Ed Miliband: Britain “choking on their cornflakes” over Cameron’s pay rise from oil price plea January 17, 2015 Ed Miliband has slammed David Cameron for urging businesses to pass on savings from falling oil prices to staff in the form of higher wages. The Labour leader said the country were “choking on their cornflakes” after hearing Cameron’s plea, speaking at the Fabian Society conference. He accused the Prime Minister of years of “denial, [...]
Pensioner bonds: George Osborne heralds over £1bn sold to over-65s as a “huge success” January 17, 2015 More than 100,000 savvy silver-haired savers have jumped at the chance to buy the government's new pensioner bonds, netting the Treasury more than £1bn in just two days. Chancellor George Osborne called it "the biggest opening sales of any retail financial product in Britain's modern history” after the one and three-year bonds went on sale [...]
Mike Ashley and Rangers board draw fan protests over £10m Ibrox loan offer January 17, 2015 The board of Rangers football club and shareholder Mike Ashley have drawn the ire of football fans over a potential £10m loan to the struggling Scottish club. Hundreds of Rangers fans gathered at the Ibrox Stadium last night to protest against the offer made my the Sports Direct and Newcastle United owner who wants the [...]
Cameron tells business to pass on falling oil price benefits to staff through higher wages January 17, 2015 Businesses reaping the rewards of plummeting oil prices have been urged to pass on the savings to staff in the form of higher pay by David Cameron. Asked about the matter on a visit to Washington, the Prime Minister told reporters: "Obviously I want to see companies’ success passed through in terms of wage increases. [...]
Tesco boss Dave Lewis given dressing down over “toxic culture” as he pulls controversial plans for Ealing Green store January 16, 2015 Tesco has pulled its plans for a controversial new store on Ealing Green – despite it not being on the list of those dropped under Dave Lewis' new strategy. But that still hasn't stopped the new chief executive coming in for a dressing down by an angry campaigner over Tesco's “toxic culture”, claiming [...]
Tesco tells a third of senior directors they face redundancy or demotion as Dave Lewis’ restructure begins to bite January 16, 2015 Tesco has started warning senior directors that they face redundancy or demotion, as part of a restructure designed to get the supermarket back on track. Around a third of these key decision-makers have been told by Tesco top brass that they face redundancy or “changed responsibilities at a lower work level”, according to [...]
Mike Ashley’s USC bought out of administration by… Mike Ashley’s Republic January 16, 2015 Mike Ashley's fast fashion retailer USC has been bought out of administration by… Mike Ashley's fast fashion retailer Republic. A notice of intention to put USC, which was bought out by Sports Direct in 2011, into administration was filed last week, with the threat that the company's 90 stores would shut, putting hundreds of [...]
Why David Cameron’s crusade against encryption could backfire on business January 15, 2015 One so-called expert in terrorism and one person who claims to be able to tackle it embarrassed themselves this week. The first was a hapless Fox News commentator, who had convinced himself that Birmingham was an outpost of the Islamic State, sparking hilarity in the Twittersphere. The second was none other than David Cameron, who [...]
Why Marks & Spencer’s investors haven’t all revolted on Marc Bolland (yet) in two charts January 15, 2015 Marks & Spencer's chief executive Marc Bolland has come in for a pounding yet again, after the retailer revealed another set of dismal results last week. Like-for-likes in general merchandise, which includes clothing, fell 5.8 per cent for the 13 weeks to December 27, the 14th consecutive quarter M&S has recorded declines in this division. [...]
Cheap oil won’t help recovery, warns IMF chief Christine Lagarde January 15, 2015 Cheap oil is unlikely to speed up recovery, International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Christine Lagarde has warned, adding that global recovery is currently too "lopsided". In a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, Lagarde suggested that although growth in the US and a lower oil price has given economies a helping hand, [...]