ELECTION2010 April 18, 2010 Tories in iconic buildings pledge The Conservatives yesterday said they would legislate to protect iconic buildings, ensuring they aren’t obscured by new sky-scraper developments. Shadow arts minister Ed Vaizey said: “These are buildings people treasure and are part of our identity. We hope that the scheme would provide a significant hurdle against intrusive developments.” Paxman [...]
Sellers brush off pre-election fears April 18, 2010 SELLERS have shaken off pre-election jitters to increase their average asking prices by 2.6 per cent in April, the monthly Rightmove property index will show today. This marks a sharp jump on the meagre 0.1 per cent increase seen in March and takes the average price of a UK home to £235,512. Property prices are [...]
Greece is not the only Eurozone trouble spot April 18, 2010 FOR ONCE Goldman Sachs has done the Greeks a favour. It’s probably not the favour that the bank was hoping to deliver but the SEC’s decision to charge the Wall Street giant with fraud has taken the spotlight off Athens. Sadly, this refocusing of the news cycle is unlikely to last long enough to provide [...]
CBI: Labour pension scheme flawed April 18, 2010 THE Government’s new workplace pension scheme could deter millions of savers because of its high and complicated charges, the CBI warns today. Businesses are worried that staff, and particularly the lower paid, will baulk at the proposed charging structure of the National Employment Savings Trust (Nest), which loads fees towards the earlier years after a [...]
ARE PRE-ELECTION JITTERS HAVING A NOTICEABLE EFFECT ON THE HOUSING MARKET? April 18, 2010 LUCIAN COOK | SAVILLS “The election is no doubt in the public consciousness and will, if anything, put a limit to activity as people wait until after 6 May to buy. But activity in the housing market is so subdued anyway so it will be difficult to pick out any discernible impact. More interesting will [...]
Saudis look to abolish steel duty April 18, 2010 Saudi authorities are seeking to abolish a five per cent customs duty on steel imports to counter a deficit in domestic supply, the head of the kingdom’s biggest steel producer said yesterday. “There is an intention to abolish the duty but it has not been enacted yet. Such a decision can not be taken without [...]
London retail boost fuelled by Easter lift April 18, 2010 RETAILERS in central London saw an almost ten per cent rise in sales last month – fuelled by a booming Easter. The figures, based on a comparison with March last year, showed that the weak pound and an increase in Chinese visitors over the holiday helped to keep tills ringing, with a 9.9 per cent [...]
Court overturns freeze on City suspects’ assets April 18, 2010 LAWYERS representing six individuals who were arrested last month by regulation bodies have successfully won a lift on a series of freezing orders placed on assets by the courts. The six City figures who were arrested in March by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) have seen their assets [...]
Sage boss decides it is wise to retire April 18, 2010 PAUL Walker, one of the UK’s longest serving FTSE 100 bosses, has decided to stand down as chief executive of Sage. The company has hired the headhunter Russell Reynold Associates to find a replacement, although the company declined to say how long the process might take. The leading candidates to succeed him include the current [...]
US and Europe need to agree on hedge funds April 18, 2010 BY CONVENTION, the moment a General Election is announced, central government and the civil service enter what is known as purdah. No decisions can be made with regards to policies that a new government might want to revisit after an election and publicly funded bodies must avoid making public proclamations that may be considered prejudicial [...]