Wealthy parents would pay just £4 an hour towards childcare under Labour, Jeremy Corbyn announces September 25, 2018 Wealthy parents would pay just £4 an hour towards childcare under Labour, Jeremy Corbyn is set to announce. The Labour leader will use his keynote conference speech on Wednesday to propose a massive subsidy of childcare for all parents – regardless of earnings. As well as extending 30 hours a week free childcare to all [...]
Hostel market showing ‘early signs of success’ as customer base broadens beyond backpackers September 25, 2018 One of the UK’s leading premium hostel operators reported a 60 per cent rise in revenues in the six months to the end of June, in the latest sign of the growing demand among families and business people to a market traditionally dominated by young backpackers. Safestay, an emerging high-end owner of hostels in Europe, [...]
Debate: Should the City be worried about Labour’s plan to hand 10 per cent of company shares to workers? September 25, 2018 Debate: Should the City be worried about Labour’s plan to hand 10 per cent of company shares to workers? Yes – Josh Hardie is the deputy director-general at the CBI. Rising wages are what everyone wants to see. But Labour is wrong to assert that workers will be helped by their proposals. Their diktat [...]
Irn-Bru boss delivers the fizz as profits grow despite ‘volatile’ business climate September 25, 2018 Irn-Bru owner A.G. Barr posted a rise in both pre-tax profits and revenue in the first six months of 2018, fighting off a number of challenges to the soft drinks industry. The FTSE 250 firm reported profits before tax of £18.2m in the first-half of 2018, rising four per cent from the same period [...]
Hotel Chocolat leaves a sweet taste as growing profits bolster international expansion efforts September 25, 2018 Luxury chocolatier Hotel Chocolat signalled its plans to ramp up international expansion today after reporting a 13 per cent rise in annual profits. Pre-tax profit for the 12 months to the start of July rose to £12.7m, jumping from £11.2m in the same period the year before. The rise in profits was largely driven [...]
Next nudges up profit guidance after blistering summer despite ‘volatile’ market September 25, 2018 British fashion retailer Next nudged up its full-year outlook this morning, after the firm’s strong summer performance unexpectedly carried on into August and September. Next posted half-year pre-tax profits of £311.1m compared with £309m in the same period last year, raising its full year guidance by £10m to £727m. The better-than-expected forecasts have largely been [...]
Cobra Beer founder Lord Karan Bilimoria talks curry and craft beer culture September 24, 2018 Britain loves beer. This might not be good for our wallets or our waistlines, but it’s true nonetheless. And perhaps no one knows this truth more than Lord Karan Bilimoria, founder and chairman of Cobra Beer. Cobra (slogan: “impossibly smooth”), has become something of a British institution. Not only can you find it in [...]
Labour opens new front in party’s war on business September 23, 2018 Labour's party conference is getting underway in Liverpool, and the various factions of the hard-left are already putting on a good show as they compete for control of the agenda. The trade unions used their voting power to block a bid by Momentum activists to force sitting MPs to face reselection challenges; members demanding [...]
Price wars versus trade wars: Markets work just fine when we leave them alone September 21, 2018 David Lewis is ramping up a food fight of epic proportions. The chief executive of Tesco has launched a spin-off chain of discount supermarkets called Jack’s (named after Tesco’s founder Jack Cohen). The aim is to become more competitive with German chains Aldi and Lidl, which have been saturating the market with cheaper products since [...]
Kier defies expectations with strong profits as order book swells September 20, 2018 Construction and services company Kier Group posted a better-than-expected nine per cent rise in profit this morning, fighting off investor fears following the collapse of competitor Carillion earlier in the year. Bolstered by a growing order book, the FTSE 250 firm’s underlying pre-tax profit jumped to £137m in the year to June, compared with £126m [...]