UK sets up new trade group with India to prepare for future deal following Brexit September 8, 2016 Britain has set up a new working group with India to help prepare for possible trade deals after Brexit has completed. The UK can't agree trade deals with other countries until it has formally exited the EU, a process that could take years. However, the government has said that won't stop it from preparing for the [...]
Nearly three per cent of UK workers have reported they are now on a zero-hours contract September 8, 2016 Almost three per cent of the UK's workforce has reported being employed on a zero-hours contract basis in their main job, according to new figures. Data released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the number of people on zero-hours contracts, which do not guarantee staff a certain number of hours' work, rose by [...]
Why we’re backing Britain’s resilient and optimistic small businesses September 8, 2016 In the run up to June’s referendum vote, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) became a focal point for both Leave and Remain camps, with each side claiming the support of small business owners for their different visions of Britain’s future. This focus on SMEs was unsurprising – these businesses are the nuts and bolts of British [...]
Forget trade deals: Unilaterally tearing down our tariffs would be Britain’s Berlin Wall moment September 7, 2016 The Aussies are itching for a free trade deal and the Prime Minister is said to want to lead the world against protectionism. For most people such issues are economic, pure and simple. Unfortunately, what is missing is the moral dimension, which needs to be far better understood. Adam Smith argued that “all commerce that [...]
Britain must be boldly pro-enterprise to master the Fourth Industrial Revolution September 7, 2016 Business leaders and politicians gathered in Davos at this year’s World Economic Forum annual meeting were told a revolution had started. Not a bloody revolution, but an economic and strategic one, with its impact felt across every industry and every country. This unprecedented, disruptive fusion of digital, physical and biological technological developments has been dubbed [...]
London jobs market falters as UK returns to pre-referendum patterns September 7, 2016 The London jobs market is still suffering in the wake of the UK's vote to leave the European Union, despite employment growing across the rest of the country, a new survey has revealed. The monthly jobs monitor from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), out today, showed appointments of permanent staff in August dropped for [...]
US economy struggles to impress over the summer September 7, 2016 Growth in the US remained sluggish over the summer, according to the latest economic indicator out of the world's biggest economy this afternoon. The Markit purchasing managers' index (PMI), which tracks activity across the economy, came in at an uninspiring 51.5 in August, bang in line with expectations but down from 51.8 in July. The news settled [...]
GDP estimates show UK economy still growing after Brexit vote September 7, 2016 The UK economy is still on track to avoid a contraction in the crucial third quarter of the year, analysts at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (Niesr) have argued. The think tank's closely watched GDP estimates suggest the UK grew by 0.3 per cent in the three months to August. This marks a slowdown [...]
Australian trade minister hits the brakes on quick-fire trade deal September 7, 2016 Just hours after announcing the UK and Australia have opened talks on a free trade deal, the Australian trade minister has dismissed the idea of a deal being signed straight after the UK leaves the EU. Steven Ciobo, counterpart to UK trade secretary Liam Fox, told the BBC Today programme this morning: "The UK is [...]
Think tank hits back at businesses trying to neuter Osborne’s living wage September 7, 2016 A leading think tank has urged Theresa May to ignore the complaints of businesses and push ahead with raising the national living wage (NLW) over the coming years. The Resolution Foundation has today called on the prime minister to “stick to her guns”, warning watering down the policy could result in low-paid workers losing out [...]