The real reason small businesses aren’t borrowing more from their banks November 14, 2012 ALMOST every politician I meet asks me one question. Often with a hint of menace, they demand: “why are banks refusing to lend to small businesses?” They say their postbags are full of complaints from small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that banks are refusing to approve or renew loans or overdrafts. In reply, banks point [...]
We don’t need an EU target to place women on boards November 14, 2012 EU COMMISSIONER Viviane Reding has returned to her proposal for the boards of European companies to be at least 40 per cent female. Her suggestions may have been watered down – 40 per cent is now a target, not a quota – but the initiative still fails to address the real problem. In the UK, [...]
Is Sir Mervyn King too optimistic about the outlook for inflation in the medium term? November 14, 2012 YES John Hawksworth The Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) projection – that growth will pick up towards 2 per cent in the medium term – seems reasonable, assuming that there are no severe shocks from the Eurozone. But as the recovery becomes more sustained, its view that inflation will fall back to less than 2 per cent [...]
Rapid responses November 14, 2012 Trust issues [Re: Scandals have made the UK a dangerously low-trust society, yesterday] This article properly reflects how much of a problem a lack of trust is for society, and not just in the UK. The starting point of trust for many of the sectors mentioned was already very low. The question is, how low [...]
Why Metro Bank is flourishing in the low growth banking business November 13, 2012 WHEN we first opened Metro Bank’s doors in 2010, the prevailing response was that we were a little crazy. “How can you expect to drop into London and do something nobody’s done in more than 100 years: create a differentiated new bank model? It can’t be done!” But we knew that the UK banking market [...]
Psychology is lurking beneath every disappointing corporate merger November 13, 2012 INTERNATIONAL Airlines Group (IAG), formed in January 2011 through a merger between British Airways and Iberia, is in difficulty. Operating losses at IAG in the first nine months of 2012 were €169M (£135m). Shareholders have a right to feel disgruntled. They might question IAG’s revenue forecasting methods, and how realistic their projections have been. Or [...]
Failure to control inflation damages Britain’s recovery November 13, 2012 THE Bank of England sets interest rates to keep inflation low to preserve the value of your money,” reads the puff on the front page of the Bank’s website. But it’s done a poor job recently. The 2.7 per cent annual rise in the consumer prices index (CPI), announced yesterday, is better than last September’s [...]
Would Nick Clegg’s new proposals on flexible working be practical for a career in the City? November 13, 2012 YES Lynn Rattigan It’s not a divine right for parents to work flexibly. But flexible working should be an option afforded to everyone. And let’s be clear – reduced hours need not mean reduced commitment. All flexible working arrangements must start with a business conversation that balances the needs of the business, clients and teams [...]
Rapid responses November 13, 2012 Corporation tax [Re: How corporation tax myths poison the wider debate, yesterday] There is an assumption among many people that large multinationals exist solely to pay corporation tax. These companies aren’t seen as broadly useful businesses, which provide services and sources of employment to millions, but as a means of sourcing money for the government. [...]
BBC in crisis: This is no excuse to destroy a respected broadcaster November 12, 2012 IT BEGAN with anger at bankers, intensified during the MPs’ expenses crisis, and continued during the phone hacking scandal. Now the BBC finds itself at the brunt of a long-running mob mentality. This latest extension of the Saville Affair has seen the BBC’s director general George Entwistle resign, and senior executives set aside. It all [...]