The City’s history may be great but its future depends on open borders May 27, 2012 THE CROWDS queuing for a glimpse of Her Majesty’s royal barge will get – for a few hours – a useful reminder of the role geography has played in the success of London as a global trading hub. And the importance of immigration, too. Sunblock and brollies at the ready on Sunday, we will gaze [...]
Would a Greek exit from the euro lead to a wider European systemic banking crisis? May 27, 2012 YES Michael Derks Southern European banks are facing sizeable problems, and there’s huge potential for this to intensify and spread through Europe, possibly to the UK. There are only two effective ways to stop a bank run – the relevant government either nationalises and recapitalises affected banks (far too expensive) or guarantees depositors. Sadly, deposit [...]
RAPID responses May 27, 2012 Euro bondage [Re: Eurozone crisis moves ever closer as Greek left gains ground, Friday] I don’t know how we came to believe that growth will somehow cure the debt crisis, whether in Greece or the UK. Our massive debt was added to during a period of sustained economic growth. It will still require political action, [...]
Sheffield in September is the place to get Made May 27, 2012 IN LONDON alone there are more events to guide and inspire entrepreneurship than any entrepreneur would, or could, dare to attend. That’s why it’s important to discriminate. One event not to miss is the Made festival. On Friday, deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg officially launched Made, which will take place in Sheffield from 19 to [...]
A top idea and good execution are vital but you also need luck May 27, 2012 FORMER Prime Minister Gordon Brown looked determined when he said to me, “We’ve got to get more small businesses started”. My response astonished him: “As you know Gordon, nearly nine new businesses fail for every one that succeeds. I’m worried that we will just add to the nine, not to the one”. “Oh yes, of [...]
Two wrongs don’t make good policy May 27, 2012 GOVERNMENTS like picking winners. The trouble is, they aren’t very good at it. But it’s much easier to put others’ hard-earned cash on the line than your own. And this government has been at it again. Last week, Vince Cable launched GrowthAccelerator, a new £200m three year programme to try to “help up to 26,000 [...]
How to get cheaper car insurance May 27, 2012 KNOWLEDGE is power. And the first thing to know about car insurance is that getting it is a negotiation. In any negotiation, access to information is rarely symmetrical. Those with greater knowledge have more power and in this instance it’s impossible to know more than each firm. This is why you need to shop around. [...]
Tokyo is vast, fast and very interesting May 27, 2012 IT was about 7AM and the sun from my windows was beginning to wake me up. With my room on the 35th floor of a tower in the business district of Tokyo, the view of the endless city was so intense that drawing my curtains – even while I slept – seemed a waste. I [...]
JUBILEE WEEKEND ESCAPES May 27, 2012 Go far from the madding crowd for the Jubilee Celebrate her Maj’s Diamond Jubilee far from the madding crowd at the Chewton Glen hotel in Hampshire. The country house hotel is offering a package including accommodation, afternoon tea, cycle hire to explore the local area, a full body scrub, a pre-dinner drink on the terrace [...]
Bresnan urges caution despite tearing through West Indies May 27, 2012 ENGLAND’S seam attack ripped through West Indies’ top order during the second Test at Trent Bridge yesterday evening, yet three-wicket star Tim Bresnan has warned against complacency ahead of today’s play. The visitors were on 61-6 at stumps after a 26 over onslaught. With England having reached 428 runs in their first innings, captain Darren [...]
