British business leaders demand ‘people’s vote’ on Brexit deal November 4, 2018 Over 70 City grandees including the former chairmen of Lloyd’s of London and Standard Chartered have joined calls for a “people’s vote” on the final Brexit deal between the UK and the European Union. Ahead of the launch of ‘Business for a People’s Vote’, a new campaign group, the group warned in a letter published [...]
Opinion: This Budget showed that Phillip Hammond, and by extension the Conservatives, have given up on the housing crisis November 2, 2018 Housing is arguably the second biggest political hot potato for this Government after Brexit. Getting it as wrong as they currently are will surely lead to defeat at the next election. This will be a defeat fuelled by an angry generation of resentful aspirants, whose home-owning dreams have been shattered by an administration’s failings to [...]
Raab travels to Northern Ireland as pound rises on Brexit optimism November 2, 2018 Dominic Raab travelled to Northern Ireland today as a Brexit deal hinges upon a resolution to the question of how to prevent a hard border on the island of Ireland. The Brexit secretary has said that he hopes to strike an agreement with the EU on the terms of the UK’s departure from the bloc [...]
Waitrose’s vegan row shows that we’ve all forgotten how to laugh November 2, 2018 I’ve heard it said – often by advocates of social justice campaigns like the #MeToo movement – that we should have little sympathy for people who don’t know what behaviour is on the right or wrong side of the line. Men, for example, have no need to be fearful in a #MeToo world as long [...]
Trump ramps up the pressure on Venezuela with fresh sanctions November 1, 2018 US President Donald Trump today turned up the heat on Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, signing an executive order to place new sanctions that will affect the country’s gold exports. The order bans anyone in the US from engaging with people or businesses involved in “corrupt or deceptive” Venezuelan gold sales, which Trump believes had been used [...]
Extend post-Brexit transition period, powerful EU business group tells Theresa May November 1, 2018 Bosses of some of Europe’s biggest companies have urged Theresa May to extend the post-Brexit transition period after a meeting in Downing Street. Members of the European Round Table of Industrialists were given an update on the talks with Brussels by the PM on Thursday – claiming she was confident a deal could soon be [...]
Theresa May continues to woo business groups with new forum to hear industry concerns November 1, 2018 Theresa May’s attempts to woo the business world has gone up another notch with the creation of a special forum for boardroom leaders and government ministers. The new initiative will see bosses from companies including Rolls-Royce Holdings, BT Group and ITV meet with the Prime Minister and senior cabinet figures twice a year to discuss key [...]
Vaping and e-cigs are safer than smoking cigarettes, so let your colleagues puff away at their desk November 1, 2018 I smoke. Very happily. Cigarettes, cigars, and pipes. As far as I’m concerned, tobacco is one of the true age-verified joys of life. I love the taste of the leaf, the sensation of the nicotine, and the other physical and psychological effects. I have also worked on marketing campaigns for two of the world’s biggest [...]
Tracey Crouch quits as sports minister in protest at gambling machine clampdown delay November 1, 2018 Sports minister Tracey Crouch has quit the government in protest at a delay on reducing the maximum stake on betting machines dubbed the “crack cocaine” of gambling. Crouch had spearheaded a drive to reduced the maximum stake on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBT) from £100 to £2. The government announced in May it backed the [...]
Government performs u-turn on post-Brexit immigration plans November 1, 2018 Home Secretary Sajid Javid has slapped down his immigration minister for suggesting companies would have to check when an EU migrant came to the UK before giving them a job after Brexit. Caroline Nokes made the claim during an appearance before MPs on Wednesday, saying employers would need to carry out “rigorous checks” to discover [...]