Will Philip Hammond free up nearly £20bn to be ploughed into businesses with a dramatic VAT cut next week? November 14, 2016 Philip Hammond could free up nearly £20bn to be ploughed into UK businesses by cutting VAT next week, according to figures from commercial insurer NFU Mutual. Hammond will present his first Autumn Statement on 23 November, and research by the firm has found that two-thirds of consumers would increase spending if VAT was reduced. Read [...]
These 15 UK smart city startups are heading on a trade mission to Barcelona November 14, 2016 City Hall will seek to reassure business and investors abroad that London is open for business after the Brexit vote when top startups head on a trade mission to Barcelona. Some 15 of the top startups creating technology that seeks to make cities smarter and more connected, as well as solving problems such as pollution, population and [...]
Sadiq Khan says failure to promote integration is hurting the UK economy November 14, 2016 London mayor Sadiq Khan has today called on European mayors and other city leaders to focus on uniting communities in the aftermath of Donald Trump's shock election win. Speaking at a conference at City Hall, Khan said failure to achieve better integration in the UK was costing the economy around £6bn. It comes after Khan [...]
Government to prioritise market access as it moves to dispel cloud of uncertainty hanging over airlines post-Brexit vote November 14, 2016 The government has moved to reassure the airline industry over market access after the Brexit vote, saying it remained a priority. It wants to make sure the UK has "liberal access to European aviation markets". Brexit secretary David Davis, transport secretary Chris Grayling and Tim Alderslade, the chief executive of Airlines UK, released a joint [...]
Forget Farage: Downing Street says Trump-May relationship is no threesome November 14, 2016 Theresa May has issued a stinging slap down to calls for Nigel Farage to lead relations with US President-elect Donald Trump. Farage was the first British politician to meet with Trump in the aftermath of the Republican's shock election victory, and this morning offered to assist the UK government in strengthening ties with the controversial billionaire. Downing [...]
A petition to stop shops opening on Boxing Day has 100,000 signatures November 14, 2016 A petition calling for shops to shut on Boxing Day has gathered more than 100,000 signatures. Boxing Day, which falls on 26 December, is traditionally a massive day for shopping as most major retailers begin their post-Christmas sales. Many companies have already launched promotions ahead of Black Friday, which falls on 25 November this year. [...]
Iran is open for business with a post-Brexit UK November 14, 2016 Iran is officially open for business after four years in the global wilderness. Following the imposition of financial sanctions in 2012 by the US for its burgeoning nuclear weapons programme, it was almost impossible for the west to do any business with Iran. Those sanctions were lifted earlier this year after France, Germany, UK, Russia and [...]
Interserve contract will deliver “double-digit cost savings” across government departments November 14, 2016 Civil servants promised big savings to taxpayers after agreeing a contract with Interserve to consolidate operations across six government departments. The FTSE 250 group today announced a deal with the departments that will be worth £40m over five years, which "hopes to achieve annual double-digit cost savings". Read more: Interserve wins place on £4bn construction framework John Manzoni, [...]
The new lord mayor must look to the future November 14, 2016 The City now has its 689th lord mayor. On Saturday, Andrew Parmley donned the traditional finery and paraded through the City in the magnificent State Coach that has carried his predecessors every year since 1757. The Lord Mayor’s Parade is one the most public-facing elements of the City of London Corporation, which can lay claim to [...]
The world according to Trump: American nationalism now drives US foreign policy November 14, 2016 “Every good citizen makes his country’s honour his own.” – Andrew Jackson, seventh US President Donald Trump’s overall foreign policy views are not the mystery the highly-discredited commentariat presently make them out to be. He largely hews to what Walter Russell Mead calls the Jacksonian nationalist strain of American foreign policy, long a minority (if [...]