Backwards attitudes towards loss-making, high growth companies are stunting success January 27, 2022 Outside of Silicon Valley and New York, the UK is one of the leading capitals for tech innovation. Its start-up ecosystem is worth an impressive £105bn, according to a global report from advisers StartupGenome. London’s access to talent, capital, and investors is enviable, but the country as a whole lags behind some of its European [...]
The battle of London’s protected views exposes the power mismatch on housing January 27, 2022 If you’re reading this newspaper, you live in London and hopefully you love it. If you don’t love it, perhaps you still recognize its unique flavour. London is a melting pot where history finds innovation, where the majestic cathedral of St Paul’s neighbours the skyscrapers of the City. This concoction of old and new, of [...]
Commons snapshot: Boris goes big on Ukraine to shake off birthday blues January 26, 2022 While Boris Johnson struggled to regain control of his party in the midst of allegations of birthday parties in No10, he was for a moment, at least, able to divert attention away from it while presenting the UK as a strong force in the face of Russian aggression in Ukraine. “If President Putin were to [...]
Virus modellers must admit their mistakes and learn from the practice of transparency January 26, 2022 By now, we all know about the poor track record of prediction by the academic modelling teams advising the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies – Sage. The unreliable nature of economic projections is also evident, as analysis of the Survey of Professional Forecasters (SPF) database shows. Yet the epidemiologists could still learn from the experience [...]
Calling time on Boris’ leadership could bear fruit for the Tories – if they grasp it January 26, 2022 How despondent are the Tories? One MP was beyond glum the other day. Quizzed who they’d like as leader, they replied: “We could have Arthur the bloody Great and it wouldn’t make any difference.” Labour has been cock-a-hoop as opinion polls have consistently given the party double-digit leads. But things can change. Just ask Sir [...]
The labyrinth of the Online Safety Bill could fall over on complexity before its begun January 26, 2022 The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee came out this week to criticise the government’s Draft Online Safety Bill, stating it is “neither clear nor robust enough to tackle certain types of illegal and harmful content”. Chair Julian Knight MP even labelled it a “missed opportunity”. As it currently stands, the bill’s duty [...]
A four day week is no panacea to the structural challenges of Britain’s workforce January 25, 2022 For years, there has been an ongoing discussion about the four-day working week. In the 2019 election, then-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn even put cutting the number of days we work at the centre of his manifesto. This week trials for a four day week will begin with 30 companies trying it out in the hope [...]
As the City readies itself for the future, firms rethink their office downsize January 25, 2022 Moments after Boris Johnson announced the end of Plan B Covid-19 restrictions the order went out to civil servants to lead by example – and head back to the office. The edict will have reflected a desire to get people back into the capital and breathe new life into the economy, not least the hospitality [...]
Rachel Reeves must ground Labour’s policy in compelling plans for economic growth January 25, 2022 It is easy to get frustrated following politics. I’m not talking about the in-fighting, the hypocrisy, or the subsequent tendency for allegations of hypocrisy to overshadow any substantive policy issues. My gripe is with the shallowness of the policy debate. Too often, politicians confuse ends with means. The result is a complacent debate and vacuous [...]
Opinion-in-brief: Netflix says next episode please as shares plummet January 24, 2022 As Boris Johnson lifted Plan B restrictions last week, many rejoiced – but not Netflix. The streaming giant has reaped the rewards of people staying at home. But last week, Netflix’s shares plummeted 20 per cent as new subscriber numbers fell short of expectations. Another 18.2 million people signed up for the platform – roughly [...]