Three things you didn’t know about… May 19, 2014 UK chairman of public affairs, Weber Shandwick Jon McLeod 1 Jon was a member of “moderately successful” eighties band, The Red Army Choir. They supported New Order when they had Blue Monday in the charts and Peter Hook once warned, “keep your f****** hands off our equipment or I’ll smash your face in.” 2 He’s [...]
European election: stakes are high as polls tighten May 19, 2014 It’s not just Ukip leader Nigel Farage’s reputation at stake when the nation goes to the ballot box this week WHEN the nation goes to the polls this Thursday to vote in the European elections, it won’t just be Nigel Farage nervously awaiting the result. The Ukip leader is hoping his party can snatch victory [...]
On the road with Grant Shapps: The Tory touring Britain in the fight against Ukip May 19, 2014 CHAIRMAN of the Conservative party Grant Shapps has the unenviable task of touring the country getting the party’s election message out, and it’s obvious when he steps off the train in Kingston that he’s done this a million times before. A quick picture outside the station leads us to a short walking tour of local [...]
City A.M. joins Chuka Umunna: a Brexit would be catastrophic for London firms May 19, 2014 WALKING around Labour-stronghold Burnt Oak with shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna feels a bit like knowing a minor celebrity. Some people clasp his hand and snap selfies, others brush past uninterested. “I don’t want to be the shadow secretary, I want to be the real thing!” Umunna tells one couple who run a curtain shop [...]
Research claims SSE contributes £9.1bn to the UK May 19, 2014 ENERGY giant SSE contributed £9.1bn to the UK economy last year, according to the results of an independent study released ahead of its full-year results this week, which are expected to show a nine per cent profit rise. The report, which was produced by accountancy firm PwC, said that SSE supported 112,000 jobs in the [...]
Stock market boom puts private company sales on back burner May 19, 2014 LONDON’S booming new issue market has cut takeovers of private companies in the UK by a quarter since the start of the year, as financial backers opt for stock market listings over auctions to cash out their stakes, fresh data reveals today. Trade deals by privately owned companies tanked 24 per cent in the first [...]
Egdon to tap into UK North Sea gas with hybrid onshore project May 19, 2014 EGDON Resources, the UK oil and gas explorer that recently agreed to buy Alkane Energy’s shale gas assets, is planning to develop a North Sea gas field that it says could transform its business. “We are an onshore player that has only dipped our toes in the offshore arena before,” chief executive Mark Abbott told [...]
Leeds is better than London for property returns May 19, 2014 Commercial property investors are better off shunning London shops and pouring their cash into Leeds industrial parks over the next four years, according to real estate research published today. The northern city is the most undervalued spot for commercial property in the UK, with industrial sites up to 14 per cent below their fair market [...]
Iconic hazelnut chocolate spread Nutella celebrates 50th birthday May 19, 2014 NUTELLA, the chocolate and hazelnut spread that made its Italian inventors into one of the country’s richest families, will today turn 50, with events planned across the world to celebrate the iconic brand. Mika played a special concert in Naples’ Piazza Plebiscito last night to wish “buon compleanno” to Nutella, while the company has teamed [...]
Trader Kerviel appeals to French president from the Italian border May 19, 2014 CONVICTED rogue trader Jerome Kerviel said yesterday he would stay in Italy rather than report to a French police station as required to start serving a three-year jail sentence. Kerviel, 37, said he was appealing to French President Francois Hollande to intervene in his case. He has spent over three years fighting charges stemming from [...]
