‘Incredibly frustrating’: Delay to £9bn Lower Thames Crossing condemned October 8, 2024 The government’s decision to significantly delay a verdict on whether to continue with the UK’s biggest road project has been condemned by transport and business groups. The £9bn Lower Thames Crossing (LTC), a road tunnel linking Kent and Essex, was already facing backlash over mounting costs and a £300m planning application which totals a whopping [...]
British ‘godfather of AI’ awarded Nobel prize but warns tech could ‘get out of control’ October 8, 2024 A British scientist dubbed the ‘godfather of AI’ has been honoured with a Nobel Prize in Physics, but warned of the “existential risk” it posed if technology gets “out of control”. Professor Geoffrey Hinton, born in the UK and a professor at the University of Toronto in Canada, said he was extremely surprised to be [...]
Shares in spirits companies drop after ‘tit-for-tat’ Chinese brandy tariff October 8, 2024 Shares in international drinks companies fell this morning after China slapped an anti-dumping tariff on brandy imports from the EU, escalating trade tensions. The move from China came only days after the EU imposed a tariff of 45 per cent on Chinese electric vehicles for the next five years. The European Commission called it an “abuse” of [...]
City regulator: Concentration poses risk to markets October 8, 2024 The boss of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said “herding behaviour” and “market concentration” were posing new risks to the financial markets today as he warned investors to brace for volatility in the long term. Speaking at the regulator’s market conference in Westminster, Nikhil Rathi said excessive daily swings had become a bigger concern to [...]
Rachel Reeves promises to ‘revolutionise’ UK capital markets and boost London listings October 8, 2024 Ministers and regulators have made urgent efforts to inject more life into Britain's capital markets amid a dearth of IPO activity and heavy outflows from UK equity funds.
Brooks Macdonald buys financial advisor amid takeover rumours October 8, 2024 Brooks Macdonald has bought independent financial advisor LIFT in a deal worth up to £45m, as takeover rumours swirl around the group. LIFT has £1.6bn in assets under advice, with £600m of this being funds under management. The firm is headquartered in Greater Manchester, with offices in London and Edinburgh, and has around 1,400 clients, [...]
London Underground: Tube strikes loom as workers to vote on walk-outs October 8, 2024 London Underground workers are being balloted on Tube strikes over pay and conditions amid a dispute with Transport for London (TfL). Members of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) in jobs including customer service and advising passengers in stations are being asked if they want to strike. The ballot closes on 18 October and also [...]
Literacy Capital swaps charity donations for private equity fees October 8, 2024 Private equity investment trust Literacy Capital is cutting down on its mission of paying out charitable donations, while upping the fee paid out to management. The only investment trust set up with a charitable objective, it has given £10m to literacy charities in the UK since it was created in 2017. Now, the trust will [...]
Mike Ashley’s Frasers bets big on brick-and-mortar with 1m sq ft of new shopping malls October 8, 2024 Mike Ashley-owned Frasers group has announced the acquisition of over one million square feet of retail space across three shopping centres in a huge new bet on physical retail. The shopping centres – in Exeter, Maistone and Gloucester – have a combined annual footfall of almost 17 million visitors and 1.015 million square feet. The [...]
A wake up call: Why a talented public sector is key to protecting democracies October 8, 2024 Democracies rely on governments running a public sector that can attract the country's top talent, writes Shmuel Chafets
