DEBATE: As Julian Richer hands over company shares, are staff-owned firms better for the economy? May 16, 2019 As Julian Richer hands over company shares, are staff-owned firms are better for the economy? Scott Corfe, chief economist at the Social Market Foundation, says YES. Companies with significant employee ownership schemes tend to have higher productivity – which is exactly what the UK needs right now. Poor productivity performance is a key reason why, [...]
Let’s celebrate the British contrarians bold enough to challenge the status quo May 16, 2019 It is easy to spot the ruthless persecution of individuals who challenge the status quo in countries like Venezuela and Cambodia, where dissent is violently silenced by autocrats. Yet in modern Britain, we too are adept at suppressing it ourselves, with offence-taking used as tool to shut down discussion. However, there are a handful that eschew [...]
Chris Tremlett: With Bairstow and Buttler firing England have the best ODI batting line-up in the world May 15, 2019 If the last two games have shown us anything it’s that the sky is the limit for England’s batsmen. Twice in the past week they’ve scored over 350 in One-Day International victories against Pakistan. It’s happening so frequently now that it’s really no longer a surprise. England have the best 50-over batting line-up in the [...]
Business cards on the table – what does yours say about you? May 15, 2019 Regardless of industry or sector, the success of a business is often determined by one important moment: the first impression. Although it’s not something that we like to admit, it’s human nature to pass judgement on someone during an initial meeting – first impressions can linger for some time afterwards. For this reason, a good [...]
Business risks ‘Corbygeddon’ if it doesn’t learn to speak up May 15, 2019 The headline in the Sunday Times was stark: “Rich prepare to flee Corbyn’s Britain as Tories desert PM”. The country’s millionaires and billionaires were, according to the compilers of the paper’s annual rich list, preparing for “Corbygeddon” – the prospect of a hard-left Labour government making an irreparable dent in both their own finances and the [...]
While the US and China sneeze, London too risks catching a cold May 15, 2019 The trade dispute between China and the US has escalated. After Donald Trump tweeted that he was imposing higher tariffs on $200bn of Chinese imports to the US, China predictably retaliated, announcing on Monday that it would impose a further $60bn of tariffs on US goods coming into the country. Much attention has been paid [...]
DEBATE: Is the Tesco boss right to call for slashed business rates and an online tax to save the high street? May 15, 2019 Is the Tesco boss right to call for slashed business rates and an online tax to save the high street? Robert Palmer, executive director of Tax Justice UK, says YES. Tesco’s Dave Lewis is right: the way we tax high street shops and online firms isn’t working. The tax system benefits companies like Amazon and Google, [...]
From ticket prices to stellar salaries, you can’t take the economics out of football May 15, 2019 The appearance of Liverpool and Spurs in the Champions League final and Arsenal and Chelsea in the Europa Cup one has generated massive interest. But the official ticket prices for the games are surprisingly reasonable. Liverpool and Spurs have been offered 16,613 tickets each. Five per cent of these are expensive, at £513 each. A further [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Jockey Purton to prove his Magic again with Legend May 14, 2019 FOLLOWING the trainer-jockey partnership of John Moore and Zac Purton in Hong Kong has been a licence to print money at times this season. They have combined on 48 occasions, with an incredible record of 20 winners and nine places. At Happy Valley this afternoon, the combination will be looking to improve on that already [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Cinquante to Cinq rivals at Happy Valley May 14, 2019 WITH the temperature presently in the low thirties and humidity hovering around 95 degrees, you can guarantee the Happy Valley track will ride fast today – favouring horses drawn low. Racing takes place on the ‘A’ course which is probably the fairest of all the seven different tracks at the Valley, although horses need to [...]