UK dividends hit record-breaking high in 2018 January 21, 2019 UK dividend payments rose to a record £99.8bn last year driven by rising profits and better than expected special dividends. British American Tobacco accounted for almost one fifth of the increase in UK dividends as it paid out an additional £900m over the course of 2018, entering the UK top five for the first time, according [...]
London house prices fell 1.5 per cent in December as Brexit bites January 21, 2019 The average asking price for London houses fell 1.5 per cent in December compared to the previous month as Brexit uncertainty continued to dampen the capital’s property market, according to figures released today. Figures from the latest Rightmove House Price Index showed the average asking price for a London home is now just under £594,000. [...]
UK businesses reduce spending on redundancy payments despite Brexit uncertainty January 21, 2019 UK businesses reduced their spending on redundancy payments last year despite the uncertainty surrounding Brexit, a law firm has found. Commercial law firm EMW said spending on redundancy payments dropped to £3.6bn by the end of March last year, from £3.8bn the previous year despite the prediction that Brexit would cause widespread job losses. The total number [...]
London office transactions hit highest level since 2014 January 21, 2019 Central London office investment transactions in 2018 hit £17.6bn, a 10 per cent rise on 2017 and the highest level since 2014. According to real estate firm CBRE, there was £5bn of investment transactions in the fourth quarter of 2018, which marked a 16 per cent rise in investment volumes compared to the third quarter [...]
Employers to boost graduate jobs by record nine per cent in 2019 despite Brexit concerns January 21, 2019 The UK’s top employers are set to boost graduate jobs by a record nine per cent this year despite growing uncertainty over Brexit. The country’s leading 100 graduate employers have indicated a surge in recruitment could be on the horizon in 2019, according to a report conducted by research firm High Fliers. It comes after [...]
Nearly half of business leaders now support a second Brexit referendum January 20, 2019 Nearly half of business leaders would support a second Brexit referendum following the defeat of Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit agreement in parliament. In a survey of 1,200 business leaders carried out between 17-19 January, 45 per cent said they would support a second referendum or a referendum on the withdrawal deal. Twenty nine per [...]
Labour loses up to 150,000 members over its stance on Brexit January 20, 2019 The Labour party's stance on Brexit has prompted the exodus of about 150,000 members in recent months, according to reports. Labour sources told the Sunday Times that up to 100,000 are also not up to date with their subscriptions and enrolment is floundering at 385,000. The losses have reportedly cost the party £6m. A Labour source [...]
Theresa May faces trying week in parliament as MPs plan to delay Brexit January 20, 2019 Theresa May will update MPs on her Brexit plan B on Monday amid open warfare in her own party over how to break the deadlock in parliament. She will also table a motion that will be debated and voted on 29 January. The Prime Minister is believed to be focusing her efforts on winning over [...]
Angela Merkel calls for greater military cooperation in EU ahead of European elections in May January 19, 2019 Angela Merkel has said the European Union should cooperate more in developing weapons systems in a bid to push back against a growing wave of euroscepticism before the European parliamentary elections in May. The German Chancellor said her country may need to make compromises on strict export controls. Read more: German politicians including Chancellor Angela Merkel [...]
John Major urges Prime Minister May to ditch red lines on Brexit negotiations January 19, 2019 Former Conservative prime minister John Major has urged Theresa May to drop her so called red lines on Brexit negotiations and let parliament find a way to avoid a no deal scenario. Major said: “Her deal is dead and I don’t think honestly that tinkering with it is going to make very much difference if [...]