Why an England Euro 2016 defeat will wipe billions off stock markets June 9, 2016 After a disappointing 2014 World Cup, the nation is eagerly awaiting the start of Euro 2016. With a 100 per cent record in the qualifiers, and currently priced at 8/1 fourth favourites, England are quietly confident that they can at least emulate their semi-final appearance 20 years ago. But it shouldn’t only be football fanatics [...]
Banks face a storm of new regulation in the aftermath of the EU referendum – and they’re worryingly unprepared June 7, 2016 June 24. The Brexit referendum result is in the books. Everyone wakes up dazed and wonders “what next?” The City, in particular, will have work to do. Normal politics has taken a bit of a holiday but the bureaucratic processes steadily reshaping financial services regulation have not. To give just a few examples: tax rules [...]
FirstGroup’s share price drops on profit warning January 28, 2016 FirstGroup's share price fell more than five per cent this morning after the transport operator issued a profit warning on the back of major flooding in the north of England. The figures Revenues in the third quarter fell by 9.5 per cent on a constant currency basis, on the back of changes to its rail franchise portfolio and [...]
Techies and retailers beat the bankers to win 100 free lunches in Deliveroo’s corporate competition February 29, 2016 IT’S SAFE to say that City workers are bracing themselves for a disappointing bonus season. Reports earlier this month found that banker’s bonuses could plummet by almost 10 per cent, but City firms are trying to make up the difference by winning free lunches for their workforce. Up-market fast food transporter Deliveroo has launched a competition [...]
UK weather: Storm Desmond’s cost to insurers creeps up to a possible £325m, far outstripping the costs of 2009 floods, as bad weather threatens further damage December 8, 2015 The predicted cost to insurers of Storm Desmond has crept up, as continued bad weather threatens to cause even greater damage. Professional services firm PwC, which yesterday estimated that the insurance costs would be between £175m and £250m, today suggested insurers could find themselves paying out between £250m and £325m. “Clearly these are initial estimates as [...]
Christmas weather 2015: Storm Eva could bring more flooding to northern parts of UK, while Met Office predicts “green” rather than white Christmas December 23, 2015 Christmas 2015 could be one of the warmest on record – but Storm Eva is expected to hit the British Isles today and tomorrow, meaning last minute shoppers (and Father Christmas) could be grappling with heavy winds. The Met Office has issued weather warnings for the north west, Wales and north east because of Storm Eva, [...]
UK weather: Storm Henry to continue the UK’s unsettled weather – but is it worse than usual, or are we just noticing it more because of the names? February 1, 2016 It maybe a new month but the stormy UK weather hasn’t changed its tune Scotland will take the brunt of Storm Henry as it sweeps in from the Atlantic through today and into Tuesday, with an amber warning having been issued for the whole of the country. The low pressure system is rapidly deepening and widespread [...]
UK weather: Storm Desmond continues to hit Scotland and Northern England as government pledges help for affected communities December 9, 2015 The Met Office has updated its yellow weather warning for Storm Desmond over the next two days, as the government confirms it will cut taxes for affected communities. Further rainfall is expected across much of Scotland and northern England during Wednesday, with persistent heavy rain starting to clear from the more southerly areas affected from [...]
The Uniwheel is the British-made alternative to last year’s cheap, exploding hoverboard toys January 21, 2016 The last time I attempted to ride a hoverboard, the device turned on me. The supposedly self-balancing bastard hurled my innocent body to the ground and shattered my left elbow before zooming off, filling the air with triumphant bleeps and bloops as it made good its escape. If this was the first punch thrown in [...]
George Osborne cuts corporation tax – but OBR downgrades UK growth forecast as he warns “storm clouds are gathering” March 16, 2016 George Osborne has warned of "storm clouds gathering" in a wide-ranging Budget speech in which he cut growth expectations, but delivered a sop to the UK's firms by cutting corporation tax again. During his Budget speech in parliament today, he reduced corporation tax to 17 per cent, the second such cut in less than a year. "Britain is [...]