German minister confident of winning euro clearing power from “offshore” London after Brexit March 6, 2017 A German economics minister has spoken confidently of winning euro clearing power from London after Brexit. Tarek Al-Wazir, a minister for the state of Hesse, said he expects Frankfurt, which is in his district, to be among the beneficiaries. Read more: Clear off: City of London steps up fight to retain euro clearing “It is [...]
The real Brexit dividend will be fresh support for Britain’s enterprise economy March 6, 2017 Imagine the UK became the best place in which to do busines in the developed world. A truly enterprise economy, generating wealth and taxes, what could top that? Certainly not membership of the EU. Suddenly it has become an imperative to turn that into reality and to stop relying on the EU, a "crutch" reached [...]
UK house price growth set to cool over the next five years November 4, 2016 London house prices will grow by 11 per cent by 2021, according to new research, lagging behind the UK as a whole. Savills is predicting two years of low house price growth due to heightened economic uncertainty as the terms of Brexit become more clear. UK house price growth is expected to be 13 per [...]
Britain is an oasis of calm amid Europe’s political chaos February 24, 2017 In a fit of pique at the Brexit vote, the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told MEPs last July that Britain had “collapsed – politically, economically, monetarily and constitutionally”. Embarrassingly for him, events have proven otherwise, with the UK posting the strongest growth in the G7 in the final quarter of 2016, the Bank of England still [...]
Investment in Legal & General’s build to rent fund hits £1bn December 7, 2016 Legal & General's build to rent (BTR) fund has attracted £170m in investment, bringing its total value to £1bn. Major institutions have now invested in the open-ended fund, according to Legal & General Investment Management Real Assets (LGIM Real Assets). The investors were not disclosed. Read more: Revealed: the luxury London properties with price cuts of [...]
A €50bn Brexit bill? Britain shouldn’t be quibbling over coughing up to the EU March 17, 2017 One of the more unfortunate aspects of the run-up to the UK-EU negotiations on a withdrawal treaty to allow a separation of Britain from Europe is the excessive focus on payment questions. Boris Johnson, in urging Theresa May to resist paying any substantial Brexit bill, made the fanciful analogy with Margaret Thatcher’s famous settlement at [...]
The MoD has issued a clarion call to developers as it mulls the future of Hyde Park Barracks February 21, 2017 The fate of Hyde Park Barracks, the central London barracks which plays host to the Household Cavalry, may be about to become clearer after the Ministry of Defence (MoD) issued a clarion call to the property industry. A notice issued by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), the organisation in charge of managing the army's estates, has [...]
Embrace simple taxes and openness to trade to make a long-term success of Brexit January 30, 2017 At her Lancaster House speech this month, Theresa May was good to her word. She set out her 12-point negotiating position for leaving the EU and it was explicit that Brexit does, in fact, mean Brexit. The lady is clearly not for turning. And if the Lancaster House speech was about withdrawing from the current [...]
The super prime rental market in the Home Counties is booming on the back of stamp duty changes November 30, 2016 London's luxury property market has been suffering after the government increased stamp duty on high-end homes – but the rental market is booming in the Home Counties on the back of the decision. According to research by Knight Frank, the number of tenant viewings for super prime properties – homes worth over £15,000 per month – has doubled year-on-year [...]
Ireland hard border with UK could be inevitable after “pig in a poke” Brexit says top Irish diplomat January 9, 2017 A hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland could be inevitable if the UK leaves the EU’s Single Market, according to an influential Irish diplomat – while saying Leave voters in the EU referendum were “sold a pig in a poke”. Speaking in an interview with the Irish Independent newspaper, Phil Hogan, the EU commissioner [...]