Scottish independence is “not about SNP” – so who are the other political players in Scotland? September 4, 2014 Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond has said that the independence referendum is not about the SNP, but about giving Scottish people the right to have the government of their choice. At an event in Glasgow marking his 10th year as leader of the pro-independence party, he told the BBC: "This isn't about the SNP, [...]
Standard Life sells Canadian business to Manulife Financial for £2.2bn September 3, 2014 Insurance company Standard Life has sold its Canadian business to a subsidiary of Manulife Financial for 4bn Canadian dollars (£2.2bn). The sale, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015, spans all areas of business from savings and retirement to investment management. According to Manulife Financial, the deal is expected [...]
Ebola diagnosis sped up with Japan’s 30-minute “sampler” test September 3, 2014 Scientists in Japan have developed a test for Ebola which is much faster than any current diagnosis methods. Researchers at Nagasaki University worked alongside Eiken Chemical Co to develop the new testing method, which they say uses cheaper and faster technology than anything available already. As a result, they claim it can be [...]
Twitter paying out $140 to people who report bugs September 3, 2014 Micro-blogging service Twitter has launched HackerOne – a program that will pay at least $140 to security researchers every time they report a bug or vulnerability in their system. The purpose, Twitter says, is “to recognize their efforts and the important role they play in keeping Twitter safe for everyone." The rewards will [...]
LVMH share price out on top as Hermes “handbag war” comes to an end September 3, 2014 Handbag makers LVMH and Hermes have been taking each other to court for four years. Their feud began in 2012 after it was disclosed that LVMH, whose handbag brands include Louis Vuitton, Dior and Givenchy, had built up a 17 per cent stake in Hermes and proceeded to purchase further shares. It made [...]
An independent Scotland would lose its young workers to the rest of the UK September 3, 2014 If Scotland votes in favour of independence on 18 September, young workers are the most likely group to pack up and leave the country, according to a report published in the journal Population, Space and Place. Called Forecasting Scottish Migration in the Context of the 2014 Constitutional Change Debate, it looks at how internal [...]
Goodbye, productivity puzzle? Revised ONS figures show we’re more productive than we thought September 3, 2014 The "productivity puzzle" just got less puzzling, after the Office for National statistics published changes to the way it measures GDP – and the gap between output and productivity turned out to be narrower than we thought. Productivity, which is a measure of the goods and services produced per worker per hour, is a [...]
Ebola food shortage: Sufferer escapes Liberian hospital to steal bread from crowded market September 2, 2014 Concerns over the shortage of food available for Ebola victims in West Africa have been put in the limelight by a YouTube video uploaded today. It shows an Ebola patient walking through a crowded market after escaping from a hospital in Liberia. He picks up a piece of bread from one of the stalls [...]
Space race take two? Putin speeds up building of Russian spaceport September 2, 2014 Russia has upped its game in the race to become a space superpower. Today, President Vladimir Putin announced that he was hastening Russia's efforts to build a multi-billion dollar spaceport in the East of the country. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia has relied on the Baikonur cosmodrome in [...]
Ukraine will need a much bigger bailout to stabilise economy, IMF says September 2, 2014 As the crisis in the east of Ukraine continues to harm the nation's economy, The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that a much bigger international bailout will be needed than was originally planned. In a review of the already agreed $16.7bn standby facility, the fund described the figure as being built on “totally [...]
