FCA requested to review buildings insurers as Gove says leaseholders hit with ‘rapidly escalating’ costs January 28, 2022 The financial services regulator has been requested to review the buildings insurance market for blocks of flats. In a letter to the regulator, housing minister Micheal Gove said he was “extremely concerned” to hear from leaseholders about their experience of “rapidly escalating” insurance premiums on high and medium-rise blocks. There have been cases where insurance [...]
Car industry in shock and fuel prices climb as government scraps all grants for electric vehicles June 14, 2022 There is widespread shock and surprise in the car industry this morning as the DfT said all grants for new EVs have been scrapped.
The CMA’s showdown with Facebook over Giphy foreshadows a crackdown December 3, 2021 You probably don’t think of GIFs and think of showdowns with tech giants. Mostly, these short clips decorate people’s texts and social media profiles. Now, they are at the forefront of regulators’ efforts to rein in big tech. On Tuesday, the UK’s competition regulator – the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) – told Facebook (now [...]
Business Secretary intervenes in Cobham’s £2.6bn bid for Ultra Electronics on national security grounds August 18, 2021 Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has stopped the planned £2.6bn acquisition of defence firm Ultra Electronics by rival US-owned Cobham, to investigate possible national security risks from the merged entities. The Competition and Markets Authority will now prepare a report on the proposed transaction. Customers of Ultra, which sells torpedo and radar systems and a range [...]
PCR test providers need more regulation, says competition watchdog September 10, 2021 The UK’s competition watchdog has warned that greater regulation of the PCR Covid testing market is required amid fears that competition alone “will not deliver the right outcomes for consumers”. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said that without such provisions, testing firms could begin to compete on grounds other than quality, leading to a [...]
City Moves: Who’s switching jobs in the Square Mile today? December 17, 2021 City A.M.’s Millie Turner provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every morning. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. Carzam Online used car business Carzam’s has appointed Paddy Power’s former boss as a new executive chairman. Andy McCue, who spent a decade with the gaming and betting giant, was also CEO of The Restaurant Group during [...]
Attempts to move civil servants out of London result in twice as many being recruited in the capital February 8, 2022 A new report claims this morning that efforts to move civil servants out of London are “going backwards”. In fact, since 2018, one in three civil servants has been recruited in the city, meaning the number of civil servants has grown twice as fast in London, at 22 per cent, than it has in regions [...]
French watchdog whacks Google with £125m fine for online cookie trackers January 6, 2022 France's data privacy watchdog has fined Google a record €150m (£125m) for making it difficult for internet users to refuse online trackers.
Babcock sells off helicopter business for £10m September 1, 2021 Babcock, the British defence and engineering business, has sold off its helicopter operations branch for £10m after purchasing it for £1.6bn in 2014. The Group’s Aviation sector, which is being purchased by CHC group, provides offshore oil and gas crew transportation services in the UK, Denmark and Australia. Babcock said that its divestment from oil [...]
As Meta appeals the CMA’s slap down over the Giphy acquisition, we must steer clear of watchdog intervention December 26, 2021 It seems to have become accepted wisdom that big tech firms are too dominant and need to be broken up and regulated. This a narrative spun by a belief that bias from Silicon Valley creates unbalanced debate; it is also, generally speaking, the view of the elite – amongst many academics and the leadership of [...]