Iceland have brought 51 of the former Woolworths stores that closed recently after Woolworths went into administration. The announcement comes only a few days after the last 200 Woolworths stores closed. The move will add to Iceland's existing 682 outlets and is likely to create 2,500 new jobs. A full list of the 51 stores is below.

Alton, Barnsley, Belper, Bethnal Green, Bexhill On Sea, Bicester, Billericay, Blandford Forum, Bodmin, Boreham Wood, Bow, Braintree, Broadstairs, Devizes, Exmouth, Fraserburgh, Frome, Greenford, Hackney, Hailsham, Harold Hill, Haverhill, Herne Bay, Hexham, Highgate, Honiton, Kilburn High Road, Leyton, Malvern, Matlock, Mill Hill, Minehead, Monmouth, Morpeth, Morriston, Newtownards, Palmers Green, Pinner (Rayner's Lane), Palmers Green, Plumstead, Pontypool, Poplar, Portslade, Ringwood, St Neots, Stoke Newington, Strood, Sudbury, Swaffham, Wakefield, Wallington, Whitstable

Train passengers should be able to use their Oyster cards on most of the London rail network by the end of 2009. Currently the Oyster card can be used on London Overground, the London underground, buses, trams and the Docklands Light Railway. However, many suburban rail firms do not yet accept the pay as you go card. The London Mayor Boris Johnson has said that an agreement with most rail companies is near. The one exception appears to be South West Trains which currently has no plans to allow customers to use the Oyster card on its service.

This article suggests that car insurance premiums could rise by as much as 20% this year. This would mean that the average premium for a driver with a full no claims bonus would rise from £400 to $380. The rise is due to an increase in fraud and the high cost of personal injury claims. This article suggests that currently for every £100 spent on premiums the insurer pays out as much £105. Around £30 of each policy paid by the UK 33 million insured motorists also goes to cover the costs of accidents involving those with no insurance.

MCDonald's will become the UK's leading apprenticeship provider within two years offering a total of 10,000 places. The company will offer an on the job qualification which will be equivalent to achieving five A to C grades at GCSE. The qualification will not only teach people how to cook burgers but will also concentrate on developing young people's maths and English ability. A trial which started at 80 restaurants will be extended across all of the UK's 1,200 restaurants with six thousand places being available this year. The courses will also be monitored by Ofsted inspectors.

This article suggests that 38% of small business owners do not expect to survive 2009 because of the current economic downturn. Research which was carried out by the Financial Mail and This is Money found that over half of small business owners had cut back on credit and 66% would be making staff redundant. The results show that small business owners are pessimistic about the coming year but it thought that the reality could be much worse. The Forum of Private Business estimates that as many as 200,000 firms could close next year.

This article suggests that almost an eighth of the customers who order cod and chips from the chip shop actually end up eating haddock without realising it. Whilst haddock is equally tasty the one big difference is the price with cod costing around £16.17 per kg and haddock £11.63 per kg. An investigation conducted by the Food Standards Agency found that haddock was substituted in place of cod at around 12 per cent of chip shops, 10 per cent of pubs and 9 per cent of restaurants and that it was more common when cod prices were high. Whilst most people would find it hard to tell the difference between the two fish especially once they have been breaded or battered it seems wrong deliberately mislead customers, if you pay for cod then you should get cod.

Woolworths went into administration yesterday after negotiations to try to avert the collapse failed. The chain which opened its first shop in Britain nearly 100 years ago, now has debts of £385 million. The chain has 800 outlets employing almost 30,000 people, most of whom are likely to lose their jobs. Negotiations are now under way to try and ensure that the stores stay open over the Christmas trading period. The administration of Woolworths includes its shops and EUK a DVD distribution business. Many companies including Asda, Sainsbury's and Zavi rely upon Woolworths' Entertainment arm for stock of CDs, DVDs and games, deliveries of these have now collapsed, hitting the entertainment sector.

This article suggests that supermarkets are hiking up prices at a time when their costs are actually going down. According to the article although supermarkets claim to be cutting prices for their customers, they have actually imposed price increases on staple foods. The increase in costs could add as much as £1,100 a year to a family's grocery bills. The big four stores, Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons have all been criticised for fattening up their profits at a time when they could be passing the savings onto hard pressed customers.

Asda has recalled 60,000 DVD players after a fault was found in the item. The retailer has estimated that around a third of the DVD players have a hole in the outer casing that could put users at a risk of electrocution. The affected product is model DVD1072UK which retails at £17.97. Asda have not said how many have been sold to customers but have asked people who have purchased one to return it to their nearest store. Customers will be able to obtain a refund if they return the DVD player even if they no longer have the box or a receipt.