £1.2 million following a 2022 data breach that compromised the personal information of up to 1.6 million of its UK users.  They found that LastPass failed to implement sufficiently robust technical and security measures, which ultimately enabled a hacker to gain unauthorised access to its backup database. There is no evidence that hackers were able to unencrypt customer passwords as these are stored locally on customer devices and not by LastPass.  The incidents occurred in August 2022 when a hacker gained…

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