General Election 2017: Forget the outrage, Prime Minister Theresa May should not have U-turned on social care May 23, 2017 When is a U-turn not a U-turn? When it’s made by strong and stable Prime Minister Theresa May, of course, who insisted yesterday that her sudden pledge to cap the amount of money people will pay towards their social care was in no way a change of tack. The Tory leader put on an impressive [...]
What a minority government means for the UK economy June 19, 2017 After the shock of the general election, resulting in a hung Parliament and minority Conservative Government, what are the implications for the economy and investors? In terms of the political outlook, three scenarios strike me as likely. First, and most likely, the Conservatives remain in power, with the support of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) [...]
What needs to change about housing policy by UK property professionals ahead of party conference season September 15, 2017 Katherine McCullough, development director at Merchant Land “During the political party season, I would like to see some attention given to reviewing what Osborne’s stamp duty reforms have achieved and ideally, to have them reversed in order to help stimulate the housing market at the top end. It would also be encouraging to hear discussion [...]
Could Melbourne’s house price boom derail its global city status? July 13, 2017 The latest version of the Schroders Global Cities index was published last month. The index uses a number of factors to identify the most economically vibrant cities. Melbourne was ranked 8th. This post from the Global Cities blog focuses on the city’s outlook… As we found on our recent visit, Melbourne boasts an enviable wealth [...]
London Assembly members pressure Sadiq Khan to rule out more money for the Garden Bridge February 8, 2017 London Assembly members are pressing mayor Sadiq Khan to guarantee the capital won’t foot the bill for the Garden Bridge’s running costs. Assembly members backed a motion 16 – 1 calling for Khan to rule out further chunks of taxpayer money being used to maintain the controversial construction. Read More: Vauxhall MP slams Garden Bridge project [...]
London’s new super sewer could add up to £25 to water bills by the early 2020s March 2, 2017 London's new super sewer is set to add up to £25 to water bills in the capital, according to a report from the UK's public spending watchdog. The Thames Tideway Tunnel is expected to cost a total of £4.2bn, and but the National Audit Office today warned it remains unclear how much Thames Water customers [...]
South East business leaders urge government to commit to Crossrail 2 as a project of “national importance” March 17, 2017 Business leaders, including the bosses of Heathrow and Gatwick airports, have urged the government to make Crossrail 2 a priority and enable "rapid progress" on the project. A group of more than 70 leaders from across the South East have written to chancellor Philip Hammond and transport secretary Chris Grayling, saying the infrastructure project is of "national importance". [...]
Mitie flogs its loss-making healthcare business for just £2 March 1, 2017 Mitie has agreed to sell its loss-making home healthcare business to specialist investor Apposite Capital for a nominal £2. Shares in the FTSE 250-listed service provider rose more than six per cent in morning trading. The firm has had a challenging year, overhauling its management and issuing three profit warnings since September 2015. The group announced in November [...]
Watch: How Hyperloop’s crazy next generation maglev tech will actually work May 10, 2016 One of the firms working on Hyperloop has revealed how the technology will work to transport people at hundreds of miles an hour in levitating pods. It uses a passive magnetic levitation, a step forward from the maglev technology used by high speed trains such as Japan's bullet train, to carry passengers at up to 760 mph [...]
Autumn Budget 2017: Chancellor Philip Hammond’s speech in full November 22, 2017 You can read the chancellor's Budget speech in full here: Mr Deputy Speaker I report today on an economy that continues to grow, continues to create more jobs than ever before and continues to confound those who seek to talk it down. An economy set on a path to a new relationship with our European [...]