The immigration debate needs liberal voices December 5, 2016 The debate over immigration would continue to rage even if the UK had voted to remain in the EU. Indeed, with fresh figures showing that non-EU migrants made up the bulk of recent arrivals, one could argue it would rage all the harder if we hadn’t voted to ‘take back control’. But with splits emerging in [...]
A flood of new energy tariffs risks “bamboozling” customers now Ofgem has removed deal restrictions, First Utility warns December 5, 2016 Energy customers risk being “bamboozled” by a flood of new deals following the scrapping of Ofgem’s four tariff rule, challenger supplier First Utility has warned. Customers could be faced with choosing between a whopping 1,364 energy deals in 2017 from 44 suppliers, the company has estimated based on previous averages. Five years ago, the average [...]
Saudi Arabia has surrendered control of the global oil market to US shale December 5, 2016 “Ending wars is very simple if you surrender.” – PJ O’Rourke The new Opec deal to cut oil output – the cartel’s first since 2008 – amounts to nothing less than Saudi Arabia’s surrender to the power of American shale. It has come about due to Riyadh’s belated, horrified understanding that it has utterly lost control over [...]
Risk and reward: Adam French, co-founder of Scalable Capital, left Goldman to develop an algorithm for matching retail investors with the right ETFs December 5, 2016 For two years, Adam French knew he was leaving Goldman Sachs. “The day I quit was quite liberating – it’s just not that easy to step away from a Goldman job,” says the former trader, and chief executive and co-founder of digital investment management firm Scalable Capital. There was no “eureka moment”, he adds – [...]
Driving down worryingly high youth unemployment is the City’s business December 5, 2016 I attended the London Councils London Government Summit last week alongside leaders from every London borough. It was an opportunity for us to discuss key London issues, including the increasingly urgent problem of high youth unemployment. Youth unemployment rates are still worryingly high, with the capital having a particularly poor record – the second highest [...]
Tony Blair and Nick Clegg risk damaging British business by seeking to block Brexit December 5, 2016 As a businessman and a proud Brexiteer – I was treasurer and board member of the Vote Leave campaign – I am convinced that Britain’s best days lie ahead. But we need to be ambitious. If we are, and if we seize this Brexit opportunity together, Britain can change for the better. My online financial trading business, [...]
Following a year of major political change, will 2016 be regarded as a turning point in history? December 5, 2016 Ruth Lea, economic adviser at Arbuthnot Banking Group, says Yes. I have little doubt that 2016 will go down as a major turning point in British history, as indeed was 1973 when we joined the European Communities. Then Britain, racked by post-colonial self-doubt, chose to join Europe’s political project of “ever closer union”, with all [...]
Atalaya Mining transforms the original Rio Tinto mine from tarnished site into a polished moneyspinner December 5, 2016 Restoring the original Rio Tinto mine may have been a “pain in the ass”, according to Atalaya Mining’s chief executive Alberto Lavandeira, but it hasn’t put the plucky, Aim-listed firm off plans to expand elsewhere. Nestled in the Andalucian hills in southern Spain, the vast pits of the open-cast copper mine are expected to reach [...]
British households taking on more debt as almost half struggle to pay credit card bills on time December 5, 2016 Almost half of British consumers struggle to pay off their credit card bill each month, while the proportion taking on more debt over the last five years has risen sharply. Borrowing has continued to rise to record highs in the wake of the vote to leave the European Union. The proportion of borrowers who have [...]
Over 5,500 UK restaurants face risk of going bust as pound’s fall makes food prices more expensive December 5, 2016 Thousands of UK restaurants could be at risk of going out of business in the next three years, as the fall in the value of sterling raises costs for imported food and threatens to squeeze consumer spending. Over 5,500 restaurant companies have a 30 per cent chance of going bust by the end of 2019, [...]