Bitcoin is bust: Why investors should abandon the doomed cryptocurrency November 5, 2014 SINCE its inception, the market for bitcoin has experienced one of the most remarkable roller coaster rides of all time. Originally worth a fraction of one cent in 2009, the price of bitcoin rose to peak at not far short of $1,200 in December 2013. Since then, it has fallen erratically and is currently about [...]
London can solve its housing crisis – if the public sector stops sitting on land November 5, 2014 THERE is a wonderful description of London from 1622, written by the pamphleteer Donald Lupton. He evokes the “Great Beehive”, “swarming” with people, the capital “a glutton that desires always to be full”. Now the largest city in Europe, Lupton’s characterisation of 400 years ago will be one that many Londoners recognise today. Of course, [...]
The immigration debate has been poisoned – and the facts wilfully ignored November 5, 2014 This weekend, people across Europe will commemorate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. They will celebrate the end of communism in Europe, the liberation of millions from totalitarianism, and the opening up of a continent to free movement between nations. In Britain, however, the politics of migration has become grubbier. Everybody [...]
As oil prices remain depressed, could this signal the end of the shale revolution? November 5, 2014 Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, says Yes. A period in which crude oil prices were below $80 per barrel would begin to hurt the US shale industry. Over the past four years, the average price of US-produced WTI crude has been north of $95 per barrel, and while this has triggered [...]
A devastating crisis of confidence is holding state school leavers back November 4, 2014 I WOULD love to believe that we now live in a meritocratic nation, in which success depends on talent and hard work, rather than connections and class. But it is evidently not so. Last week, the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) published a devastating study into the “old school tie” pay gap – analysing the [...]
Manchester is taking control of its own destiny: Other northern cities should follow November 4, 2014 THE NORTH is the flavour of the month. Wrangles over HS2 persist, and opposition to the scheme in the affluent Home Counties grows, but George Osborne is trumping this. His plans for High Speed 3, directly linking the Northern conurbations, have strong support. He has also announced that Greater Manchester will get its own directly-elected [...]
Holiday pay ruling: Three ways it will harm business November 4, 2014 Long after it was agreed, the EU Working Time Directive continues to pose a significant headache for business. Yesterday’s ruling by the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) on holiday pay has its roots in a separate but related judgment from the EU Court of Justice (ECJ) earlier this year. It will continue to reverberate across the [...]
Is GCHQ chief Robert Hannigan right that tech firms should do more to help fight terrorism? November 4, 2014 Anthony Glees, professor of politics at the University of Buckingham, says Yes. GCHQ chief Robert Hannigan’s comments are a major intervention. Islamic State fighters are the first generation of terrorists in the internet age. They understand how to exploit social networks for their own purposes. They also understand how to conceal themselves while doing so. [...]
The UK desperately needs a free trade alternative to costly EU membership November 3, 2014 THE ANNOUNCEMENT that the UK must stump up a further €2.1bn (£1.7bn) to finance the EU’s ballooning budget has understandably caused outrage. Not only does this demand appear to punish Britain’s relative economic success, while France and Germany are rewarded with handouts, but with Greece and Cyprus also asked to pay more, a political farce [...]
Space travel economics: Don’t damn the rich for splurging on Virgin Galactic November 3, 2014 “Never let a serious crisis go to waste”, concluded Rahm Emanuel, Barack Obama’s ex-chief of staff. For our political commentators, a more accurate phrase might be “never let a tragedy go to waste”. Just days after the Mojave Desert crash of the Virgin Galactic spacecraft, the Guardian’s Zoe Williams has used the tragic incident to [...]