The City is a green machine but ESG claims must be scrutinised properly November 2, 2022 Greenwashing, virtue-signalling and corporate guff are setting back the City’s environmental agenda Is it pro-bird? Is it anti-plane? Or is it just a bubble? That’s the question that many in the City have been asking themselves over the past few months about those three little words: environmental, social, and governance. The rise of ESG was [...]
Call-in powers would be a grave threat to the regulator’s vital independence October 31, 2022 Politicians should be wary of the damage they could do to our regulators’ reputation for independence if they move forward with call-in powers Independence is a funny old thing. At a national level, it can be won and lost in the blink of an eye. At more prosaic levels, building up independence – and a [...]
London’s businesses need more affordable housing for their young staff October 31, 2022 Few of Britain’s problems could not be solved by putting shovels into the ground. Nowhere is that more true than when it comes to housing – a shortage that could, if left unchecked, become a brake on the entire country’s economic growth. On our front page today we report on a potential fall in London [...]
Shell backlash shows no profit is safe in windfall tax-crazed Britain October 27, 2022 Another windfall tax after Shell profits? Britain is at risk of becoming uninvestable Pity the folks in Shell’s communications department, who must be tempted to wear bullet-proof armour whenever they send out a trading update. Yesterday’s numbers were impressive, as you’d expect when energy prices are inflated. They also avoided paying any of Rishi Sunak’s [...]
In the Square Mile, all the pieces matter to City of London prosperity October 27, 2022 “Earn the commute.” That was the phrase that a host of City hotshots used in a panel discussion earlier this week. It’s a helpful way of understanding the Square Mile’s rebound from the pandemic, and indeed, how it has changed. Today, the City will be at its busiest. Thursday is the new Friday, after all, [...]
Dishy Rishi has a lot on his plate and there’s little time to waste October 25, 2022 Rishi Sunak may not have lots of time on his hands, but one book is perhaps worth reading. In his recent tome Stupid Bankers, Irish author Paul Kilduff makes the case that sometimes – just sometimes – it really can be one individual that changes the course of financial history. Nick Leeson, for instance, crashed [...]
Not-so-free-market Rishi isn’t perfect, but he’s the right choice right now October 24, 2022 Rightly or wrongly, Britain’s credibility is at stake – and right now, Rishi Sunak is more likely to restore confidence in the country’s government than either Penny Mordaunt or Boris Johnson The choice facing Conservative MPs today is a difficult one. They are behind in the polls, and fear for their political future. They are [...]
Truss’ diagnosis of Britain’s growth riddle should be remembered October 21, 2022 The Italian Ambassador to Britain is this week a very grumpy man. The source of his angst is the cover of The Economist newspaper, which this week reads “welcome to Britaly,” alongside a mock-up of Liz Truss as a kind of Milanese Boudicca, branding spaghetti atop her spear and protected by a shield made of [...]
Is Truss helping or hindering her own pro-growth policies? October 20, 2022 One of the greater mysteries of the universe is why David Cameron is yet to delete a tweet from the run-up to the 2015 election: “Britain faces a simple and inescapable choice – stability and strong Government with me, or chaos with Ed Miliband.” The voters chose the former, but it is fair to say [...]
Ditching the triple lock would be unpopular – and deeply worthwhile October 19, 2022 Liz Truss said she wanted to be unpopular. She’s certainly achieved that over the past few weeks, and to not much obvious benefit to either her party or the country. But if, as suggested, she takes aim at the triple lock on pensions we may finally be looking at an unpopular decision worth making. The [...]
