Gun makers targeted by short sellers September 11, 2014 It's been nearly two years since 20 children and six adults were killed during a shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary school in Connecticut, which prompted the US to once again debate its gun control laws. President Barack Obama declared he would make gun control a central issue in his second term, signing a series [...]
Profits soar as Next sees “strongest sales growth for many years” September 11, 2014 Next has experienced “its strongest sales growth for many years”, the retailer said this morning as it reported total sales up 10.3 per cent while pre-tax profit jumped 19.3 per cent. Revenues at Next's retail arm rose 7.5 per cent to £1.08bn in the six months to the end of July, while its online [...]
RIP iPod Classic: Apple kills off original design September 10, 2014 In the midst of all the fuss about Apple's new launches, the tech giant appears to have quietly killed off its genre-busting iPod Classic nearly 15 years after its creation. The iPod Classic, which was first launched in 2001, is no longer available for sale on the Apple Store, although some branches of Tesco [...]
Scottish independence: Better Together should emphasise increased social welfare powers, parliamentary group says September 10, 2014 The Better Together campaign should focus on the greater powers it would give Scotland over social welfare as part of its 11th-hour devo max offer, a new report has said. Although the All Party Parliamentary Taxation Group – or APPTG for short – recognised that the Westminster leaders have not given specifics on what [...]
Scottish independence: Now even the English and Welsh think Yes camp will win September 10, 2014 English and Welsh people believe Scots will vote for independence a new report shows, as the Better Together campaign flounders in the final week before the polls open. There has been a massive swing from those who thought independence was unlikely before the weekend – 48 per cent of respondents to the YouGov poll as [...]
Savile Row tailors won’t like that: Abercrombie & Fitch proves itself a Bad Neighbour September 10, 2014 Savile Row tailors' worst fears have surely been realised with this latest PR stunt, in which a group of topless chubby men descended on Abercrombie & Fitch to stitch up the semi-naked models standing outside. The London street, which is globally renowned for heritage tailors such as Edward Sexton, Hardy Amies, Kilgour, Henry Poole, and Gieves [...]
Mumsnet: the final frontier for Scottish independence debate, as Alistair Darling and Alex Salmond go head to head today September 10, 2014 Alex Salmond and Alistair Darling are poised for their final public debate before voters decide the fate of Scotland on September 18 – this time on web forum Mumsnet. The First Minister of Scotland and the leader of the Better Together campaign will draw swords on a live stream from 1:45pm today. A [...]
Could this be the year the Man Booker Prize is won by an American? September 9, 2014 Two Americans have made the shortlist of the Man Booker Prize for the first time in the literary award's history, after it was opened to any author writing in English. Joshua Ferris's To Rise Again at a Decent Hour and Karen Joy Fowler's We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves – published respectively by Penguin Random [...]
Westminster promises “major powers” to stave off Scottish independence: but what is devo max? September 9, 2014 The three main parties have promised to transfer “major powers” to Scotland the day after the referendum takes place if voters decide to stick with the union. By the end of January, a draft law will be ready to vote on by parliament, the Better Together campaign announced today. The campaign claimed: [...]
BBC Trust candidate Fairhead quizzed over HSBC money laundering scandal September 9, 2014 Rona Fairhead, the preferred candidate for chairmanship of the BBC Trust, faced a grilling by MPs this morning, including questions over her role during the HSBC Mexico money laundering scandal and her Pearson pay off. Fairhead was the chair of HSBC's risk committee at the time of the case, which resulted in the bank [...]
