Uber takes on TfL in High Court over English language requirements February 26, 2017 The car-booking firm Uber joins forces with three of its drivers this week to launch a High Court challenge to English language tests for minicab drivers. Under the proposals, put forward by Transport for London (TfL), private-hire drivers without UK qualifications will have to take a two-hour test to demonstrate their English language skills. Yet [...]
Today’s Copeland result and Lords energy report both highlight the ticking nuclear time-bomb in UK politics February 24, 2017 This morning’s Tory victory sweep in the Labour stronghold of nuclear heartland Copeland has coincided with the publication of a Lords report criticising the government’s nuclear energy policy. The nuclear question could not have been more central to yesterday's by-election contest in the heart of Britain’s West Cumbrian ‘energy coast’. 10,000 people are already directly [...]
PSA will honour commitments to Vauxhall plants says business secretary February 24, 2017 Peugeot will stick to commitments made to Vauxhall factories in the UK, according to business secretary Greg Clark. Clark said he had a “constructive meeting” with the chief executive of Peugeot SA (PSA), Carlos Tavares, in a statement this afternoon. “The meeting was reassuring,” Clark said. “We discussed how PSA's approach is to increase market [...]
Rapidly rising petrol costs are putting consumers off driving and pushing them to cut spending in other areas February 24, 2017 Higher pump prices have pushed UK consumers to spend less on their cars and cut back on driving. At the beginning of February, Britain's petrol prices rose to an average of 120p while diesel rose to 122p, and according to a new study, a quarter of drivers said they're now restricting their car use while [...]
Southern rail claims victory over the RMT, giving itself a pat on the back for its service February 24, 2017 Southern rail has labelled the ongoing industrial action by the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) as "impotent and ineffective", while bragging about how many trains it had managed to run in spite of the strikes. The RMT held its latest walkout on Wednesday, this time a 24-hour downing of tools, taking its tally to 29 strikes. Fears have resurfaced that [...]
Boeing is building its first European factory in Sheffield in a bid to “support the UK’s long-term prosperity” February 24, 2017 Boeing today announced it will invest £20m to open a new production facility in Sheffield – its first ever manufacturing facility in Europe – in an effort to support Britain's long-term prosperity. The facility is part of a plan to reduce supply chain costs by manufacturing key components and systems in the US and the UK in-house. The 2,300-square metre site [...]
British Airways owner IAG has revealed a share buyback programme after strong performance in 2016 February 24, 2017 British Airways and Aer Lingus owner International Airlines Group (IAG) revealed it will increase cash returns to investors with a share buyback programme after profit rose in line with expectations. The figures For the year to the end of December, the airline group's operating profit rose 8.6 per cent to €2.54bn (£2.15bn). But total revenue fell [...]
London: Our city of eternal resilience is not endangered by Brexit February 24, 2017 We have been here before. Seismic political or economic events strike like a tsunami; panic breaks out that London’s position as a leading world city is endangered. It happened in the aftermath of 2008’s financial crisis and it’s happening as Brexit looms. In 2009 the Economist observed magisterially, “Before the credit crunch, talk that London [...]
Norwegian launches a raft of new transtlantic flights from Belfast, Edinburgh and Dublin to the US February 23, 2017 Low-cost airline Norwegian has announced a series of new transatlantic flights from five cities in the UK and Ireland to the US, offering tickets from £69. In total, Norwegian is launching 10 new routes with 38 new transatlantic flights this summer from Edinburgh, Belfast, Cork, Shannon and Dublin. The flights will start on 15 June [...]
Ryanair launches biggest London winter schedule but underlines commitment to pivot growth away as Brexit looms February 23, 2017 Ryanair has launched its biggest ever schedule out of London to date, with three new routes from London Stansted. But the airline has also reiterated its commitment to pivoting growth away from Britain in the wake of the Brexit vote. The Irish carrier’s 2017 schedule will have three new routes from London Stansted to Aalborg [...]