How business rates reform can thwart the retail apocalypse October 1, 2019 When businesses like Thomas Cook fail to adapt, they are smited by new technologies with leaner business models and more efficient practices. This is Joseph Schumpeter’s creative destruction in action. Yet there is something profoundly bleak about boarded-up shops or “clearance sales” posters in the windows of once thriving businesses – particularly as the demise of [...]
The chancellor should deliver tax cuts, not more spending October 1, 2019 Sajid Javid used his major conference speech yesterday to announce a raft of new spending pledges. The chancellor’s focus was infrastructure and rural areas, with money promised for bus networks, roads, and the rollout of 5G. This sits alongside the strapline of this year’s Conservative party conference itself, which focuses on spending more on the [...]
Business groups urge caution over chancellor’s minimum wage rise plan September 30, 2019 British business groups have urged caution over chancellor Sajid Javid’s pledge to markedly increase the minimum wage while welcoming his confirmation that he will boost spending on infrastructure. Read more: Sajid Javid to increase national living wage to £10.50 In his speech to the Conservative conference in Manchester, Javid announced an increase of the minimum [...]
Government rubbishes Hammond’s hedge fund Brexit conspiracy theory September 30, 2019 The government has hit back at aBrexit conspiracy theory that Boris Johnson is colluding with currency traders by forcing a no-deal Brexit, claiming Labour is causing greater yet market uncertainty. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell demanded answers from the Conservatives, after former chancellor Philip Hammond wrote an article for The Times which claimed that speculators had [...]
Sajid Javid promises to increase National Living Wage to £10.50 September 30, 2019 Chancellor Sajid Javid has vowed to hike the National Living Wage to £10.50 within the next five years. Speaking to a busy Tory Party Conference hall, Javid said he would also ensure 21-year-olds can qualify for the National Living Wage. Currently the threshold is set at 25 years old. Read more: Chancellor Sajid Javid sets [...]
A plague on both Trump’s sordid White House and the self-righteous Democrats September 30, 2019 Shakespeare, as ever, said it best. As the eloquent Mercutio lays dying at the hands of Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet, his last thoughts are of the unreasoning duel between the two aristocratic families of Verona, the Montagues and the Capulets. Aptly summing up the poisonous atmosphere which directly led to his death, Mercutio damns [...]
Chancellor Sajid Javid unveils £17bn no-deal Brexit cushion September 30, 2019 Sajid Javid will today unveil a package of spending pledges as the party goes on an election footing at its annual Conservative conference in Manchester. The chancellor will double down on Boris Johnson’s pledge to leave the EU with or without a deal on 31 October, promising a £16.6bn so-called no-deal Brexit guarantee to cushion [...]
Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage will run for Commons seat at next General Election September 29, 2019 Nigel Farage has confirmed that he will run to be an MP in any upcoming General Election, but Prime Minister Boris Johnson doubled down on ruling out a political pact between the Tories and the Brexit Party. A snap election is expected before the end of the year, with parliament in deadlock over Brexit. Read [...]
Jennifer Arcuri allegations are politically motivated, claims Boris Johnson September 29, 2019 Boris Johnson has claimed allegations that he gave favourable treatment to businesswoman Jennifer Arcuri during his time as London mayor are politically motivated. “Everything was done with full propriety,” the Prime Minister told the BBC this morning about his treatment of Arcuri’s firm while he was mayor. Read more: Boris Johnson referred to police watchdog [...]
Boris Johnson says he will not resign to avoid asking for Brexit delay September 29, 2019 Boris Johnson has dismissed suggestions he might resign to avoid having to ask the European Union for another Brexit delay beyond the end of October. The Prime Minister has pledged to take Britain out of the EU with or without a deal. But under the hastily-passed Benn Act, the Prime Minister must write to the [...]