UK immigration: Why are EU citizens coming to the UK? April 13, 2016 As the EU referendum approaches and the debate intensifies, immigration remains a key battleground for both camps. And while Prime Minister David Cameron has said that his reforms on migrants claiming benefits will reduce the pull factor for those from the EU, a new report states that it is employment opportunities that is the biggest [...]
Employment reached a new record high, but economists still aren’t happy May 18, 2016 Employment jumped to a new record high in the first quarter of the year as wage growth held steady, though economists warned that Britain's jobs recovery is still losing steam. The total number of people with a job jumped to 31.6m – an employment rate of 74.2 per cent – in figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) [...]
Mother’s Day and Easter fail to bring growth to high street, as March sees “disappointing” start to 2016 continue April 8, 2016 Mother's Day and Easter weren't enough to save a high street sales decline last month. Sales were down one per cent year on year in March after a month of peaks and troughs. March started strongly, partly due to an early Mother's Day, according to BDO's high street tracker, released today. Read more: High street bounces back thanks [...]
Co-operative chief executive Richard Pennycook’s basic salary and bonus cut confirmed: And here’s how much it’s dropping by April 7, 2016 The Co-op has confirmed chief executive Richard Pennycook has requested – and been given – a "very large reduction in his own remuneration package". At the same time, the group has revealed a pay rise for store staff. As reported last night, Pennycook's basic salary will drop from £1.25m to £750,000 with effect from 1 July and his [...]
Top economist Howard Archer warns over labour market as economic pressures begin to bite April 17, 2016 The UK labour market is expected to have lost momentum due to heightened domestic and global economic uncertainties, according to IHS chief economist Howard Archer. The challenges, magnified by June’s referendum on UK membership of the European Union, include lacklustre UK economic activity early on in 2016, and the National Living Wage – a 50p [...]
Markit PMI: British manufacturing edges up but quarterly growth remains weak April 1, 2016 While British manufacturing ticked up last month from its weakest level in nearly three years, quarterly growth remained disappointing. It comes as the business secretary, Sajid Javid, visits Port Talbot to meet workers and management affected by Tata's decision to sell its UK assets. Read more: The travel industry must love Sajid Javid The Markit/CIPS manufacturing Purchasing Managers' [...]
Domino’s is putting more cheese on your pizza thanks to drop in food prices March 3, 2016 Ordering Domino's Pizza this evening? Then you may find that the pizza chain has been more generous with the cheese topping on your Margherita, as a drop food prices helped contribute to a jump in sales and profits last year. Chief executive David Wild said its franchisee saved around £11m thanks to record low cheese prices, a drop in [...]
Most migrants in the UK not affected by Prime Minister David Cameron’s proposed changes to the welfare system, according to the Migration Observatory May 4, 2016 A new report has called into question the effectiveness of Prime Minister David Cameron's argument that the "emergency break" would lead to a fall in net migration. A report by Oxford University's Migration Observatory has found that newly arrived migrants are less likely to be claiming welfare benefits, undermining Cameron's assertion that his EU reforms [...]
Can the rise in unemployment between December and February be blamed on the EU referendum? April 21, 2016 Jeremy Cook, chief economist at World First, says Yes. The referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU is acting as a depressant on almost all UK economic indicators at the moment, and February’s labour market report is simply the latest. That is not to say that every single piece of weakening data is as a [...]
Not switching jobs has cost younger workers on their pay packet April 18, 2016 Staying put in the same job for too long has cost younger workers on their potential pay packet, a report out today has found. The study by the Resolution Foundation discovered that, had younger workers continued to switch jobs at the pace witnessed in the early 2000s, they would now be earning 30p more per hour [...]