Labour mayoral race underway June 16, 2015 Labour’s David Lammy, Tessa Jowell and Gareth Thomas (L-R) at last night’s hustings debate, where the party’s contenders for the mayoral candidacy made their cases. Also running are Diane Abbott, Sadiq Khan and Christian Wolmar.
Applegreen IPO: Irish owners net €20m in petrol station listing June 16, 2015 Two Irish entrepreneurs are in line for a €20m (£14.37m) windfall after floating their petrol forecourt business on the London stock exchange. Bob Etchingham and Joe Barrett, who founded Irish petrol station group Applegreen 23 years ago, will net €15m and €5m respectively from the listing, according to regulatory documents filed yesterday. Both [...]
Cargiant unveils £5bn plans for Old Oak Common regeneration June 16, 2015 Cargiant unveiled ambitions plans yesterday to turn its 46-acre site at Old Oak Common into a new £5bn district with 9,000 homes, further dashing QPR’s hopes of building a stadium on the land. The car dealership firm and its development partner London & Regional said the site would be renamed Old Oak Park and be [...]
Funerals group Dignity in £38m deal to expand with Laurel purchase June 16, 2015 Listed funeral services provider Dignity is expanding, with the purchase of 36 funeral homes from Laurel Funerals for £38m. Laurel currently operates in 83 locations across the UK. In order to avoid any potential competition concerns, Dignity is only acquiring sites that complement its own geographic spread. The transaction is expected to close in July. [...]
Apple is ready to face rivals in music streaming market June 16, 2015 Apple’s announcement that it is to enter the music streaming industry points towards the way we will access music in the years ahead. But how will it fit into the sector, and what does it mean for those brands already occupying that space? Spotify is the major presence in the market at present. It has [...]
Gatwick airport partners with budget airline WestJet as runway expansion report looms June 16, 2015 Canadian budget airline WestJet has selected Gatwick as its first English destination from Canada, in a boon to the airport’s expansion campaign. WestJet’s wide-body Boeing 767-300 aircraft will begin flying the route next year, with the Canadian airports yet to be determined. WestJet boss Gregg Saretsky said Gatwick is the “ideal airport” for its first [...]
Small firms grow at fastest rate since 2008 June 16, 2015 Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are growing at their fastest rate since the economic crisis in 2008, according to a report out today. New research from the Enterprise Research Centre (ERC) shows that the private sector added over 600,000 net new jobs last year, allowing SMEs to “regain the ground lost” in 2008. The ERC said [...]
Stelios Haji-Ioannou launches new easyBus Heathrow-London shuttle service June 16, 2015 Former EasyJet owner Stelios Haji-Ioannou is back at the airport, but this time with a ground-based shuttle. His easyBus launches a Heathrow-to-London bus service next month, with fares from just £1. The service will operate at least 90 times per day from 1 July, between Heathrow’s Central Bus Station and west London’s Shepherd’s Bush. Normal [...]
Toffs spot winners at Goffs June 16, 2015 HRH PRINCESS Michael of Kent went racehorse shopping at the lavish Goff’s thoroughbred auction on Monday evening. Politicians, trainers and royals gathered from all over the world to bid against each other and bag a bay to run at Ascot. More than 50 horses were trotted out at Kensington Palace, 23 of which are due [...]
Crest Nicholson raises targets as profits surge June 16, 2015 CREST Nicholson has ramped up its housebuilding targets after reporting a leap in first-half profits, buoyed by an improving market and a Conservative election win. The housebuilder said it plans to build 4,000 more homes and generate £1.4bn of revenue by 2019 after refocusing its London arm towards more affordable areas such as Peckham and [...]
