Captain Euro teaches David Cameron the virtues of a federal Europe November 18, 2014 The EU hasn't got a great track record PR wins, having to withdraw a £106,000 promotional video that was widely seen as racist back in 2012. But on the softer side of EU promotion is the delightful Captain Euro, a cartoon character who runs the twelve-star organisation that defends "the security of Europe and uphold [...]
GetTaxi app launches £5 London rides starting tomorrow November 18, 2014 Taxi app GetTaxi has announced a new initiative starting tomorrow where all rides starting in zones 3-6 booked through the app will cost just £5 if they are under 10km. The promotional "£5 London rides" will go on until the end of the year. The company, which works exclusively with London's black cab drivers, added [...]
Vape wins Oxford Dictionaries 2014 Word of the Year a week after UK TV airs its ecigarette advert featuring vaping November 18, 2014 It's that time of year again. The Oxford Dictionaries famed Word the Year is finally out. This year's winner was "vape" and is defined as the following: To inhale and exhale the vapour produced by an electronic cigarette or similar device. Vape won out thanks to the explosive rise of ecigarettes in the UK and [...]
Japanese PM Shinzo Abe calls snap election and delays hike in sales tax November 18, 2014 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has called a snap election one day after the world's third-largest economy slipped into recession. Furthermore, he is promising to delay the controversial second hike in sales tax by 18 months. Data released on Monday showed the Japanese economy shrank by an annualised 1.6 per cent in the third quarter [...]
Drug shortages hitting UK patient care more than anywhere else in Europe November 18, 2014 Medicines shortages are hitting patient care in the UK and across Europe, according to a report published by the European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP). The UK's healthcare system fared especially badly in the report compared with its continental neighbours, with 100 per cent of the hospital pharmacists from the UK saying they "strongly agreed" [...]
Airplane-bnb: KLM takes Airbnb’s sharing economy to a luxury jet November 13, 2014 ental app Airbnb has teamed up KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to offer tech-savvy travellers the chance to stay in what Airbnb call a “pimped out” jet. For anyone looking to take up the offer, they need not fear landings or takeoff as the plane will remain grounded at Amsterdam's biggest air traffic hub. The "pimped [...]
British American Tobacco whacked with £650,000 fine by HMRC for “oversupplying” Belgium cigarette market November 13, 2014 British American Tobacco (BAT) has been hit with a fine of £650,000 by HM Revenue & Customs for oversupplying cigarettes to Belgium, which has substantially lower tobacco taxes than Britain. Apparently, that causes more low-cost cigarettes to be smuggled into the UK. According to papers seen by the Wall Street Journal, it is the first [...]
Ed Miliband fights for his political life in comeback speech focused on inequality and cost of living November 13, 2014 Ed Miliband has staged his latest fightback to salvage his embattled leadership after a series of dire opinion polls and rumours of plots on Labour's backbenchers. In a speech at Senate House, Miliband took the wise step of using an autocue, presumably so as not to repeat the mistake of thedisastrous party conference speech where [...]
London Stock Exchange Group profits rise and on course to complete Frank Russell acquisition in weeks November 13, 2014 London Stock Exchange (LSE) Group has reported a pre-tax profit of £136.8m for the half-year ended 30 September, up from £116m the same time last year. The FTSE 100 company enjoyed an 18 per cent rise in revenue to £592.6m, with growth across all of the Group's business areas. The LSE said it had continued [...]
Germany beats America to land top spot as world’s best country November 13, 2014 Germany has knocked the US off its perch to become the country with the world's best brand. America had retained the for five years but Germany reclaimed the title for the first time since 2008. The Nation Brands Index, compiled by, er, German think tank Anholt-GfK Roper polled 20,000 people from 20 countries about which country [...]
