Cameron under pressure to apologise to former treasurer wrongly accused in “cash for access” scandal July 31, 2013 Former Conservative co-treasurer Peter Cruddas has won £180,000 in libel damages over allegations in the Sunday Times that he charged for secret meetings with prime minister David Cameron. The High Court in London also said the newspaper would have to pay £500,000 in costs. It said that it was “dismayed” with the outcome and planned [...]
Daft planning rules are pushing up the price of food in shops January 8, 2013 IF you travelled abroad over Christmas, you will have noticed that goods in shops are often cheaper than in the UK. A uSwitch survey cited by the Institute of Economic Affairs shows that a food basket costs roughly a fifth more in the UK than it does in Germany, France and the Netherlands. Once again, [...]
Daft planning rules are pushing up the price of food in shops January 7, 2013 IF you travelled abroad over Christmas, you will have noticed that goods in shops are often cheaper than in the UK. A uSwitch survey cited by the Institute of Economic Affairs shows that a food basket costs roughly a fifth more in the UK than it does in Germany, France and the Netherlands. Once again, [...]
Investors rally round Barclays’ boss July 30, 2013 INVESTORS and analysts hit out at regulators yesterday, accusing the Bank of England of making arbitrary and unreasonable demands on banks. Barclays had pleased investors in February with a plan to cut its least efficient units and get back on a sustainable footing with return on equity (RoE) above its cost of capital in [...]
Financial markets will face unbearable pressure when rates rise July 23, 2013 COULD the financial markets be about to have a heart attack? The reason I ask is a terrifying little document that has just landed on my desk. Entitled tellingly Capital Markets – the Arteries are Clogging and published by Redburn, the stockbroker, it highlights cogently a little-understood feature of the post-crisis economy. Liquidity, the lifeblood [...]
Economic perfect storm: The four trends that killed Western growth June 30, 2013 THE West lies at the confluence of four extremely dangerous long-term developments. Individually or collectively, they have already begun to reverse more than two centuries of economic expansion. The first is well-known: the creation of the worst financial bubble in history – “the great credit super-cycle”. Since the 1980s, a relentless shift to immediate consumption [...]
Interserve’s boss keen to take outsourcing firm to new heights June 29, 2013 Adrian Ringrose sees fresh opportunities WATCHING the former head of Virgin Galactic give a presentation to Interserve’s top management last year, Adrian Ringrose was struck by the public trust placed in a brand with no track record in a given sector. “You can get people to believe that you really are going to build a [...]
Economic data picks up but the Bank must clarify its position on inflation August 6, 2013 THIS week has seen a further significant pick-up in the economic data. The Markit/CIPS purchasing managers’ index (PMI) showed services output in July rising at the fastest pace since the boom-times of 2006. The “composite PMI” (which includes manufacturing and construction as well as services) rose at its fastest ever recorded rate since the index [...]
Shard duo set to build tallest tower on earth February 22, 2013 THE LONDON-based construction duo behind the iconic Shard tower yesterday revealed their next building project – constructing the biggest tower on earth. Mace and EC Harris, who helped lead the construction of the imposing Renzo Piano-designed Shard, have been appointed to project manage the construction of the Kingdom Tower project in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The [...]
CRH chief steps down as it eyes growth in US February 26, 2013 BUILDING materials group CRH said yesterday that its chief executive is to stand down, as the construction company looks towards growth in North America. Myles Lee will retire from the FTSE firm at the end of this year in a widely-expected move, following a five-year tenure. CRH said yesterday that the outlook for the US [...]