High stamp duty on prime property may prove self-defeating for the government October 2, 2015 In the days that followed the Conservative Party victory in May, the widely-held assumption was that normal service would resume at the prime end of the London housing market with double-digit annual growth. It was a proposition that never looked likely for several reasons, the principal one being a rise in stamp duty last [...]
Aviastar passenger plane missing off coast of Indonesia: Seven passengers and three crew thought to have died October 2, 2015 A small passenger plane, carrying 10 people, has gone missing off the coast of Indonesia. Contact was lost with an Aviastar flight travelling between Masamba and Makassar on the island of Sulawesi, local media is reporting. According to the Aviation Safety Network, there were three crew and seven passengers on board. The plane [...]
Bailout country Portugal is about to vote for austerity October 2, 2015 Portugal could make history this weekend by becoming the first bailout country to re-elect a government that imposed unpopular austerity measures in the wake of the Eurozone crisis. The centre-right ruling coalition, the Social Democrats and the Christian Democrats, is ahead of the main opposition Socialists in four opinion polls. They may not be on [...]
Government launches clampdown on nuisance calls from claims management companies October 2, 2015 The government is launching a review into how claims management companies (CMCs) are regulated, in an attempt to prevent them bombarding people with nuisance calls and text messages. In a statement today, the Ministry of Justice said it was calling for evidence of how the companies are monitored and controlled. Consumers, regulators, banks [...]
As Zac Goldsmith is chosen as the Tories’ mayoral candidate, bookies put Labour’s Sadiq Khan ahead October 2, 2015 Zac Goldsmith may have crossed one hurdle when he was selected as the Tories' candidate for next year's mayoral election – but he still has some way to go if he wants to win, if bookies are anything to go by. Ladbrokes has put Goldsmith's odds of winning in next May's vote at 11/10, just [...]
Oil price pushed up by escalating tensions in Syria October 2, 2015 The price of oil has risen for the second day in a row, pushed up by an escalation of military action in Syria. In early trading, WTI was up at $45.67 per barrel – a 2.1 per cent increase from yesterday, while Brent was 1.5 per cent higher at $48.39 per barrel. Today, [...]
Loose-lipped Londoners are the most likely to spill a company’s secrets October 2, 2015 Loose-lipped employees are spilling company secrets in coffee shops, restaurants, cafés, parks and libraries across Britain. But it's Londoners who are the worst offenders, with around half having overheard at least one private business conversation in a public place, and 47 per cent having had one. MeetingRooms.com, which conducted the survey, defined private as anything [...]
Why we need to stop countries developing killer military robots before it’s too late October 2, 2015 The prospect of human-killing robots walking among us on our streets is a very scary one, and while it was once stuck firmly in the realms of science fiction, it is now becoming a distinct possibility. It's no wonder, then, that thousands of scientists and artificial intelligence researchers signed an open letter calling for [...]
Chaos on Tube and train network as body found on line near Waterloo East and signal failures cause overcrowding at Bank and London Bridge October 2, 2015 Southeastern was forced to cancel several services into south London this morning after a body was found on the line. The body was found near Waterloo East, and police are now investigating. A spokeswoman for the train operator was unable to give any further details, although she said Southeastern was hoping to have all [...]
London house prices: The capital’s most exclusive homes are going for bargain prices October 2, 2015 Another day, another sign the top end of London's property market is in the doldrums, after figures by Knight Frank showed house prices in the capital's most exclusive areas grew just 1.3 per cent in September on the same month last year. That's the lowest rate of growth since October 2009 – and in some [...]