Philip Hammond confirms he will borrow more and look at tax changes in ‘no deal’ December 5, 2018 Philip Hammond has confirmed the government would be forced to borrow billions more and consider tax changes to counter the economic impact of no deal. Appearing before the Treasury Select Committee on Wednesday, the Chancellor said the onus would be on the government to keep blood in the veins of the economy as the Bank of [...]
Bank of England delays cyber stress test as it focuses on Brexit December 5, 2018 The Bank of England (BoE) will delay work on a cyber stress test for banks as it focuses on Brexit preparations, according to minutes published today. The BoE’s financial policy committee (FPC) said it will put off a scheme to test how banks react to cyber attacks, which was due to launch early next year. [...]
Housebuilders lead the FTSE risers as no-deal Brexit risk fades December 5, 2018 Britain's largest housebuilders saw the value of their shares jump this afternoon as the prospect of a no-deal Brexit began to recede. Property heavyweights such as Berkeley Group, Persimmon and Redrow were among the top 10 FTSE risers today as a frantic 24 hours of political tussling in Westminster fuelled the possibility of a “softer” Brexit [...]
Brexit legal advice: No way out of the backstop without a trade deal December 5, 2018 The UK will be locked in a customs union with the EU even if other ways of avoiding a hard border with Ireland are found, according to the government’s top lawyer. The secret legal advice given by the Attorney General to the Cabinet on the proposed Brexit deal makes it clear the UK would struggle to [...]
JP Morgan raises probability of no-Brexit to 40 per cent as chance of no deal shrinks to 10 per cent December 5, 2018 There is now a 40 per cent chance of the UK staying in the European Union, according to a research note published by a JP Morgan economist this morning. Citing the European Court of Justice’s top legal advisor, who said yesterday that Britain could unilaterally perform a U-turn on Article 50 if it wanted, JP Morgan economist [...]
Three simple answers to the UK’s productivity puzzle December 5, 2018 With political and policy attention focused almost entirely on one complex puzzle, it is easy to forget that there are others requiring urgent attention. Today's Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) select committee report is a timely reminder that government action on the productivity puzzle is long overdue. Britain’s growth in productivity lags behind our [...]
UK economy ‘flatlining’ as services sector records weakest growth since the aftermath of the EU referendum December 5, 2018 Business activity fell to its lowest rate of growth since the aftermath of the Brexit vote, according to a closely followed measure of services sector activity. The slowdown in both ongoing business and new work saw the UK services purchasing managers’ index (PMI) hit 50.4 last month, down from 52.2 in October to count as [...]
No-deal Brexit is ‘default option’ if May’s withdrawal agreement voted down, says Leadsom December 5, 2018 A no-deal Brexit would be the “default” outcome if parliament votes against the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal next week, according to the leader of the House of Commons. “Unless government were to do something completely different to change tack, or indeed to pass this deal, then we will be leaving the EU on 29 March [...]
Joules shines amid retail gloom as it prepares for Brexit December 5, 2018 Fashion retailer Joules has bucked the gloomy trend in retail with a strong first half as it prepares for Brexit. Joules, which sells colourful styles inspired by English country life, grew revenue 17.6 per cent to £113.1m in the 26 weeks to 25 November, compared to the same period last year. In a pre-close trading [...]
The EU has hit a home run with the most one-sided treaty in history December 5, 2018 In baseball, a game unfamiliar to many in the UK, when a player hits a home run it is normally considered good manners – and a sign of respect for your opponent – not to gloat, but to run the bases quickly without admiring the ball as it clears the fences, and certainly without making [...]