London losing out due to ‘tourist tax’ as US and Gulf visitors opt for Paris and Milan instead August 14, 2023 London is losing out on wealthy foreign visitors splashing their cash in Oxford Street due to the so-called ‘tourist tax’, amid renewed calls to scrap it and make the capital more competitive. The removal of VAT free shopping for international tourists continues to hurt London retailers, with visitors from the US and the Gulf cutting [...]
London Underground set for more disruption as drivers back more walk-outs August 9, 2023 London Underground train drivers at several companies have voted to continue industrial action in their long-running dispute over pay. Aslef said the results of new ballots for strikes on passenger services in England and on London Underground showed continued support from drivers. Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said: “The results of these new ballots [...]
London Calling! Over two million tourists will visit this year in £674m boost to the capital August 1, 2023 London will welcome more than two million international tourists this year compared to last, bringing an additional £674m to the capital. As travel fully recovers post-pandemic, data from the London mayor’s office, shows that London was the top city in Europe for bed nights in 2022 with an increase of 131.5 per cent in 2021. [...]
Met Police fail to solve 82 per cent of burglaries July 27, 2023 The Met Police failed to solve 82 per cent of burglaries in London last year, data has revealed. Figures from the Home Office for the 2022-2023 financial year show an average of 129 burglaries a day – or a total of 47,050 – were closed without a suspect being identified. While just six per cent [...]
Don’t ‘clobber’ Londoners with ULEZ, Rachel Reeves says July 27, 2023 Now is not the right time to “clobber” Londoners with the ULEZ charge, Labour shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has said. The shadow chancellor has weighed in on the ultra low emission zone (ULEZ) expansion row engulfing City Hall and Labour politics in the wake of the Uxbridge by-election defeat. She told the Sun she was [...]
Business groups cheer plans to speed up planning process for big infrastructure projects July 25, 2023 Top business groups have welcomed government plans to speed up the planning process for key infrastructure projects as a “major signal” on green growth. Ministers want to overhaul the system and create a new fast-track route for major schemes, such as offshore wind farms, transport connections, waste facilities and nuclear power stations. Prime minister Rishi [...]
Met Police has spent £7.7m policing Just Stop Oil protests since April July 25, 2023 The Metropolitan Police have spent £7.7m policing 13 weeks of Just Stop Oil protests, the force has said. Protestors mounted 515 protests since April and the cost of handling the disruption amounted to the equivalent of 23,500 officer shifts. Actions included slow marches in busy London roads and disrupting major sporting events, and more than [...]
Bring Commonwealth Games to London, says capital business body July 23, 2023 London is the “ideal city” to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games, a top business lobby body has said. The £3.5bn, 12-day event was meant to be held in the Australian state of Victoria but premier Daniel Andrews confirmed the region had pulled out after costs tripled. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has said London “stands [...]
Brewdog boss: Rail strikes have cost firm £3.5m and are ‘killing UK businesses’ July 23, 2023 The boss of Brewdog has warned that rail strikes are “killing UK businesses” as he offered up the pub chain’s Waterloo venue as a location for “beer and sandwiches” negotiations. James Watt took to LinkedIn to warn that Brewdog has lost £3.5m to date due to industrial action, as he accused the government of not [...]
Some civil servants work from home 60 per cent of the week, new data shows July 20, 2023 Civil servants working on supporting the UK’s businesses were at their desks for just 40 per cent of the second week in July, government figures have revealed. Staff at the former Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) department came into the office for two fifths of the time during the week beginning Monday 10 July, [...]