Businesses still upbeat despite General Election jitters February 8, 2015 UK businesses are brimming with confidence despite the upcoming General Election on 7 May. An optimism index produced by accountants BDO maintained a robust score of 104.4 in January, according to data published today. Although marginally down from December’s 104.9, the figure remains above the long-term average of 100. The BDO indices for output and [...]
Economist: EU vote would be drag on growth February 8, 2015 AN IN-OUT referendum on Britain’s EU membership would hinder growth regardless of the outcome, a City economist has warned. Given the vote would likely not be until 2017, businesses and households would be plagued by two years of uncertainty, says economist James Knightley from banking giant ING. “Foreign investors may not be prepared to wait [...]
Solicitor general denies movie investment is for tax avoidance February 8, 2015 SOLICITOR general Robert Buckland QC MP is facing questions after it emerged he is a partner in a film investment scheme currently being investigated by HMRC. The Conservative MP for South Swindon denies that he invested in order to receive the tax breaks available to some film investors. Buckland, who has been a partner in [...]
Confident Brits return to shops to splash cash February 8, 2015 CONFIDENT shoppers are returning to the high street in their droves – with spending rising faster in shops than online, according to figures out today from Visa Europe. Upbeat Britons surged back into restaurants and bars after Christmas, spending more in person. But clothing sales fell, and overall online spending dipped a touch on the [...]
Banks hike pay for anti-money laundering staff February 8, 2015 BANKS are paying anti-money laundering contractors more than £1,000 per day, as a skills shortage pushes their value through the roof, recruiters Venn Group said today. Banks are taking more steps to tackle financial crime as well as facing tougher regulatory demands. But the supply of workers has not kept pace with the new demand, [...]
IT and finance lead way in jobs and pay boom February 8, 2015 SALARIES are climbing strongly in professional services such as finance and IT, as demand for staff combines with low unemployment, recruiters said today. Recruiters have seen the number of permanent vacancies on their books rise 29 per cent in the past year, according to the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo). The number of vacancies [...]
Bank of England set to hint at an earlier rise in interest rates February 8, 2015 INTEREST rates could rise sooner than markets expect, economists predicted over the weekend, as the Bank of England prepares to update its growth forecasts on Thursday. Inflation could fall to zero in the coming months, pushing back expectations of an interest rate rise, and all nine members of the monetary policy committee last month voted [...]
First Natwest start-up accelerator opening in Birmingham today February 8, 2015 Natwest will open the first of eight business accelerator hubs in Birmingham this morning, housing 80 businesses as part of a programme to support entrepreneurs around the UK. The hub will host a rolling six month programme for start-ups, in partnership with Entrepreneurial Spark, which will include growth awards of up to £50,000 for the [...]
Employers say recruitment firms need to understand roles better February 8, 2015 THE RECRUITMENT industry could do better in understanding the roles that it is filling, according to research from specialist recruiter BrightPool. While UK’s largest employers said a recruiter should have a clear understanding of the job role on offer, only 67 per cent ranked recruitment companies’ performance as “satisfactory” or “good” and none as “excellent”. [...]
Sofa.com finds new home with CBPE Capital February 8, 2015 SOFA.COM has been sold to CBPE Capital, the private equity firm, after a year-long search for a new owner, the home furnishings group said yesterday. In December 2013 City A.M. revealed that the eight-year-old group had hired financial advisers Altium to find a buyer to help fund its expansion. CBPE Capital, which also owns the [...]
