SEIS’s beauty is in the eye of its beholder December 18, 2011 I WAS disappointed to read the criticism the finance industry levied at the new Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS). For example, an article in this paper concluded: “The SEIS is a gimmick and will not be particularly fruitful for investors or the economy.” The critics highlight the risk of investing in start-ups. Of course, the [...]
Maintaining the City’s strength is in the interests of the whole economy April 22, 2012 AS I WRITE this, I am in Cyprus in advance of the Cypriot Presidency of the EU, meeting business and political leaders to set out the crucial importance of the City of London and the financial services industry in creating jobs and growth right across the European Union. The City of London remains the world’s [...]
Third cleric quits over occupation of St Paul’s October 31, 2011 THE ARCHBISHOP of Canterbury has broken his two-week silence over the St Paul’s occupation after the Dean of the Cathedral became the third cleric to resign yesterday. Dr Rowan Williams said he was “very sad” that the Right Rev Graeme Knowles had resigned and said the protesters had raised “urgent issues”. “The events of the [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 20, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Funds’ €60bn to buy European bank debt Hedge funds and private equity firms have amassed almost €60bn to buy loans from stricken European banks in coming years as many of the continent’s lenders seek to shrink their way to health, according to a PwC survey. PwC estimates European banks have almost €2.5tn of [...]
St Paul’s protesters win pause in expulsion plans November 1, 2011 LEGAL action to remove anti-capitalist protesters from the area surrounding St Paul’s Cathedral was put on hold yesterday after discussions led to renewed cooperation between the church, the City and protesters. St Paul’s announced it wanted to “engage directly with both the protesters and the moral and social issues they wish to address, without the [...]
St Paul’s protesters win pause in expulsion plans November 1, 2011 LEGAL action to remove anti-capitalist protesters from the area surrounding St Paul’s Cathedral was put on hold yesterday after discussions led to renewed cooperation between the church, the City and protesters. St Paul’s announced it wanted to “engage directly with both the protesters and the moral and social issues they wish to address, without the [...]
Legal firms hit by fresh downturn April 30, 2012 LONDON’S increasingly embattled legal sector suffered a further blow yesterday, as magic circle stalwart Slaughter and May froze associate salaries and Herbert Smith announced 51 redundancies in its City office. Only second-year associates at Slaughters will see their pay packets rise, though by less than one per cent, while salary bands for the firm’s other [...]
Keep a new Heathrow runway on the table December 4, 2011 GRIDLOCK is often the outcome of public sector walkouts so we can be grateful that last week’s strikes did not, as feared, severely impact upon Heathrow. Civil servants and others stepped in to prevent the lengthy queues and angry scenes that would have damaged our international reputation with both tourists and businesses. As a world-leading [...]
Occupy NY in police clashes November 17, 2011 MORE than 170 people were arrested in New York yesterday as police quashed an attempt by protesters to shut down Wall Street. Police set up barricades on the roads around Wall Street and pushed activists onto the pavement to stop them from blocking the route taken by staff at banks and the New York Stock [...]
Human rights laws could let activists cling on until 2012 October 24, 2011 THE THREAT of challenges under human rights legislation means any eviction of protesters outside St Paul’s Cathedral may not take place until the New Year, City A.M. understands. Yesterday the City of London Corporation met lawyers and officers believe it could take several months to win a legal battle against Occupy LSX because of the [...]