Corbyn can’t fix your miserable commute December 3, 2019 Jeremy Corbyn is well and truly getting into the Christmas spirit — he’s making a list, checking it twice, gonna find out who’s naughty or nice, Jeremy is coming to town. Momentum activists could turn that into a Christmas number one. But who’s on the Labour leader’s list? Well, he’s pretty clear about who’s been [...]
The woes of the IPO market show the problems with the stock exchange model December 3, 2019 A lot has changed since the early 1600s. For a start, we’ve stopped burning people at the stake for suggesting that the world is round. But some things have remained surprisingly similar over the past 400 years — like the stock exchange. Today, most exchanges remain similar in format to the very first stock market, [...]
It’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities, and we need more inclusion in society December 3, 2019 As I type, it is impossible not to be reminded that my ability to do so — as someone who is registered blind — is because of the typewriter’s role as a 200-year-old example of disability inclusion. Early iterations of what led to perhaps the most ubiquitously used invention in the world — the keyboard [...]
Should Tory strategists be nervous now Donald Trump is in town? December 3, 2019 Should Tory strategists be nervous now Donald Trump is in town? Ben Rich, chief executive of the think tank Radix, says YES. Of course they should be nervous. With nine days to go, the Conservatives have got everything to lose and little to gain. The Tory strategists have worked hard to minimise the opportunities for [...]
Labour isn’t even trying to make its slapdash sums add up December 3, 2019 General Elections are always an uncomfortable period for those of us who like our facts straight and our figures honest. All too often, politicians of all stripes seem to be treating the Liberal Democrats’ infamous bar charts not as a scandal, but an inspiration. Even by modern standards, however, there is something rather special about [...]
Green belt reform isn’t political dynamite, it’s a major part of fixing the housing crisis December 3, 2019 As in every election campaign, the need to build huge numbers of new homes for voters is common ground across the main political parties. Yet, also treading a well-worn path, both the Conservatives and Labour continue through their manifestos to promise to protect the green belt and to prioritise development of brownfield land. Will this [...]
To tackle regional inequality, we must rethink the ‘left behind’ places December 3, 2019 From Brexit to crime to the future of the NHS in a US-UK trade deal, this election has been dominated by national issues. But while the politicians tour the country with their lofty nationwide visions, Britain continues to suffer from a regional inequality. While many of our cities have done well over the last two [...]
Who will save our education system? Leave it to the entrepreneurs December 2, 2019 One of the most notable policies to come from the bouquet of manifestos put forward for the upcoming general election is Labour’s pledge to abolish tuition fees. They identify £57,000 as the figure for the average debt the poorest graduates are being left with. That’s a hefty debt figure for anyone to be carrying around, [...]
Why the UK should upgrade the EU trade deal with Japan December 2, 2019 It is definitely in the interest of UK businesses to replicate (or “roll-over”) as many of the EU’s trade deals as possible after Brexit. But some relations are so economically vital that they require some thought. One of them is Britain’s relationship with Japan. With more than 1,000 Japanese companies operating in the UK, employing [...]
How Thriva is putting its customers’ health to the test December 2, 2019 Standing in the middle of a street in Farringdon, it’s hard to know if I’m in the right place. After scanning the list of businesses by the side of the door, I finally spot the name Thriva, and enter a reception-less building where I’m meeting co-founder and chief executive Hamish Grierson. Thriva specialises in blood [...]