Sadiq Khan’s rent control pledge is a minefield of unintended consequences March 4, 2020 There is no denying that London faces a housing crisis. Similarly, there is no denying that many people feel that their rents take too high a proportion of their income. If you are Sadiq Khan, the solution is obvious: if people object to high rents, the state should cap them — problem solved. It is [...]
DEBATE: Should the chancellor rethink plans to get rid of entrepreneurs’ relief in the Budget? March 4, 2020 Should the chancellor rethink plans to get rid of entrepreneurs’ relief in next week’s Budget? Caroline Plumb OBE, chief executive and co-founder of Fluidly, says YES. Critics of entrepreneurs’ relief want proof of its economic impact, but it’s not as simple as throwing a couple of headline figures around and dismissing beneficiaries as the already [...]
Priti Patel vs. Philip Rutnam: It’s in Britain’s interest that bureaucracy does not win March 4, 2020 The reverberations around the resignation of Sir Philip Rutnam, the top civil servant at the Home Office, continue. Priti Patel, the home secretary, is receiving a barrage of abuse. Labour’s John McDonnell has pronounced that he cannot see how Patel could carry on. He raised the possibility that she might be in some way “suspended”. [...]
Fuel prices fall on back of coronavirus crisis March 4, 2020 Coronavirus fears pushed prices lower on UK petrol station forecourts in February with some of the biggest reductions in diesel since 2000. According to data out today by the RAC, average UK unleaded petrol fell 2.93p to 124.02p a litre by 29 February, compared to 126.95 at the start of the month. Diesel also fell [...]
Whitehall needs ‘delivery revolution’ to avoid wasting £10bn March 4, 2020 The government will waste £10bn in its attempts to “level up” the country’s infrastructure unless it reforms project delivery, according to a leading London think tank. Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to announce the wave of new projects in next week’s budget to fulfil the Tories’ election promise to spend £100bn on infrastructure. However, a [...]
Driverless car startup Five raises $41m investment from Direct Line and Airbnb backer March 4, 2020 London tech firm Five has today closed $41m in funding from a slew of new investors, including Trustbridge Partners, Direct Line and Sistema VC. The series B fundraising was supported by existing backers Lakestar, Amadeus Capital Partners, Kindred Capital and Notion Capital — which between them have backed the likes of Airbnb, Klarna, Graphcore and [...]
City Moves for 4 March — Who’s switching jobs at Truelayer, Vaynermedia and Profusion? March 3, 2020 Today’s City Moves includes Truelayer, Vaynermedia and Profusion Truelayer Truelayer, a leading provider of financial APIs, has appointed payments expert Max Emilson as chief revenue officer to drive global sales and nurture current partnerships. Prior to joining Truelayer, Max spent eight years working for Klarna, helping grow the business from a local payment method in [...]
Direct Line to cut jobs as customers mostly online March 3, 2020 It’s been a difficult start to the year for Direct Line. The company has paid out £1m worth of travel insurance claims as trips get cancelled due to the spread of coronavirus, and £35m in home insurance payouts due to last month’s storms. The Direct Line insurance group, which also owns the Churchill and Green [...]
Andrew Bailey urged to keep climate focus at Bank of England March 3, 2020 Incoming Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey must maintain Threadneedle Street’s concern with climate change after he takes over this month, more than 101 economists, scientists and industry leaders have said in a letter. Signatories to the letter, organised by left-leaning research and campaign groups, include former UK chief scientific adviser Sir David King and [...]
Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool: Reds overrun as Billy Gilmour gives Frank Lampard something to smile about in the FA Cup March 3, 2020 It was teed up to be the tie of the round and it did not fail to deliver as Chelsea ended Liverpool’s dreams of a treble. Goals in each half from Willian and Ross Barkley of drastically differing quality were the difference as Liverpool crashed out of the FA Cup in the fifth round in [...]
