Greek debt crisis: George Osborne backtracks on Athens loan pledge as EU readies aid July 15, 2015 The Treasury is preparing to co-operate with Europe over a short-term loan to Greece – but only if the cash is guaranteed – in an embarrassing about-face for chancellor George Osborne who on Tuesday promised not to offer bailout funds to aid Athens. A Treasury source said the European Commission was now proposing ways [...]
Challenger banks face an uphill battle as George Osborne widens levy net July 15, 2015 The heads of the UK’s fast-growing crop of challenger banks were entitled to reach for a stiff lunchtime drink as they absorbed the first Conservative Budget for two decades last week. At a stroke, George Osborne’s decision to impose a super-tax on industry profits above £25m undermined everything he has said about broadening competition [...]
The voters aren’t stupid: David Cameron must hold his In/Out EU referendum now July 15, 2015 Between David Cameron’s election victory and his address at the recent summit in Brussels, the debate in Britain over its place in Europe has sparked into life. Polls suggest more than half the electorate support remaining in the EU. Business leaders’ views are varied, but one thing they all agree on is that prolonged uncertainty [...]
Theresa May bans water cannon use in England and Wales after London mayor Boris Johnson authorised the Metropolitan Police to buy three last year July 15, 2015 It's a case of egg on the face for London mayor Boris Johnson today, after home secretary Theresa May banned the use of water cannon on the British mainland today. May said the weapons should not be used as a part of riot control techniques, citing safety fears as a major factor. In the House [...]
Britain will not foot the bill for Greek loan, says George Osborne: We’re “not in the euro” July 14, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne laid down the gauntlet to his Eurozone peers yesterday and said that the UK would refuse to put £1bn towards a short-term loan to Greece. If Brussels insists the UK foots part of the bill, it would threaten relations between British and EU leaders as Osborne gears up to renegotiate the country’s [...]
Scandinavia provides the evidence for George Osborne’s war on welfare July 14, 2015 George Osborne’s Budget has been met with predictable outrage from the poverty lobby. The cuts to the welfare budget will allegedly create shocking levels of deprivation. Young people in particular, it is stated, have been singled out for punitive measures. On the face of it, the arguments seem plausible. Many people on benefits will get [...]
Will Cameron help women in the workplace by forcing large firms to disclose gender pay data? July 14, 2015 Vicky Pryce, chief economic adviser at CEBR and author with Stefan Stern of Why Women Need Quotas (Biteback, 2015), says Yes Voluntary arrangements have not worked and forcing organisations to publish pay differentials is now essential. Interestingly young women do better than young men in their 20s. But thereafter the trend changes and the pay [...]
Gender pay gap: Why Cameron’s announcement is good news for the economy July 14, 2015 Like David Cameron, I want to look back at the gender pay gap in the same way we look back at women not voting and working – as something archaic, delusional and fundamentally wrong. Cameron’s announcement that large firms will have to disclose the average salary for both male and female employees will highlight the [...]
Heads up, George Osborne: The tooth fairy gave £20m to children last year July 14, 2015 In George Osborne's quest for tax receipts, this might be one to investigate: it turns out the Tooth Fairy has given kids £20m in the past year. And it's all tax free… Yep – a study by The Magic Door Store, which (of course) sells miniature doors for fairies, showed the Tooth Fairy has become [...]
Iran’s nuclear deal: Everyone from Bashar al-Assad and Vladimir Putin to Barack Obama and David Cameron has welcomed the agreement July 14, 2015 It's not often world leaders from the UK and US agree with those from Russia and Syria, but today is one of those rare moments. David Cameron, Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin and Bashar al-Assad have all welcomed the historic nuclear deal inked between the world's leading powers and Iran today. This morning the [...]