Burger King takes its first bite into India with joint venture November 20, 2013 BURGER King’s Whopper burgers will be available in India for the first time, after it yesterday announced plans to open its fast food chain in the world’s second most populous country. It will partner with private equity firm Everstone, which specialises in India and South East Asia, to set up a supply chain and establish [...]
A classy end to a successful season of Michael Grandage December 12, 2013 THEATRE HENRY V Noël Coward theatre | By Xenobe Purvis Four Stars OVER the course of Michael Grandage’s five-play season at the Noel Coward Theatre, the venue has seen star-studded casts perform parts as diverse as spliff-smoking fairies and cross-dressing soldiers. And now it is home to Henry V, which – although offering us nothing [...]
National Express pens contract to run two German train routes September 25, 2013 NATIONAL Express is exporting the British rail experience to two train routes in North Rhine Westphalia, signing contracts yesterday in what the UK ambassador to Germany described as “a proud day for British business”. The company will run the regional services for 15 years from 2015 under the contract, taking over from incumbent state-owned operator [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 06 November 2013 November 5, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES NHS chief says service bogged in law The NHS is becoming “bogged down in a morass of competition law” which is leading to higher costs and making it harder to reorganise services in the interests of patients, its chief executive said yesterday. Giving evidence to the health select committee, Sir David Nicholson suggested [...]
Watchdog sinks its teeth into pension funds September 19, 2013 THE UK’S trading watchdog yesterday laid the ground for a root and branch overhaul of workplace pensions after a study said that the current system is ripping off some savers. The Office of Fair Trading (OFT), which aims to protect consumers, said pensions were too complicated for many people to understand and employers running pension [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 31 October 2013 October 30, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES UK star rainmakers team up Three of London’s star dealmakers are joining forces in a City advisory boutique, reflecting the exodus of senior talent from bulge-bracket investment banks amid intense political and regulatory scrutiny. Simon Warshaw, former co-head of investment banking at UBS, will this week team up with Robertson Robey Associates, said [...]
Get-fit Diary: Learning to cook well proves an unexpected pleasure in week six November 27, 2013 I’m six weeks through an intensive get-fit programme, which involves not only hitting the gym four times a week, but completely overhauling the way I eat. It’s the latter aspect of the challenge that has proven most interesting, especially given my prior fondness for fast food and aversion to home cooking. For some reason the [...]
Western retail business looks to Russian capital for new markets September 3, 2013 EUROPEAN retailers are increasingly shifting their focus eastwards, as Moscow becomes a top destination for shoppers and consumer spending. Mark Faithfull, the editor of Retail Property Analyst, said: “Moscow is the obvious starting point for international retailers looking to expand”. He added that while luxury products were the first to find the market, familiar brands [...]
Letters to the Editor – 02/09 – Syria vote, Education reform, Best of Twitter September 1, 2013 Syria vote [Re: Cameron will look back on this vote as a political blessing, Friday] Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of the fallout from last Thursday’s vote is the ineffectiveness the Conservative whips. They were clearly fairly confident of their chances earlier in the day, with reports suggesting that the panicked phone calls [...]
Bridge Energy spurts on Spike takeover offer September 16, 2013 ABERDEEN-BASED oil and gas explorer Bridge Energy’s shares skyrocketed yesterday, after the board said it would recommend a £103m takeover offer from Norway’s Spike Exploration to its shareholders. The Aim-listed firm, which holds several licences in the UK North Sea, said that shareholders representing a 62 per cent stake in the company had already pre-accepted [...]