As she vows to renew the Special Relationship, is Theresa May right to be cosying up to Donald Trump? January 27, 2017 Harriet Maltby, head of policy research, Prosperity Index at the Legatum Institute, says Yes. Allies never agree on everything; time to stop pretending that Theresa May’s desire to build a good relationship with Donald Trump means accepting every decision he makes. It is not May’s job to moralise in public about Trump’s choices, it is [...]
US President Donald Trump says he’ll negotiate trade deal with the UK himself January 27, 2017 US President Donald Trump says he will personally discuss the framework for a post-Brexit trade deal with Prime Minister Theresa May today, having failed to appoint a commerce secretary since moving into the White House. “I’m meeting with the PM tomorrow but I don’t have my commerce secretary and they wanna talk trade – so I’ll [...]
Moody’s unable to tolerate BT’s weaker operating trading figures January 26, 2017 A leading ratings agency has cut the outlook of telecoms giant BT after revealing its patience had run out. On the eve of BT revealing its third quarter trading figures, Moody's changed the group's outlook from stable to negative. The news comes as another blow to the FTSE 100 firm after it revealed on Tuesday a £530m accounting [...]
Pressure is building on the government to seize control over Southern Rail January 26, 2017 Pressure is building on the operator behind the controversial Southern Rail service after Downing Street yesterday warned of the need for improvement. Reports emerged earlier this week claiming the Department for Transport was considering stripping the struggling service from Govia Thameslink Railway. Last year GTR filed a “force majeure” claim with ministers, blaming poor service [...]
Cinema chain Vue plans £6.6m refurbishment of Leicester Square flagship January 26, 2017 Cinema company Vue Entertainment is planning a £6.6m refurbishment of its Leicester Square flagship. The West End venue, which first opened in October 1938, is planning to upgrade its seating, sound systems and introduce new retail offerings. Read more: Cinema chain Odeon's owner AMC buys Nordic Cinemas Group Guests will have a choice of fully-reclining [...]
Ad giant Publicis Groupe has named top boss Maurice Levy’s sucessor January 26, 2017 The French advertising giant Publicis Groupe has named a successor to long-standing top dog Maurice Levy. Arthur Sadoun, a Publicis insider, will take over as chief executive and chairman at the firm from 1 June. He comes from leading the group's creative agencies under Publicis Communications, which include Saatchi & Saatchi and BBH. The nominating committee said there was no [...]
EU Robin Hood financial transactions tax is “within reach” if politicians can agree says diplomat January 26, 2017 A financial transactions tax – also known as a Robin Hood tax – on trades is “within reach” according to the EU’s commissioner on tax, which could represent a barrier to the UK’s post-Brexit trade deal with the bloc. The original proposal was for a 0.1 per cent tax on trades in shares and bonds [...]
Royal Bank of Scotland no closer to privatisation: US verdict key to providing clarity, say sources January 26, 2017 Uncertainty over the level of fines to be levied on Royal Bank of Scotland is blocking the pathway towards privatisation, despite news the state-back lender has upped its provisions for penalties by £3.1bn. RBS today revealed it had set aside more money to cover fines relating to the issuing and underwriting of US residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). [...]
Louis Vuitton and Moet & Chandon owner reveals 2016 was a vintage year January 26, 2017 While last year might not have been everyone's favourite 12 months, luxury brand owner LVMH revealed "an excellent performance in 2016", posting solid revenue and cashflow growth. The owner of a variety of posh labels including Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior said organic revenue growth during 2016 was six per cent with sales totalling €37.6bn (£31.9m). Read [...]
Shadow minister Tulip Siddiq quits Labour’s frontbench over Article 50 plan January 26, 2017 Labour shadow minister Tulip Siddiq has resigned from her party's frontbench over plans to order MPs to back an Article 50 Bill. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said earlier today that he would impose a "three line whip" on the Bill, meaning all of his MPs would be expected to back the legislation, which will grant [...]