Physicists are hunting for a so-called God particle, but their faith is dwindling fast November 24, 2011 EVER since the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) was nearing completion at Cern, the European centre for particle physics near Geneva, particle scientists have been earnestly explaining that it really doesn’t matter if the huge accelerator fails to snare its main quarry, a particle called the Higgs boson. Maybe it exists; maybe it doesn’t. It’s interesting [...]
Lehman lawyers think insolvency regime too weak November 24, 2011 THE high profile failure of MF Global has once again highlighted the intractable problems that arise when an investment firm fails. The latest reports suggest that the shortfall on client funds may be as much as $1.2bn (£0.7bn). Staggeringly, that represents a quarter of all the funds that the firm was supposed to be holding. [...]
There’s no middle way: Stretch or be squeezed November 24, 2011 THE Oxford English Dictionary has declared Ed Miliband’s phrase “the squeezed middle” its word of the year. Yes, it’s a phrase, not a word, and let’s set aside how tricky writing the definition must have been, given that Miliband’s concept of the middle appears to reach over the whole population except for far extremes of [...]
RAPID RESPONSES November 24, 2011 Safer than some Allister Heath writes, “the main reason why UK gilt yields hit record lows yesterday is that the Bank of England is monetising the entirety of the government’s borrowing” [Even Germany is feeling the pressure, yesterday]. That would explain why gilts were strong, but sterling has been strong against Asian currencies, suggesting foreign [...]
CROYDON November 24, 2011 SAFFRON SQUARE Price: From £182,500 for one-bedroom to £640,000 for three-bedroom with balcony Saffron Square will be over 22,000 square feet of new apartment and retail buildings, all set in a new public square, landscaped and with water features. There will be 715 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments. Contact Knight Frank on 020 7861 5499 [...]
SELL November 24, 2011 MANAGING DIRECTOR OF KAY & CO, CENTRAL LONDON ESTATE AGENCY Q.I’m about to put my house on the market – how long should I expect it to take me to sell my home? A.This is a tricky question to answer as time scales vary dramatically. However, on balance, in order to allow for a full [...]
PROPERTY NEWS November 24, 2011 PRIME MARKETS TO LEVEL OFF NEXT YEAR The world’s prime markets are anticipated to level off next year, according to the Knight Frank global forecast. Forty-four per cent of cities are expected to see prices rise, 44 per cent should expect a fall in prices, and 12 per cent will remain unchanged. Asian cities are [...]
I’m dreaming of a blue and green Christmas November 24, 2011 The colour of TV commercial Christmas is snowy-white, accented by the waxy green and red of bows of holly. The Christmas of real life tends to be a slushy brown, accented by car-fumes and accompanied by a complete breakdown of the transport system. While most of us will just slog through it as usual, for [...]
Great deals meet a good cause in the Red Cross Christmas Market November 24, 2011 WHAT better way to get your Christmas shopping done than tying it in with a good cause – and a nice dose of history. Next week, the Red Cross Christmas Market at London’s Guildhall provides a fabulous, multi-dimensional chance to get the best out of the season, whether it’s art, craft or other goodies – [...]
THE RED CROSS AND THE CITY | A TRADITION OF SERVICE November 24, 2011 The City’s annual Red Cross Christmas Market is the capital’s largest fundraising event for the crisis charity and has been a joint venture with the livery companies since the Second World War. Originally a source of affordable Christmas presents for London’s East End, today it mixes luxury with a selection of gifts for all budgets. [...]
