Why the London Docklands hold the key to tackling the UK housing crisis September 30, 2013 HOW DO we solve Britain’s housing crisis? Ed Miliband has promised to see 200,000 homes built each year by 2020. But his pledge was linked to a misguided initiative to stop developers hoarding land (the Office for Fair Trading couldn’t find any evidence that this actually happens). The Tories, meanwhile, are bringing forward the second [...]
South Africa faces fresh strike wave August 22, 2013 South Africa faced a strike wave across leading sectors of the economy yesterday, as the labour unrest threatened to hit its struggling gold industry, already squeezed by rising costs and falling bullion prices. Despite pleas from President Jacob Zuma and other government leaders for peaceful wage negotiations in Africa’s largest economy, the National Union of [...]
Labour willing to drop HS2 before 2015 September 23, 2013 Labour is considering dropping support for the High Speed 2 railway before the 2015 general election, City A.M. understands. Ed Balls used his speech to the Labour conference in Brighton to question whether HS2 – which would link London to the midlands and the north – was the best way of spending £50bn on transport [...]
Business split over future of High Speed 2 August 27, 2013 THE BRITISH Chambers of Commerce (BCC) yesterday insisted its members are “completely behind” the High Speed 2 railway – despite a rival business organisation withdrawing its support for the project. John Longworth, director general of the BCC, told City A.M. that an entirely new line is still the only way to avoid a capacity crunch on [...]
Keller’s earnings double as US construction market rebounds July 29, 2013 BRITISH engineering firm Keller Group’s first-half profit more than doubled, it said yesterday, as cost cuts and a recovery in the North American construction market helped widen margins. Keller, which built the foundation for the Olympic Stadium in London, said it expected full-year results at the top end of market expectations but warned that the [...]
Misguided energy policies have put Europe on a path to economic decline October 11, 2013 DESPITE rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, global climate temperatures have remained flat for the past 15 years, if not a good deal longer. And the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was last month forced to admit that its own climate models have grossly overestimated climate sensitivity to atmospheric CO2. So why are some [...]
Misguided energy policies have put Europe on a path to economic decline October 10, 2013 DESPITE rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, global climate temperatures have remained flat for the past 15 years, if not a good deal longer. And the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was last month forced to admit that its own climate models have grossly overestimated climate sensitivity to atmospheric CO2. So why are some [...]
Grafton keen on further growth after switching Irish roots for UK listing October 20, 2013 Gavin Slark, boss of the builders’ merchant, tells Kasmira Jefford what’s next for his company WHEN Gavin Slark was handed the toolbox and made chief executive of the Irish-based builders merchant two years ago, Grafton was in dire need of repairs. The global financial crisis had all but flattened the UK and Ireland’s construction market [...]
Surprise £118m dividend cheers Smiths investors September 18, 2013 ENGINEERING firm Smiths’ shares were one of the FTSE 100’s top risers yesterday after it unveiled a special dividend for shareholders alongside full-year results in line with expectations. The unanticipated dividend of 30p, worth £118m in total, drove the shares 2.6 per cent higher to close at 1,412p. Smiths also announced a restructuring programme that [...]
South African gold miner strikes to begin on Tuesday August 30, 2013 Workers in South Africa’s gold mines are planning to begin a strike over pay on 3 September, the Chamber of Mines has said. Last week, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) – which represents 64 per cent of all underground workers in the country – gave gold producers a seven-day ultimatum to meet its demand [...]