Did Israel spy on the US’s private Iran talks? Here are the two sides of the story March 24, 2015 Senior White House officials have accused Israel of spying on talks between the US, Iran and other world powers over the Middle Eastern country's nuclear programme, but Israel denies the claims. The private meetings in question took place last year and involved the UK, Germany, France, China and Russia. The aim was to persuade Iran [...]
This is how Google ended up creating an Ebola-proof tablet March 20, 2015 Design volunteers at Google have helped to develop a way for Ebola health workers to record patient information on tablets without spreading the deadly virus. Concerned that the workers could not input vital information themselves, having instead to shout out numbers to other people using the tablets, charity Medicins Sans Frontieres called on a group [...]
Here’s why being too aggressive and power-hungry at work can shorten your life expectancy March 20, 2015 Throwing your weight around the office might pay off in the short term if you get your way, but the long-term consequences of aggressive, power-hungry behaviour are pretty bleak – there's a high chance you won't live as long. Using methods of intimidation to assert dominance takes its toll on our health, according to psychologists [...]
Tesco takes over 21 superstores in £733m deal with British Land March 20, 2015 Tesco has sealed a £733m deal with British Land, in which the supermarket is taking back 21 of its superstores. The company says this will help it “strengthen its core UK business”. In exchange, British Land will take over Tesco's stake in three shopping centres, three retail parks and three standalone stores. These are currently [...]
Government hopes to create “northern powerhouse” with transport overhaul worth billions March 20, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne is putting forward proposals to completely re-work the north of England's transport system. Called the Northern Transport Strategy report, he hopes it will lead to a “northern powerhouse”. The government worked with Transport for the North (TfN) to put the plan together. Costing billions of pounds to implement, the project would [...]
A toxic smog has shrouded London: Here’s how it could affect our health March 19, 2015 A thick smog has covered London and many other parts of the UK today, causing Britain to be placed on health alert. According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), it is formed from a combination of home-grown smog and European air pollution. Areas affected include the south west, London, the south [...]
Profits dive 73 per cent at Angry Birds maker Rovio, but new 3D film could lead to a second lift-off March 19, 2015 The popularity of Angry Birds has well and truly waned. Rovio Entertainment, the Finnish company behind the video game that soared to success after its launch in 2009, experienced a 73 per cent drop in operating profits to €10m (£7.2m) last year, along with a nine per cent drop in total sales. By comparison, profits [...]
Ted Baker sales and profits driven up by strong performance in Europe and the US March 19, 2015 Ted Baker grew in its established markets last year, and expanded to new areas. The figures During the 53 weeks to 31 January, Ted Baker's retail sales rose 18.4 per cent to £306.9m, while pre-tax profits jumped to £49.5m – 20.4 per cent higher than in 2013. This exceeded the British fashion brand's expected profit [...]
Record results for Savills as market conditions improve across Europe and the US March 19, 2015 Savills has reported “record results” for 2014, with better market conditions aiding a return to profitability. The figures International expansion helped drive Savills' pre-tax profit up by 34 per cent to £104.3m in 2014, compared with £75.2m the year before. During the 12 months to 31 December, revenue for the London-listed property firm revenue [...]
Investing in data software businesses: It’s risky, but Europe is warming to it says Tableau chief executive March 18, 2015 In 2003, Silicon Valley data cruncher Christian Chabot founded a company in his bedroom. He wanted to develop a data visualisation software for the masses. This led to the creation of Tableau – now a multinational company worth billions of pounds, of which Chabot is chief executive. It has taken off in a big way [...]
