RBS, Lloyds and Standard Life share prices rise as investors get giddy over Scottish No vote September 19, 2014 What a difference a week makes. Just a few days ago, the likes of RBS, Lloyds and Standard Life were all threatening to move south of the border in the event of a no vote, on the grounds that an independent Scotland would be too shaky to operate properly in. But today, investors showed their [...]
Independent Scotland will start life with a 6.4pc deficit, say economists September 7, 2014 An independent Scotland could face a fiscal crisis at the moment of its birth, economists warned today, just 10 days ahead of the referendum. The new state would run a budget deficit of at least 6.4 per cent, according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR). As a result the government would have [...]
Independent Scotland could lose 3,000 millionaires if it leaves UK September 16, 2014 Thousands of Scottish millionaires could flee into England if the country votes for independence in tomorrow’s referendum, according to estimates from Spear’s and WealthInsight. Around 15 per cent of Scots millionaires run businesses based elsewhere in the UK, giving them a major incentive to move south. Between them, these 3,285 business leaders could take more [...]
Oil, childcare and mortgages: Last hurrah for Scottish independence campaigns as leaders go head to head on Mumsnet September 10, 2014 The two faces of the Scottish independence campaigns got their final chance to go head-to-head today – on women's networking site Mumsnet. While Alex Salmond and Alistair Darling kept references to "Darling Son" and "Darling Daughter" to a minimum, they did broach topics including the impact separation would have on mortgages and childcare. There was [...]
Independence would put Scotland’s entrepreneurial economy in jeopardy September 16, 2014 WITH the polls in chaos, and the likely result far from certain, it’s understandable that rival groups of influential Scots continue to argue the business case for and against independence. But amid all the interventions by large corporations, one important area has been neglected – what independence would mean for smaller businesses and entrepreneurs, both [...]
Scottish independence referendum: Politicians have failed to inspire, but the union must survive September 17, 2014 There have surely been better political campaigns than the Better Together one that has been arguing the case for Scotland remaining in the United Kingdom, 307 years since the 1707 Act of Union. Admittedly, the Better Together side started with a bad hand, taking the No position in the whole debate. Arguing for something not [...]
Margaret Thatcher secret documents: Six revelations including the BBC, nuclear bunkers and the poll tax December 30, 2014 Files released today by the national archives in Kew, West London have given us an insight into Thatcher era policy during the height of the Cold War. From plans to build nuclear bunkers, to crackdowns on football hooligans and eerie predictions for the future global financial crisis here are some of the best bits. Britons [...]
Behind the deal March 3, 2014 INVESTEC | DAVID FLIN 1 He started his broking career with Dresdner Kleinwort in 2000, working in the mid-market with a host of listed companies. He joined Investec in 2009. 2 Flin, who has a bachelor of science degree in economics from University College London, is an avid Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Spurs aren’t playing, [...]
Alex Salmond’s independence fairytale won’t serve Scottish voters well August 26, 2014 SIR JAMES Mirrlees is one of the mere handful of British recipients of the Nobel Prize in economics. And as his fine old Scottish surname might suggest, he has been active in the debate on independence. His latest intervention, which has attracted considerable publicity, is to pronounce that an independent Scotland should be willing to [...]
London Report: FTSE nudges down to near month-long low after banks fall March 11, 2014 THE UK’S top equity index steadied yesterday after hitting a three-week low, with some investors seeing value in beaten-down stocks, although the market remained vulnerable to further declines in the near term. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 0.06 per cent lower at 6,685.52 points after falling to 6,660.59, its lowest since the middle of [...]