The Covid-19 crisis can move us past the politics of easy answers March 13, 2020 The Black Death begat the end of feudalism and the start of the Renaissance. In the seventeenth century a golden age of architecture and science emerged from a London ravaged by fire and plague. Pestilence can be the cradle of creative destruction, and perhaps it can move us past the age of populism and the [...]
Spending like a drunken sailor does not create a thriving entrepreneurial economy March 13, 2020 “If I announced that Budget, the Tories would be jumping up and down,” shadow chancellor John McDonnell said with a smirk yesterday morning. Indeed, Wednesday’s Budget is the biggest giveaway of taxpayer money since 1992. Borrowing will increase by £125bn. Debt will reach a record high at £2 trillion. There was some good news for [...]
DEBATE: Do the chancellor’s reforms to entrepreneurs’ relief strike the right balance for founders? March 13, 2020 Do the chancellor’s reforms to entrepreneurs’ relief strike the right balance for founders? YES, says Mike Cherry, national chairman at the Federation of Small Businesses. Compromise is a fact of business life. Every dealmaker knows that it’s better to bend a little than break off negotiations. Entrepreneurs’ relief is a vital incentive that’s central to [...]
Regulators to review financial sector levy in the wake of “unacceptable” IT failures March 13, 2020 Regulators have welcomed a number of reforms to the financial services sector after the Treasury Committee called its IT failures “unacceptable”. The Treasury Committee’s report, which was published last October, called on the regulators to address the growing number of tech issues in the financial services sector. As part of the proposed reforms, the committee [...]
John Lewis tumbles down ranking of best high street employer March 13, 2020 Struggling department store John Lewis has tumbled down the rankings of high street employers after a tough year in which the retailer has suffered a drop in profit and slashed worker’s bonuses. John Lewis & Partners held the top spot in 2018, but fell to eight last year and has tumbled a further three places [...]
Corona Crash: Global markets suffer worst day since 1987 as virus spreads March 13, 2020 The FTSE 100 yesterday chalked up its biggest one-day fall since the Black Monday crash in 1987, plunging 10.87 per cent as the scale and likely impact of the coronavirus pandemic became clear. After a sea of dire corporate warnings across the globe, US stocks also suffered their biggest fall since 1987 before the New [...]
BT chief executive diagnosed with coronavirus but will “work remotely” March 12, 2020 BT boss Philip Jansen has been diagnosed with coronavirus but will continue to work remotely. The telecoms group confirmed that Jansen had tested positive for Covid-19 this afternoon and as a result is in self-isolation. BT said it is now working closely with Public Health England to undertake a full deep clean of relevant parts [...]
Entertaining Wales are on the right path under Wayne Pivac despite three straight Six Nations defeats March 12, 2020 Coronavirus has begun to have a huge impact across the sporting calendar, but for now the Six Nations has one of its three fixtures going ahead this weekend. While England’s trip to play Italy in Rome and Ireland’s visit to Paris to face France have been postponed due to the outbreak, Wales are still set [...]
Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia to quit as Salesforce UK boss March 12, 2020 Former Virgin Money boss Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia is set to quit Salesforce as its executive after just six months at the helm. Salesforce will announce tomorrow morning that Gadhia, who only joined the company last August, will step down as boss of the British business to become an adviser, according to Sky News. A Sky [...]
H20’s Alpha 10 fund suffers huge losses amid market rout March 12, 2020 A hedge fund run by H2O Asset Management reportedly suffered a large loss during this week’s market turmoil. The fund lost 15.8 per cent in one of its share classes on Monday, according to the Financial Times. Another share class of the fund reportedly lost 10.5 per cent in the same day. The $900m fund [...]