London Sports Festival moves from 3×3 basketball success to pickleball at the City of London Corporation’s Guildhall Yard
Richard Branson says ban on diesel and petrol-fuelled cars should be brought forward to 2025 June 7, 2018 Richard Branson, a new pioneer of electric cars, has said the ban on petrol and diesel vehicles should be brought forward from 2040 to 2025. Speaking at a Formula E event, the tycoon said the UK should follow in the paths of environmentally friendly countries Norway and the Netherlands, who have a 2025 ban in [...]
Full list of 31 House of Fraser closures includes Oxford Street and City of London locations June 7, 2018 House of Fraser's flagship Oxford Street store will close as part of the decision to shutter 31 stores which was confirmed this morning. The City of London will also lose its House of Fraser, which is currently situated on King William Street. Some of House of Fraser's stores have been subject to staggering business rates [...]
EU Withdrawal bill “a warm up” for Tory rebels as Trade and Customs bills set to return before summer recess June 7, 2018 The return of a critical piece of Brexit legislation to the Commons will be a "warm up" to the bigger battles faced by the government, MPs have warned. After being defeated 15 times in the House of Lords, the EU Withdrawal Bill is to be debated for a second time on 12 and 13 June. [...]
Oxford Street pedestrianisation plans scrapped by Westminster Council June 7, 2018 Plans for pedestrianisation of Oxford Street have effectively been scrapped by Westminster Council this evening. In a letter sent round to residents, Westminster council leader Nickie Aiken said there was a "strong democratic mandate" that the scheme was not backed by residents. "As a result, Westminster City Council has taken the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street [...]
House of Fraser confirms plans to close more than half of its stores June 7, 2018 House of Fraser is to close 31 of its 59 stores in a plan to dramatically restructure the chain, in a move its chief executive described as "grim". If approved by creditors, the move will result in the loss of 6,000 jobs: 2,000 House of Fraser employees and 4,000 brand concession staff. The full list of [...]
Time to clamp down on bogus self-employment if we are to prevent the looming pension crisis June 7, 2018 On the face of it, identifying self-employment should be fairly straight forward. In fact, the definition is the name. Do you work for yourself? If the answer is yes, then you are self-employed. But what appears as simple question has led to reams of paper and discussions. We are now reaching an inflection point and [...]
Mitie profits fall as outsourcing giant says scale of restructuring needed was ‘far more significant’ than expected June 7, 2018 Outsourcing giant Mitie this morning announced a six per cent fall in adjusted operating profit for the year amid "a challenging and, at times, difficult market". Mitie's chairman said "wholesale sector recalibration" is needed for the economics of facilities management to stay sustainable, but added that this is already in the works. Derek Mapp said [...]
Carillion collapse leaves taxpayer on the hook for nearly £150m June 7, 2018 The collapse of outsourcer Carillion will cost the taxpayer at least £148m, according to a report published today by the National Audit Office (NAO). The liquidation of Carillion is currently expected to cost £522m which includes a £50m payment for big four accountancy firm PwC which is acting as special manager. The net cost to [...]
Politicians must stand up for Britain’s post-Brexit future June 7, 2018 It is almost two years since the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Since the referendum, it is fair to say that the government’s Brexit strategy has been characterised by confusion, indecision, and political infighting – and that’s to put it mildly. With the clock ticking ahead of our scheduled exit in March, [...]
Prime Minister backs down on customs backstop deadline to keep Brexit secretary David Davis from resigning June 7, 2018 David Davis has backed down from his threats to resign after the Prime Minister added a date to the Brexit backstop proposal. According to the document published this afternoon, the government is proposing a UK-wide temporary customs arrangement with the EU in which the two sides will continue to trade on the same basis as [...]