Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is closing a further 54 its branches in England and Wales in January, resulting in the loss of 258 jobs. It adds to the 162 branch closures announced earlier this year.

The bank said the closures are a result of the collapse of plans to float off a new “challenger bank” under the name Williams & Glyn.

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Britain’s services sector is increasingly struggling to find enough workers amid falling numbers of skilled applicants as Britain prepares to leave the EU.

The latest snapshot from IHS Markit and the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (Cips) for the services industry – which accounts for almost 80% of national economic output – suggested companies are being held back from carrying out their activities by the labour shortage.