London Stock Exchange executes no deal contingency plans August 2, 2018 The London Stock Exchange is executing its contingency plans for a hard Brexit, amid growing uncertainty a deal can be struck in time. The firm this morning reported a 21 percent rise in first-half adjusted operating profit to £480m – more than £20m ahead of consensus estimates – as its clearing, capital markets and information [...]
Jeremy Corbyn has made his party safer for antisemites than for Jews August 2, 2018 “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” That was Jeremy Corbyn’s take on Twitter in January 2017, when Theresa May refused to condemn Donald Trump’s Muslim ban. It’s a tweet that has come back to haunt him recently. Read more: Labour MPs split over anti-Semitism hearing [...]
Ministers up the ante over fears Brussels is misrepresenting UK stance August 1, 2018 Government ministers will spend much of August using one-to-one meetings with EU counterparts to press the case for a financial services deal, fearing the Commission has been deliberately misconstruing the UK’s official position. Senior figures including chancellor Philip Hammond and the new foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt have been among those clarifying the stance adopted in [...]
Jeremy Hunt warns no deal likelihood increasing by the day – and issues veiled threat of deregulation July 31, 2018 The likelihood of the UK crashing out of the European Union without a deal is “increasing by the day”, foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned. He also issued a veiled threat that the government could loosen regulation for financial services to ensure the City continued to "thrive". The former health secretary, who was parachuted into [...]
UK government tells Brussels it can control financial services market access after Brexit July 31, 2018 The UK government appears to have backed down over its position regarding the post-Brexit model for the City, just weeks after it dropped its demand for mutual recognition. The UK government's Brexit white paper had laid out its call for an "expanded equivalence" model after leaving the EU, describing it as a “reciprocal recognition of [...]
Number 10 rubbishes reports that army is on Brexit standby July 30, 2018 Number 10 has rubbished reports that the army has been put on standby in case the UK crashes out of the European Union without a deal. The Sunday Times this weekend claimed the military were ready to be deployed in the event of a no deal Brexit, with helicopters and army trucks prepared to transport [...]
Carney says Brexit planning takes up 50 per cent of his time July 30, 2018 Bank of England (BoE) governor Mark Carney said that Brexit takes up “50 per cent of my time now” according to an interview published today. Carney made clear that while Brexit planning means now less time for other things, the Bank has a responsibility to “manage through the downside if there is a disorderly outcome”, [...]
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell warns City: ‘People want change… get used to it’ July 30, 2018 It’s fair to say that John McDonnell does not see the world in quite the same light as most City workers. During the first Budget after he became shadow chancellor, McDonnell quoted from Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book, before flinging it at his then-counterpart George Osborne. Years earlier, he was caught on camera saying he [...]
Exclusive: The government is working on a social care insurance scheme following last year’s ‘dementia tax’ row July 25, 2018 The government is working on a new plan to address the escalating cost of social care, as it tries to shrug off the spectre of its proposed “dementia tax” – a policy that provoked a furore during the Conservatives’ disastrous 2017 General Election campaign. City A.M. understands that a set of proposals are being readied [...]
Brexit secretary Dominic Raab admits food will need to be stockpiled – but stresses there will be “adequate” supply July 24, 2018 Brexit secretary Dominic Raab has admitted food will have to be stockpiled in the event of a hard Brexit – but insisted there will be "adequate food supply". During a terse grilling by the Brexit Select Committee, Raab stressed he would not "drip feed out" information, pointing to the "series of technical notices" that are [...]