New Brighton i360 owner Sarah Willingham reveals purchase price
The new owner of the Brighton i360 viewing tower says she paid £150,000 for the attraction.Hospitality company Nightcap, run by ex-Dragons' Den judge Sarah Willingham, announced its purchase of the site in February.Ms Willingham claims to have spent £400,000 to get the pod working again, in addition to £150,000 to take the attraction out of administration, a spokesman confirmed to the BBC, after The Argus first reported the story on Tuesday.Brighton & Hove City Council wrote off £51m worth of debt in January to facilitate the purchase.
Brighton i360 entered administration in November 2024 before closing suddenly the following month, with the loss of over 100 jobs.It reopened in March following Nightcap's takeover.The company plans to invest an additional £1.5m in hospitality space at Brighton i360 by September 2026, according to a March trading update.The city council agreed to finance construction of the observation tower in 2014 after planning permission was originally granted in 2006. The tower opened in 2016.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Guardian
17 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
UK must change approach to defence in an insecure world, Starmer warns
But the Prime Minister could not say when his aim of raising defence spending to 3% of the UK's economic output would be realised, amid questions about whether the Treasury had guaranteed to fund it. Britain will build up to 12 new nuclear-powered attack submarines and invest £15 billion in its warhead programme, the Prime Minister is expected to announce on Monday, as the Government unveils its strategic defence review. Significant investment in the UK nuclear warhead programme this Parliament and maintaining the existing stockpile are among the 62 recommendations that the Government is expected to accept in full. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme ahead of the announcement, Sir Keir warned of a 'new era' of instability on defence and security which the review would respond to. He added: 'I think that's a common feeling across Europe and more broadly there is greater instability on defence and security than there has been for many, many years, and greater threats, and that's obviously having a direct impact back into the United Kingdom. Hence the review.' Principles of 'war-fighting readiness' and integrating the UK's forces are at the heart of the review, Sir Keir said. He added: 'We have to recognise the world has changed, and if the world has changed we need to be ready.' Sir Keir also refused to guarantee that defence spending would reach 3% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2034, saying it was an 'ambition'. The Government has pledged to raise the UK's defence spending to 2.5% of GDP – a measure of the country's economic output – by 2027. But on Sunday, Defence Secretary John Healey sidestepped questions about whether he had any guarantee from the Treasury to provide the funding for the 3% target by the end of the next Parliament, when asked on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme. Asked about the commitment, Sir Keir told the BBC he was 'not going down that road' of a precise funding commitment until he had a plan behind it. He added: 'We had a commitment for 2.5% by the end of this Parliament. We pulled that right forward to 2027. 'We showed that when we say there's a new era of the defence and security of our country, is our first priority – as it is – that we meant it. We take the same approach to 3%. 'But I'm not going to indulge in the fantasy politics of simply plucking dates from the air until I'm absolutely clear that I can sit here in an interview with you and tell you exactly how that's going to work, because I take the defence and security of our country extremely seriously.' Ministers have been keen to point out that the strategic defence review will support regions across the UK, as 70% of defence jobs are outside of London and the South East. Building the new submarines, which is part of the Aukus partnership with the US and Australia, will support 30,000 highly skilled jobs into the 2030s as well as 30,000 apprenticeships and 14,000 graduate roles across the next 10 years, the Ministry of Defence said. The £15 billion investment into the warhead programme will back the Government's commitments to maintain the continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent, build a new fleet of Dreadnought submarines and deliver all future upgrades. From the late 2030s, the fleet of up to 12 SSN-Aukus conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines will replace seven astute class attack submarines the UK is due to start operating. In response to the strategic defence review, the Government will also commit to: – Getting the armed forces to a stage where it would be ready to fight a war – Boosting weapons and equipment stockpiles and making sure there is capacity to scale up production if needed in a crisis or war – Buying up to 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons in a move due to support 800 defence jobs – Setting up a new cyber command and investing £1 billion in digital capabilities – More than £1.5 billion of additional funding to repair and renew armed forces housing. The Conservatives and Lib Dems have questioned Labour's commitment to funding the promises it was making. Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge suggested his counterpart Mr Healey had been 'hung out to dry by Rachel Reeves' over the 3% target. 'All of Labour's strategic defence review promises will be taken with a pinch of salt unless they can show there will actually be enough money to pay for them,' he added. Lib Dem defence spokesperson Helen Maguire said the 2034 timeline for the commitment 'suggests a worrying lack of urgency from the Government'. She also said: 'Unless Labour commits to holding cross-party talks on how to reach 3% much more rapidly than the mid-2030s, this announcement risks becoming a damp squib.'
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
Keir Starmer to give major speech today amid grim warning world is in 'new era'
Keir Starmer will this morning unveil plans to put the UK on a war footing after issuing a fresh warning about Vladimir Putin. The Prime Minister will speak at around 10am in Scotland as he announces the long-awaited Strategic Defence Review. He told the BBC's Today Programme: " Russia has shown in recent weeks that it's not serious about peace, and we have to be ready." He said the review will focus on Britain's readiness for war, stating: "The world has changed and we are entering a new era when it comes to defence and security. "I think that's a common feeling across Europe and more broadly there is greater instability on defence and security than there has been for many, many years, and greater threats, and that's obviously having a direct impact back into the United Kingdom. Hence the review." He said he "very much" hopes he will not be forced to send British troops to war in the face of Russian aggression. But he said the UK "cannot ignore" the threat Putin poses. Earlier defence minister Luke Pollard has said the UK is "certainly not at war at the moment, but it's also true that we're certainly not at peace". He said action was needed to prevent conflict, telling BBC Breakfast: I think all your viewers will have seen the appalling scenes from Ukraine over recent years. They'll be aware that the world is more dangerous. They'll be aware that to secure our freedom and our economic prosperity, we have to invest in our national security. "It's the first duty of any government to keep our country safe, but it's also the first mission of this Labour Government to grow our economy by investing in defence. We're creating jobs in every single part of United Kingdom." He went on: "I don't want us to go to war. I want us to deter aggression. That is precisely what the defence review sets out to do today." A long-awaited strategic defence review will be published today, with the Government commiting to build 12 new nuclear-powered attack submarines and invest £15billion in its warhead programme. Defence Secretary John Healey said last night that Britain "must act decisively to face down Russian aggression". Follow our Mirror Politics account on Bluesky here. And follow our Mirror Politics team here - Lizzy Buchan, Mikey Smith, Kevin Maguire, Sophie Huskisson, Dave Burke and Ashley Cowburn. Be first to get the biggest bombshells and breaking news by joining our Politics WhatsApp group here. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you want to leave our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Or sign up here to the Mirror's Politics newsletter for all the best exclusives and opinions straight to your inbox. And listen to our exciting new political podcast The Division Bell, hosted by the Mirror and the Express every Thursday.
Metro
17 hours ago
- Metro
Britain to spend £1,500,000,000 on new weapons factories in 'message' to Putin
The UK must be 'prepared' for a real-world attack by Russia, the government said today. An extra £6 billion investment for military capabilities has now been announced, with Defence Secretary John Healey saying the money would also be spent on drones, ships and 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons. Around £1.5 billion of it will go to building at least six new factories to build weapons, producing things like explosives and pyrotechnics. They will operate on an 'always on' basis meaning production can be easily scaled up if needed, the government said. More will be invested in tech to stop tens of thousands of Russian cyberattacks. It comes as Russia and Ukraine continue to bitterly wage war, with some of the worst attacks seen so far, even as peace is constantly claimed to be within reach. Craig Munro breaks down Westminster chaos into easy to follow insight, walking you through what the latest policies mean to you. Sign up here. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Mr Healey said that the UK's new spending was a 'message to Moscow', and was necessary to show that the country would not be an easy target. He said that the change would 'equip our forces for the future' as well as creating 1,800 jobs around the country. He told the BBC's Sunday Morning With Laura Kuenssberg programme that Russia is 'attacking the UK daily', with some 90,000 cyber attacks from state-linked sources detected over the last two years. Asked if he expected a form of real-world attack by Russia on the UK in the coming years, he said: 'We have to be prepared. Nato has to be prepared. We see Putin in Ukraine trying to redraw international boundaries by force … it's part of the growing Russian aggression.' Tomorrow, the Strategic Defence Review – a report into the country's capabilities and weaknesses – will be published, after it was commissioned a year ago, when Labour took power. It will set out how the government intends to counter these threats, including plans to reach 2.5% of GDP spending on defence by 2027, and an 'ambition' to hit 3% in the next parliament, after pressure from US president Donald Trump that Nato members should be spending at least 5%. A cyber command to counter online threats is also being set up as part of the review. And more than £1.5 billion in extra funding will go to urgent repairs to military homes, such as fixing boilers and roofs, and tackling damp. This isn't part of the plans currently. In fact, the Army is shrinking, because more people are leaving than joining. 'The first job is to reverse that trend and then I want to see in the next parliament our ability to start to increase the number,' Mr Healey said. In January this year, there were 71,151 regular soldiers in the British Army. It comes after the Conservative government introduced the 'Future Soldier' change in 2021, aimed at reducing the size of the force to 73,000 to cut costs and better respond to modern warfare. But Mr Healey said there were now even less than that, but he doesn't expect progress towards raising the number until the next parliament. Writing in the Mirror, Defence minister Alistair Cairns said there were plans to increase cadet numbers by 30%, with new opportunities for young people to join the armed forces. Tory politicians welcomed the plans, but said more was needed sooner. Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said he was 'sceptical' as to whether all the money would end up being spent, and told Sky News: 'We think that 2034 is a long time to wait given the gravity of the situation'. On the other hand, some are unhappy with what it shows about government priorities. In February, the Green Party wrote an open letter to Mr Healey saying there should be an 'increase in spending on diplomacy, peace-building and overseas aid in order to improve our security', not just on building bombs. Ellie Chowns MP said it was 'horrifying' that cuts to the international aid budget would help increase defence spending, saying: 'How many people will fall ill or die because they cannot access health services; how many more will go hungry? And how many children will be denied an education as a result of this decision? 'Cutting aid risks making the world more volatile and more dangerous, not safer. Real security means tackling hunger, poverty, and climate chaos.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Seven dead in train crash after 'explosions' destroy bridges on Ukraine border MORE: Schoolgirl, 13, killed after javelin went through her eye in PE lesson pictured MORE: At least 13 newborns trafficked abroad to 'infertile' parents for £510,000
