CBI’s Lambert gets Indian offer August 1, 2010 Richard Lambert, the outgoing director general of employers’ group the CBI, is set to be asked to take up a post as high commissioner of India as part of a government drive to sign up businessmen and women for diplomatic roles. Lambert, a ex-Financial Times editor and former external member of the Bank of England’s [...]
PFI found to fail taxpayers January 17, 2011 PRIVATE investors have been reaping the profits of private finance initiatives (PFIs) without sharing the proceeds with the taxpayer, according to an influential Commons committee. In a scathing evaluation of private involvement in the funding of social housing and hospitals, Labour MP Margaret Hodge, the chair of the Public Accounts Committee, has called for new [...]
Businesses back work drive January 24, 2011 A government drive to get more young people into employment through work experience has been welcomed by business groups. Firms including Homebase and McDonald’s pledged to offer placements to unemployed 18 to 21-year-olds. CBI director of employment policy Katja Hall backed the drive: “No experience is more valuable to a young person looking for a [...]
Immigration cap to spare high earners February 16, 2011 BUSINESSES have welcomed an exemption for high earners from a government immigration cap due to come into force in April. Bankers, lawyers and other highly-paid workers who earn over £150,000 per year will not be subject to the limit. Head of employment policy at the CBI, the employers’ organisation Neil Carberry said: “This announcement of [...]
Immigration cap to spare high earners February 16, 2011 BUSINESSES have welcomed an exemption for high earners from a government immigration cap due to come into force in April. Bankers, lawyers and other highly-paid workers who earn over £150,000 per year will not be subject to the limit. Head of employment policy at the CBI, the employers’ organisation Neil Carberry said: “This announcement of [...]
Cameron needs to listen to business January 24, 2011 GOOD on Sir Richard Lambert, the usually mild-mannered outgoing boss of the CBI, for taking the government to task over its abject lack of pro-growth policies. It is a shame he didn’t say as much in such strongly worded terms a few months ago, but better late than never. Crucially, the CBI doesn’t object to [...]
Default retirement age to end as state pension is delayed January 12, 2011 WORKERS will no longer be forced to retire at 65 under rules to stamp out age discrimination published by the government today in direct defiance of fierce lobbying from business groups to delay the measure. The scrapping of the default retirement age (DRA), first proposed by the coalition government last July, will be phased in [...]
Wave of age discrimination cases looms after default retirement age is scrapped by Davey January 13, 2011 EMPLOYMENT minister Ed Davey faced a barrage of criticism from business groups yesterday, as he announced that bosses will no longer be able to force staff to retire at 65. Employers face a “seismic shift” in the law that could see unfair dismissal claims “go through the roof,” according to a leading City law firm. [...]
Eurocrats back new tax on City March 8, 2011 THE European Parliament voted yesterday to slap a Tobin tax on all financial transactions that pass through Europe, in a bid to raise €200bn (£172bn) for EU?spending. The tax would disproportionately hit the City, Europe’s financial capital, at a time when banks are struggling to build up their capital bases. The EU?Parliament said the proposal, [...]
Clash over female targets December 15, 2010 THE Institute of Directors (IoD) yesterday slammed the CBI’s “quick-fix” suggestions to introduce more women onto the boards of companies, believing that forcible diversification would constrain British industry. The CBI is proposing that all listed companies should be required to report on boardroom diversity. While stopping short of requiring firms to have a quota of [...]