Is the government’s new Energy Bill a good deal for British businesses and consumers? November 25, 2012 YES Tim Yeo If we do not find £100bn of investment by 2020, Britain will face an energy crisis. We need to replace polluting coal power plants and construct new nuclear reactors. The government’s Energy Bill will give generators a guaranteed price for clean, low-carbon electricity. This will cut the risk of investing in projects [...]
Top English clubs set to agree break even rules November 15, 2012 PREMIER League clubs are close to finalising historic cost-control measures in line with European financial fair play rules following a meeting of chairmen yesterday in London. A number of details, such as whether to include a cap on year-on-year wage bill increases, remain unresolved but it is understood there is broad agreement to proceed with [...]
Think tank: London needs four-runway airport October 5, 2012 London needs a four-runway airport to the west of Heathrow if it wants to cement its place as Europe’s premier aviation hub, a think tank said today. A report by the Policy Exchange said if the West London site is “politically unfeasible”, a four-runway airport at Luton is the next best option. The report, written [...]
Cost is key in the coalition’s brave decision to fire up nuclear energy October 28, 2012 IN 1956, the Queen flicked a switch and Britain’s first nuclear generated electricity surged into homes from the Magnox reactor at Calder Hall. This was the world’s first large-scale nuclear power station. A decade later, several Magnox stations were producing power, but investment in new electricity generating capacity was still insufficient. In the winter of [...]
Shanks forced to issue a profit warning as key markets slow September 26, 2012 SHARES in waste management firm Shanks Group sank more than 12 per cent to close down at 79p yesterday, after it issued a profit warning. Shanks said that its UK and Dutch solid waste markets had “deteriorated significantly”, prompting the board to warn that full-year profit would miss analysts’ expectations. The solid waste business, which [...]
Aviva looks to the future but faces a hard slog to get there November 8, 2012 AVIVA yesterday echoed President Barack Obama, promising the best is yet to come as it touted costly transformation plans. It doesn’t face a crisis as ominous as America’s fiscal cliff, but the headwinds are severe. As we wait for a decision on its new chief executive, Aviva can’t even promise an easy transition, admitting with [...]
German hospitals have stolen a march on 4G cost savings November 4, 2012 BATTERSEA saw the launch of the UK’s first major fourth generation (4G) mobile service last Thursday. Nicole Scherzinger of X-Factor chose a dress made up of live Tweets for the occasion, while a 4D light show transformed the grim exterior of Battersea’s derelict power station into a lively illumination of what a future super-fast Britain [...]
Shale gas is a good idea – but it is too soon to count on it to save us December 6, 2012 THE government’s gas strategy document, published alongside the Autumn Statement this week, rightly said that gas should play “a major role in our electricity mix” for decades to come. George Osborne was also right to focus on how to make private investment in new gas-fired power stations work without subsidies. But uncertainty is still a [...]
Boris reignites row over delay to airport plans October 4, 2012 BORIS Johnson yesterday admitted that a new airport in the Thames estuary would require £30bn of public funding – as he launched an attack on the government for paying “lamentable attention” to aviation policy. The Mayor told business leaders at City Hall that he was “hugely concerned” by the government’s independent review into airport expansion, which [...]
Boris reignites row over delay to airport plans October 4, 2012 BORIS Johnson yesterday admitted that a new airport in the Thames estuary would require £30bn of public funding – as he launched an attack on the government for paying “lamentable attention” to aviation policy. The Mayor told business leaders at City Hall that he was “hugely concerned” by the government’s independent review into airport expansion, which [...]