UK employers are plagued by an “absenteeism crisis” costing the British economy £100bn a year May 30, 2016 The UK is suffering from an "absenteeism crisis" in the workplace, according to the on-demand hiring platform Catapult. Small- and medium-sized enterprises are most affected by employee absenteeism, Catapult has said, which includes both "genuine" and "non-genuine" absences taken off work. UK businesses are losing 6.9 days a year per employee due to the absenteeism trend, while nearly [...]
Iraq announces oil export hike ahead of Thursday Opec meeting May 30, 2016 Iraq has said it will raise its oil exports ahead of a meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) on Thursday. It will supply five million barrels of extra crude to its partners in June, Reuters reported. Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are also set to raise their supplies in [...]
TaxPayers’ Alliance slams government for its “bungled” sugar tax May 30, 2016 The TaxPayers' Alliance (TPA) has slammed the government's "bungled" sugar tax, which it has claimed will "hit the poorest families hardest" and have little impact on sugar intake. The soft drinks levy, which was a surprise announcement in the March Budget, will be paid by producers and importers of "water-based added sugar soft drinks" from April 2018. However, [...]
The English wine industry uncorked another bumper year in 2015 May 30, 2016 The English wine industry gained more fizz last year as 37 new wine producers and vineyards opened over 2015, research from national accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young has found. A total of 170 wine producers have entered the domestic industry over the past five years, UHY Hacker Young said, while the popularity of boutique alcohol and locally-made products [...]
Drink up: Brexit could threaten the UK wine industry’s export markets May 26, 2016 Britain's place in the international wine industry supply chain could be drained out if the UK votes for Brexit, an industry body has warned. Exchequer Secretary Damian Hinds, who visited Europe's biggest bottling plant today with the WSTA, was warned by the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) has warned that exports of wine produced and [...]
Members of the European Parliament just voted to introduce a bitcoin and cryptocurrency regulator May 26, 2016 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have called for the creation of a cryptocurrency watchdog to combat money laundering and terrorism. The EU Commission should set up a taskforce to monitor virtual currencies, such as bitcoin, to prevent their use in money laundering or terrorist financing, the European parliament said in a non-binding resolution today. The proposal, set [...]
Boffins blast HS2 arguing Britain’s high speed rail offering could be five times more expensive than its French equivalent May 26, 2016 High Speed 2 (HS2) could be up to five times more expensive than its French equivalent according to a new academic study, reigniting rows over whether the £56bn railway plan is a “vanity project”. The academics, led by Professor Tony May from Leeds University and transport consultant Jonathan Tyler, said that France's TGV line from [...]
The number of people who have tried e-cigarettes nearly doubled in two years May 26, 2016 The number of people who have tried an e-cigarette has almost doubled in two years – and is only slightly lower than the proportion of people who regularly smoke. In a new Imperial College London study of 53,000 people across Europe, researchers found the number of people who had tried vaping in the UK rose from 8.9 [...]
Brexit could topple London’s crown as top global tourist destination, warns Labour’s Fiona Twycross May 26, 2016 Leaving the European Union could result in London losing its crown as the world's top tourist destination. The capital, which was named by MasterCard Global Destinations Cities Index as the world's top tourist destination in 2015 and in five of the last seven years, could be dealt a "devastating" blow to its tourist economy if [...]
