International trade secretary Liam Fox backs Theresa May’s Brexit deal November 30, 2018 International trade secretary Liam Fox this morning backed Theresa May’s Brexit deal as the prime minister ruled out a plan B. Leading Brexiteer Fox said he believed members of the cabinet would back the deal, despite a deeply divided parliament. Fox told the BBC Radio 4 Today Programme: “It is very difficult to get a deal [...]
Canada water-bomber firefighting contract fails to ignite Babcock shares November 30, 2018 A new £100m contract for Babcock wasn't enough to stop its shares drifting downwards this morning, as market uncertainty and investor scepticism outweighed the new deal. Shares fell one per cent after news that the engineering firm will operate a fleet of seven “water-bomber” amphibious firefighting aircraft in Canada for the next decade, in a contract win [...]
UK tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch charged in US over Autonomy deal November 30, 2018 Prominent UK tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch has been charged by US authorities with fraud over the sale of software company Autonomy to Hewlett Packard in 2011. The US Department of Justice filed charges against Lynch yesterday in a San Francisco court. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and include 14 [...]
Ukraine bans Russian men from entering country as tension continues to grow November 30, 2018 Ukraine has banned Russian men aged between 16 and 60 from crossing the border into the country as tensions between the two continue to rise. It comes after three Ukrainian ships and their crews were seized by Russia in the Black Sea last weekend, leaving several Ukrainians injured. Parts of the country became under marital [...]
UK house price growth recovers from five-year low in November, Nationwide figures show November 30, 2018 UK house prices grew by an average of 1.9 per cent in November, up 0.3 per cent month on month to recover from a five-year low in October, Nationwide announced this morning. The figure is expected to improve if economic and political uncertainty surrounding Brexit lifts over the coming months and employment continues to rise, the [...]
Rail fares will rise by 3.1 per cent in January despite timetable chaos hurting commuters November 30, 2018 Rail fares will rise by an average of 3.1 per cent in the new year, according to the Rail Delivery Group, hitting millions of commuters’ wallets. The increase means many passengers will pay around £100 more for their season tickets, despite a year in which travellers have suffered strikes, delays and timetable chaos on many [...]
Editor’s Notes: Check back in with the forecasters in 2033 November 30, 2018 The Treasury’s Brexit scenarios, released this week, boiled down to a claim – made with pinpoint accuracy – that the Prime Minister’s deal will leave the UK economy 3.9 per cent smaller in 15 years, compared with staying in the EU. In other news, PwC estimates that artificial intelligence will increase UK GDP by 10.3 [...]
Kleinman: Brutal winter could ground Flybe despite buyer interest, Truell’s trump card and wheel turns for auditors November 30, 2018 If only achieving take-off for Flybe’s profits was as easy as it seems to be for its share price. Not content with a 70 per cent uplift after I reported that Virgin Atlantic was in talks to buy the regional airline, the stock soared again on Monday as investors boarded on hopes of a bidding war [...]
BCA marketplace reports higher profits despite tougher emissions standards November 29, 2018 WeBuyAnyCar’s parent firm BCA Marketplace reported a 31 per cent year-on-year rise in first half profit today, despite fears that tougher emissions standard would restrict the future supply of new vehicles. The company recorded pre-tax profit of £45.7m for the six months to the end of September, rising from £34.9m in the same period last [...]
Polman bows out of Unilever with a rich legacy, but a tarnished reputation November 29, 2018 When Paul Polman announced his plan to quit as boss of Unilever last autumn, he had plenty of reasons to think he would be leaving the consumer goods giant on a high: he had fought off a £115bn takeover attempt from Kraft Heinz earlier in the year and forged a reputation as a champion of [...]