Government backs plans for £1.3bn Swansea Bay tidal lagoon January 12, 2017 Plans for a £1.3bn tidal lagoon in Swansea Bay have been backed by a government-funded review. The tidal lagoon has been in the pipeline for the last few years. It is to consist of 90 turbines in a 14 mile breakwater, and over the next 120 years could supply energy for 1.5m homes. It ties [...]
Chancellor Philip Hammond praises “success story” Funding Circle as it announces $100m investment January 12, 2017 Chancellor Philip Hammond has praised Funding Circle as a “real success story for British fintech” after the peer-to-peer (P2P) platform announced a new $100m (£82.5m) equity capital. The funding round was led by Accel Partners and included participation from existing investors Baillie Gifford, DST Global, Index Ventures, Ribbit Capital, Rocket Internet, Sands Capital Ventures, Temasek and Union Square [...]
The easy sell to the EU that preserves the Single Market for the City January 12, 2017 The UK is about to seriously embark on its programme towards Brexit. We have been promised that the government will exercise the country’s right under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty in March 2017, which commences a two-year period of withdrawal negotiations. Those two years will be marked by considerable political activity and, though this [...]
So much could go wrong – but America’s President-elect gives free marketeers plenty to cheer January 12, 2017 Within days, Donald J Trump will be the forty-fifth President of the United States, and his economic team will be charged with the task of translating an economic manifesto into actual policy. As a passionate supporter of free trade, I have problems with The Donald’s America First trade policy. But when I look at the [...]
Now the Tories give run around on immigration January 11, 2017 Making a mess of immigration policy isn't an endeavour restricted to the Labour party. As much as we enjoyed their festival of confusion yesterday regarding the free movement of workers, the Tories have now given us a clear reminder that politicians of all stripes are capable of getting tangled up in this sensitive area of policy. [...]
Trump vows “major” border taxes for businesses leaving the US and puts pharmaceuticals in crosshairs January 11, 2017 President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to install "major" taxes on US businesses relocating outside of the country, and fired a warning shot across the bows of the pharmaceuticals sector. Speaking at a press conference in New York, the President-elect laid out plans to punish businesses that opt to relocate outside of the country and attempt to sell [...]
Britain’s business groups attack “worrying” plans for a £1,000 charge on EU recruitment January 11, 2017 Business groups have hit out at proposals for a £1,000 charge to recruit European workers, warning the plan would Immigration minister Robert Goodwill told a House of Lords Committee earlier today that the Home Office was considering extending incoming charges for non-European recruits to all incoming migrants. From April, recruiting non-EEA skilled workers will see [...]
Businesses could be hit with £1,000 levy per EU worker after Brexit January 11, 2017 Employers could face a £1,000 charge for every EU worker they recruit under plans being considered by the Home Office. Immigration minister Robert Goodwill revealed the controversial plans earlier today in a House of Lords subcommittee looking at post-Brexit migration rules. Goodwill claimed the charge will "be helpful to British workers who feel they are overlooked". Read [...]
Corbyn’s Labour pains show no sign of easing January 11, 2017 One of the many problems with Jeremy Corbyn’s so-called “leadership” of the Labour party has been his complete failure to confront the biggest issue facing the country today – Brexit. At key moments, with the government’s approach to Article 50 attracting widespread criticism, Corbyn has been extraordinarily elusive. Even Iain Duncan Smith’s “quiet man” act [...]
Clint Eastwood’s lesson on economic forecasters’ Michael Fish moment January 11, 2017 Economic forecasters are in the dock. Last week, none other than the chief economist of the Bank of England, Andy Haldane, was confessing the crimes of the profession. The failure to predict the financial crisis was, Haldane said, economic forecasting’s “Michael Fish” moment. Thirty years ago, the BBC weatherman predicted that the UK would avoid the [...]