Osborne seeks French support for EU reforms July 26, 2015 CHANCELLOR George Osborne will face an uphill battle when he meets with French government ministers in Paris today as part of a renewed effort to drum up support for Prime Minister David Cameron’s European Union reform agenda. The chancellor arrived in the French capital yesterday ahead of meetings with top officials, including finance minister Michel [...]
David Cameron to take UK fintech leaders on Asian tour July 26, 2015 David Cameron will go on a trade mission to Asia next month as part of the government’s plan to develop the UK financial technology sector. The delegation is made up largely of senior staff from the financial tech sector, reflecting the government’s aim to position the UK as a fintech leader. Thirty businesses will be [...]
London sets the pace on exports for UK regions July 26, 2015 London and the south east account for more than a quarter of all British manufactured exports, a study out today shows, making it the biggest export market in the country. The report, from EEF, says 25.4 per cent of total UK factory exports come from the area, with 47 per cent of those going to [...]
UK’s aerospace firms face threat from high production demands July 26, 2015 The UK’S aerospace professionals fear that higher production rates pose a threat to the industry and to the country’s position as a global superpower within the market. More than 62 per cent of UK aerospace engineers believe that their companies face productivity issues resulting from an increasingly demanding and global aerospace market, according to research [...]
Directors support government plans for devolution to regions July 26, 2015 Most business leaders are backing the government’s plans to devolve powers to cities and regions, according to a new survey out today. Two-thirds of business leaders polled by the Institute of Directors (IoD) said they supported chancellor George Osborne’s plans for devolution, while more than 75 per cent said they specifically backed devolving powers over [...]
Professional job sector boom is led by finance and engineering July 26, 2015 The finance industry is leading the way in a professional sector jobs boom, new figures show today. Professional recruitment firms now have 12 per cent more vacancies on their books than this time last year, according to survey data from the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (Apsco). The number of permanent jobs available rose the [...]
Permira in race to buy UK debt collector Lowell Group for £1bn July 26, 2015 PRIVATE equity firm Permira is the frontrunner to acquire Lowell Group, the Leeds-based debt collection company. The group, which currently owns businesses like Dr Martens, is in talks to acquire Lowell for about £1.1bn from current owner TDR Capital. Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan also owns a big minority stake in the firm. Lowell buys packages [...]
Economist Joseph Stiglitz not shocked by Labour lurch: The rise of Jeremy Corbyn gets a big supporter July 26, 2015 A cosy, dimly-lit Mayfair cocktail bar with a stage for live music is not the first place you would expect to find a Nobel prize winning economist on a Sunday morning. Firebrand American polemicist Joseph Stiglitz was in town during an eyebrow-raising period for the British left. But while many in Westminster are shocked by [...]
Pearson commences talks to sell off majority stake in Economist July 26, 2015 UK PUBLISHING empire Pearson is in talks to sell its 50 per cent stake in The Economist to the journal’s other shareholders, with Italy’s Agnelli family announcing an interest in increasing its stake. The news comes shortly after Pearson’s sale of the Financial Times newspaper to Japanese media group Nikkei. According to a statement released [...]
Flexi-time and compressed hours on the rise as City firms ditch 9 to 5 to compete with fintech July 26, 2015 City employers are loosening their ties and becoming less rigid over staff working hours, according to research that shows a jump in the number of workers being given more flexibility. A third of men working in the City (34 per cent) say they now have some flexibility over the hours they work, either through flexi-time [...]