Gap between Tory and Labour tax plans hits its biggest in a generation November 13, 2019 The Conservatives and Labour’s plans for taxes are the most different in a generation, a new report has said, with a “tax pledge gap” of £60bn set to become a key election battleground. Labour is expected to call for tax increases of at least £50bn a year in its manifesto, while the Conservatives’ are likely [...]
Uber ban: London business groups mourn ‘dark day’ November 25, 2019 Business groups have slammed the decision to not grant Uber a new operating licence in London, with one think tank calling it a “total disgrace”. Transport for London (TfL) announced this morning it had not renewed Uber’s licence, after a long-running battle over the company’s safety record. Read more: TfL bans Uber from London after [...]
World could face energy shortage as investment lags demand says global energy agency May 14, 2019 The world is “storing up” future risks as investment in both fossil fuels and renewables may not meet global increases in energy demand, the head of the International Energy Agency has warned. More than $1.8 trillion was invested in global energy projects in 2018, broadly flat on the year before, the IEA said today. Read [...]
What could a Biden presidency mean for climate change investing? September 7, 2020 Joe Biden in the White House, and potentially Democrats in control of the Senate too, could turbo-charge climate change as an investment theme. The US response to Covid-19 looks set to be the dominant election issue as we head towards the November polls. Myriad other issues also compete for voters’ attention, and climate change often [...]
Analysis: Why oil prices turned negative, and might do again April 22, 2020 On Monday night oil prices turned negative for the first time in history, as traders started paying to have barrels of oil taken off their hands due to the total collapse in demand caused by coronavirus. The unprecedented scenes were a result of a number of coalescing factors which created a situation in which buying [...]
Fancy a four-day work week? Look to the private sector, not misguided politicians November 15, 2019 Labour’s promise of a four-day work week was put through the wringer this week, when questions surfaced over whether the policy would apply to NHS employees. The shadow health secretary said it wouldn’t, the shadow chancellor promised it would, and suddenly people were wondering how the NHS would cope if it were to lose twenty [...]
Brexit disorder could dampen global oil thirst, International Energy Agency says March 11, 2019 A “disorderly” Brexit could hit international demand for oil, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said today while also warning of the impact of trade wars. The projection comes after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) downgraded its short-term outlook as economic sentiment weakens in many countries. Read more: Will global growth slowdown force more OPEC production [...]
If Jeremy Corbyn really cares about ‘the many’, he should rethink his aversion to markets September 27, 2019 A common complaint over the past three years is that no one can talk about anything other than Brexit. But that wasn’t true at the Labour party conference this week. Unlike the Liberal Democrats, who barely gave way to any policy discussion beyond revoking Article 50, both the Labour leader and shadow chancellor confronted all [...]
IEA poaches Legatum’s top Brexit adviser Shanker Singham and team March 9, 2018 Free market think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has poached Shanker Singham and three of his team from rival firm Legatum. Singham, who is widely seen as one of the top Brexit policy advisers and has played a key role in guiding the government’s thinking on the issue, will head up the IEA’s [...]
IEA poaches Legatum’s top Brexit adviser Shanker Singham and team March 9, 2018 Free market think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has poached Shanker Singham and three of his team from rival firm Legatum. Singham, who is widely seen as one of the top Brexit policy advisers and has played a key role in guiding the government's thinking on the issue, will head up the IEA's [...]