The gap between England’s largest cities and neighbouring towns is widening, think tank warns December 15, 2015 A leading independent think tank has warned of a widening divide between England’s largest cities and nearby towns, with three in five towns falling behind their bigger neighbours. A report released today by Demos has identified 21 largest cities and compared their performance with that of two towns closest to each city using 30 different [...]
Shoe fits for Cinven as it takes home Kurt Geiger December 14, 2015 Kurt Geiger is changing hands for the third time in four years after being snapped up by private equity group Cinven. The group’s management and its backers Sycamore Partners have sold the 52 year-old footwear chain to Cinven in a deal thought to be worth around £250m. The sale is the latest in a string [...]
Getting onto the housing ladder is £2,300 a year cheaper than renting, says Santander December 14, 2015 First-time buyers could save £2,300 a year by getting on the property ladder compared to renting, according to research by Santander Mortgages. The average monthly rent in the UK is currently £995 compared to monthly repayments of £805 for the average first-time buyer household, meaning buyers could save £190 a month, the lender said. In [...]
Transport for London’s Uber clampdown slammed by London First December 14, 2015 Transport for London’s (TfL) proposals to crackdown on Uber were dealt another blow today as business group London First labelled them “utterly flawed”, with just over a week to go before a critical consultation closes. The group says it “strongly opposes” suggestions that operators must not show vehicles being available for immediate hire, as well [...]
High street suffers Black Friday blues as footfall slumps in November December 14, 2015 UK high streets suffered a massive slump in footfall in November as shoppers abandoned the high street in favour of bagging a Black Friday bargain online. The number of visitors making shopping trips to their local high streets, retail parks and shopping centres fell by 2.1 per cent year-on-year. This was significantly below the 0.2 per cent fall [...]
Meet Peter Whittle, the Brexiteer bidding to win City Hall December 14, 2015 An openly gay arts enthusiast who has been a television producer, film critic and, most recently, director of the New Culture Forum think tank, Peter Whittle is often asked why he decided to become a Ukip politician. When he answers, Whittle usually has just two words: Nigel Farage. Speaking to City A.M. last week, Whittle says [...]
Weak FTSE index should give Osborne sleepless nights December 14, 2015 How many people, back in January, were predicting that the FTSE 100 index would start with a “5” come December? Certainly not the experts at one leading bank (we’ll grant anonymity… for now) who forecast a reading close to 8,000, or its more restrained peers who thought the blue-chip index would be in the low-to-mid [...]
KPMG in firing line over HBOS as MPs call for investigation December 14, 2015 MPs are calling for accountancy giant KPMG to be investigated for its role in the collapse of HBOS, branding its auditing practices a failure. Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the influential Treasury Select Committee, is urging the accountancy regulator, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), to reconsider the need for a probe into the “big four” accountant. Tyrie [...]
Tata in talks to save Scunthorpe plant as steel industry continues to suffer December 13, 2015 Tata Steel UK has reportedly put together a restructuring plan that could save it’s Scunthorpe refinery from shutting down. A new investor has come onto the scene that could potentially see £400m being pumped into the business, it was reported in the Sunday Telegraph, citing sources close to the proposal. The deal could include an [...]
