Lloyd’s of London chief operating officer to leave as exec churn continues November 21, 2018 The chief operating officer of insurance market Lloyd’s of London has resigned, continuing the stream of exits from its top team. Lloyd’s said today that operations chief and executive committee member Shirine Khoury-Haq had resigned, with plans to leave the insurance market in the first half of 2019. Khoury-Haq, who had been with Lloyd’s for [...]
Ofgem to tighten rules for new energy suppliers to protect consumers from bankruptcies November 21, 2018 Ofgem will make it more difficult for new suppliers to enter the energy market after a string of bankruptcies and complaints over poor customer service. The energy regulator has proposed rules which would force new players to show they have enough resources to operate for at least a year. Fresh suppliers will also be asked to [...]
DUP is still propping up Theresa May despite going missing in Budget votes, insists Downing Street November 21, 2018 Downing Street has insisted the DUP is still propping up Theresa May's government despite the party’s MPs voting against the Budget on Monday. A confidence and supply agreement struck after last year's election sees the DUP order its 10 MPs to support the Conservatives in Parliament in exchange for an extra £1billion on public spending in Northern Ireland. [...]
Danske Bank money laundering whistleblower Howard Wilkinson slams UK company structures as a ‘disgrace’ November 21, 2018 Danske Bank whistleblower Howard Wilkinson slammed British company structures for covering up money laundering activities. Wilkinson, who revealed an alleged €200bn (£178.1bn) money laundering scandal involving his former employer, said limited liability partnerships and Scottish liability partnerships “have been abused for years”. “The role of the United Kingdom is an absolute disgrace. Limited liability partnerships [...]
Sadiq Khan raises ‘serious concerns’ over Crossrail’s transparency and governance in letter to spending watchdog November 21, 2018 London mayor Sadiq Khan has said he has "serious concerns" about the "transparency and effectiveness of Crossrail's governance" following the fallout from the delay to the £15.4bn project. In a letter to the National Audit Office (NAO), seen by City A.M., Khan said that while joint sponsors Transport for London (TfL) and the Department for Transport (DfT) [...]
Christmas chaos expected as union announces two-day Central Line strike on 21 and 22 December November 21, 2018 Drivers on the Central Line will strike for two days just before Christmas as a dispute between unions and Transport for London (TfL) rumbles on. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) will walk-out from 8pm on 21 December to 2am on 22 December. Strike action will resume at 4am on the 22 December before [...]
Brussels moves to issue sanctions against Italy over budget failure November 21, 2018 The ongoing battle between the European Commission and Italy has deepened this morning, after Brussels said it will look at imposing a fine on the country over its failure to submit a budget proposal within EU rules. The commission said it will now open a "debt-based excessive deficit procedure" (EDP), after it ruled that Italy's revised [...]
Sugar tax raises £154m but the government warns more must be done November 21, 2018 The sugar tax on soft drinks has raised £153.8m since it came into force in April, the government has said. The levy was rolled out seven months ago to help tackle childhood obesity, with revenue used to fund physical education in primary schools. The figure is less than half the original amount estimated when the tax was [...]
Retail estate landlord New River Reit posts drop in asset value as high street woes worsen November 21, 2018 Real estate giant New River Reit saw the value of its assets dip in the six months to September, in a further sign of the tough challenges facing landlords on the high street. Net assets totalled £864m in September this year, marking more than a three per cent drop from March, while funds from operations [...]
Ikea cites rapid change in the retail sector as it cuts 7,500 jobs worldwide November 21, 2018 Ikea will cut 7,500 jobs worldwide over the next two years as it focuses on developing its website and inner-city stores, it said today. The cuts, which include 350 roles in the UK, will not hit the headcount of Ikea's 160,000 employees worldwide as it also plans to add 11,500 new jobs to its global workforce. [...]