UK steel is globally insignificant and unviable: Taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to shoulder its losses April 5, 2016 With the Port Talbot steelworks up for sale, Tata saying the value of its operations are “almost zero”, and a £485m pension deficit, prospects for the plant’s thousands of workers look grim. But while this is certainly a local tragedy, some perspective is needed. Globally, the UK is responsible for 0.7 per cent of crude [...]
Will the Panama Papers leak be the beginning of the end for offshore financial centres? April 5, 2016 Robert Palmer, head of the Global Witness Money Laundering Campaign, says Yes. The Panama Papers lay bare how corruption, tax evasion and a whole host of other crimes are made possible by offshore financial centres. And the UK is deeply involved. Over half the companies named in the leak are registered in the UK’s tax havens, [...]
EU referendum: Why I identified 23 May as the date of maximum pre-referendum fear – and why it offers a great opportunity to buy up commercial property April 4, 2016 It is often said that if you repeat something enough, you will eventually come to believe it, even if you have forgotten its underlying truth. Saying it presents the risk of being called to account – as has been aptly demonstrated recently in the EU referendum debate. One such statement that I have made repeatedly is that [...]
Why the future of London’s black cabs is green April 4, 2016 London stands out as a beacon for cities all over the world. It is a city built on the strength of the diversity of its peoples, businesses, architecture and infrastructure in a process of reinvention and renewal that almost uniquely, successfully melds the old and the new. With just over a month until voting day for London’s [...]
Closing the Gap – will gender pay gap reporting be effective? April 4, 2016 The obligation for employers of 250 or more employees to report on the gender pay gap is scheduled to become law in October 2016, with the first of the submitted data to be published by April 2018. As the national gender pay gap hovers around 19 per cent, many employers are likely to be disclosing a gender-related pay [...]
With ex-Arsenal footballer Sol Campbell coming out in favour of a Brexit, the Leave camp must now tackle mixed messages April 4, 2016 Sol Campbell is used to dividing opinion among Londoners. Many of our city’s football fans worship the former Arsenal star for helping to deliver several Premier League titles and FA Cups to Highbury – and yet thousands of others still resent him for walking out on Tottenham Hotspur to join their fierce local rivals. A [...]
Brexit: Entrepreneurs are risk-takers – but voting for Brexit is a step too far April 4, 2016 With most of the FTSE 100 supporting Remain and a number of entrepreneurs endorsing Brexit, some have suggested that the business community is split between corporates who support In and entrepreneurs who favour Out. But I don’t think this crude dichotomy is accurate and, as an entrepreneur who supports Remain, I believe that the UK’s [...]
Why the City’s impressive history of diplomacy is more vital than ever today April 4, 2016 This coming Wednesday marks one of the most important events of the year at the Mansion House when I host the ambassadors and high commissioners to the UK, at the annual Easter Banquet. As well as being an important fixture on the diplomatic calendar, it also affords an opportunity for me to thank the Foreign [...]
Why America must now save tragic Europe from itself April 4, 2016 Thessaloniki – I sit, as I write this, perched atop my glorious hotel, in this lovely, vibrant northern Greek city, staring lovingly into the wine-dark sea that is Homer’s Aegean. At the height of the euro crisis last year, things became so bad that café life – the glory of modern Greece – ground to a [...]
Are global markets underestimating the strength of the US economy? April 4, 2016 David Morrison, senior market strategist at Spread Co, says Yes. While GDP growth is somewhat tepid (annualised, the economy grew 1.4 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2015), there is evidence that the US economy is picking up steam. Just last week we saw strong numbers for pending home sales, Chicago PMI and the all-important [...]