Whitehall must overhaul public sector outsourcing in wake of failures, says think tank March 28, 2019 The government should rethink the way it outsources public services, but banning the practice would be “throwing the baby out with the bathwater,” according to research. In a report, Reform think tank has called for more training for civil servants who hand out public contracts to the private sector in the wake of a raft [...]
May lost her chance at leadership long ago March 28, 2019 Just a few days ago, allies of the Prime Minister were talking about her desire to focus on the domestic policy agenda once a Brexit withdrawal deal was agreed by parliament. Nobody hearing such a claim could take it seriously, but it represented the last desperate effort to cling to a vision of the future [...]
City Moves for 28 March – who’s switching jobs at Knight Frank, Clifford Chance and Newgate? March 28, 2019 Who’s on the move today? Knight Frank Knight Frank has bolstered its commercial research team with the appointment of Victoria Ormond as partner. She will lead the capital markets research team, working alongside the global capital markets teams to produce insight, commentary and analysis. With 15 years’ experience in commercial real estate, Victoria joins from [...]
Car manufacturing ‘paralysed’ by no-deal Brexit threat as output drops for ninth straight month March 28, 2019 British car manufacturing suffered its ninth consecutive month of decline in February, as the industry continues to suffer from Brexit uncertainty and plummeting demand in China. Car makers produced 123,203 vehicles last month, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), a drop of 15.3 per cent on the same period last year. [...]
UK business body chief to attack politicians over ‘dereliction of duty’ March 28, 2019 The director general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) will today warn the UK’s political leaders that Britain leaving the European Union without a deal would be “a flagrant dereliction of duty”. Adam Marshall will use his keynote speech at today’s BCC Annual Conference in Westminster to express a deep frustration with the UK’s [...]
Tory mayoral hopeful Shaun Bailey pledges ‘aggressive’ action against absentee landlords March 28, 2019 Tory mayoral hopeful Shaun Bailey has said he will crack down on London's empty "ghost homes" if he replaces Sadiq Khan as the capital's mayor. Bailey has pledged to give more money to councils to levy empty dwelling management orders, which give them legal powers to take over unoccupied properties to use as housing. A review by housing [...]
TSB needs three-year turnaround before potential sale, Sabadell says March 27, 2019 Challenger bank TSB could be sold but must undergo a turnaround and cut costs first, its Spanish owner Banco Sabadell has said. Sabadell chairman Josep Oliu said TSB needed three years to get back on track but that a merger or a sale were options. Read more: TSB falls to £105m loss after IT disaster [...]
Preparing for a black swan event in the financial markets March 27, 2019 Global markets are more complex and interconnected than ever. Since the 2008 financial crisis, it’s become increasingly difficult to predict how the behaviour of market participants will affect the broader financial system. Meanwhile, increased automation and the use of high-frequency trading have contributed to flash crashes. We struggle to manage the rapid market movements that [...]
Saudi Aramco signs $70bn deal to buy majority stake in petrochemicals firm Sabic March 27, 2019 Saudi Aramco has signed an agreement to buy a 70 per cent stake in petrochemicals giant Saudi Basic Industries Corp (Sabic) for $70bn (£53bn), the company said today. The state oil firm has secured the purchase from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), for an agreed price of 123.40 riyals per [...]
Theresa May vows to resign before further negotiations if her Brexit deal is passed March 27, 2019 Theresa May will quit as Prime Minister before the next stage of Brexit negotiations she told her party tonight in a last bid attempt to get MPs to back her deal. Speaking to Conservative MPs in a packed meeting in parliament, May said she was aware her party wanted “new leadership” for any trade negotiations [...]