Coalition swings the axe December 13, 2010 THE coalition started to embark on the biggest spending cuts in a generation yesterday, as a line of government ministers detailed where the axe will fall. Local councils will see the amount of cash they get from central government slashed by 17 per cent, or around £6.5bn, next year. Communities secretary Eric Pickles said that no council [...]
New City regulator will allow banks to fail FSA, says Sants December 13, 2010 THE chief executive of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) said yesterday one of the biggest jobs its successor would face would be to convince the public that banks should be allowed to fail. Hector Sants said the Prudential Regulatory Authority (PRA), which he will take control of in 2012, would be more willing to allow [...]
Miliband tries to woo Lib Dems into anti-right alliance December 13, 2010 ED Miliband yesterday tried to woo disaffected Liberal Democrats by calling on them to “work with Labour on issues of common interest”. Capitalising on last week’s bloody vote on tuition fees – which sparked the worst rebellion in the party’s history – Miliband said some Lib Dem MPs “fear their deal with the Tories is shifting the [...]
Trust in the BBC plummets December 13, 2010 TRUST in the BBC has fallen below 50 per cent for the first time in the corporation’s history, according to data released yesterday. The British Social Attitudes survey found that in 2009 just 49 per cent of respondents said they trusted the state-funded broadcaster. That is almost a quarter less than in 1983, when 72 per cent [...]
Property taxes to rise in April December 13, 2010 HUGE rises in business tax are due in April thanks to the government’s “random” way of setting rates, a leading retail group said yesterday. Commercial property taxes are based on the previous September’s retail price index (RPI), the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said. The method is prone to volatile jumps in RPI, unfairly affecting businesses, [...]
EURO IN CRISIS December 13, 2010 THE European Central Bank (ECB) bought far fewer government bonds than expected last week, casting doubt in markets over its commitment to the programme. The bank purchased €2.67bn (£2.26bn) worth of bonds, up from €1.97bn the week before, but far short of the €5bn analysts had been expecting. However, the ECB warned the true figure [...]
Italy’s PM to face crisis vote December 13, 2010 ITALIAN Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is set for a crucial showdown in parliament today after party rebels forced a vote of no-confidence linked to his handling of several crises including the eurozone unrest and the country’s budget deficit. Berlusconi is expected to win the vote, though rebels including lower house speaker Gianfranco Fini and his [...]
Spain risks firestorm over pensions in an effort to impress the markets December 13, 2010 THE Spanish government’s desperation to calm financial markets means it will risk a political firestorm to impose new pension rules that may not even help its budget for at least a decade. Urged by Brussels and economists, the cabinet is bringing forward the reform, which raises the retirement age — aiming to show it making [...]
Mass strikes cause chaos across Greece December 13, 2010 GREEK public transport and media workers launched a week of anti-austerity strikes yesterday expected to ground flights, disrupt services and pile rubbish on the streets in the run-up to Christmas holidays. Parliament began discussing a bill to cap wages at state-run firms and introduce company-level wage bargaining in the private sector, both key elements in [...]
CREDIT SUISSE December 13, 2010 James Leigh-Pemberton, 54, is managing director and chief executive of Credit Suisse UK, a role he took over in July 2008. He is responsible for developing the bank’s client relationships in private banking, investment banking and asset management in the UK. He also serves as a member of the firm’s Europe Middle East and Africa [...]
