A London Christmas Tube map has been created with all the best of the capital’s festive attractions December 8, 2016 Grinches be gone, and festive fans set your eyes on this. A rather spectacular Christmas Tube map has been created to showcase all the best of the capital's Christmas attractions, from the Harry Potter Shop for some last-minute gifts to Fortnum & Mason for swankier presents. There's the Southbank Winter Festival to Christmas at the Imperial [...]
TfL plans to save £800m as it sheds management layers and cuts jobs to deliver mayor’s spending ambitions December 8, 2016 Transport for London (TfL) has unveiled its five-year business plan to achieve the big investments Sadiq Khan has been announcing – and it involves trimming jobs to save £800m a year. The mayor has unveiled funding for a range of issues from £770m on London's cyclists to £200m on step-free access on the Underground, along with [...]
Small Business Saturday spending was up 15 per cent this year to £717m December 8, 2016 Fans of independent shops, rejoice! For Small Business Saturday shows no sign of running out of steam just yet. The fourth annual day was the biggest yet – at least according to new figures from American Express. A survey taken 36 hours following Small Business Saturday on 3 December, found around £717m was spent with small [...]
Conservative MP Bob Neill wants Grayling to resign over “cynical, party political move” on suburban rail services December 8, 2016 A leaked letter from Chris Grayling to former mayor Boris Johnson saying he wanted to keep suburban rail services "out of the clutches" of any future Labour mayor has prompted a flurry of criticism. And at the forefront of it, Bob Neill, former Conservative Party vice chairman and MP for Bromley and Chislehurst, has called for [...]
Sports Direct just bought a new corporate plane for $51.1m despite reporting its profits halved December 8, 2016 Sports Direct announced its profits had halved today, but that didn't stop the company from buying a brand new jet for $51.1m (£40.4m). The new corporate plane will join the company's corporate helicopter, a fleet of vehicles, a Best Western hotel and "several houses in and around Shirebrook" as the company's corporate assets and facilities. Read [...]
Ocado reports sales growth in final quarter December 8, 2016 Ocado has reported growth in sales and order numbers during the 16 weeks to 27 November, with year end sales up 15.1 per cent – but shares in the firm dropped almost four per cent at the market open. The grocery delivery service said group sales were up 14.5 per cent in the fourth quarter, from [...]
National Grid is planning a special dividend after the £14bn sale of its gas network December 8, 2016 Subsidiaries of China and Qatar's sovereign wealth funds are among the investors who have bought a 61 per cent stake in National Grid’s gas pipelines for £13.8bn, which will see £4bn returned to shareholders. National Grid said it had sold a 61 per cent equity interest in its NG Gas Distribution to a consortium of investors called the Quad [...]
Sports Direct shares fall as it unveils 57 per cent profit hit on weak sterling December 8, 2016 Shares in troubled retailer Sports Direct fell as much as six per cent in early trading, after it revealed pre-tax profits had halved in its first half thanks to weak sterling. Underlying profit before tax dropped 57 per cent to £71.6m from £166.4m, it said, while underlying earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation fell 33.5 [...]
Stop looking for easy solutions to complex problems December 8, 2016 "That idea is so simple it’s brilliant" is often uttered as a judgement of its legitimacy. We may wonder whether its simplicity is its brilliance. Or perhaps it’s just our natural desire for the 80/20 rule – that is, for many events, roughly 80 per cent of the effects come from 20 per cent of [...]
London’s housing market stagnated in November as the rest of the country recovered December 8, 2016 London house prices have been stagnating as prices across the UK have started to recover, chartered surveyors have said. According to a survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics), the number of prospective buyers in the UK housing market increased in November, leading to a rise in sales. Read more: London Assembly demands Grayling [...]