‘We knew we could play that way’ November 17, 2010 NORTHAMPTON lock Courtney Lawes may have played a pivotal role in transforming England into stylish world-beaters but has reminded his colleagues of the virtues of winning ugly. Lawes is one of a clutch of youngsters at the heart of Martin Johnson’s emerging outfit, along with Saints team-mates Chris Ashton and Ben Foden and Leicester duo [...]
‘We knew we could play that way’ November 17, 2010 NORTHAMPTON lock Courtney Lawes may have played a pivotal role in transforming England into stylish world-beaters but has reminded his colleagues of the virtues of winning ugly. Lawes is one of a clutch of youngsters at the heart of Martin Johnson’s emerging outfit, along with Saints team-mates Chris Ashton and Ben Foden and Leicester duo [...]
Moody given green light to play for Bath October 26, 2010 ENGLAND manager Martin Johnson has opted to release his captain Lewis Moody for Premiership duty this weekend but won’t be taking a similar risk with Toby Flood. The Leicester fly-half is still working his way back to full fitness after injuring knee ligaments on the opening weekend of the season and is being protected by [...]
Lib Dems gear up for a bumpy ride with Cable on the ropes December 21, 2010 EVEN as the story of business secretary Vince Cable’s indiscretions broke late on Monday, campaigners linked with the the office of Liberal Democrat deputy leader Simon Hughes were frantically sending out press releases. Surely an example of an impressive scale-up of the famously scatty Lib Dem media operation? Er, not quite. “Don’t use King’s Stairs [...]
Stock markets are wrong about QE2 November 5, 2010 YESTERDAY’S stock market rebound is the proof that investors don’t always get it right – or at least, that they still love to get drunk on the prospect of cheap money. Stock markets in the US and UK jumped, taking equities back to the time when Lehman Brothers was just another big investment bank. One [...]
A CAAN-DO ATTITUDE IN FLOODED PAKISTAN August 26, 2010 AT a time of year when many City folk are sunning themselves on beaches abroad, it’s good to see that James Caan, the entrepreneur most famous for his appearances on Dragons’ Den, is putting his cash to good use. Last week he flew out to Pakistan to help with the flood relief efforts there. His missive [...]
Hunting growth on the frontiers as the West sinks deep into solipsism October 11, 2010 PLAMEN Monovski doesn’t immediately come across as an aggressive investor in some of the world’s least explored markets. He sits almost demurely at a table overlooking a sunny, 12th-floor view of the City, sipping a cappuccino and speaking in genteel, accented tones, often punctuated by a mild smile. But don’t be fooled. Monovski has been [...]
BLAIR WOOS LAWYERS WITH FOND MEMORIES November 22, 2010 CITY law firm Clifford Chance last night played host to a gathering of 250 of the City’s most prominent names in a one-off chance to hear from former Prime Minister Tony Blair. Blair blitzed into the event and had to run off to another engagement immediately afterwards, but in between he found time to cover [...]
Looming currency war threatens world trade October 12, 2010 AFTER the crash in 1929, nations retreated inside protectionist walls. In 2009, they managed to refrain from the same action – but they may yet succumb to another ’30s blight on world trade: currency wars. A currency war consists of states pursuing competitive devaluations in an attempt to increase the attractiveness of one’s exports. But [...]
Top family ski hotspots December 5, 2010 WHISTLER, Canada NESTLED in the Coast Mountain range, about two hours north of Vancouver in far Western Canada, Whistler-Blackcomb is North America’s largest ski resort. It is also one of its best, having hosted much of the Vancouver Winter Olympics last year. Whistler is not just for Olympians, however – it is a wonderful resort [...]