Roads around Oval on lockdown and policeman injured as Met Police deal with woman on rooftop November 24, 2016 Roads around Oval are still on lockdown this afternoon and a policeman is in hospital with injuries sustained at the scene as officers continue talks with a woman on a roof in the area. A woman climbed onto the roof of a property on Harleyford Road at around 11.35pm last night, and police are still at [...]
Let’s face it: the UK’s stagnant productivity levels are here to stay November 24, 2016 Key elements of the chancellor’s Autumn Statement were policies both to increase productivity and to curb the government deficit. Unfortunately, neither of these goals is likely to be realised. Stagnant productivity certainly is a major millstone round the UK economy’s neck. Output per hour today is only fractionally above what it was 10 years ago, [...]
How hotels and travel websites can fight back against Airbnb’s audacious move into Trips November 24, 2016 For sheer chutzpah, it’s difficult to beat Airbnb’s announcement that is expanding its home sharing platform to offer holistic travel experiences. Not content with disrupting the hotel trade, the hosting service wants to put its live like a local stamp on the global tourism sector, in a pitch for the complete customer journey including ultimately [...]
“We have certainly not seen a period remotely like it in the last 70 years”: Think tank’s dire warning on wage growth November 24, 2016 The director of one of the UK's most respected think tanks has issued a dire forecast about UK wage growth, warning workers are in the middle of more than a decade of stagnant wages. In a highly emotive release, Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), said its projections suggested real wages [...]
Regional property investment promises better returns than London in Brexit Britain November 24, 2016 Middle Eastern buyers are looking beyond London to invest in property, regional investor Palace Capital has said. With London becoming such an expensive place to buy, foreigners are eyeing up the regions to get better returns. Read more: Asian investors have spent £1.5bn on London property since the Brexit vote Palace Capital specialises in commercial [...]
Ukip fell behind the BNP in the latest donations figures November 24, 2016 Ukip has experienced a staggering reduction in political donations since the European referendum, with new figures showing it has received less financial support than the British National Party. Nigel Farage's party received just £42,943 according to the most recent quarterly numbers from the Electoral Commission. It means the party received less than half the donations [...]
London Underground Tube drivers announce 24-hour strike starting 6 December – the same day as the next Southern walkout November 24, 2016 London Underground Tube drivers will go on strike for 24 hours in December, the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union has announced today. The strike, which relates to drivers on the Piccadilly and Hammersmith and City Lines, will start at 21:30 on 6 December – the same day Southern workers are also due to go on [...]
Chesnara buys Legal & General’s Dutch life business for £136m November 24, 2016 London listed life and pensions firm Chesnara has snapped up one of Legal & General's (L&G) non-core divisions in a deal worth €160m (£136m). Shares in Chesnara leapt up by seven per cent following the news that it had agreed to buy L&G's Dutch life and pensions business, which will be part-funded by a placing of £70m [...]
Lidl becomes first supermarket to pay the voluntary living wage November 24, 2016 German discounter Lidl has become the first supermarket to pay the voluntary living wage. From 1 March , it will pay hourly rates between £8.45 and £9.75 in London. The chancellor announced yesterday that the mandatory national living wage rate will increase to £7.50 an hour at the beginning of April next year, although this was [...]
Trump fallout risks damaging European financial stability, says ECB vice-president November 24, 2016 The election of Donald Trump as US President has heightened risks to European financial stability, according to a top central banker. The huge market movements in the aftermath of Trump’s surprise victory have exacerbated “significant” vulnerabilities in the European banking sector, according to Vitor Constancio, vice-president of the European Central Bank (ECB). While he said [...]