O2 boss: Let’s go mobile as a quick fix for Britain’s broadband woes February 16, 2017 The rollout of 5G mobile networks in the UK can be delivered more quickly than fibre broadband and provide a boost of billions of pounds to Britain’s economy, according to a report released today. 5G, or the fifth generation mobile network, is scheduled to go live in the UK in 2020. It is expected to deliver faster internet [...]
Leaving Euratom without transitional arrangements will threaten the UK’s nuclear plan February 16, 2017 The future of Britain's nuclear reactors and fuel supplies are at risk if the government makes a clean break from the EU without making transitional arrangements, a new report argues. The government confirmed in January the UK would sever ties with the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) when it left the EU, causing concern about Britain's plans [...]
Founders not scroungers: There’s a business case for welcoming refugees February 16, 2017 As the legal battle rages on around Donald Trump’s chaotic travel ban and moratorium on refugees, you could be forgiven for thinking that the West faces an existential threat unparalleled in its history. Yet as politicians rush to placate and at times inflate public fears about the negative impact of refugees on jobs, public services [...]
Winning the battle for completely free trade post-Brexit will vastly increase UK prosperity February 16, 2017 Economists for Free Trade (of which I’m part) is launching today to make the case for the UK to run completely free trade once we leave the EU in 2019. Our aim is simple. We want Britain to lead the world on free trade. Our group has been formed to fight the battle which needs [...]
Join the debate over Britain’s vital new runway at Heathrow airport February 16, 2017 What is the world’s most connected city? New York? Paris? Tokyo? No. It’s London, which last May beat all those cities to top the inaugural Global Connectivity Ranking, with 351 direct international air destinations. Then in October, London was named the world’s most powerful city – the fifth consecutive year it had topped the Global [...]
As the EU sends an envoy to Greece to salvage the debt deal, would the Eurozone survive Grexit? February 16, 2017 Carsten Hesse, emerging European equity strategist at Berenberg, says Yes. Although tensions are flaring up again, it remains highly unlikely that Greece will leave the Eurozone. It has already done 80-90 per cent of the required fiscal repair and structural reforms and two-thirds of Greeks want to keep the euro. The current noise sounds like [...]
Firms are wising up on the need to reform executive pay February 16, 2017 To mere mortals, executive pay can sometimes seem out of this world. Gary Cohn, the former Goldman Sachs No2 who is now director of the National Economic Council in the US, was awarded $284m (£227m) by the Wall St bank upon departure. In the UK, the best paid chief executive is WPP’s Sir Martin Sorrell, whose [...]
Big five banks run up £100bn bill in bad loans and legal costs over the last five years February 16, 2017 The UK's big five banks, which report full-year results next week, have run up a bill of nearly £100bn over the last five years for a toxic mix of fines and bad loans according to a new analysis. However, the era of sour loans and megafines that dwarf the banks' dividend payouts could finally be [...]
Get your CV ready – the Supreme Court is hiring three new judges February 16, 2017 If last month's Brexit case made you want to call the shots on some of the most important legal cases in the country, the opportunity to do so has just presented itself. The Supreme Court has today kicked off the search for two new justices plus a new president of the court. The vacancies have [...]
Under-fire Deutsche Boerse boss set for grilling on insider trading probe and London location of stock exchange headquarters February 15, 2017 Deutsche Boerse chief executive Carsten Kengeter is set to endure some tough questioning tomorrow as he appears before investors, analysts and the media. The German company, which is seeking to tie-up its merger with the London Stock Exchange in the coming months, reported its preliminary full-year results for 2016 this evening. Net revenue at the [...]