FCA slaps Lloyds Bank’s insurance division with £90m fine for misleading customers July 8, 2021 The Financial Conduct Authority fines the insurance division of Lloyds Bank £90.7m for sending misleading renewal quotes to nine million customers. The renewal quotes claimed the amounts were “competitive” when new customers could get a better price on the same products elsewhere, the FCA said. The FCA said the breach of rules caused “a risk [...]
Socialism is on the rise in the UK – we need radical free-market solutions to issues like the housing crisis to fight it July 8, 2021 Last Friday, an underwater oil pipeline burst in the Gulf of Mexico. Spectacular images of a burning oil patch, which looked a lot like the “eye of Sauron” from Lord of the Rings, quickly went viral around the world. What had gone wrong? It did not take long for Twitter to reach its verdict: the [...]
DEBATE: Do banks still need a high-street presence? July 8, 2021 Monzo, Revolut and Starling are all household names. People can open accounts without ever speaking with an employee and most don’t have any branches at all. High-street banks are also closing down and the mass transition towards online banking has only been expedited by the pandemic. Do banks still need a high street presence? Gareth [...]
Official global Covid-19 death toll exceeds four million July 8, 2021 The world’s known Covid-19 death toll has passed four million, according to the Centre for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, the equivalent to around half of London’s population. Taking just nine months to cause one million deaths, the rate at which coronavirus has swept through communities has quickened. The second million lives [...]
The best bangers to eat this National BBQ Week July 8, 2021 Newmarket is the home of horse breeding and thoroughbred racing. It’s also the home of sausage-making and thoroughbred bangers, and therefore the go-to place for National BBQ week. The royal households have been getting their bangers from Suffolk for over 100 years and doubtless William and Kate have placed their order for this week. Founded [...]
BT avoids strike after reaching pay deal with union July 8, 2021 BT has averted its first major strike in more than three decades after reaching an agreement with the Communication and Workers Union (CWU) over pay and redundancy plans. The CWU had threatened strike action against the telecoms giant, accusing it of “putting profit before people” in its radical restructuring plan. But BT today said it [...]
City minister says UK govt won’t impose compulsory flexible working model on finance July 8, 2021 The government won’t impose an obligatory flexible working model on financial services, as regulators ramp up pressure on firms to improve diversity and inclusion. City minister John Glen said financial services firms should use the experience of remote working during the pandemic to decide how flexible working could help foster a more diverse workforce, but [...]
Audit reforms: IoD call for caution in plans to break Big Four dominance July 8, 2021 The government should approach its plans for an audit and corporate governance reform with greater caution, said the Institute of Directors (IoD). A government white paper aimed at breaking up the concentration of the Big Four auditing firms – Deloitte, PwC, KPMG and EY has stirred criticism from the business group, who said that the [...]
London home to nearly a third of all Europe’s tech unicorns July 8, 2021 London is now home to almost a third of all tech unicorns across Europe as the capital continues to attract the continent’s top talent. New data from Dealroom revealed there are 71 private tech firms valued at $1bn or more in London, a large chunk of the total 268 unicorns across Europe. It comes after [...]
UK labour supply falls at fastest rate on record in June July 8, 2021 The supply of UK workers slid at its fastest rate on record as firms struggle with severe labour shortages, according to a survey released today. The latest KPMG and REC report on jobs shows supply of both permanent and temporary staff in June fell at its quickest pace since the survey started 24 years ago. [...]
