Perfect storm for non-executive directors: Why the era of “jobs for the boys” is long gone October 12, 2015 The role of non-executive directors (NEDs) was long considered something of an easy ride. Before the crisis, it was commonplace for City professionals, often in the twilight of their careers, to sit on a number of Plc boards simultaneously, fulfilling their duties simply by attending a small number of board meetings and providing appropriately-timed nuggets [...]
EU referendum: Is former M&S boss Stuart Rose a blessing or a curse as leader of the campaign for Britain to remain in the European Union? October 12, 2015 Tim Bale, professor of politics at Queen Mary, University of London, says Yes Brits in general do not do the vision thing, especially when it comes to Europe. Sure, we want to get on reasonably well with the neighbours, as long as we’re not continually told by them what to do. But in the end, [...]
EU referendum Yes campaign Britain Stronger in Europe makes for strange bedfellows – The City View October 11, 2015 General Sir Peter Anthony Wall GCB CBE DL is a former head of the British army and a graduate of Cambridge and Sandhurst. Megan Dunn is a graduate of Aberdeen University and current president of the National Union of Students. It’s hard to imagine the circumstances under which the two would meet, let alone share [...]
Obama’s TPP free trade deal triumph could prove all too fleeting October 11, 2015 Well, he did it. Barack Obama’s presidency is ending with a bang and not a whimper. The just concluded Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal between 12 countries ringing the Pacific Ocean amounts to the most significant free trade accord in memory. First, there is the economic heft of the signatories to consider: they account for [...]
Why Andrew Adonis’s new Infrastructure Commission is an economic masterstroke October 11, 2015 George Osborne’s appointment of Andrew Adonis, a former Labour transport secretary, to head up a new National Infrastructure Commission last week was highlighted by many as a political masterstroke. To some commentators, this is a reinforcement of the idea that it is the Conservatives who are on the vaguely-defined centre ground. But the economic argument [...]
Employee exodus: The housing crisis is now a dire threat to the future of London’s businesses October 11, 2015 Tomorrow will see a key intervention in the housing debate. Business leaders from across the capital will launch a major campaign called Fifty Thousand Homes. That’s the number of houses we need to build a year to keep up with London’s growing population. Housing costs are becoming a problem for employers as much as [...]
As the refugee crisis continues, and Cameron’s renegotiation rumbles on, is the balance tipping towards Brexit? October 11, 2015 Brian Monteith, communications director of Global Britain, says Yes. The Prime Minister’s commitment to an EU referendum started as a tactical ploy to kill off Ukip and keep his party united. It has failed. He had already broken his promise to have a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty and badly needed to recover credibility with [...]
Migration is now a fact of life… deal with it – The City View October 8, 2015 The world is undergoing a major population shift that will reshape economic development for decades. That’s the view of the World Bank and the IMF, which this week challenged world leaders to adapt their policies to a new reality that combines dramatic demographic trends with a movement of people that’s only just begun. [...]
China must pander to its rising middle class to see off this crisis October 8, 2015 China has emerged as the world’s second largest economy, with its growth breaking every record, even surpassing that seen in Germany and Japan after the end of World War Two. Since 2010, China has represented over 50 per cent of the world’s incremental GDP growth, with its fortunes carrying enormous implications for international investors and [...]
Tax competition and transport investment: Why business rate reform is a big boon for London October 8, 2015 Local government finance is at the best of times unlikely to set the pulse of a City A.M. reader racing. The way in which our councils collect business rates, and how this is dished out by Whitehall, is a convoluted process to say the least, and hardly the most exciting corner of public policy. All [...]