DEBATE: Is the focus on modern methods of construction to increase housebuilding misplaced? June 24, 2019 Is the focus on modern methods of construction to increase housebuilding misplaced? Chris Stanley, housing manager at Concrete Block Association, says YES. The current media excitement around modern methods of construction, particularly modular, is largely a result of favourable public funding schemes. To solve the housing crisis, the government needs a far more considered, holistic [...]
Dagenham Dock could be the perfect new home for the City’s historic food markets June 24, 2019 Since the Middle Ages, three iconic wholesale food markets have served Londoners with a range of fresh produce, even as the capital’s population and culinary tastes have changed beyond all recognition. Individuals and businesses continue to purchase meat, fish, fruit and vegetables at Smithfield, Billingsgate, and New Spitalfields markets to this day. The City of [...]
The government must boost data sharing if it is to keep up with industry June 24, 2019 Government as a whole can get a bad rap when different departments don’t work together properly, so we should give it credit for when it does things right. When a family member dies, the last thing you want is to have to tell all the different bits of government time and time again. Thankfully there [...]
Attracting talent from India is crucial for UK success June 24, 2019 Three years ago today, as the country absorbed the result of the EU referendum, few people were talking about the intricacies of trade policy, the complexity of bilateral negotiations or the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. Three years on, and while the country appears no closer to a negotiated exit than it was 1,000 [...]
If Hong Kong can face down the Chinese bullies, there is hope for the rest of the world June 21, 2019 Every child is taught that the best way to deal with bullies is to stand up to them, rather than to allow them to indulge in their destructive behaviour. While there is of course a risk of a punishment beating, more often it turns out that the bully has adopted aggressive tactics to mask their [...]
Scrap the porn laws, and keep the government out of our sex lives June 21, 2019 They say once is a coincidence, twice is an accident, three times is a pattern. Now that the introduction of the new porn laws has been delayed for a third time, I think it’s safe to say that we have a clear pattern here from the government – of turning a blind eye to a [...]
How worried should you be about deepfakes? June 21, 2019 Mark Zuckerberg recently became the latest high-profile subject of a “deepfake” hoax. A manipulated video circulating on Instagram appears to show him boasting about having “billions of people’s stolen data” and thanking a Sheffield art installation for his success. Squint, and you could mistake the fake video produced using artificial intelligence software for the real [...]
DEBATE: Slack has gone public with a direct listing, but is this type of ‘non-IPO’ just a fad? June 21, 2019 Slack has gone public with a direct listing, but is this type of ‘non-IPO’ just a fad? Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, says YES. Direct listings can work, and you may well get superior price discovery, but they’re suitable only for a relatively small number of firms and will never replace the traditional [...]
There’s a first time for everything… including marrying your friends June 21, 2019 Over the years I’ve ticked off most of the public speaking formats. I’ve enjoyed after dinner speeches, panel discussions, debates and events of all sizes. Last week, I ticked off another category of performance by conducting my friends’ wedding. The only other time I’d been as surprised at a suggestion was when the proprietors of [...]
Domino’s picks a Rennie after Wild excess June 21, 2019 A Rennie is a long-held cure for indigestion. Domino’s Pizza Group’s franchisees, who have been complaining that they have had as much as they can swallow of boss David Wild, should, then, welcome the fact that a Rennie is exactly what they’re in line to get. Having acknowledged in March that searches were underway for [...]