Why gender parity is still 70 years away despite two thirds of FTSE 350 company boards comprising of women February 28, 2023 The UK claims to be a world-leader for women’s representation on top company boards, with data revealing that 40.2 per cent of FTSE 350 board positions are now held by women. The findings were part of a report by the Government-backed FTSE Women Leaders Review, which is sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group and KPMG. Adopting [...]
UK borrowing falls as debt pile revised to under 100 per cent of economy July 21, 2023 The Government’s debt pile was bigger than the country’s economic output in June – the first time this has happened for more than 60 years, official data shows. Public sector net borrowing hit £18.5 billion last month, down from £20 billion a month earlier, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. It pushed the total [...]
UK narrowly avoids recession as penny pinching Brits help GDP grow 0.1 per cent March 31, 2023 The UK was not formally in a dreaded recession between October and December, with UK GDP increasing slightly by 0.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2022. Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show the total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the economy marginally improved from an initial estimate of “no growth”. [...]
Wirecard forged client list to secure £760m investment from SoftBank July 11, 2022 German payments processer Wirecard forged client data in its efforts to secure €900m (£760m) in investment from Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, as it sought to reassure investors about the fundamentals of its business before it collapsed the following year. The Bavarian fintech firm showed SoftBank’s representatives a fabricated list of clients on a computer in Wirecard’s [...]
KPMG partner pay slides after challenging year December 11, 2019 Partner pay at KPMG UK fell seven per cent in 2018-19 after a year when the firm strove to deal with the fallout from a series of scandals. In the year to 30 September, KPMG average partner pay fell to £640,000 from £690,000 the previous year. Profit before taxation and members’ profit shares fell nearly [...]
Hunt has raided the piggy-bank for his tax cuts. Will it work? November 23, 2023 By spending all of the extra inflation windfall in one go, its hard to avoid the conclusion that Hunt has taken a big gamble.
Automotive output falls 28.7 per cent despite EV boost December 23, 2021 The UK automotive output declined 28.7 per cent in November to 75,756 units produced. According to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) released today, both domestic and overseas markets plunged, going down 18.8 and 30.4 per cent respectively. “These are incredibly worrying figures, underscoring the severity of situation facing the automotive [...]
Lord Michael Hastings on improving corporate citizenship January 13, 2022 This article first appeared in ICAS’ CA magazine. Lord Michael Hastings tells Laurence Eastham how far business has come in recognising its responsibilities to society – but why the journey has really only just begun Business has incorporated a new language. It’s one that gives values and purpose equal rank alongside revenue and profit. And it’s a shift that reflects [...]
UK firms to launch price hike spree as Bank of England prepares to lift rates again March 14, 2022 A record proportion of UK firms are preparing to hike prices in a further sign of the scale of inflationary pressures sweeping throughout the economy, reveals a closely watched survey released today. The fresh figures provide further incentives for the Bank of England to hike interest rates for the third meeting in a row when [...]
UK economy ‘bounces back’ in another signal a recession is off the table but experts warn of stagnation March 10, 2023 The UK economy “bounced back” from a sharp contraction over Christmas and is holding up better than feared in another sign the country could avoid a recession, official figures out today show. Gross domestic product (GDP) jumped 0.3 per cent in January, better than the consensus forecast of 0.1 per cent growth, according to the [...]