Bubble trouble: We’re sacrificing financial stability for a growth illusion June 12, 2014 THERE is a growing conflict at the heart of economic policymaking – and a rising danger. The risk is that financial stability is being sacrificed on the altar of growth, and that memories of the financial crisis are growing short. Consider these recent disparate examples. Mario Draghi has boldly gone where no G7 central banker [...]
Inside Pixar: Management lessons from the animation powerhouse June 12, 2014 THIS week, Pixar finally broke its silence, offering a glimpse of its next film. Inside Out won’t be released until next summer, but already the critics are gushing, with Peter Debruge writing in Variety that it could provide a whole new way to visualise how our minds work. That’s because the story is actually set [...]
Britain’s energy security is under threat: It’s time to frack June 12, 2014 WITH extremist ISIS fighters less than 60 miles from Baghdad, rogue generals in Libya periodically blockading its ports, and continued dependence on a volatile Russia, concern about the security of our energy supplies is high and rising. We were already in a bad state. UK energy resource production fell by 6.5 per cent in 2013 [...]
Why the car insurance industry faces a difficult future June 12, 2014 The Competition and Market Authority's (CMA) proposed plans for change in the private motor insurance market aim to increase competition and reduce the cost of premiums for motorists. If implemented, they stand to do just that. This is great news for customers, but what does this mean for an industry that is already exceptionally competitive, [...]
Letters to the Editor – 12/06 – Simpler energy, Best of Twitter June 11, 2014 Simpler energy [Re: A bureaucratic nightmare, Tuesday] Stephen Littlechild overlooks the importance of Ofgem’s reforms to make the energy market simpler, clearer and fairer for consumers. Consumers told us they found the market confusing and that the number of tariffs on offer put them off shopping around. We have placed a limit of four core [...]
Don’t count on brownfield: It won’t solve the housing crisis alone June 11, 2014 IN TODAY’S Mansion House speech, George Osborne is expected to outline new plans to encourage housing development on brownfield sites. The speech follows in the wake of an IMF report, which urged the UK government to relax planning rules that constrain both brownfield and greenfield development in order to sort out the grave imbalances in [...]
The World Cup’s six economic lessons June 11, 2014 THE WORLD Cup is a fascinating lesson in economics, as well as football. The best teams and players have fought gladiatorial battles to reach Brazil, and the competition is about to get even more intense. So before they get lost amid the excitement of the tournament, here are six fundamental economic lessons to take home. [...]
On the brink: Iraq’s survival as a viable state is far from assured June 11, 2014 THE TAKEOVER of Mosul, Iraq’s second major city, and Tikrit by the forces of the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) is a major event in the history of post-Saddam Iraq, and has repercussions for the entire region. Iraq is creaking at the seams, and the war in Syria has given strength (both [...]
Letters to the Editor – 11/06 – Ofsted inspections, Best of Twitter June 10, 2014 Ofsted inspections [Re: Should schools be subject to snap Ofsted inspections, yesterday] Ofsted has demonstrated that it is incapable of looking after the interests of children and young people. Labelling schools that were judged “outstanding” a few months ago as “inadequate” now confirms that its judgements are capricious: its inspectors go into schools to look [...]
World Cup fever: Why an England loss will wipe billions off the stock market June 10, 2014 THE WORLD Cup, which starts tomorrow, will spark a huge range of human emotions, from the excitement of victory to the despair of defeat. The effect of football results on national mood is so strong that it can spill over into the stock market and cause swings of billions of pounds. Why? While the World [...]