Centrica labels Labour plan as a recipe for ruin September 24, 2013 BRITAIN’S big six energy companies yesterday lambasted Labour leader Ed Miliband’s pledge to freeze energy bills until 2017, saying his planned reforms could financially ruin firms and discourage infrastructure investment. Sir Roger Carr, chairman of British Gas owner Centrica, said Labour’s plan to implement price controls could leave companies in a vulnerable position. “When costs [...]
Barclays defends itself in key interest swap misselling suit October 24, 2012 BARCLAYS was yesterday gearing up to face down interest rate mis-selling claims, with the Guardian Care Homes (GCH) suit set to come before a judge on Monday. The pre-trial hearing will see GCH present its accusations at the Commercial Court, while Barclays will defend itself. The judge will then decide which, if any, of the claims [...]
A modest proposal to improve professional standards in British banking January 16, 2013 LONDON can lay claim to be the world leader in many things. It has, for example, the world’s most popular music venue, in the O2 centre. It has the most visited modern art gallery on the planet, at Tate Modern. It is also the world’s legal capital. London rejoices in having many of the world’s [...]
Cartels of politicians do not serve public interest March 20, 2013 WHENEVER I see politicians of all three parties patting each other on the back and congratulating themselves on their brilliance, I panic. Consensus in politics is a disaster. When government and opposition agree, and the checks and balances of robust democratic argument are suspended, something awful inevitably happens. Dissent is good; conformity stinks. It leads [...]
Minister to ease rules on turning offices into flats January 22, 2013 THE GOVERNMENT will remove barriers on converting office buildings into residential flats in the hope of easing the housing crisis, it was revealed yesterday. Planning minister Nick Boles is due to announce the move later this week, which will permit developers to convert many office buildings into domestic residences without needing planning permission. But the City of [...]
City Moves for 22 January 2013 | Who’s switching jobs January 21, 2013 Mayer Brown The law firm has appointed Alistair Graham as a litigation partner in its London office. He joins from White & Case, where he was a partner in its London commercial litigation practice. Graham has previously worked as enforcement counsel to the FSA, where he assisted in the run up to the introduction of [...]
Supreme Court rules in favour of London property aristocrats October 10, 2012 THE SUPREME Court yesterday ruled in favour of a controversial appeal by two London landlords, protecting their estates against a loophole that would have allowed commercial tenants the right to buy freeholds to properties that were once houses. The landmark ruling draws a line under a long-running battle by the Day Estate, which owns swathes [...]
Argentine warship seized by hedge fund in debt dispute October 10, 2012 HEDGE fund NML Capital, a subsidiary of Paul Singer’s Elliott Management, will today discover if an Argentine warship it had seized in Ghana over unpaid sovereign debts will be freed. The company had the ship, the ARA Libertad, seized in the Ghanaian port of Tema on 2 October in a bid to enforce legal judgments [...]
Hurricane Sandy has stormed through the race but not blown it off course October 31, 2012 AFTER well-publicised but ineffectual interventions by both Donald Trump and celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred, this year’s “October Surprise” looked poised to be as meaningless to the presidential race as the “revelation” four years ago that Barack Obama’s aunt was living in the US illegally. But with Hurricane Sandy slamming into the East Coast, Mother Nature [...]
FTSE 100 falls on weakness in mining shares September 24, 2012 The leading share index opened down this morning, as headline mining shares dropped on concerns over the weak global outlook. Miner Bumi led the fallers in early trade, as it announced it is to investigate its Indonesian operations for alleged financial irregularities. Miners Evraz, Anglo American and Ferrexpo lost 3.75 per cent, 3.3 per cent [...]