CBI director-general Carolyn Fairbairn says apprenticeship levy will inevitably lead to job losses as new poll shows 5 in 6 businesses think levy is the wrong approach December 21, 2015 The government's apprenticeship levy could lead to “significant” job losses, Confederation of British Industry (CBI) director-general Carolyn Fairbairn has warned, as a new CBI survey shows just one in six businesses think the new tax is the right approach. Chancellor George Osborne first announced the apprenticeship levy in July’s summer budget, and revealed in last [...]
State borrowing data to cast light on task ahead for chancellor December 20, 2015 Public borrowing figures this week will partly reveal the size of the boost needed in January to meet the government’s budget deficit target. The government borrowed £54.3bn between April and October, with most economists expecting chancellor George Osborne to miss the £68.9bn forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) for borrowing in the year to April [...]
Spain in political limbo as Mariano Rajoy loses majority in general election and Podemos gains ground December 20, 2015 Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's centre right People's Party has won the country's general election, but will struggle to form a majority even in coalition, according to the latest results with 90 per cent of the vote counted. The country now faces a period of political uncertainty during while coalition negotiations will take place. The PP are on track [...]
City Moves for 21 December 2015 | Who’s switching jobs December 20, 2015 HAMPSHIRE TRUST BANK Karen Brown and John Pollington have joined Hampshire Trust Bank’s Property Finance team as directors while Daniel Norman has been appointed as Property Finance Lending Manager. Karen, who has 12 years’ property finance experience, is based in Harrogate. Prior to joining Hampshire Trust Bank she ran her own training company and before [...]
Oil lows offset Santa rally and Fed hike – New York Report December 20, 2015 THERE are now just seven full trading days left in the year and some investors are still hoping for an end of year surge to close out what has been a sluggish 2015. The S&P 500 index is down three per cent so far this month, and the recent and persistent slide in oil prices [...]
Mapped: What Londoners order the most according to the borough they live in December 20, 2015 Londoners have proven to be pretty stereotypical when it comes to what they shop for online. Unless you live in Croydon, of course… After analysing sales data and quizzing London consumers on their purchases this year, up-market concierge app Henchman has found out what people are requesting most across the capital. Some of the results are [...]
Build on this… Storm Desmond cost £520m – as insurers shell out £2.6m in emergency payments December 20, 2015 NULL
Unfinished Berlin Brandenburg airport denies it will be another year late December 20, 2015 London is not the only capital city having trouble building up its airport capacity. With the debate raging over whether or not to build a third runway at Heathrow, a new airport in Berlin has had its opening pushed back into 2018. German newspaper Bild said a confidential schedule from the airport’s project management company [...]
Star Wars Episode 7 The Force Awakens smashes box office records with $517m opening weekend worldwide December 20, 2015 Star Wars has lived up to the fever pitch hype breaking box office records over the weekend. The hugely anticipated seventh Star Wars film, The Force Awakens, raked in $517m (£347m) across the globe, and grossed a record $238m in the US and Canada alone, making it the biggest ever opening weekend in history ahead of dinosaur [...]
Accountant sentenced to eight years in jail for devising and promoting tax fraud schemes based on film industry loopholes December 20, 2015 A former Ernst & Young partner was sentenced to eight years in jail at the end of last week for his role in a tax fraud scheme. Terence Potter, working alongside independent financial advisor Neil Williams-Denton, devised and promoted fraudulent schemes, which were based on tax avoidance schemes that take advantage of legal loopholes relating to [...]