More than a third of Brits are failing to save for retirement as pensions crisis looms February 10, 2014 More than a third of Britons say they have no plans to save for their retirement, according to research conducted by information company Nielsen. The 37 per cent of UK consumers who are making no contingency for their old age far outstrips the 22 per cent of people globally who are failing to save for [...]
City A.M.’s bumper Budget preview March 17, 2014 As chancellor George Osborne gets ready to unveil the penultimate budget before the general election, we've pulled together all the expected announcements, and what others are hoping for. Deficit Due to the scale of the budget deficit Ernst & Young believe the chancellor has little room for manoeuvre in terms of giveaways. While the Office [...]
Essar Oil sees profit jump 63pc February 10, 2014 Essar Oil, India’s second-largest private refiner, saw a 63 per cent jump in profit after tax in the quarter ended 31 December to 520m rupees (£50.9m). Despite a planned seven-day shutdown at the Vadinar refinery, operational efficiencies and more stability both in terms of oil prices and foreign exchange rates helped the firm turn a [...]
The government’s crackdown on betting shops: A solution to a non-problem April 30, 2014 The government has unveiled tighter rules governing fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs) and has given councils greater powers to prevent the spread of betting shops. Bookies hoping to set up a new shop can now be stopped from doing so by councils refusing to accept planning applications. Under the old system, book makers were able [...]
How charities lavish millions of taxpayer money on left-wing campaigns February 5, 2014 The government is spending millions of pounds lobbying itself and threatening the independence of charities, according to new research released today by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). The Sock Doctrine outlines how charities in receipt of government money are engaging in political activism such as campaigns to hike the price of alcohol and ban [...]
Why does it take the threat of a Russian invasion to stop EU protectionism? April 15, 2014 The European Union has proudly announced that it will be lifting €500m worth of tariffs on Ukrainian goods. The EU's magnanimous move covers 94.7 per cent of current tariffs on imports of industrial goods and all tariffs on Ukraine’s agricultural produce. Ukraine will not be required to provide reciprocity, but the EU will be obligated [...]
Poorest areas in England hit hardest by tobacco taxes March 12, 2014 There continues to be a strong link between smoking rates and economic deprivation, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Smoking rates are disproportionately concentrated in areas of high deprivation, while more affluent areas tend to have lower smoking rates. The ONS grouped areas of England into five categories (quintiles), with quintile one representing [...]
Oil production outside Opec at modern peak December 11, 2013 PRODUCTION outside the world’s traditional oil-rich nations has ballooned during the past year, rising to nearly half of the global output. According to the latest report on the market by the International Energy Agency (IEA), countries outside the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) are producing the most that they have in decades. States not [...]
US to overtake Saudi Arabia as number one oil producer by 2016 November 12, 2013 The US will become the world's largest oil producer by 2016, according to a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA). The IEA's world energy outlook report, released on Tuesday, said the rising output from both the US and Brazil is reducing the role of OPEC countries. IEA chief economist, Fatih Birol, speaking to Reuters [...]
We are finally starting to get a more grown-up debate on the EU April 8, 2014 AT SOME point over the next few years, the UK will have to decide once and for all what it wants Its relationship with the European Union to be. This is a crucial debate, albeit one where intelligent and well-meaning people who broadly share the same outlook on many other issues will still find it [...]