World Cup bidding process: Sajid Javid calls upon Sepp Blatter to publish full report November 26, 2014 The UK government has added its voice to the increasing calls for Fifa to publish the full findings of an investigation into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding process. Sajid Javid, secretary of state for culture, media and sport, has written to Fifa president Sepp Blatter urging football’s governing body to publish the [...]
Mark Carney says UK economy is still in need of stimulus November 25, 2014 Bank of England governor Mark Carney signalled a dovish tone while speaking to MPs yesterday, despite insisting that the UK’s monetary policy will not be loosened even further. Carney told the Treasury Select Committee that Britain was “still an economy that requires monetary stimulus”, despite an expected growth rate of above three per cent this [...]
George Osborne under fire for seven day current account switching service timidity November 25, 2014 George Osborne is expected to tweak the seven day current account switching scheme to iron out some of the wrinkles in the system, in his Autumn Statement next week. But the changes did not go nearly far enough to open up the market to competition, the Yorkshire Building Society said. And consumer group Which? also called [...]
Donald Trump gets the hump over Vicky Ward’s book The Liar’s Ball November 25, 2014 She was married to Conrad Black’s step-nephew and gave the red-tops a field day with her divorce. But now New York-based Brit, Vicky Ward, is back in London and launched her second book The Liar’s Ball in Henry Sotheran’s bookshop last night. When The Capitalist spoke to her yesterday, she had just had a brush [...]
Rachel Johnson Twitter hacked: Boris Johnson’s sister’s account drops the c-bomb on David Cameron November 25, 2014 The past week have been something of a dream for Twitter gaffes. Labour's shadow attorney general was forced to step down after sending what was regarded as a snobby tweet from Rochester and Strood while even Twitter's own CFO appears not quite to have mastered the social media minefield. Over the past 24 hours, a [...]
Lee Rigby murder: David Cameron calls on internet companies to “do all they can” to prevent terror attacks November 25, 2014 Prime Minister David Cameron has called on internet companies to change the way they act in relation to communications between potential terrorists after a report claimed the status quo was putting Britons at greater risk of attack. Speaking in response to a report published today by the Intelligence and Security Committee regarding the murder of [...]
New Look ties up sale of French business MIM to Hong Kong firm Main Asia November 24, 2014 New Look said yesterday it had completed the sale of its French business Mim to Chinese firm Main Asia without disclosing the terms of the deal. Main Asia is a Hong Kong-based company established earlier this year to acquire Mim. Very little is known about the company except that the main shareholders and management are [...]
Ditch the structural deficit: Why Osborne has struggled to hit this moving target November 24, 2014 FALL-OUT from the Autumn Statement next week is likely to focus heavily on the slowdown in deficit reduction. Borrowing has been £3.7bn higher this year so far compared with last, and it looks unlikely that George Osborne will hit his fiscal target for 2014-15. But the key number the media will focus on is the [...]
What to expect from the Counter Terrorism and Security Bill: Theresa May warns of terror threat November 24, 2014 The UK faces its biggest terrorism threat since any time before or since 9/11, as the Islamic State (IS) inflames home-grown extremism, home secretary Theresa May has warned. In a speech at a counter terrorism event in London, May also revealed a new counter-terrorism bill is set to be revealed to Parliament on Wednesday. But [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: What free marketeers want from George Osborne and what they’re likely to get November 24, 2014 With the Autumn Statement just a week away, George Osborne is already being inundated with suggestions on how to boost growth and cut the deficit. The CBI has already weighed in with its suggestions, including raising the threshold for employee National Insurance Contributions and cutting business rates. Britain's unemployment rate may have dropped like a [...]