Five reasons inflation needs to be stopped before the bubble bursts April 18, 2012 THE Treasury Select Committee hit the nail on the head yesterday, when it pointed out that savers and pensioners are suffering as a result of the Bank of England’s low interest rates and quantitative easing. Disappointingly, the Committee urged the government to compensate pensioners for their losses, rather than to attack the root cause: the [...]
Who is Mitt Romney? Obama’s bid to define his opponent risks backfiring April 18, 2012 AND so it begins – the presidential election in earnest. Welcome to the next seven months of frivolous finger pointing, robo-calls, and daily polls. “Even now we have pundits on cable news telling us about the importance of the polls,” remarked one Republican strategist. “They’re lying.” For President Barack Obama and former governor Mitt Romney, [...]
One small step for a business means a leap for growth April 18, 2012 IT IS encouraging that UK unemployment has registered its first fall since last spring. However, it is still at alarming levels, with long-term unemployment at its worst for 16 years, according to the Office for National Statistics. In these difficult times, it’s vital not to underestimate the power of small business. If a quarter of [...]
After President Kirchner’s nationalisation of part of YPF – is it safe to invest in Argentina? April 18, 2012 YES Sven Richter Argentina’s part-nationalisation of oil firm YPF has concerned investors, but the government only took shares from where it could make a case – a huge import bill for fuel and dividends leaving the country. The nationalisation has little to do with economics and everything to do with politics – to remain in [...]
RAPID RESPONSES April 18, 2012 Freedom in dispute [Re: UK is wrong to have turned its back on individual freedom, Tuesday] Individuals have rights, but those rights come with consequences. You have a right to smoke and drive booze and live off fast food. But if you then demand free treatment on the NHS, then the rest of us have [...]
It’s true: There’s a real danger that fracking will cause a major boom April 17, 2012 A REPORT commissioned by the government and released yesterday has given the green light to the extraction of shale gas. The report concludes that hydraulic fracturing (fracking), a technology that pumps water and chemicals underground to fracture shale formations in order to release trapped gas, is safe but requires tight regulation and seismic monitoring. The [...]
Luck-based pay makes decision making a lottery – it doesn’t improve it April 17, 2012 MY NEIGHBOUR Debbie buys Lotto tickets. At least, she pays for them. She deputises the job of going to the corner store and selecting the numbers to her ten-year-old son Wayne. Wayne receives a base wage of 50p for putting in the time and he can also earn a performance-related bonus. If he successfully returns [...]
New property tax rules will stamp on UK developers April 17, 2012 FEW readers of City A.M. may have lost sleep over the chancellor’s decision in the recent Budget to impose a 15 per cent stamp duty land tax (SDLT) on acquisitions of homes costing over £2m by “non-natural persons”. After all, why shouldn’t we clamp down on the purchase of residential properties through companies, collective investment [...]
Is Anders Behring Breivik’s televised trial giving too much publicity to an extremist? April 17, 2012 YES Nick Lowles I cannot imagine how the family and friends of those who were killed last July can watch Anders Breivik justify his actions in the on-going court case in Oslo. I find it difficult enough and I am not directly connected to the case. It’s tragic he’s getting so much publicity. I don’t [...]
RAPID RESPONSES April 17, 2012 Kept in plain sight [Re: Plain packaging: a charter for counterfeiters, yesterday] Plain packs are much easier to counterfeit. Slim cigarettes are rarely counterfeited because their pack design is of a non-standard size, and their artwork is difficult to reproduce without professional printing equipment. Plain packs standardise all pack sizes. This will increase the counterfeiters’ [...]