As scandal hits the frontrunner for the French presidency Francois Fillon, is this good news for Marine Le Pen? February 2, 2017 Dylan Kissane, a France-based writer and director at The CoSMo Company, says Yes. After five years of mismanagement by Francois Hollande’s Socialist left, the electorate in France is primed for change. Until recently, Francois Fillon seemed to be the natural choice: a known quantity on the centre-right, a devout Catholic, and the man endorsed by [...]
Nimbyism in decline as housing shortage bites February 2, 2017 The construction of new homes is now a top five priority for voters, with increasing numbers of people willing to support housing projects in their local area. A report by the Centre for Policy Studies, a think tank, suggests attitudes to new builds have changed dramatically over the last ten years. Citing a British Social [...]
Top business leaders are getting to work on making British industry digital to boost productivity and jobs February 1, 2017 It's full speed ahead for Britain's digital economy as top business leaders embark on ambitious plans to pull industry into the modern age and position itself at the forefront of the fourth industrial revolution. Increasing productivity and creating highly-skilled jobs will be the focus of the ambitious new plan to put digital technology, such as artificial [...]
MPs just voted overwhelmingly to back an Article 50 Bill February 1, 2017 An overwhelming majority of almost 500 MPs have expressed their support for a Bill granting Prime Minister Theresa May the power to begin Brexit negotiations. In the first vote in the House of Commons on the Article 50 Bill, 498 MPs backed the legislation moving to the next stage, where amendments can be tabled. By contrast [...]
Two more Labour frontbenchers have resigned ahead of a vote on the Article 50 Bill February 1, 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has lost two more frontbenchers ahead of a House of Commons vote on an Article 50 Bill. Corbyn has ordered his MPs to support the Bill, which faces its first vote tonight. However, two Labour shadow ministers stepped down last week saying they could not back the decision, and they have been followed [...]
The prospects of the UK quitting the EU without a trade deal are rising, not falling February 1, 2017 With all the bluster of the Supreme Court ruling on Article 50 and now the drama of the European Union Bill going through Parliament, many businesses have been diverted from the more pressing issue – that Brexit could happen much sooner than March 2019 – it could even happen before 2017 is out. When the [...]
Liam Fox admits the UK is unlikely to hit its trillion pound export target February 1, 2017 International trade secretary Liam Fox has said it is "unlikely" the UK will achieve a long-stated goal of reaching one trillion pounds in exports of goods and services by 2020. Former chancellor George Osborne established the goal in the 2012 "march of the makers" Budget as part of plan to bolster the British economy and boost manufacturing. But [...]
Japan PM hits back at Trump currency manipulation claims February 1, 2017 The Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe has refuted suggestions that his government is deliberately manipulating the yen, which has fallen by 15 per cent against the US dollar since Trump’s election in November. Abe and his officials said Japan was fully committed to its obligations as a member of the G7 and G20 not to [...]
Goerge Osborne: Brexit talks with the EU will be “bitter” February 1, 2017 In a rare intervention, former chancellor George Osborne has predicted the government faces "bitter" talks when it gets around the negotiating table with the EU. Speaking as MPs debated the passage of a Bill granting Prime Minister Theresa May the power to launch divorce proceedings, Osborne said the government had not "put the economy first" in the [...]
EU leaders don’t believe UK will walk away from trade talks, according to the UK’s former ambassador to Europe February 1, 2017 Senior European leaders do not believe the UK will follow through on Theresa May's claims "no deal is better than a bad deal", according to the UK's former ambassador to the EU. May made the claim as part of her landmark Lancaster House address last month, warning EU leaders against seeking a punitive deal with the [...]