Guess which British stalwart has just been named the UK’s favourite brand again February 27, 2017 British Airways may have hit some turbulence thanks to the weak pound, but when it comes to its brand value, the airline is sailing smoothly on, after it topped a ranking of the UK's favourite brands – again. It's the fourth year in a row BA has topped the Superbrands index, an annual survey of consumers' views [...]
Who are Grand Theft Auto’s new contenders on the block? February 27, 2017 | City Talk Imagine inventing an awesome digital game. It then reaches global domination in sales. The fruits of becoming a billionaire might even be incidental to the sheer satisfaction of creating a global best-seller. And especially so when you work hard and play even harder. £4.2bn in UK consumer spend The UK game industry is booming: According to the Association for [...]
Video game designer turned chief executive aims to propel his company into the elite February 27, 2017 As a Star Wars and science fiction enthusiast famous for co-authoring a “seminal” video game in the 1980s, it is perhaps unsurprising that David Braben does not come across as a typical chief executive. Sitting tie-less in the City offices of investment bank Numis on the morning of a trading update, the founder of Frontier [...]
One in five small businesses could close or sell up after business rates hike February 27, 2017 One in five small businesses could close down or sell their business after changes to business rates shoot up in April. Many small businesses are preparing to reduce staff costs to offset the rate rises, according to a new survey from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). More than half of those surveyed (54 per cent) expect [...]
The TaxPayers’ Alliance wants business rates to be reformed February 27, 2017 The TaxPayers' Alliance has suggested that business rates are a “bad tax” and could be replaced altogether. The campaign group proposed several reforms to the current system including automating revaluations annually to avoid so-called “cliff edges” when business rates suddenly jump. Today's recommendations come as a result of the first revaluation of business rates since [...]
Government raises awareness of workers’ rights ahead of minimum wage increase February 27, 2017 The government is preparing for the upcoming increases to the national minimum wage and living wage by kicking off an awareness-raising campaign today. The new initiative aims to increase low-paid workers' understanding of their rights to fair pay, following a poll showing that workers earning less that £15,000 a year were confused about what their [...]
America would gain nothing from cosying up to Putin’s declining Russia February 27, 2017 It has been three years since Russia’s stunning annexation of Crimea. It is the worst kept secret in Washington that the new administration of Donald Trump would like to turn the page on the US-Russian hostility that followed, in a transactional effort to remake US foreign policy. At the heart of Trump’s Jacksonian nationalism is his [...]
Days of promise lie ahead for British firms selling to booming Asian markets February 27, 2017 I returned yesterday from my latest trade mission to Hong Kong, mainland China and South Korea, which I undertook with the aim of exploring business opportunities across Asia for Britain. This is a crucial moment for the UK’s economic relationship with key overseas partners, in particular China, and expanding our economic ties in the most important [...]
Embed purpose into business so that it flourishes for the benefit of all February 27, 2017 UK business is at a critical juncture. Low investment and low productivity have been compounded by perceptions that their fruits are unequally shared. The government’s recent green papers on corporate governance and industrial strategy signal a serious intent to address these problems by revitalising the productivity of business, reorienting its focus onto the long run, [...]
Ministers probe plan to cut NI contributions for firms recruiting ex-offenders February 27, 2017 Ministers are exploring whether firms should be offered financial incentives to recruit ex-offenders. Options being considered include reducing National Insurance contributions if employers take on former prisoners. The plans emerged as part of the government's response to a report from the Work and Pensions Select Committee, which calls on ministers to provide more support to ex-offenders. Read More: Ex-migration chief [...]