Ladbrokes and Coral must sell off roughly 10 per cent of their joint empire to proceed with a long-planned merger July 26, 2016 Bookmakers Ladbrokes and Coral must sell up to 400 shops to proceed with a planned merger, the UK's competition watchdog has ruled. Ladbrokes and Gala Coral Group are the UK's second and third largest bookmakers by number of betting shops, operating a total of 4,000 shops across Great Britain, with a further 77 in Northern [...]
Prime Minister Theresa May wants to secure UK-Ireland external border July 26, 2016 Prime Minister Theresa May has said she wants to work to secure the external borders of the Common Travel Area as she looked to relieve concerns around the potential fallout from Brexit on Irish-British relations. Speaking in a press conference with Taoiseach Enda Kenny, she said that the UK and Ireland have benefited from a Common Travel [...]
It’s not one rule for them, another for Jeremy, court hears July 26, 2016 Jeremy Corbyn's name on the Labour leadership ballot fell into further dispute today, after lawyers argued there was "not a trace" of legal grounds for a different set of rules to apply to him than to his challengers. Corbyn's bid to retain his position as Labour party leader has been full of controversy. The Labour party [...]
Conservatives climb to 16 point lead in latest poll July 26, 2016 The Conservatives have taken a 16 point lead over Labour in a new poll just 13 days after Theresa May became Prime Minister. A poll by ICM has found that the Conservatives have climbed by four percentage points to 43 per cent, against Labour's two percentage point fall to 27 per cent. Read more: Conservative [...]
Democratic National Convention: Bernie Sanders and Michelle Obama urge unity around Hillary Clinton July 26, 2016 In stark contrast to the Republican convention, leading Democrats at different wings of the party have come together to urge unity around Hillary Clinton. At the Democratic National Convention, hosted this week, once-upon-a-time rival Bernie Sanders not just endorsed Clinton but pleaded to the party to unite around her. "Hillary Clinton must become the next [...]
Ukip leadership: Suzanne Evans backs Lisa Duffy to take over from Nigel Farage July 26, 2016 Former deputy chair Suzanne Evans has backed Lisa Duffy to take the reins of the UK Independence Party after Nigel Farage stepped down. Farage stepped down shortly after the Brexit vote, stating: "During the referendum I said I wanted my country back. Now I want my life back." It had been speculated that Evans, who [...]
William Hill shows the gaming tables can turn July 26, 2016 It's eat or be eaten in the gaming sector, and 888 and Rank have decided they would rather be predators than prey. Once takeover targets themselves, the two gambling firms have joined forces to consider bidding for William Hill, which is down on its luck. They have pounced with a preliminary approach following last week’s shock [...]
Sir Philip Green is threatening legal action against the chair of a parliamentary inquiry into the collapse of BHS July 25, 2016 Retail tycoon Sir Philip Green is threatening to sue work and pensions committee chair Frank Field over some of his comments relating to the collapse of BHS. Green has appointed law firm Schillings, who today wrote to Field demanding an apology within 24 hours. The lawyers claim Field accused Green of stealing money from the BHS and Arcadia pension funds in an [...]
Philip Hammond should ignore siren calls for more fiscal stimulus and develop a real strategy for growth July 25, 2016 A question, readers. Who said “spending and borrowing our way out of a recession, over and above the levels that are implied by the automatic stabilisers… will not work and is not sustainable”? Clue: he’s now chancellor of the exchequer. Philip Hammond once believed that Keynesian demand management was a fool’s errand. Just two weeks [...]
Top credit ratings agency declares European Union “unsustainable” July 25, 2016 Standard and Poor's (S&P), one of the world's top credit ratings agencies, has branded the current European Union "unsustainable" as it outlined the urgent need for reform. The UK's vote to sever ties with the other 27 members of the EU is just the latest example of dismay with the system of "pooled" sovereignty where [...]