Known as the birthplace of edgy designer clothes, London Fashion Week has taken a new direction.

The fashion industry has changed in the past few years, with smart designers responding to widespread changes in attitudes. This means that having a wardrobe with a conscience is now almost as important as celebrity endorsement.

Today, for the first time in its history, the British Fashion Council – which runs the iconic London Fashion Week – has added a sustainable catwalk show to its program. While ethical fashion has existed on the periphery of the industry for some time, it now finds itself sharing the limelight thanks to acclaimed international designers such as Christopher Kane and Burberry.

Clarence House is the setting for the open air event which will see established designers such as Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney joined by the likes of People Tree and Junky Styling – the former known for its celebrity partnership with Sienna Miller and Emma Watson. While both Westwood and McCartney will have later shows in London and Paris, their presence at the ethical runway adds significant clout and influence.

The show will be held in conjunction with the Prince’s Charities Foundation initiative START, which seeks to promote and celebrate sustainable living. London Fashion Week is already the site of Esthetica, the static exhibition which showcases those designers on the edge with a commitment to eco-sustainability.

Iconic British retailer Marks and Spencer has attracted criticism after taking the decision to sell a bra that can be worn no longer than eight hours.

The stick-on strapless bra, which retails for £20, is marketed as being ideal for backless and strapless dresses or tops, and comes complete with a manufacturer’s tag that states the bra should not be worn any more than the eight hour period.

The warning is thanks to the bra’s high silicone content. While this helps the strapless number stick to the skin, it can also lead to irritation among some users. According to the Marks and Spencer website, the bra is in fact 100% polyester, with the only silicone being a small trim edging. The website also praises the bra for its ability to look invisible under clothes, its ability to provide support and for its smoothly moulded cups.

Further advice on the site confirmed that eight hours was the maximum recommended wear time, though this has been met with a less than favourable reaction by some. Customers have laughed off the suggestion that after eight hours the bra should be removed, with many women pointing to a 12 hour day on the run as over-riding the maker’s label. There was also the notion of a great strip down at the end of the eight hours, though most customers are usually in the workplace, school or supermarket at this time, none the most suitable for undressing.

Celebrity panellist Claire Sweeney has been dropped by a dieting firm after admitting she lost 7lbs using a rival’s plan

Sweeney, 39, known for her role as a panellist on the Loose Women show, had been set to sign what was believed to be a lucrative deal with weight-loss company Go Lower.

However, the Edinburgh-based firm has ditched Sweeney following an appearance on the cover of the latest magazine from WeightWatchers.

In its October cover story, titled ‘How I stay at a healthy and happy 10st’, Sweeney claims her shedding of pounds during the filming of the forthcoming BBC1 series Candy Cabs was thanks to the points system used by WeightWatchers.  This caused infuriated Go Lower executives to ditch their new role model, who rose to prominence in the Channel 4 series Brookside, particularly after Sweeney had previously informed a different magazine – Closer – that her weight loss was due to the Go Lower program.

In the feature article inside the WeightWatchers magazine, Sweeney said she was so happy with her trim new figure that she had even encouraged her mum to sign up. The glamorous TV star said that by sticking to the 18 points values every day she was delighted with the resulted for her 5ft 8in figure, adding that her mother’s recent complaints about her own weight issues had led to her signing up Sweeney senior to the WeightWatchers system last week. She also suggested that she was looking for a toy boy for whom to have kids with.

Americans are warming to the all natural products from UK baker Mrs Crimbles.

The Hampshire-based Stiletto Foods has announced it has entered the US market, signing a new deal with Whole Foods Market which will see the delicious Mrs Crimble’s ‘free-from’ products appear at five of the US giant’s 11 regions.

The firm has also negotiated a new listing arrangement for 16 products that will hit the shelves at leading UK retailer Morrisons later this month, while further deals have been agreed upon with Holland & Barrat and Tesco, who will showcase gluten-free chocolate macaroons and gluten free sage & onion stuffing mix respectively. The Morrisons range will include Bakewell slices, double chocolate brownies, apple and ginger cakes, crackers, macaroons, a dumpling mix and cheese bites.

A spokesperson for the Mrs Crimble’s range said the raft of new deals highlighted the popularity of gluten-free products as an alternative to the mainstream fare, with Portugal, Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands and Dubai also enjoying the tasty, healthy treats. With nearly 20 per cent of consumers now buying gluten-free products, Mrs Crimble’s range is seen as not just a dietary option, but a lifestyle choice.

The Mrs Crimble’s brand has seen unprecedented growth in recent times, with shoppers flocking to ‘free-from’ products as a broader range is introduced as an alternative to the standard sugar and fat-laden mainstream offerings. With recent deals also signed with Asda and Sainsbury’s, the group hopes to make advances into the restaurant and cafe industry in addition to leading convenience stores and supermarkets.

Leading UK retailers including Asda and Tesco are calling for a review of underage sales legislation.

A reform of laws governing the sale of cigarettes, alcohol and a variety of other products has been demanded by British retailers, who claim that existing rules are too complicated.

The group of retailers, which operate more than 250,000 outlets across Britain including independent stores numbering in their thousands, has urged the government to review and streamline the current regulations. Presently, there are 18 separate pieces of documentation that govern sales of items to underage children, which retailers claim are far too complex and should be combined into one, single, over-arching piece of legislation. Retailers are also calling for trade bodies and local regulators to grow stronger partnerships to tackle the problem.

Increasing pressure has been placed on retailers to tackle the problems of underage drinking and knife crime at the point of sale. However, they believe they are being singled out for what is a community issue. They also suggest that the complexity of the regulations, while increasing staff training and vigilance, has done little to protect their employees in the event of prosecution.

Chairman of the CBI’s Consumer Affairs Panel, Geoffrey Budd, said that using retailers as a part of the solution rather than the source of the problem would be far more effective in tackling issues.