London Assembly calls on Grayling to reconsider Transport for London’s proposals to take over Southeastern December 7, 2016 The London Assembly has passed an urgent motion calling on the transport secretary to reconsider his decision not to devolve franchise management to Transport for London (TfL). Leader of the Labour group on the London Assembly, Len Duvall, who proposed the motion, said the issue was "far too important" to be used for party political purposes. Duvall said [...]
Investment in Legal & General’s build to rent fund hits £1bn December 7, 2016 Legal & General's build to rent (BTR) fund has attracted £170m in investment, bringing its total value to £1bn. Major institutions have now invested in the open-ended fund, according to Legal & General Investment Management Real Assets (LGIM Real Assets). The investors were not disclosed. Read more: Revealed: the luxury London properties with price cuts of [...]
Donald Trump has beaten Nigel Farage to be named Time magazine’s Person of the Year December 7, 2016 Donald Trump has been named Time magazine's Person of the Year -the person deemed to have "most influenced the year’s news, for better or worse". The US President-elect snatched the top spot ahead of his buddy from this side of the pond, Nigel Farage, who also made the shortlist this year, for having "[positioned] the referendum [...]
Challenged becomes the challenger: An established asset lender just got a banking licence from the FCA December 7, 2016 Regulators today gave Aim-quoted lender Private & Commercial the green light to operate as a fully-fledged challenger. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) approved Private & Commercial's application for a banking licence, meaning it can open its doors to taking cash deposits. Read more: Digital challenger bank N26 has pulled back from its UK launch plans [...]
Kew Gardens beats the Tower of London and the London Eye as the city’s top attraction December 7, 2016 Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, Big Ben – these might be the first London landmarks tourists want to visit, but expectations were smashed this year as The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew won the top spot as London's best attraction for 2016. More than 23,000 public votes were cast and a panel of industry experts weighed in on top attractions [...]
Three contractors on Crossrail project are to be prosecuted over the death of a worker December 7, 2016 Three contractors on the Crossrail project are to be prosecuted over the death of a worker and injuries to two others, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has announced. BAM Nuttall Limited, Ferrovial Agroman and Kier Infrastructure and Overseas Ltd will be prosecuted in relation to three incidents that took place during the construction of the new [...]
Peabody and Family Mosaic housing associations are merging December 7, 2016 Peabody and Family Mosaic housing associations are merging to create a new organisation with assets worth £6bn. The merged housing association, which will be named Peabody, will be responsible for 55,220 homes across London and the South East. Read more: Revealed: the luxury London properties with price cuts of over 30 per cent The new [...]
The SNP and the Lib Dems won’t back Theresa May’s Brexit amendment today December 7, 2016 More than 60 MPs are set to fight an amended motion backing the government's timetable for Brexit later today. The Lib Dems and the Scottish National Party have both said they will reject the motion in the House of Commons, which calls on the government to publish a Brexit plan ahead of the triggering of [...]
Leaked rail letter: Grayling said he wanted suburban rail “out of the clutches” of Labour December 7, 2016 The transport secretary has been criticised for "political point scoring" and faced calls to resign, after a leaked letter said he wanted to "keep suburban rail services out of the clutches of any future Labour mayor". Yesterday Chris Grayling rejected Sadiq Khan's bid to take over commuter routes, saying the mayor hadn't proved his alternative would [...]
The Liberal Democrats have been hit with the largest possible penalty over 2015 election spending December 7, 2016 The Liberal Democrats have been hit with a £20,000 fine by the UK's election watchdog. The fine is the maximum possible penalty the Electoral Commission can issue, with the watchdog claiming that more than 300 payments totaling £184,676 were excluded from party spending returns. The Lib Dems suffered from “systemic failures” during last year's General [...]