Tech beats FTSE for female bosses (but there’s still work to do) June 20, 2016 Technology businesses are beating the FTSE when it comes to the number of female bosses, as the startup sector sets an example to the rest of the business world for gender equality. A fifth of tech firms in the UK are run by women, compared to just five per cent of FTSE 100 companies and only four per [...]
The year of the vampire: 2017 is when political risk bites back January 3, 2017 “I have never met a vampire personally, but I don’t know what might happen tomorrow.” – Bela Lugosi Perhaps the greatest single indicator that the West no longer rules the world is its constituent nations’ signal inability to solve any of their many festering crises. Gormless, wildly overrated Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany epitomises this [...]
Former Chelsea, West Ham and Manchester City midfielder Frank Lampard set to embark on new career after announcing decision to quit New York City FC November 14, 2016 Former England midfielder Frank Lampard is poised to embark on the next stage of his career after announcing his intention to quit New York City FC at the end of the year. The 38-year-old, who remains Chelsea’s record goal-scorer, joined the MLS club in July 2014 after 13 years at Stamford Bridge, and found the [...]
Not so sunny: Low demand pushed profits down for Caribbean travel group Elegant Hotels January 17, 2017 Elegant Hotels faced a tough year as profits fell during 2016 due to the weak pound and lower demand for luxury accommodation. The figures The Caribbean travel group, which owns six upscale hotels and a beachfront restaurant on Barbados, said revenue was down 5.2 per cent in 2016, at $57m (£46.3m). Adjusted pre-tax profit for year to [...]
Elizabeth Line opening to top expectations on new homes and jobs created as end of Crossrail project draws closer January 30, 2018 The number of homes and jobs created due to the development of the £14.8bn Elizabeth Line is set to greatly surpass expectations, according to a new report by commercial property agency GVA. The research, commissioned by Crossrail, found that the impact of the new railway on the creation of new homes and impact on property [...]
Orange barmy army: Network Rail spends £103m on Christmas upgrades to rail infrastructure January 3, 2017 Network Rail hailed the success of its "orange army" of workers and revealed it had forked out £103m over the Christmas break upgrading Britain's rail network. The work was carried out at almost 200 locations across the UK. Meanwhile, commuters into London Waterloo will be pleased to hear that £4.5m of work scheduled at the station, or on the tracks [...]
No, YouTube.TV isn’t going to replace broadcast television. It’s New Coke March 6, 2017 I recently learned that in Scottish dialect the word “tube” is quite the insult – an idiot – and that when YouTube was first launched, many got the wrong end of the stick. “It’s on you tube!” could quite easily be interpreted as an invitation to fight. 12 years later and as far as established [...]
From the wrong kind of snow to wet leaves: The Elizabeth line is undergoing all-weather testing to be ready come rain or shine December 30, 2016 You know all those recent disruptions the Piccadilly line was dealing with due to wet leaves and pesky cold weather? Well, Transport for London (TfL) is making sure that come rain or shine, the Elizabeth line will not suffer such a fate. In fact, it's currently undergoing some gruelling testing in readiness for any possible weather [...]
Retailers will need to brave fierce headwinds in 2017 January 2, 2017 The high street's cold snap over Christmas and the New Year is not just seasonal. Several chills running through the sector could finally be felt with their full force in 2017. Rising inflation, falling wage growth, escalating costs and sterling's depreciation are all expected to weigh on retailers in the coming months. If inflation takes [...]
No haggis for Trump as 45-year import ban remains in force January 25, 2017 Not even half-Scottish US President Donald Trump will be able to tuck into an authentic haggis this year as the 45-year ban on haggis imports continues. Trump will be amongst the roughly 10 million Americans that claim Scottish heritage deprived of their national dish on the 258th birthday of Robert Burns. The US Department for [...]