Network Rail profits halve as company admits it is not keeping up with pace of change June 11, 2015 After strike threats and widespread condemnation over ongoing travel chaos, Network Rail is continuing its annus horribilis with a set of pretty dismal results. The figures: Network Rail's pre-tax profits halved for the year to March 31, from £1.-4bn to £506m, while opreating profit fell 13.3 per cent to £1.74bn. Revenues also slipped [...]
HSBC’s job cuts and Asian pivot could have “negative” impact on credit rating, Fitch warns June 11, 2015 Ratings agency Fitch has warned that HSBC risks having its credit downgraded over its new strategy revealed this week. HSBC is looking to cut $5bn (£3.25bn) through a number of initiatives, including cutting around 25,000 jobs. It is also exiting Turkey and reducing its operations in Brazil, and planning to focus more energy and [...]
Tower Hamlets mayoral elections: Who are the candidates, who is going to win and how will the vote split change from last year? June 10, 2015 Tower Hamlets is going to the polls, for yet another hotly contested election, just one year after the last vote. Why is it being held now? Tower Hamlets voters went to polls just over a year ago, with incumbent Lutfer Rahman being returned with a small majority over his Labour rival John Biggs. [...]
Tower Hamlets mayoral election: Police will be monitoring voting tomorrow to curb “fraudulent activity” June 10, 2015 It's not just voters who are heading to the polls in Tower Hamlets tomorrow – there will be a heavy police presence too. The Metropolitan Police will be overseeing the highly contested mayoral election, with officers stationed at polling booths around the borough in an effort to curb "fraudulent activity". Additional officers are [...]
Police called to BBC after man pours petrol on himself outside Broadcasting House June 10, 2015 Update: Police have said the cordon around BBC's Broadcasting House will be lifted within the hour, after dealing with an incident in which a man tried to set himself on fire. Officers were called to the central London premises this morning after the man, who has not been identified, poured petrol on himself in [...]
Boohoo share price soars as trading update suggests etailer is back “on track” June 10, 2015 Boohoo's shares soared this morning as investors lapped up a strong trading update from the etailer, following a stumble earlier this year. The figures: Revenues rose 35 per cent for the three months to May 31, while gross margins climbed more than 60 per cent. The company, which listed last year, now has 3.3m [...]
Drunken monkeys: Chimpanzees are helping evolutionary scientists by getting drunk (lucky them) June 10, 2015 A group of wild chimpanzees getting drunk on palm wine are helping scientists understand more about evolution. Chimps in Guinea, west Africa, discovered they could extract alcohol – ranging in strength from 3.1 per cent to 6.9 per cent – from raffia palms that had been tapped by people. They used leaf sponges to [...]
TTIP vote delayed after MEPs put forward 200 amendments June 10, 2015 TTIP, the controversial trade deal between the EU and US, could be delayed indefinitely after more than 200 amendments were tabled by MEPs at the last minute. The European Parliament was expected to vote on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership today but President Martin Schulz has been forced to pushed it back after [...]
HSBC share price closes lower after revealing plans to cut 25,000 jobs – 8,000 of which are in the UK June 9, 2015 Shares in HSBC closed just short of one per cent lower, at 613.74p, after it announced plans to cut 25,000 jobs as part of a move to strip out $5bn (£3.25bn) worth of costs from Europe's biggest bank. Read more: HSBC to rebrand retail banking arm – or possibly sell it Shares had [...]
Being made redundant? This 12-point plan can help you make your next move June 9, 2015 This week has already seen two huge British businesses confirmed widespread redundancies. Yesterday Boots revealed it was cutting up to 700 head office jobs, while today HSBC said as many as 25,000 jobs would be going at the bank, of which 8,000 will be from the UK. For many people nowadays, redundancy is a fact [...]
