The Club of Former Prime Ministers welcomes its latest member: Theresa May July 30, 2019 With Boris Johnson parading into Downing Street and the drama of the chopping and changing of cabinet, it’s easy to forget that Theresa May too has acquired a new role: former Prime Minister. It is a peculiar position to be in. One is freed from the constraints of parliamentary ambition, but also chastened by the [...]
DEBATE: Are we headed for a General Election before 31 October? July 30, 2019 Are we headed for a General Election before 31 October? Ben Kelly, a commentator for Reaction, says YES. The optimal route to electoral success for Boris Johnson is to get Brexit over the line by 31 October and then call an election. But clearly, this is easier said than done, and apparently Boris and his [...]
Forget a one-size-fits-all immigration policy – we need to get creative to protect the talent pipeline July 30, 2019 Different sectors of the economy are often accused of special pleading when it comes to making their case for immigration reform. In any given area, improving the skills base can boost productivity, and with the clock once more ticking down to the Brexit deadline, calling into question the status of future EU applicants, it is [...]
It’s up to the business world to make the case for capitalism July 30, 2019 Barely a moment after the new Prime Minister took office, the leader of the opposition was already calling for a General Election. While there are no current plans to go to the country in the next few months, Labour is ramping up its election strategy. Anyone who believes in capitalism and free enterprise should be [...]
From energy to insurance: How Open Banking could fix the loyalty penalty headache July 29, 2019 You don’t get to be Prime Minister without having a few political gifts. One of Theresa May’s was her ability to spot the issues that people cared about – even if she found it harder to come up with effective ways of improving them. That was why her maiden speech outside Downing Street was so [...]
Herd behaviour is more to blame for the Neil Woodford saga than the man himself July 29, 2019 Over the last two months, the media storm around Neil Woodford has captured the attention of investors, regulators, and even parliament. A man who was once billed as “Britain’s Warren Buffett” is now at the centre of a crisis which threatens to extinguish the star fund manager and his eponymous fund. Woodford built his reputation [...]
DEBATE: Has ‘diversity’ become a dirty word in the tech industry? July 29, 2019 Has ‘diversity’ become a dirty word in the tech industry? Philippa Sturt, managing partner at Joelson, says YES. The term “diversity” has become so prevalent in the tech sector that it has lost a lot of its impact, especially when it comes to gender. In the venture capital industry, for example, investors are being encouraged [...]
Our collaboration with Manchester and Leeds will unlock the UK’s full potential July 29, 2019 What do Channel 4, Amazon, TalkTalk, Boohoo, and Autotrader have in common? The answer is that they have all announced that they are creating jobs in the Manchester and Leeds regions. Last week, I visited these two cities with a growing global reputation. Like the City of London, Manchester and Leeds both host strong financial [...]
Buybacks are vital for our economic health July 28, 2019 Political opposition to share buybacks has become so fierce in the US that it was unsurprising to hear Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ramp up the rhetoric at the end of last week, bizarrely describing the practice as “a huge Ponzi scheme.” The doyenne of the Democratic left was specifically referring to pharmaceutical companies that return cash to [...]
Enough buffoonery, Boris: it’s time for you to step up July 26, 2019 They say a week is a long time in politics. By that measure, this one has been longer than most. We’ve seen Theresa May’s departure from Downing Street (headed for Lords, it seems, and most likely a glass or two of chilled Pinot Grigio) and the installation of Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson as prime [...]