Foreign Office staff told not to say ‘hostile state’ for fear of upsetting China August 21, 2023 Government officials have reportedly been told not to use the term “hostile state” by the Foreign Office in case it upsets China. The term cannot be used in documents and internal messages via email and WhatsApp between advisers, civil servants and ministers, The Times reported today. One official in another department was reportedly told by [...]
Khan using a ‘sledgehammer to crack a nut’ with ULEZ, says minister August 21, 2023 Sadiq Khan’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) policy is using a “sledgehammer to crack a nut,” the minister for London has said. Paul Scully told TalkTV: “I think the further you get out of the city… clearly the less impact something like the ultra low emission zone is going to have.” “You can see here [...]
Challenger Cynergy Bank secures £20m funding boost August 21, 2023 Challenger bank Cynergy Bank has secured a £20m Tier 2 investment from British Business Investments in a boost for its expansion plans. The funding will go towards supporting Cynergy Bank’s growth plans, which include delivering over £250m of new lending across the SME and property sectors. The challenger bank was formerly a part of the [...]
London’s finance industry a ‘jewel in Britain’s crown’ despite concerns over City’s future, Griffith says August 21, 2023 City minister Andrew Griffith said the financial services industry was still a “jewel in Britain’s crown that even the doomsters cannot deny” after jobs in the finance sector hit a record high. Figures out last week showed that the number of jobs in financial services climbed to a record high of 1.2m in the first [...]
Domino’s franchisee to declare Russian business bankrupt August 21, 2023 The Russian arm of fast food chain Domino’s is likely to close after its London-listed parent company decided to put it into bankruptcy. Apparently failing to find a buyer for the Russian business, DP Eurasia said it has decided its subsidiary should instead file for bankruptcy. The franchisee runs around 170 Domino’s pizza sites in the country, and had previously said it was “evaluating its presence” there. The Russian economy has been hit [...]
FTSE 100 close: Mixed messages from China and housing rout sends London markets into the red August 21, 2023 London’s FTSE indexes fell amid a housing sell-off and a limited policy intervention from the Chinese central bank to boost its creaking economy. The FTSE 100 index slipped into the red to trade at 7,258.03 while the midcap FTSE 250 index fell 0.87 per cent to 17,938.91. Indexes in Paris and Frankfurt saw gains however. [...]
Horizon 22: London sky-high viewing gallery set to elevate the capital August 21, 2023 London is preparing to level up its skyline game with the unveiling of Horizon 22, Europe’s highest free public viewing gallery. Set to open its doors this September, Horizon 22 is perched on Level 58 of the towering 22 Bishopsgate – City of London’s tallest building. Horizon 22 is “yet another huge vote of confidence” [...]
GAM calls on rebel investor to ‘accept the realities’ and back Liontrust takeover August 21, 2023 Swiss asset manager GAM has called on shareholders to “accept the realities” facing the firm today as it issued a rallying cry for investors to back its takeover by London rival Liontrust. Liontrust has faced a wave of resistance from shareholders since launching a £96m takeover swoop for GAM in May, with a group of [...]
Gold prices slump ahead of Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole symposium August 21, 2023 Gold prices have failed to revive in this morning's trading, with investors awaiting the mood music from a key central bank summit later this week.
Holiday firms go to war with airlines over summer flight cancellations August 21, 2023 An alliance of consumer advocates and travel firms has called on the prime minister to stand up for holidaymakers after thousands of cancelled flights this summer. In a joint letter with Which?, companies including loveholidays, On The Beach and Thomas Cook, have urged Rishi Sunak to allow airlines to be fined if they fail in [...]
