The costs of running a business in London are starting to outweigh the benefits February 28, 2017 The late, great Robin Williams once said: “Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party’.” When the chancellor stands up to deliver the last ever Spring Budget next week, however, small businesses in London are likely to be putting party plans on hold unless Philip Hammond can pull the miraculous business rates “rabbit out of the [...]
MPs have warned keeping the pensions triple lock means no one will retire until they’re 70 February 28, 2017 The state pension age may need to rise beyond the life expectancy of some of the UK's poorest places in order to be compatible with retaining the “triple lock” on payments, MPs have today warned. In a report published this morning, parliament's Work and Pensions Committee warned keeping the policy will push the pension age to [...]
Revealed: David Cameron’s mornings begin with City A.M. February 27, 2017 Last time we checked there were 1,456 reasons why City A.M. should be the first thing you read every morning, dear reader. And this week, we found another one: former British Prime Minister David Cameron starts his day reading our newsletters. City A.M.EN to that! Read more: Revealed: David Cameron's new jobs Cameron, who was [...]
Housing minister quizzed by MPs on plans to boost housing supply February 27, 2017 The housing white paper is designed to reduce the amount of money wasted, and time spent, on plan making according to housing and planning minister Gavin Barwell. Barwell, MP for Croydon Central, was questioned at the Communities and Local Government (CLG) Committee during the final public session of its inquiry into capacity in the housebuilding [...]
Former Prime Minister John Major has hit out over “unreal” expectations of Brexit February 27, 2017 Former Prime Minister John Major has blasted “unreal” predictions of the UK's future outside of the European Union. Speaking in central London, Major also accused Brexiteers of “demeaning” their former political rivals in the Remain camp by “shouting down legitimate comment”. Major campaigned for a Remain vote in the referendum, and made a series of [...]
The Conservatives’ former leader in the European Parliament has launched a stinging attack on Brexit rebels February 27, 2017 The Conservatives' former top man in the European Parliament has issued a warning against peers interfering with the Article 50 Bill just one day after former Conservative minister Lord Heseltine vowed to fight for amendments. Lord Callanan, the former chair of the European Conservatives and Reformists group in Brussels, has issued a stinging rebuke to [...]
A hard Brexit could be “crippling” to housebuilding in London, Sadiq Khan has warned February 27, 2017 London mayor Sadiq Khan has warned almost a quarter of London's construction workforce is facing an uncertain future ahead of Brexit negotiations. Pressing the case for retention of skilled workers as a key priority in Brexit talks, Khan today argued the loss of London's 95,000 European construction workers would have “a seriously detrimental effect” on [...]
Don’t compare Marine Le Pen to Brexit and Trump: The Front National doesn’t have a chance February 27, 2017 The two-month countdown to the French presidential election has ushered in an air of nervousness among investors who are worried about being wrong-footed by another populist upset in Europe. The fact that Marine Le Pen, the candidate of the far-right National Front, is borrowing on familiar themes of putting France First and pledging to hold [...]
The inside story of how the London Stock Exchange’s mega merger with Deutsche Boerse was suddenly derailed by Brussels February 27, 2017 Everything seemed to be going so smoothly. Nearly a year after the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse unveiled their latest attempt to merge, many City folk gave the £21bn deal a respectable chance of success. "Better than 50 per cent," one high-profile Square Mile executive said at a lunch earlier this month. The European Commission [...]
The oldest serving MP Gerald Kaufman has died at the age of 86 February 27, 2017 The oldest serving MP Sir Gerald Kaufman has died at the age of 86. The Father of the House was a junior minister between 1974 and 1979 and held senior cabinet positions throughout the 1980s. He became the oldest serving member of the House of Commons in 2015 and became an MP in 1970. Labour leader Jeremy [...]