Editorial: London has deserved more from an insipid Mayoral contest May 5, 2021 It is fair to say the year-long delay to the London Mayoral election has not increased the appetite for it. Nor have the last few months been a vintage political campaign of sharp differences, eye-catching promises and grand visions for the future. That’s a shame. London is a global city and will reinvent itself post-pandemic. [...]
A VAT break on booze would allow entrepreneurs to rebuild British high streets February 18, 2021 Hospitality employs 9 per cent of the UK’s workforce. Or perhaps ‘did employ’ is a more accurate phrase. Undoubtedly, there will be more redundancies within this sector – at a phenomenal cost, ultimately, to the taxpayer. We all know that hospitality has been one of the worst hit sectors in the economy as a result [...]
MPs call for probe into record labels amid music streaming overhaul July 15, 2021 MPs have urged regulators to probe major UK record labels and Youtube as part of a radical overhaul of the music streaming market aimed at tackling “pitiful returns” for artists. In an eagerly-awaiting report published today, the culture select committee called for comprehensive reform to existing legislation as well as new regulations to “reset” the [...]
Sketch: How to communicate effectively (according to the UK government) October 12, 2020 As the government unveils its latest lockdown restrictions through Twitter, James Warrington imagines comms discussions in the heart of Westminster At a time of national crisis, it’s crucial to communicate effectively. Can you imagine if, at the height of a pandemic, the public didn’t know what was going on? Unthinkable, I know, but it’s a [...]
Why has Donald Trump done much better than Europeans expected — again? November 4, 2020 As was the case four years ago, most media outlets in Europe have been predicting a massive victory for the Democrats. Now the election results are much tighter than expected. Why? Well, among lots of Europeans it was the wish for an overwhelming victory for Joe Biden that shaped the narrative. The majority of western [...]
Genius Brewing, makers of healthy lager, to enter Dragons’ Den April 8, 2021 An innovative craft beer company producing a health-focused, light craft lager is set to go before the panel in tonight’s episode of Dragons’ Den. Jason Clarke and Charlie Craig, founders of Genius Brewing will take their 3% ABV, 79 calorie lager into the Den in the hopes of gaining backing for their ‘smart drinking’ company. [...]
Doge dumps hard as fans cash out after Elon Musk’s SNL debut May 9, 2021 Dogecoin holders began selling assets hard as Tesla CEO Elon Musk made various gags about the cryptocurrency on weekly US variety show Saturday Night Live.
Twitter flags Trump tweet for ‘glorifying violence’ as row escalates May 29, 2020 Twitter today said that one of Donald Trump’s tweets had broken its rules about “glorifying violence”, marking the latest salvo in an escalating feud between social media firms and the US president. “These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen,” Trump tweeted, in reference to protests over the [...]
Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai arrested under new security law August 10, 2020 Hong Kong media owner Jimmy Lai was arrested by police today under the territory’s draconian new security law. Lai was accused of collusion with foreign forces and the offices of his Apple Daily newspaper were raided by more than 200 police officers. Lai is the most high-profile victim of a Beijing-backed crackdown following the passing [...]
Switzerland heads for Brexit-like EU clash with €227bn at stake from today May 26, 2021 From today, Swiss medical-technology companies will no longer be allowed to export duty-free to the European Union as Bern and Brussels failed to agree to a long-anticipated political treaty that would cover trade between the two countries. The goods-trading relationship at risk is worth $278bn, with medical-technology companies being the latest casualty of a deteriorating [...]