Patisserie Valerie overstated financial position by £94m, auditors say March 16, 2019 The amount of money missing from Patissserie Valerie's consolidated accounts has grown to more than double a previous estimate to a total of £94m, according to a new report by its administrators, KPMG. The company fell into administration in January and was found to have overstated its financial position by £30m while also failing to disclose £10m of overdrafts. Read [...]
Government ferry contracts to cost millions more if Brexit is delayed March 16, 2019 The government will have to spend tens of millions of pounds more than it already has to maintain the ferry contracts it has in place for a no-deal Brexit, if as expected the UK's exit from the EU is delayed. The Department for Transport (DfT) agreed deals with three separate suppliers for additional freight capacity on ferries [...]
Formula One legend Bruce McLaren is a racing role model, but what can business leaders learn from his life story? March 15, 2019 When Bruce McLaren, the founder of the motor racing team named after himself, was just nine years old, he was diagnosed with a hip issue that left him bedridden, with his legs encased in plaster for three years. This devastating experience left him unable to do what every youngster should be doing: playing with friends, [...]
Hammond in Brexit talks with DUP as government tries to win over Northern Irish party March 15, 2019 Chancellor Philip Hammond is reportedly holding talks this afternoon with Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in a bid to gain their support for Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal. The talks come ahead of a third vote on May’s deal next week in the House of Commons, as the PM looks for approval for her [...]
Contactless card payments rise by a third with transaction limit set to increase March 15, 2019 Every two in five card payments are made with contactless technology according to new data. Contactless transactions rose 31 per cent year-on-year in 2018, data from banking trade body UK Finance revealed, demonstrating a growing confidence in paying without use of a Pin. A wider adoption of the technology on public transport and in more [...]
Climate change protests: London brought to standstill as students demonstrate against climate change March 15, 2019 Students protesting against climate change brought parts of London to a standstill today as they demonstrated across bridges and in busy tourist spots. The walkout started at 11am in Parliament Square, where the same group brought traffic to a standstill in February. Under the banner YouthStrike4Climate, students demanded the declaration of a state of climate [...]
Heathrow boosts passenger numbers for 28th month in a row as London Fashion Week attracts tourists March 15, 2019 Heathrow Airport saw record rates of passenger traffic growth for the 28th month in a row in February as 5.48m travellers used the airport, up 1.7 per cent from the same time last year. The record-breaking streak was helped by London's Fashion Week, which invited visitors from 49 countries around the world to see collections from more [...]
Queensgate Investments buys four Grange hotels in central London for £1bn March 15, 2019 Real estate investment firm Queensgate has snapped up four Grange hotels in central London in a deal worth roughly £1bn. The company has acquired the Grange’s upmarket hotels at St Paul’s, Tower Bridge, the City and Holborn. In total the portfolio comprises 1,345 rooms and roughly 930,000 square feet (sq ft) of real estate. Read [...]
We Work poaches Uber’s UK manager Tom Elvidge to serve as COO March 15, 2019 Uber's UK and Ireland general manager has left the ride-hailing app to join tech workspace firm We Work as its new chief operating office for Europe. Tom Elvidge is replacing current COO for Europe, Anthony Yazbeck, who will become COO of We Work International. “WeWork is a truly exciting company that's changing the way we work, live and [...]
Holiday Homes: We visit the resort in Portugal that’s out to prove that resort golf doesn’t have to be amateur hour March 15, 2019 If you’re serious about golf, but would also like a place in the sun, it’s often hard to find a golf resort with a course that aims above pitch and putt. Monte Rei, a prestigious resort in Portugal in one of Europe’s most sought after golfing destinations, is trying to change all that and be [...]