Christmas quiz: Test your knowledge December 22, 2014 Deloitte’s chief economist, poses some of the trickiest questions of the year. How many can you get right? Answers are at the bottom. 1 The Louvre is the world’s most popular art gallery, with 9.3m visits in 2013. How many visits did people make to Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Florida in the same year? a) [...]
Planning liberalisation is the closest thing there is to an economic silver bullet September 15, 2014 WITH low productivity, high inflation and terrible industrial relations, in 1977, Britain was a basket case. So that year, businessman John Hoskyns decided to dedicate substantial effort to analysing the UK’s economic problems. The result was a flow diagram, which sought to trace out the fundamental causes of the malaise. Hoskyns’s work pinned the blame [...]
Could Labour be set to make a big announcement on low pay at its party conference? September 18, 2014 Tackling low pay has been a central policy theme for Labour while in opposition, and it’s not hard to see why. While the economy is growing, wages aren’t rising in real-terms and people don’t feel better off. Ed Miliband knows this and has sought to focus his party’s strategy on the cost of living crisis [...]
In graphs: UK is “halfway to recovery” says Carney August 17, 2014 Britain's economy is "more than halfway towards the finish line" Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said, with the UK economy expected to grow by 3.5 per cent this year. Perhaps more poignantly for those looking for hints as to an interest rate rise, Carney also indicated he wouldn't necessarily wait until wages caught up [...]
Ed Miliband re-launches PM campaign with new battle against zero-hour contracts November 17, 2014 Businesses and unions are digging in for an election-year battle over zero-hour contracts and what they mean for workers Ed Miliband re-launched his campaign to be the next Prime Minister last week, with a new attack on zero-hour contracts and the treatment of workers. Businesses hit back immediately, arguing the contracts give workers flexibility, allow [...]
What to expect in 2015: Europe down and crunch time for Japan and Mexico December 14, 2014 THERE ought to be a special circle of hell reserved for my colleagues – sadly a majority – who work so extra hard to never say much of anything. All too often, analysts, fearing being wrong to the point of never trying to be right, describe rather than analyse, and go along with conventional wisdom [...]
Ed Miliband: Leaving the EU would be catastrophic for business November 10, 2014 Writing exclusively for City AM, Labour leader Ed Miliband argues that leaving the EU would be a "historic moment of economic self-harm". We live at a crucial time in Britain’s relationship with the European Union, one which will determine the future of our country for decades to come. In the past year Nigel [...]
Labour leader: Stop Britain’s headlong rush for the Brexit November 10, 2014 Writing exclusively for City A.M., opposition leader Ed Miliband argues the UK would suffer by leaving the EU WE live at a crucial time in Britain’s relationship with the European Union, one which will determine the future of our country for decades to come. In the past year, Nigel Farage, Ukip and a growing number [...]
In charts: Half of women don’t have private pensions September 11, 2014 Despite the maximum state pension being only £113.10 a week, just under half the people in the UK don't pay into a private pension scheme. This includes a third of employees – half of the self-employed and 80 per cent of unemployed people are also without a plan. The data was published by the Office [...]
Why significantly extending the Living Wage is not the best way to help the poorest June 24, 2014 JOHN Sentamu, the charismatic archbishop of York, has again thrown his weight behind the recommendations of the Living Wage Commission he chairs. Not to be confused with the government’s Low Pay Commission, which recommends the statutory minimum wage, the Living Wage Commission is a private pressure group funded by trade unions and faith organisations. Its [...]