The Conservative Party under Johnson has given up its devotion to freedom June 13, 2022 It was country music legend Toby Keith who observed that “Freedom don’t come free”. Nevertheless, when the Conservative Party adopted the Manchester liberalism of Margaret Thatcher nearly 50 years ago, it was willing to pay the price. Freedom, in all its forms, became a touchstone of the Conservative brand, pursued not only for its beneficial [...]
Frankie & Benny’s: Why this failing chain still holds a place in my heart June 4, 2024 Frankie & Benny's may be crap but my childhood self remains sitting in one of those booths, smile stained red
Shell forecourt stores join Uber Eats as popularity grows for speedy groceries September 23, 2021 Shell petrol station shops have partnered with Uber Eats, meaning consumers will have 24 hour access to grocery products. Some 340 forecourt stores are joining the delivery platform after the company left a partnership with Deliveroo. More than 250 of the stores are available for orders 24 hours a day. More than 750 products will [...]
Allowing Winter Olympics to go ahead in China is akin to ‘appeasing Hitler’, says Iain Duncin Smith July 15, 2021 A former Conservative leader has said allowing China to go ahead with the Winter Olympics next year is akin to “appeasing Hitler”. Iain Duncan Smith made the comparison while giving his support to a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 games. Sir Iain said: “We have forgotten what happened when we appeased another ghastly dictatorship. Sixty [...]
Sports Direct to expand into Europe June 18, 2021 Sports Direct will expand into major UK and European, in part to take on rival JD Sports. Michael Murray, head of elevation at parent company Frasers, said Sports Direct would expand via both acquisitions and “incremental opportunities” to help built its presence at home and abroad, the Financial Times first reported. “We have a strong [...]
Empty planes with no one checking in: Staggering 15,000 ‘ghost flights’ took off from UK during pandemic April 11, 2022 The Civil Aviation Authority has recently revealed that almost 15,000 “ghost flights” departed from 32 UK airports between March 2020 and September 2021. With around 4,910 planes Heathrow made the top of the list, followed by Aberdeen, Manchester and Stansted, at an overall average of 720 per month. According to City A.M. estimates, that would [...]
The next Tory leader must either open his Red Box or win over the Red Wall July 8, 2022 Six years ago on the eve of the Brexit Referendum vote, I was given the job of following Boris Johnson around the Yorkshire town of Selby. He landed at a former WWII airfield joking that the helicopter pilot should have put on “Ride of the Valkyries” – (think Apocalypse Now) – as he came into [...]
State intervention can boost our economy but only the private sector can rebalance it February 9, 2022 The government’s long awaited levelling up white paper was met with a lukewarm reception last week. One of the main complaints was that there was not enough – or in fact any – new money for the regions. Many localities have become stuck with low levels of productivity and, as a consequence, low levels of [...]
Supercar Special: 15,230 vehicles worth £770k+ each now on UK roads with Ferrari beating McLaren, Lamborghini and Bugatti May 9, 2022 There are now 15,230 so-called supercars on UK roads, with Ferrari topping the list, beating its main rivals McLaren and Lamborghini. Supercars are defined as high performance, road legal cars. Easily recognisable supercar brands such as Ferrari, McLaren and Lamborghini are best known for their speed and cost. The average price tag for a supercar [...]
Confused.com owner RVU to squeeze into online mortgage sector July 12, 2021 Confused.com owner RVU has snapped up online mortgage broker Mojo Mortgages, signalling its move into the home loan sector. The comparison site giant, which also owns Uswitch and Money.co.uk, declined to put a figure on the deal – however, paid £508m for Confused.com in December. “I can assure you the price is not nothing,” RVU [...]