Venezuela to install 20,000 fingerprint scanners in supermarkets as shortages take their toll March 9, 2015 Venezuela is planning to roll out 20,000 fingerprint scanners across the country in a desperate bid to prevent citizens from hoarding and panic buying. President Nicolas Maduro is an enthusiastic supporter of the programme that was mooted last year and received withering criticism. Venezuela has been running short of basic goods like toilet paper, soap [...]
Mayfair flat just bigger than a bathroom lets within 40 minutes for £1,560 per month March 9, 2015 London's property market appears as hot as ever, after a flat in luxurious Mayfair only a little bigger than a bathroom took just 40 minutes to let. Boasting just 301 sq ft, the one-bedroom flat in Pollen Street has set a new record for speed in London's notorious rental market. Mayfair agent E J Harris [...]
George Osborne regrets mistakes over RBS and looks to sell up quick March 5, 2015 George Osborne has conceded he made an error not reforming the state-owned bank RBS when the coalition took power in 2010. Speaking to the Financial Times Weekend Magazine the chancellor said he hopes to move forward "as quickly as we can to get rid of it". He added that he regretted acquiescing to the view [...]
General Election 2015: Voters predict Conservative win as Labour support wanes March 5, 2015 The last raft of opinion polls have made happy reading for the Conservative Party. After weeks of level pegging, several polls have given the Tories a slight lead over Labour. The website electionforecast at its current prediction, forecasts a hung Parliament with the Conservatives as the largest party. However, with two months to go and [...]
Impatient for success: Is Generation Y prepared for reality? March 5, 2015 It's a well-worn stereotype that young people want overnight success and underestimate the amount of hard graft they have put in to make something of themselves. This is perhaps true more so now than ever with young successful tech billionaires dominating the news and even becoming the focus of the silver screen. So do today's [...]
Euro falls below $1.10 for first time 12 years after ECB reveals date of bond buying programme March 5, 2015 After hovering close to the $1.10 for past 48 hours the euro fell below it for the first time since September 2003. The euro has lost 15 per cent of its value against the dollar over the past six months. However, it's not just a weaker euro contributing to the shift – the dollar has [...]
Boris Johnson top choice for Tory leader among Londoners if Cameron fails to win General Election March 5, 2015 Boris Johnson is Londoners top pick for the next Tory leader if David Cameron fails to secure victory in May and the country is forced to go to the polls for a second time. The Tory Mayor enjoyed the support of 40 per cent of those who expressed a view. David Cameron had the support [...]
Bank of England liquidity auctions under investigation by Serious Fraud Office March 4, 2015 The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is investigating the Bank of England's (BoE) money-market auctions in late 2007 and early 2008 for possible fraud. The Bank said it had referred information relevant to the auctions to the SFO in November. This is the first time the Bank's auctions has been put under investigation by the SFO. [...]
David Cameron agrees to one TV debate featuring seven party leaders March 4, 2015 David Cameron has put his cards on the table and agreed to just one TV debate that would feature seven party leaders and last 90-minutes. Downing street said this was its final offer after the "chaos" of the negotiating process. Today at Prime Minister's Questions Labour leader Ed Miliband challenged the Prime Minister to take [...]
FTSE 100 and 250 quarterly review: Hikma, AA, Virgin Money Holdings and Imagination Technologies Group are in and Afren, Game Digital and Oxford Instruments are out March 4, 2015 The FTSE Group has released its quarterly review showing which companies have edged into the index and which have dropped out. Hikma Pharmaceuticals made its way into the FTSE 100 while Tullow Oil has fallen out of the top index. Hikma floated on the London Stock Exchange in 2005. Tullow will now join the FTSE [...]