The EU’s refugee crisis failures are a mark of its absolute decline February 15, 2016 Once lost, respect in the international affairs arena is almost impossible to regain. This past week, an extraordinary exchange was reported which starkly highlights the EU’s absolute decline, and the contempt with which it is increasingly held. At the G20 summit, held in November 2015 in the lovely Turkish resort city of Antalya, an exasperated [...]
Fraud damages our competitiveness: There must be no darkened corners in the City February 15, 2016 "Fraud shames our financial system” said the home secretary Theresa May last week, as she launched the Joint Fraud Taskforce, which aims to clamp down on the volume of fraud we face. I was very glad to host the launch at Mansion House, because our government, regulators and law enforcers should know that they have [...]
Axe the tobacco tax escalator: Punitive taxation of smoking is just fuelling the black market February 15, 2016 When tobacco duty goes up, as it invariably does every year, anti-smoking groups either celebrate or moan that it hasn’t gone up enough. Determined to force people to quit smoking, they ignore the impact increasing prices have on the UK’s 8m smokers, many of whom are from poorer backgrounds. The lack of empathy for adults [...]
After a torrid start to 2016 for markets, should we expect the rest of the year to be just as bad? February 15, 2016 Paul Markham, global equities portfolio manager at Newton, says Yes. Given uncertainty in the global outlook, the disconnect between the performance of markets and underlying economies since 2009 and distortions in financial systems engendered by increasingly unorthodox monetary policies, 2016 may be a year investors choose to forget. While market volatility will persist and rallies could be [...]
As Addison Lee announces price cuts, the taxi battle between Uber and London’s black cabs shows perfect market competition is a long way off February 12, 2016 The idea of perfect market competition has exercised the minds of economists for centuries. In theory it would feature the presence of multiple small sellers; a homogenous product; an inability for any one firm to influence the price and; complete information. On this set of criteria, how does the London taxi and private hire market [...]
Ignore EU scaremongers: Why Britain would thrive post-Brexit February 12, 2016 There is no doubt that the forthcoming referendum on Brexit is of the greatest political significance. For me, it is a choice between remaining in an increasingly dysfunctional EU, as it struggles with the migration crisis, ponders further Eurozone integration and worries about sluggish growth, or leaving and thus regaining control over our future. There [...]
How blockchain will save us from the perils of central bank price fixing February 12, 2016 Many countries have experimented with price fixing and central planning over the last century. Right now, Venezuela’s government is fixing the prices of many products. This has resulted in widespread shortages of goods which we, as the lucky inhabitants of semi-free economies, take for granted. Price fixing has failed in every area of the economy [...]
Google tax row: It’s high time MPs grew up February 12, 2016 The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has become a vehicle for grandstanding, showboating and political profile-building over recent years. It was perhaps unsurprising, then, to see the latest cohort of MPs on the much-feared PAC sink to a new low during yesterday’s questioning of Matt Brittin and Tom Hutchinson, Google’s EMEA president and vice president responsible [...]
UK steel crisis: As business secretary Sajid Javid faces pressure to save thousands of job he deserves credit for taking a principled stance February 11, 2016 Should we slam heavy tariffs on Chinese imports in the wake of Britain’s steel manufacturing crisis? For some, the answer is a simple “yes” – the government has a responsibility to defend our industries and jobs, so they say. For others, the answer is a straightforward “no” – protectionism, while helping some local businesses in [...]
The EU referendum will intensify calls for a smaller state – whatever the final result February 11, 2016 The next four months will shape UK politics and economics for the next decade and beyond. Based on polling today, the electorate is likely to reject Brexit. But views can shift, and a few high-profile resignations from the Cabinet – throwing careers to the sword – might begin to move public opinion towards the exit door. [...]