Tory rebels prepare to block proposed corporation tax hike February 25, 2021 Conservative rebels are preparing to unite with Labour MPs to block a proposed hike in corporation tax from 19 per cent to 25 per cent, according to reports. Chancellor Rishi Sunak has laid down plans to introduce a “pathway” for hiking corporation tax over the next few months, as he prepares to announce his spring [...]
City lobby calls for technology boost for financial services sector in Budget February 25, 2021 The UK’s major financial services lobby group has urged Rishi Sunak to speed up the country’s rollout of full fibre broadband in next week’s Budget to ensure the City’s tech infrastructure does not fall behind other major finance centres. TheCityUK said the “existing speed and availability of key infrastructure in the UK, such as broadband, [...]
Labour proposes law to give UK councils power to take over empty shops February 24, 2021 Labour is proposing a new law that would allow councils to take over empty shops and reopen them without consent from the property’s owners in a bid to revive the UK’s struggling High Streets. The policy – being dubbed the “empty shops order” – would see councils work with owners to bring empty shops back [...]
UK-EU meeting on Northern Ireland fails to produce breakthrough February 24, 2021 Frustrations all around as Arlene Foster's talks with the EU end with no breakthrough over trade issues
BoE boss warns of EU move to take trillions of pounds of derivatives clearing away from the City February 24, 2021 Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has warned that the EU will likely try to snatch away trillions of pounds of derivatives clearing from London’s major clearing houses in a series of moves that could threaten financial stability. Bailey told MPs today that Brussels was looking to implement “location policy” and could force banks to [...]
Chancellor ‘to pay out £7,500 grants’ for self-employed in Budget February 24, 2021 The chancellor will pay out grants of up to £7,500 for self-employed workers in next week’s Budget, though he is considering dropping the scheme from May, according to reports. The fourth round of grants handed out through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will cover February, March and April. People who meet the criteria will [...]
‘Vaccines are working’ against new Covid variants, says Jonathan Van-Tam February 24, 2021 “Vaccines are working” against the Kent Covid variant and will likely reduce the risk of severe disease from new mutations, the deputy chief medical officer has said. Jonathan Van-Tam said the B117 strain of coronavirus first identified in Kent now accounts for around 95 per cent of all Covid cases in the UK. Speaking to [...]
Michael Gove to hold crunch Northern Ireland meeting with EU today February 24, 2021 Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove will meet with his EU counterpart today in a crunch meeting to discuss post-Brexit problems at the Northern Ireland border. European Commission vice president Maros Sefcovic, who is the Brussels’ key representative to the UK-EU Joint Committee, said last week he wanted all issues with the Northern Ireland protocol of [...]
One-in-four UK exporters looking to cut out EU customers post-Brexit February 24, 2021 Almost one-in-four British exporters are planning on reducing their activity in the EU or eliminating it out entirely post-Brexit, according to a new survey. A survey from the British Chambers of Commerce/moneycorp showed that 44 per cent of exporters would grow their business in the EU, but that 23 per cent want to “either reduce their activity [...]
Female representation on FTSE boards climbs by 50 per cent, finds Hampton-Alexander Review February 23, 2021 The number of women on boards of the UK’s largest public companies has risen by 50 per cent since 2015, according to a landmark government report. The Hampton-Alexander Review, which was launched five years ago, found that women representation on FTSE 350 boards has risen from 21.9 per cent to 34.9 since 2015. The final [...]