Business leaders gather at the capital’s General Election celebrations May 7, 2015 As the night drew in, some of the country’s top business leaders were heading for their chosen General Election parties. Some had two to three parties to choose from, with the Institute of Directors, law firm DLA Piper, and others all putting on stylish gatherings. Peter Mandelson Probably the party of all parties [...]
General Election 2015 Results: Has Douglas Alexander lost his Paisley and Renfrewshire South seat? Dark day for Alexander May 7, 2015 In the first clear sign of the sea-change in British politics, veteran Scottish Labour Party MP Douglas Alexander has lost his seat. The shadow foreign secretary received just under 18,000 votes. SNP candidate Mhairi Black, who is just 20 years old, received 23,500. Earlier in the evening an exit poll had suggested the SNP was [...]
Q & A: Could we see a second general election before christmas? May 7, 2015 Q Who decides when the UK holds its General Elections? A Prime Ministers used to be able to call a General Election whenever they wanted. But new legislation enacted in 2011, called the Fixed-term Parliaments Act (FTPA), changed that. The FTPA stipulates that General Elections are held every five years, on the first Thursday in May. [...]
Deutsche could see investors revolt at AGM May 7, 2015 DEUTSCHE Bank is facing an uphill battle at its annual general meeting (AGM) later this month, as a new note from an influential adviser has urged investors to reject the German bank’s management board. ISS told Deutsche shareholders not to approve the board’s actions in 2014, citing its failings in the Libor rigging scandal and its co-chief [...]
Varoufakis eyes deal as official says Greece could resort to IOUs May 7, 2015 GREECE’S firebrand finance minister Yanis Varoufakis was yesterday adamant that the country would reach a deal with its creditors, while a European Central Bank (ECB) official warned that Greece could begin using a parallel currency. “I trust an agreement will be in the offing in the next few days, or weeks,” Varoufakis said yesterday, speaking [...]
Upturn in growth and inflation lifts European borrowing costs May 7, 2015 EUROPEAN government borrowing costs are rising sharply, bouncing back from record lows. The interest on German government debt climbed 0.59 per cent yesterday – reaching its highest rate of 2015. It marks a sharp rebound from last week when the interest rate was as low as 0.15 per cent. Rates on Spanish and Italian debt also [...]
Fantasy football: Can BT’s dreams of boosting growth come true? May 7, 2015 The telecom’s move into TV sports gained credibility from its £900m deal to broadcast the Champions League, but it is not without problems BT BOSS Gavin Patterson didn’t waste any time in making his presence felt at the top of the FTSE 100 company when he was appointed chief executive in 2013. Just two months [...]
ARMS race heats up as ACE puts on the pressure with £100m offer May 7, 2015 THE BATTLE to control Asia Resource Minerals (ARMS) took another turn yesterday after Asia Coal Energy Ventures (ACE) submitted a £98.8m bid for the beleaguered company. ACE, backed by Indonesia’s Sinarmas Group, is run by the Widjaja family and Hong Kong based Argyle Street Management (ASML). The move is a response to Nat Rothschild’s plan [...]
Centrica boss in £2.4m share win May 7, 2015 BRITISH Gas-owner Centrica has rewarded its chief executive with company shares worth close to £2.4m The utility giant released news to the market as Brits went to the polls yesterday afternoon. It confirmed chief executive Iain Conn was awarded 943,012 shares as part of a bonus worth around £2.4m, while British Gas managing director Mark [...]
Bidding war for Telecity as rival offers £2.31bn May 7, 2015 DATA centre firm TelecityGroup received surprise takeover interest from US rival Equinix yesterday. Telecity has already been deep into talks to merge with Dutch counterpart Interxion, which pushed any other would-be buyers to declare their hands. Equinix’s £2.31bn bid sent Telecity’s share price soaring 21.7 per cent on the day. It follows the 15 per [...]