Barrister banned for six months for lewd sexual language towards trainee March 23, 2021 A barrister has been suspended from practice for six months after making lewd sexual comments towards a trainee who at the time was undertaking a mini-pupillage. The Bar Tribunals & Adjudication Service (BATs) found Robert Kearney, a veteran criminal barrister, had “failed to act with integrity” when he was in a position of trust. BATs [...]
Wall Street opens in the red ahead of Fed chair testimony March 23, 2021 Wall Street ticked into the red this morning as energy and travel stocks slipped, while investors awaited remarks from Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell on the health of the US economy. Powell will join US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen to provide testimony to US politicians in Congress later today. He is expected to say that the [...]
Government mulls reform of long-haul air passenger duty to balance domestic cut March 23, 2021 The government has today kicked off its consultation on reforming the air passenger duty (APD) tax regime as part of its so-called “tax day”. Ministers are looking to change the current structure of the tax to improve intra-UK travel links without compromising its 2050 net zero emissions targets. As was previously announced, it will consider [...]
Exclusive: Galliard secures £76m loan to fund luxury flats above Tottenham Court Road Crossrail station March 23, 2021 The developers of a luxury residential block above Tottenham Court Road’s Crossrail station have secured £76m in financing from lenders to complete the project. Leumi UK, the London-based subsidiary of the Israeli bank, and Natwest have closed a multi-million-pound deal with Galliard Homes to fund the development of 92 flats in the West End, City [...]
Regulators have to front up to the cryptocurrency challenge as Bitcoin goes mainstream March 23, 2021 The recent surge in the value of Bitcoin has drawn attention to cryptocurrency from all quarters. Supposedly now at tipping point, the recent billion-dollar bet by Tesla added momentum to cryptocurrency’s growth and duly pushed the valuation past $1tn. Individuals and corporates are all diving into the world of Bitcoin. It’s not just Tesla; companies [...]
Global online tax on tech giants ‘in our grasp’, says Rishi Sunak March 23, 2021 Rishi Sunak has today said a global online tax on internet giants like Amazon and Facebook is “in our grasp”. Sunak said he was “very keen to see a resolution” on the issue, with the chancellor making it one of his top three priorities in G7 meetings this year that are hosted by the UK. [...]
Prince Harry takes executive role at Silicon Valley health startup Better Up March 23, 2021 Prince Harry is said to be taking up a senior role at a Silicon Valley health startup as the outspoken royal taps into new business ventures. The Duke of Sussex will become chief impact officer of Better Up, a San Francisco-based firm specialising in coaching and mental health, the Wall Street Journal reported. “I intend [...]
Oil prices tumble as new lockdowns prompt fresh demand fears March 23, 2021 Oil prices plunged today as new coronavirus lockdowns and tougher travel restrictions across Europe raised fears of a slump in fuel demand. Worldwide standard Brent crude tumbled 4.7 per cent by the mid-morning, shedding more than $3 to stand at $61.60. US counterpart West Texas Intermediate dropped by the same margin, falling back below the [...]
Citigroup enforces Zoom-free Fridays in wellbeing push March 23, 2021 Citigroup workers will be spared from Zoom meetings on Fridays as part of a wellbeing push by the bank’s new boss. In a memo to staff chief executive Jane Fraser said she was introducing the video call veto after it “became apparent we need to combat the ‘Zoom fatigue’ that many of us feel”. Fraser [...]
DEBATE: Is the Government doing enough to combat vaccine misinformation? March 23, 2021 Richard Exon, Founder of Joint says Yes The UK has one of the most successful vaccine rollouts in the world. On Saturday it vaccinated a record 844,285 people – a combination of first and second doses – in a single day. So, half of all UK adults have now had their first dose of the [...]
