From funding to effectiveness: we need to change how we look at innovation November 2, 2022 One consistent low hanging fruit for politicians when it comes to economic growth is innovation policy, which consists of spending public money to fund new research and development of new technologies. While the public and different political parties might see its purpose as slightly different, it is broadly perceived to be unproblematically valuable for both [...]
Not all is doom and gloom: a recession is not the only possible scenario facing Britain November 2, 2022 The prime minister and the Chancellor are struggling to “balance the books”. Around £50bn might be needed from a combination of cuts to spending plans and increases in taxation. This has led to a chorus of voices squealing about austerity creating a major economic recession. The argument goes back to Keynes, writing in the aftermath [...]
Sunak must bet big on our semiconductor industry – or we’ll lose out to competition November 2, 2022 Rishi Sunak’s in-tray is overflowing with crises: from the cost of living to supporting Ukraine, from settling the UK’s long-running dispute with the EU about Northern Ireland to the fate of his controversial home secretary. But the prime minister also needs to address long-running issues which his predecessors have neglected. Among these is how to [...]
Letters: Climate should be a priority November 2, 2022 [Re: Why does Cop27 seem to be the party no one wants to go to?, Oct 31] It’s disappointing that our new prime minister, Rishi Sunak, doesn’t consider attending COP27 a priority. I appreciate his government has to deal with the UK’s cost of living crisis, but now is not the time to retreat from [...]
Calls for Swiss-UK trade deal grow as financial firms ramp up pressure November 2, 2022 A group of top financial firms has ramped up pressure on the government to strike a “ground-breaking” trade deal with Switzerland today in a bid to ease the flow of cash between the two financial centres. The value of trade between the UK and Switzerland hit £38.4bn last year but companies including Credit Suisse, Deloitte, [...]
Bentley’s profits more than double to £495.5m despite global headwinds November 2, 2022 Bentley’s profits have more than doubled to €575m (£495.5m) despite ongoing industry and economic headwinds. In the nine months ended 30 September, the luxury car maker’s earnings soared by 109 per cent, while return on sales surged to 23.1 per cent – the highest in the UK marque’s 103-year history. Revenue went up 28 per [...]
Private sector must ‘be bolder’ on tech to give UK inc. an edge, says IBM chief November 2, 2022 The UK private sector must take more bets on technology if it is to compete with its European neighbours. Speaking to City A.M., the UK & Ireland chief executive of American tech giant IBM, Sreeram Visvanathan, urged businesses to “be bolder” and “find niches” to give UK inc. an edge above other markets. “We can’t [...]
Funds struggle to sell sustainability as greenwashing spreads November 1, 2022 Fund managers are struggling to sell their green investment products to financial advisers as rampant greenwashing erodes trust in the environmental, social and governance (ESG) industry, fresh research has
Ministers push back plans for controversial ‘call in’ powers November 1, 2022 Ministers have delayed plans for the roll-out of controversial ‘call in’ powers over regulators in order to give the prime minister more time to mull over the plans, a letter from the City minister has revealed.
FCA struggling to lure top talent due to lacklustre pay, former official claims November 1, 2022 Reforms to the City watchdog have not done enough to boost employees’ pay packets and it is struggling to recruit top calibre staff as a result, a former official has claimed.