Virgin Active offloads 16 fitness clubs to David Lloyd Leisure February 7, 2017 Virgin Active, the eponymous gym chain, has offloaded 16 of its clubs in the UK to David Lloyd Leisure for an undisclosed sum. The fitness firm will continue to operate 45 clubs in the UK, 33 of which are in London. Last year, Virgin Active sold a further 35 UK gyms to Nuffield Health, a [...]
Commons speaker John Bercow has defended his controversial Trump intervention February 7, 2017 House of Commons speaker John Bercow has defended his controversial intervention over Donald Trump speaking in Westminster. Bercow faced criticism after telling MPs he would fight any plans for Trump to address MPs and peers within the Palace of Westminster. However, speaking to MPs in the House of Commons, Bercow maintained he was “commenting on a matter [...]
It’s not working out: MPs call for rethink of fraud squad’s blockbuster funding February 7, 2017 Funding for the fraud squad needs to be overhauled, as the agency now leans too heavily on financing intended solely for its mega cases, MPs have argued today. Stephen Timms, the Labour MP who brought this morning's Westminster Hall debate on the funding of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), remarked the agency had recently shifted "away [...]
More than 90 per cent of European goods could clear customs within seconds after Brexit February 7, 2017 Customs clearance for European goods in the aftermath of Brexit could still take just seconds if the UK secures tariff-free trade with the continent, one of the UK's most senior customs officials has said. Addressing parliament's Treasury committee earlier today, an HMRC official said that while tariff-free trade with the EU would require customs declarations, the manner and [...]
Ascential buy: FTSE 250 media company behind Cannes Lions festival buys $69m US firm February 7, 2017 Ascential, the FTSE 250-listed media company formerly known as Emap, has agreed to buy US advisory and business services group MediaLink. The company behind the Cannes Lions advertising festival has agreed an initial cash consideration for MediaLink of $69m (£55m) plus future earnouts. The target company, which was founded in 2003 and has four offices [...]
The FTSE 250 has closed at a record high after an MPC member hinted at an impending rate rise February 7, 2017 The FTSE 250 closed at a record high and the pound surged by more than a cent in afternoon trading, after a member of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC) hinted at an impending interest rate rise. The FTSE 250 rose to 18,559.7 points, one per cent higher, while the pound was sent [...]
Is speaker John Bercow an embarrassment to the House of Commons for refusing to allow Trump to address parliamentarians? February 7, 2017 Alex Deane, a City of London common councilman, says Yes. In some ways this question is redundant as John Bercow has been a standing embarrassment to our Parliament since he became speaker, lavishing great chunks of cash on, well, his own comforts immediately after being elected – mostly by mischievous Labour MPs, but without the [...]
Rio Tinto is gifting a diamond deposit to the Madhya Pradesh government to cut costs February 7, 2017 Rio Tinto said it will gift an Indian diamond project to the government of Madhya Pradesh after stopping production there last year in order to cut costs. Under a government order signed last month, the Indian government said it will accept ownership of the Bunder mine and take on responsibility for the assets – meaning all land, [...]
St Modwen has found a buyer for its Nine Elms site February 7, 2017 St Modwen's share price climbed today after it said it had found a purchaser for its Nine Elms site. The developer's share price was up two per cent at time of writing – even though the company also reported a slide in profits. The figures In its results for the year ending 30 November, St [...]
Statoil’s shares slip on disappointing fourth quarter results, but its outlook remains positive February 7, 2017 Norwegian oil major Statoil today reported disappointing fourth-quarter earnings due in part to low oil prices. The figures The company was hit by a $2.3bn (£1.86bn) impairment charge due to reduced long-term expectations for oil prices. This impacted net operating income, which was a loss of $1.9bn compared to gains of $152m for the same period in 2015 and analysts' [...]