As German exports see their biggest slump in six years, is the Eurozone’s largest economy heading for the rocks? October 8, 2015 Chris Bailey, European strategist at Raymond James, says Yes “There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full” – Henry A Kissinger. His observation may already have been mentioned to Angela Merkel, who is battling with a refugee crisis, festering Eurozone regional challenges, and a growing malaise in German corporate life. Yesterday’s [...]
London’s housing problem doesn’t need another government scheme: It’s time to slaughter sacred green belt cow – The City View October 7, 2015 During his time at 10 Downing Street, David Cameron has presided over a number of deeply complex attempts at helping Generation Rent climb the first rung of the housing ladder. NewBuy came first, guaranteeing 95 per cent mortgages for first-time buyers on new-build properties. That was followed by Help-to-Buys one and two: respectively, equity loans [...]
David Cameron’s speech: Business should get behind the PM’s fight for real opportunity October 7, 2015 Politics has been full of surprises this year. The surprise re-election of the Conservative Party with an outright majority in May was followed by Jeremy Corbyn’s surprisingly decisive victory in the Labour leadership vote. And yesterday the Prime Minister showed that he too retains the capacity for the unexpected. A heavy focus on national [...]
Tory party conference 2015: David Cameron is a slave to defunct economics with his One Nation big state conservatism October 7, 2015 Keynes was famously quoted as saying that “practical men, who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist”. Those words could not be more apposite than at present. David Cameron and George Osborne appear to be plotting a pragmatic economic policy, instead of an [...]
Sadiq Khan: London needs a relentlessly pro-growth mayor to keep the capital open for business October 7, 2015 London’s economic success is built on its openness to the world. Our unrivalled connections with the markets of Europe, the Commonwealth and emerging economies allow our businesses to thrive. The mayor of London plays a crucial role in negotiating access to new markets, acting as a salesman for the capital as a safe haven [...]
As Fallon warns Russia is making the Syria situation more dangerous, should Britain be wading into the quagmire? October 7, 2015 Dr Alan Mendoza, executive director of The Henry Jackson Society, says Yes There is a strategic imperative for greater British involvement in Syria at this juncture. Our failure to confront President Bashar al-Assad two years ago, when he used chemical weapons in breach of international norms, has encouraged him to keep murdering civilians. Islamic State [...]
Conservative party conference 2015: Race to succeed the PM has just turned nasty – The City View October 6, 2015 When David Cameron finishes his speech at the Conservative conference in Manchester today, he will look down at his cabinet ministers as they clap and smile, and he will know that many of them now picture themselves in his place. The Prime Minister fired the starting gun on the race to succeed to him when [...]
Jamaica reparations and chief executive pay: Two sides of the same rent seeking coin October 6, 2015 David Cameron’s visit to Jamaica last week led to vociferous demands for the UK to pay the Caribbean island billions of pounds in reparations for slavery. Most people here reacted with predictable eye-rolls and sighs. Slavery was abolished throughout the British Empire in 1833, nearly two centuries ago. Jamaica has been independent for over 50 [...]
UK skills gap: Britain already has a crisis and rejecting skilled migration will only hit future growth harder October 6, 2015 It may sound like just another overused sound bite, but the skills gap is one of the most important issues affecting UK businesses today. With party conference season well underway, speeches about reducing the deficit and accelerating the UK’s economic recovery have been in plentiful supply. Yet while all eyes have been on Jeremy Corbyn’s [...]
Is Theresa May’s claim that mass immigration has “close to zero” economic benefits a dangerous one? October 6, 2015 Philippe Legrain, senior visiting fellow at the LSE’s European Institute, author of “Immigrants: Your Country Needs Them” and founder of OPEN, an international think tank on openness issues, says Yes Theresa May is wrong. Foreign students subsidise Brits. Foreign doctors fill skills shortages. Young, hard-working immigrants do jobs that most Brits spurn, like care for [...]