Tory MP Andrew Bridgen faces Commons suspension for lobbying breach November 3, 2022 Tory MP Andrew Bridgen should be suspended from the House of Commons for breaking parliament’s lobbying rules, Westminster’s standards watchdog has said. The watchdog found Bridgen broke parliamentary standards rules by not properly recording his lobbying work for Mere Plantations – a forestry company. Bridgen, MP for North West Leicestershire, received a £5,000 donation from [...]
FCA makes lenders pay £12m back to 60,000 as pandemic lessons learnt November 3, 2022 The City’s financial watchdog (FCA) is telling lenders to pay back millions in compensation to borrowers after having learnt lessons from poor practices in the pandemic. A report published by the Financial Conduct Authority this morning outlines that £12m has been paid out to thousands of companies in difficulties. Its executive director of consumers and [...]
Recession starts to rage as UK service sector sees first decline since February 2021 November 3, 2022 The UK’s service sector saw activity decline last month for the first time since February last year. The S&P Global/CIPS UK services PMI survey showed a reading of 48.8 in October, down from 50 in the previous month. Any reading above 50 is considered growth, below that means the sector is shrinking. It was nevertheless [...]
Sorrell tells ad land to calm down about Elon Musk’s Twitter November 3, 2022 Despite the pandemonium caused by Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter last week, there is one media mogul who seems largely unfazed by the news. S4 Capital chief and former WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell underplayed the $44bn takeover and said that Facebook owner Meta was the one to watch when it came to the future [...]
Savills warns of ‘acute’ house price plunges in London next year November 3, 2022 Savills, one of the biggest estate agents in the UK, has warned of an “acute” drop in house price value in London next year. A dreaded combination of higher mortgage rates and the cost of living crisis will fuel the price drop, the company said. The average cost of homes in the outer prime London [...]
London financial firm Ebury in FCA-mandated regulatory probe November 3, 2022 A celebrated London fintech has been forced to open itself up to an investigation into its anti money-laundering controls, City A.M. understands. Victoria-HQed Ebury, which is majority owned by Santander and was valued at around £600m at the time the Spanish giant bought in, is the subject of a ‘Section 166’ order by the Financial [...]
Working from home sees London karaoke bars enjoy rise in Sunday Fundays November 3, 2022 Londoners are staving off the Sunday Blues with karaoke nights – taking advantage of an extra lie-in on work-from-home Monday mornings. Charlie Elek, the managing director of Lucky Voice, a capital-focussed karaoke chain, told CityA.M. that a rise in hybrid working had “worked in our favour”. The number of punters through the door at his [...]
Revenue climbs for Smith & Nephew as efficiency plan comes good November 3, 2022 Smith & Nephew reported steady revenue growth this morning, with its efficiency plan starting to pay off. Revenue climbed 4.8 per cent for the medical equipment maker to $1.25bn, with all franchises and geographies contributing. Full-year underlying revenue growth currently expected in middle of previously guided range of four to five per cent. Smith & [...]
Trainline’s earnings triple as rail sector continues recovery from Covid-19 November 3, 2022 Ticket seller Trainline today said its earnings are up three-fold compared to 2021 amid the rail industry’s recovery from Covid-19. The online coach and train ticket seller said its revenues had increased more than two times over to £2.16bn, in an uptick that saw its adjusted earnings triple to £45m. The London headquartered company generated [...]
Defence sector boosts Rolls-Royce as Asia recovery lags under Covid-19 November 3, 2022 Aerospace giant Rolls-Royce’s recovery continues to lag in Asia due to ongoing Covid-19 measures, as the firm makes headway again in the US and Europe. The London-listed company, which builds jet engines, has been particularly vulnerable to supply chain disruptions and inflation, as it continues to restore back to full health following the pandemic. Rolls-Royce, [...]