Why India beats Britain for women in tech September 14, 2017 The technology sector is notorious for under-representing women. If asked to name top male industry figures, the likes of Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and the late Steve Jobs roll off the tongue with ease. But most people would struggle to name their female counterparts. This doesn’t mean that women aren’t carving themselves out a space [...]
Growth in UK ‘staycations’ pushes turnover for caravan, camping and holiday park companies past £2.67bn May 2, 2017 The UK’s top caravan, camping and holiday park companies grew their turnover to £2.67bn last year. The total turnover of the UK’s 100 biggest caravan and holiday park companies is up 9 per cent from £2.46bn five years ago, according to research by Ortus Secured Finance. The success of the sector can be attributed to [...]
Airbnb isn’t monopolising the homestay market, it’s popularised it for a new generation of business travellers July 27, 2017 A recent report by PWC found that hotel companies and peer-to-peer home swapping platforms account for the second largest share, in terms of volume of activity, of the UK’s sharing economy. With the meteoric growth of Airbnb in particular, most people assume that traditional rental and aparthotel operators, like myself, are concerned about the impact [...]
Capitalism has lost its way – we need to rescue it, fast September 12, 2017 Theresa May launched her term as Prime Minister by promising to tackle what she calls “the unacceptable face of capitalism”. She has been sharply critical of executive pay, which she termed “excessive”. Without reform, the Prime Minister told us, faith in the free market will falter. As head of one of the UK’s largest recruitment [...]
Today’s Copeland result and Lords energy report both highlight the ticking nuclear time-bomb in UK politics February 24, 2017 This morning’s Tory victory sweep in the Labour stronghold of nuclear heartland Copeland has coincided with the publication of a Lords report criticising the government’s nuclear energy policy. The nuclear question could not have been more central to yesterday's by-election contest in the heart of Britain’s West Cumbrian ‘energy coast’. 10,000 people are already directly [...]
Opinion: Is Bournville Village the key the solving the housing crisis? February 4, 2017 There’s nothing new about employers building houses for their employees. George Cadbury wanted to build a place full of green spaces, where industrial workers could thrive, away from city pollution. By 1895, 143 cottages had been built and Bournville Village was born. Another business industrialist with similar philanthropic ideals was the ‘soap king’ Lord Lever [...]
The nightmarish state of the public finances makes NHS reform even more urgent January 18, 2017 While Westminster was awaiting the first lines of Theresa May’s Brexit speech yesterday morning, the government’s fiscal watchdog issued a devastating judgement on the long-term health of the country’s finances. According to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), the accelerating cost of the NHS will double the national debt relative to GDP by the middle [...]
Hotels continue to be a favourable option for investors looking to the UK January 11, 2017 As the UK’s most popular tourist destination after London, Edinburgh plays a vital role in the UK tourism economy. Its preeminent position was underlined recently when Deloitte – for a third year running – named Scotland’s capital the UK’s most attractive location for hotel investment outside London. The figures certainly stack-up. The city achieves some [...]
Autumn Budget 2017: Chancellor Philip Hammond’s speech in full November 22, 2017 You can read the chancellor's Budget speech in full here: Mr Deputy Speaker I report today on an economy that continues to grow, continues to create more jobs than ever before and continues to confound those who seek to talk it down. An economy set on a path to a new relationship with our European [...]
The Great Fire of London made the city an insurance hub – here’s what we need to do to maintain that status September 2, 2016 This week we’re marking the anniversary of one of London’s defining events: the Great Fire of London, which ravaged the city at the start of September 1666. It was started by nothing more than a fire from an overheated oven at a baker’s shop near London Bridge. The damage was immense. The Association of British [...]