Bruce Carnegie-Brown recommended as Lloyd’s of London chair February 16, 2017 Bruce Carnegie-Brown is to be recommended as the next chairman for Lloyd's of London, the insurance market. A Lloyd's Council meeting is expected to be convened shortly, probably one day early next week, to ratify the decision. The Council has historically followed the recommendation of the Nominations Committee on important appointments. The appointment is also [...]
Business groups have joined forces to fight the government’s business rates plans February 16, 2017 Thirteen business groups and industry associations including the Confederation of British Industry, British Chambers of Commerce and British Retail Consortium have formed a united front to fight the government's proposed changes to business rates. Commercial property taxes have been re-evaluated for the first time in seven years and are set to soar for many firms [...]
Scrap UK tariffs on imports and give the UK a four per cent boost in GDP say Brexit-backing wonks February 16, 2017 Scrapping all tariffs on imports into the UK would add as much as four per cent to GDP after Brexit, a group of economists has claimed. A cabal of Brexit-supporting academics argue that the end of all import tariffs would cut prices in the UK and improve both productivity and competition in the UK. The newly re-branded [...]
A senior Tory is leading a cross-party fightback to protect House of Commons speaker John Bercow February 16, 2017 A cross-party group of MPs is riding to the rescue of House of Commons speaker John Bercow, with Tory defence committee chair Julian Lewis at the forefront. Bercow has been facing repeated questions over his impartiality relating to Brexit this week, with some MPs also angered by his public vow to fight against Donald Trump making an [...]
Uber goes on a charm offensive by offering drivers free English courses and tips on how to make more money February 16, 2017 Uber is making efforts to improve its app for UK drivers, as part of a new charm offensive, including offering free English courses. Transport for London (TfL) delayed its new English tests until September, but Uber has said it will offer free courses for its drivers ahead of then. The ride-hailing app will also now allow [...]
Addison Lee’s tech push pays off as car firm says revenues are on track to rise 40 per cent February 16, 2017 Addison Lee expects revenues to rise 40 per cent this year, following the firm’s £100m investment in technology, including developing an app. The tech push has been part of the private car hire firm's efforts to bolster its position against the rise of the likes of Uber. Addison Lee said its executive car bookings are [...]
ECB’s Benoit Coeure calls for removal of non-tariff barriers for trade with Europe February 16, 2017 The removal of non-tariff barriers to trade could give a big boost to trade, according to an influential European central banker. Benoit Coeure, a member of the executive board of the European Central Bank (ECB), said “gains from trade are likely to be quite large” if countries can remove impediments to free trade. In a [...]
Business secretary Greg Clark heads for Paris talks with French government and PSA over possible GM deal February 16, 2017 Business secretary Greg Clark has travelled to Paris for talks with the French government and PSA over the french company's prospective takeover General Motors’ European Opel operations, including Vauxhall. Clark is to meet with French industry minister Christophe Sirigue and PSA just hours after Unite’s Len McCluskey said he was seeking “urgent talks” with PSA. The union leader [...]
99 problems? Not for this M&A bank, which recently advised on Jay Z deal February 16, 2017 An investment bank which recently advised on a Jay Z deal has reported record revenues for 2016. GCA has reported a turnover of £148m and earnings before interest and taxation of £27m for the year to 31 December. Read more: Boutique investment bank Zeus triumphs in biggest IPO of 2017 so far The results are the first [...]
These are the energy providers rolling customers onto higher tariffs at the end of the month – and the cheapest deals February 16, 2017 British households could be hit by an extra £256 added to their energy bills when several tariffs expire at the end of the month. On the 28 February, 27 fixed dual fuel tariffs are set to end from suppliers including Extra Energy, Npower, and EDF, meaning customers could be rolled onto their supplier's standard variable tariff, new research shows. Of those, 25 will increase rates [...]