Pound’s crash reflects poorly on Downing Street October 12, 2016 Former Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King spoke out on Monday regarding the previous week’s so-called flash crash in the value of the pound. “The whole thing has generated reactions which are over the top,” King said. Just 24 hours later and sterling was, last night, printing figures below $1.21 as foreign exchange traders in [...]
Chris Grayling has revealed a £70m fund for compensation and road safety projects along the route of HS2 October 12, 2016 Transport secretary Chris Grayling has revealed £70m of funding for communities along the route of HS2 between London and the Midlands. The funding will be used to improve access to nearby countryside, and conserve the natural environment along the route, as well as supporting local economies disrupted by construction. £40m of the total fund will [...]
No wonder free trade is under threat: We are only just remembering its downsides October 11, 2016 It had been an article of faith among economists and policy-makers that free trade is a Good Thing. Trade liberalisation was a key feature of the world economic order enforced by the United States after the Second World War. For decades, the trend of removing trade barriers led to world trade growing around twice as rapidly as [...]
Time to take a hint: A weak currency means a weak country October 11, 2016 As the global elite (the “dirty” word du jour) descended on Washington on Friday, working the corridors of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, there was one thing they couldn’t ignore. It wasn’t weak growth, it wasn’t negative rates. It wasn’t even Donald Trump. It was Brexit and the pound’s dramatic flash crash. In [...]
MPs have debated plans for a new Royal Yacht today, exploring how to fund a replacement vessel October 11, 2016 MPs debated options for the funding of a new Royal yacht yesterday – with one suggestion to divert cash from the UK's aid budget. In a Westminster debate led by Lancashire MP Jake Berry, MPs called for the government to re-establish the use of a royal yacht for trade talks. Former defence minister Sir Gerald Howarth [...]
Jacob Rees-Mogg has launched a ferocious attack on the Treasury after a leaked report indicated a £66bn annual cost from quitting the Single Market October 11, 2016 Treasury Select Committee member Jacob Rees-Mogg has accused civil servants of conspiring to undermine Theresa May's government after a leaked report estimated an annual bill of £66bn if the UK quits the Single Market. The figures, published by The Times this morning, come from a report by the Department for International Trade and the Department [...]
George Osborne has told Theresa May to get on with a verdict on airport expansion October 11, 2016 Former chancellor George Osborne has warned Theresa May to get on with a verdict on airport expansion, admitting successive governments had “dragged heels” over approving a new runway. Osborne blasted across the Prime Minister's bows in his first appearance in front of a select committee as a backbench MP, having been dismissed by May over the summer. [...]
CMA launches consultation to pave way for prepayment meter price cap October 11, 2016 Britain's competition watchdog today started consulting on a draft order to show how its promised price caps for pre-payment energy meters can be implemented. The price cap for around four million households on prepayment meters was one of the 30 measures put forward by the Competition and Markets Authority as a result of its two-year investigation into the Big Six energy suppliers. [...]
Vauxhall MP Kate Hoey will fight Hilary Benn to lead parliament’s Brexit committee October 11, 2016 Vauxhall MP and prominent Leave campaigner Kate Hoey is to launch an audacious bid to lead parliament's Brexit watchdog, City A.M. understands. The powerful new Brexit committee is due to be formally created later today, and will be responsible for cross-party scrutiny of the UK's departure from the EU. Hoey has yet to formally launch her bid to [...]
The UK needs tech talent quickly and it doesn’t matter where it comes from (for now) October 11, 2016 The UK digital industry is one of the most successful in Europe. It now employs 1.6m people and contributes 10 per cent of GDP – that's the highest proportion of any country in the world. Crucially, tech has benefited hugely from a range of smart government interventions. The Tech Nation Visa Scheme; tax credits for research [...]