David Cameron’s migrant welfare reforms rejected as he holds “open and frank” EU talks June 12, 2015 David Cameron has held "open and frank" discussions with EU leaders in his ongoing campaign to renegotiate the UK's relationship with the EU. The Prime Minister met with leaders from Belgium, Spain, Finland and Romania as he continued to push his agenda for EU reform in Brussels. Migrant benefits become a sticking point Each of the [...]
Doubts cast on George Osborne over RBS sell-off as Andrew Tyrie questions £14.3bn profit claim June 11, 2015 The chairman of the Treasury select committee last night cast doubt on chancellor George Osborne’s claims taxpayers stand to make a £14bn profit from the 2008 banking bailout. Osborne unveiled plans on Wednesday to start selling a 79 per cent stake in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) – but at a loss to taxpayers who [...]
Is George Osborne right to prioritise a quick sale of the government’s stake in RBS? June 11, 2015 Nigel Green, founder and chief executive of deVere Group, says Yes With the current stock market offering reasonable value and conditions, and because the market price was not expected to rise significantly before any action was taken, George Osborne is right to take the decision to prioritise the sell-off the state’s stake in RBS. The [...]
Rangers fans call for boycott as Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct wins EGM injunction June 11, 2015 A Rangers fans' group has called for a merchandise boycott after Mike Ashley won an injunction preventing the club's board from revealing confidential information about its retail deal with Sports Direct. Rangers shareholders will meet at Ibrox tomorrow after Ashley called an extraordinary general meeting to demand the repayment of a £5m loan. At the [...]
Theresa May is pushing for snooping powers but the independent reviewer is not so convinced June 11, 2015 Home Secretary Theresa May is continuing her push for further web surveillance powers to counter terrorism, but the independent watchdog has raised some serious questions about her plans in a new report. David Anderson QC, the author of the government-commissioned but independent report , says: There should be no question of progressing proposals for the [...]
First Minister’s Questions: Scottish government brands Osborne’s budget cuts “unacceptable” June 11, 2015 John Swinney, deputy first minister of Scotland, has said that austerity measures proposed by George Osborne are "utterly unacceptable". Mr Swinney said that he believes the chancellor's budget reductions are unacceptable, urging Osborne to reconsider and find alternatives. Earlier, George Osborne announced that £3bn of savings would have to be made for this financial year. [...]
Mansion House speech: George Osborne kicks starts £60bn sell-off with RBS stake June 10, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne last night kicked off a £60bn sale of state-owned financial assets, announcing he will sell a stake in bailed-out bank RBS in the coming months. The enormous wave of privatisations includes the sale of a remaining £11.5bn holding in Lloyds, while bidders including Goldman Sachs compete to buy £13bn of mortgage assets [...]
Mansion House speech: The age of irresponsibility is over, says Mark Carney June 10, 2015 Tens of thousands more City workers face an unprecedented crackdown on bad behaviour. The Bank of England last night recommended extending the senior managers’ regime to all fixed income, currencies and commodities traders at banks, as well as their counterparts at interdealer brokerages and buy-side asset managers. Bank of England governor Mark Carney also wants [...]
George Osborne’s great government sell-off: Taxpayers risk getting burnt as sun may yet shine on RBS June 10, 2015 So after almost seven years, the moment has arrived. The symbolic importance of George Osborne’s announcement last night that the Treasury is to begin selling Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) shares at a loss is hard to overstate. “I’m not interested in what is easy – I’m interested in what is right,” he told [...]
We can have sustainable debt without Osborne’s inflexible new surplus rule June 10, 2015 Last night, in a speech at Mansion House, George Osborne set out his vision for UK fiscal policy. “In normal times,” he said, “governments of the left as well as the right should run a budget surplus to bear down on debt and prepare for an uncertain future.” This will be cemented with a new [...]