British Steel: 50-fold increase in power prices limiting daily operations September 22, 2021 The UK’s second-biggest steel producer said rising power prices had made it impossible to produce profitably at certain times of day. British Steel said there had been an up to 50-fold increase in quoted rates, with a maximum price at peak times of up to £2,500 per megawatt hour, compared with an average rate of [...]
City Moves: Who’s switching jobs in the Square Mile today? September 22, 2021 City A.M.’s Millie Turner provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every Wednesday afternoon. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. LEXI Finance appoints former CBRE director Real estate capital advisory LEXI Finance has poached a debt advisory lead and former associate director from commercial real estate and investment firm CBRE. Joining LEXI’s Mayfair office as a [...]
Suburban takeover: Pret sets out plans for more than 200 new shops September 22, 2021 Sandwich chain Pret a Manger has announced plans to open more than 200 UK shops in the next two years, as it aims to become more than a “white collar worker’s staple”. The business hopes to double its size within five years, with a £100m net investment by JAB and Pret founder Sinclair Beecham to [...]
Three quarters of fraud professionals back mandatory reporting, study finds September 22, 2021 Three in four fraud professionals back mandatory reporting about instances of the UK’s most common crime according to a new survey. Under current legislation there is no requirement for a company to report fraud to law enforcement and little incentive for them to do so unless a criminal prosecution is sought. An overwhelming majority of [...]
West Midlands’ transport system will follow London’s lead September 22, 2021 While Westminster was abuzz with all the reshuffle gossip last week, my eyes were immediately drawn to the renewed focus on the levelling up agenda. With a new high-profile cabinet minister in place and a re-named department, it is clear the Prime Minister is intent on delivering the vision he laid out in his speech [...]
Boris Johnson’s endurance on immigration will be put to the test by labour shortages September 22, 2021 I always loved interviewing Stuart Rose. He was great company and if you stayed quiet long enough after asking a question, he’d give you a quote that made his press officers wince. Unfortunately for the former M&S chief, his honesty caused his downfall in Westminster when – as a Remain supporter during the Referendum campaign [...]
Chartered Accountant’s role in battling climate change September 22, 2021 As the demand for progress on combating climate change grows stronger, CAs will find themselves in the thick of the action, says James Barbour CA, Director, Technical Policy. This article first appeared in ICAS’ CA magazine. In 2000, the world watched as Edinburgh played host to the International Federation of Accountants Conference. At this historic gathering, [...]
Whitehall needs to butt out of businesses’ rules on home working September 22, 2021 Good news, British workers! If you want to work flexibly, by adjusting your hours or working from home, then a consultation document due to be published on Thursday may give you the right to request it from day one. If an employer dares deny it, they’ll need to explain why and suggest an alternative working [...]
Volatile equity market swells state-owned bank’s balance sheet September 22, 2021 A strong performing equity market amid pandemic-induced volatitlity swelled the state-owned development bank’s balance sheet. The British Business Bank (BBB) extended £89bn of loans to UK businesses last year, up £80bn from last year, as businesses scrambled for credit during the pandemic. The BBB extended just £8bn in loans before the pandemic, highlighting the scale [...]
“It’s existential”: TfL boss says Government failure on long-term funding deal would be “betrayal” of London September 22, 2021 THE man in charge of the capital’s creaking transport network has said that it will be a “betrayal” of London if TfL does not get a long-term funding deal this year. Commissioner Andy Byford warned that if the government did not agree a multi-year package with the operator it would set back the UK’s recovery [...]
