The Big Bang 30 years on: How the City of London has changed since 1986 October 26, 2016 Nothing stands still in the City. The world's financial services powerhouse has seen it all, from boom and bust to bouncebacks and Brexit. Its skyline has changed almost beyond recognition over the last three decades, as have the markets it serves. As we mark the 30th anniversary of the so-called Big Bang, we cannot help [...]
Labour’s City man gets real over green belt October 26, 2016 Building in Britain is not always easy, as the debacle over airport expansion shows. The government satisfied business groups yesterday by revealing its intention to allow a third runway at Heathrow – but even though Theresa May has acted reasonably quickly, the verdict follows years of dawdling, and arrives nearly half a century after Harold Wilson [...]
The future of London: Is the city edging towards independence? September 12, 2016 It is increasingly easy to characterise London as a “city state”. Its scale, wealth and multi-dimensional differences (as compared to the rest of the country) mean it has more in common with New York or Toronto than with Yorkshire or Scotland. The creation of the office of mayor of London, a glamorous Americanised form of government, makes [...]
Why we’re backing Britain’s resilient and optimistic small businesses September 8, 2016 In the run up to June’s referendum vote, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) became a focal point for both Leave and Remain camps, with each side claiming the support of small business owners for their different visions of Britain’s future. This focus on SMEs was unsurprising – these businesses are the nuts and bolts of British [...]
Wake up, Britain: Your post-Brexit future is brighter than you realise September 6, 2016 This is an extract from a speech to be given at the Institute for Turnaround Conference in London on 8 September 2016. Britain's future is brighter than the British realise. This is perfectly obvious to outsiders but the British can’t believe it. Britain has been for some time the second most compelling investment destination after [...]
Pension or property: Which is the better option for your retirement? August 31, 2016 The Bank of England’s chief economist Andy Haldane drew ire from the pensions industry for the second time this year, when he claimed that property was a better investment option for retirement than a pension in an interview with The Sunday Times this weekend. “It ought to be pensions but it’s almost certainly property,” Haldane said. [...]
Housing benefit going to private landlords has doubled to £9.3bn over a decade August 20, 2016 The amount of housing benefits being paid to private landlords has doubled over the last 10 years, with the cost to taxpayers greatest in London and the South East, and housing associations blaming a shortfall in social housing. According to figures from the National Housing Federation, almost one in three housing benefit recipients now live in a privately rented [...]
Three ways life has actually improved for millennials since last year August 15, 2016 Millennials… they might get a bad rap for being lazy, whiney and selfishly obsessed with selfies among other things, but it's a generation that's been saddled with debt, spiralling living costs and lower wages than any previous generation. And the socio-economic situation of young people has remained largely unchanged over the last year, new research reveals, while the bad news is, some areas [...]
With controversy surrounding the Rio Games, was it a mistake to hold the Olympics in an emerging market? August 2, 2016 Sam Dumitriu, head of projects at the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes. It’s bad enough when wealthy countries are plunged into debt to fund sporting events that offer, at best, a short-term boost to tourism. It’s much, much worse when those countries are grappling with high levels of poverty and a public health crisis. Supposed economic [...]
Iceland’s reticence to unwind financial crisis capital controls will prove costly in the long term August 1, 2016 Whether because of the enthusiasm of its football commentators or interest in its EEA arrangement as a model for post-Brexit UK, Iceland has been in the news frequently recently. Its economy has been growing fairly rapidly in recent years, up around 30 per cent from its 2009 trough, though still more than 20 per cent below [...]