The Notebook: Kokou Agbo-Bloua on humanity’s obsession with fire, the moral dilemmas raised by AI and why China’s outlook is a case of ‘heavy cloud, no rain’ September 18, 2023 Today, it’s Societe Generale’s global head of economics,cross-asset and quant research Kokou Agbo-Bloua with the Notebook pen The Red Flower and future energy We all remember the enchanting lyrics of the Monkey Song, ‘I wanna be like you’, from Walt Disney’s 1967 film The Jungle Book. In the movie, Mowgli is captured by a troop [...]
Independent bookshops are thriving – as long as they offer more than just books September 18, 2023 Morocco Bound is a lesson in adaptability. Even its owner “[doesn’t] know what to call it these days”. Music venue, community space, workshop facility hosting poetry slams, comedy nights, life drawing sessions and more, it was – originally – a book shop. “I’m an architect,” Jonathan Dransfield, the owner, tells me. An architect who wrote [...]
Basic competence a first step – then Tories can afford ideology September 18, 2023 Liz Truss has been accused of many things over the past year, but nobody could level any accusations about her willingness to front up. Many politicians would have retired, tail very much between legs, to the outer reaches of our public life and sought the quiet life. Not Truss, who today will reassert her position [...]
Proton boss: UK banks won’t function if encryption disappears September 17, 2023 The issue of encryption has become a pressing conundrum for both tech companies and lawmakers involved in the UK’s Online Safety Bill in recent months. Now at least they agree that there is currently no viable technology to access messages without compromising user privacy. Encryption is a crucial way of turning messages into an unreadable [...]
BBC Studios relaunching international news site amid licence fee freeze September 17, 2023 The BBC is gearing up for an expansion in the US market as it seeks to bolster its revenues amid challenges at home. BBC Studios, the broadcaster’s main commercial arm, is preparing to relaunch its advertising-supported news website in North America, ahead of next year’s US presidential election. Following its debut there, the revamped website [...]
70 per cent drop in cartel whistleblowing to CMA since 2018 should cause ‘concern’ September 17, 2023 The UK’s competition watchdog should be concerned by a 70 per cent drop in whistleblowing on illegal cartels in the last five years, top lawyers have said. A freedom of information (FOI) request from law firm RPC showed the staggering drop in reporting, down from 1,442 calls in 2017 to just 427 in 2022, City [...]
The winners and losers of London’s work-from-home economy: The City, the Wharf and the Burbs September 17, 2023 The pandemic may have ended, but the lasting work-from-home culture has changed how people splash their cash – and invariably it’s on a Thursday now. Empty restaurants, but heaving happy hours in pubs, is the perhaps biggest shift for the hospitality sector as consumers change their habits to meet a new work-life balance. A new [...]
Most London holidaymakers want to avoid flying to their next holiday, new stats reveal September 17, 2023 2 in 5 of us want to avoid flying on our next holiday, new data generated by the sustainable travel company Byway reveal. And that number rises when it comes to those of us living in London. 42% of British holidaymakers are looking for alternative ways to travel to reduce their carbon footprint, and that [...]
More than 9.6m current accounts switched since service launched a decade ago September 16, 2023 A service which enables current account holders to ditch and switch to a new provider quickly and smoothly is celebrating its 10th birthday. More than 9.6m switches have been counted since the Current Account Switch Service (Cass) launched on September 16, 2013. The free-to-use service can be used by people, small businesses and small charities [...]
Jackie and Spencer filmmaker returns with surreal, comic El Conde September 16, 2023 Oscar winning filmmaker Pablo Larrain is best known to English language audiences for his portrayal of famous women in history, telling the story of a famous First Lady in 2016’s Jackie, and imagining the torment of a princess in 2021’s Spencer. It’s a famous male leader, however, that becomes the subject of his latest work, [...]