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(Sharecast News) - The beleaguered pub sector is getting a boost from England's World Cup run, with some landlords reporting roaring sales as anticipation builds for a bumper night on Wednesday for the semi-final clash with Argentina. Lisa Mayall, the manager of the British Oak in Kingswinford near Dudley in the West Midlands, was jubilant after England's 2-1 win against Norway on Saturday night and brisk takings at the pub's till. She expects hundreds more customers for the team's next game at 8pm BST. - Guardian
Britain's biggest community solar project has been forced to shut for the duration of its first summer by the government's energy system operator to avoid overloading the local grid with renewable energy. The north Devon solar farm was ordered to shut weeks before record high temperatures across Europe led to power supply warnings, due to concerns that the large amount of rooftop solar in the area could destabilise the power grid by triggering a "thermal overload". - Guardian
Eurostar is locked in a row with London St Pancras International over fears that surging passenger numbers will push the station to breaking point. Gwendoline Cazenave, Eurostar's chief executive, said she was at loggerheads with station bosses over how best to cope with a significant increase in trains using the Channel tunnel over the next few years. Unless more space is freed up for millions more passengers a year, the influx will lead to a meltdown at St Pancras, where people already have to queue to complete EU border formalities, she told The Telegraph. - Telegraph
Almost a third of Britons would be more likely to back "war bonds" to help fund defence if they could invest their money tax-free, Hargreaves Lansdown has found. A survey of 2,000 people by the investment platform found 31 per cent of respondents would invest in government-backed bonds earmarked for defence spending if they were granted financial incentives to do so, while only 10 per cent would buy the bonds purely to support national security. - The Times
Economic growth stuttered to a five-year low in June, prompting businesses to freeze hiring as they shifted into "survival mode". Sluggish consumer spending, sapped business confidence and a sustained rise in production costs since the Iran war erupted four months ago have combined to squeeze economic output. - The Times
