Collision of pandemic and Brexit pushes £18bn loss in travel services trade November 22, 2021 The collision of the pandemic and leaving the European Union (EU) has tipped an £18bn loss in travel services trade, according to the latest figures. While total service exports and imports grew in the second quarter, trade in services remained well below levels seen prior to Covid-19, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed. Weaker [...]
City rumour mill grinds around possible mega private equity offer for Marks & Spencer November 22, 2021 As shoppers prepare for a black Friday spree, the bargain hunt for good value UK companies continues for private equity firms. The rumour mills are now grinding around a possible bid by Apollo Global Management for UK high street staple Marks & Spencer, sending shares 3 per cent higher in early trade. The New York-based private equity giant [...]
Letters: Warning, risk of electric shock November 22, 2021 [Re: It’s about time for Rishi Sunak to make his mind up on on a road tax, Nov 19] In the same way that government’s previously promoted diesel power as the solution to saving energy and the planet, electric vehicles are a similar red-herring. Batteries are not going to save us, as the practicalities of [...]
Political drama has served as a distraction from the crises facing British businesses November 22, 2021 This last two weeks in many ways saw high political drama. A governing party that tried to rig the system so one of its own could continue in a second job that is clearly against the rules. The revelation that a sitting Conservative MP received £133m for test kits which had to be recalled. And uproar across our northern regions when a long standing political promise to deliver rail was outright broken. [...]
Keir’s offensive could put the business vote in play November 22, 2021 AROUND this time two years ago, as we hurtled towards the General Election of 2019, this newspaper published a front-page editorial which urged you, our readers, not to vote for Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party. Not because of the politics – though high-tax, high-spend has never been our particular brand – but because of the anti-semitism [...]
Exclusive: Starmer calls for ‘economic reset’ as he makes pro-business pitch to the CBI November 21, 2021 Sir Keir Starmer will tomorrow hone Labour’s pitch as an unapologetically pro-business party as he claims the UK needs an economic “reset” after Brexit and Covid. Starmer, writing in City A.M., said his own reset of the Labour party has meant “showing business that as the party of work, we understand the need for stability, security, [...]
Nigel Farage joins celeb message service backed by Kerry Katona and used by Katie Price November 21, 2021 Nigel Farage, the former UKIP and Brexit leader, has signed up with the UK’s answer to Cameo as the celebrity messaging market heats up. Thrillz allows users to book personalised video messages and live experiences with their favourite public figures, with US-based Cameo the market leasder. Farage, who Thrillz say was the most popular UK [...]
Frost: EU must show ‘more ambition’ to clinch Northern Ireland Protocol deal November 21, 2021 The EU has not done enough to present solutions to the problems surrounding the Northern Ireland Protocol and must instead show “more ambition”, Lord David Frost has said. The UK’s defacto Brexit minister chided Brussels negotiators for not pushing talks fast enough, stressing that “we need more … urgency if we are to sustain the [...]
Visa chief exec calls out ‘inaccurate’ Amazon high fee claims November 20, 2021 Visa's chief executive has hit back at Amazon's dramatic decision to block UK Visa credit cards, according to reports.
After Amazon’s dramatic move to block Visa credit cards, businesses sound the alarm: Card fees are out of control November 20, 2021 E-commerce giant Amazon confirmed to City A.M. yesterday that it intends to stop accepting payments made using UK Visa credit cards from early next year. The online retailer said that Visa credit cards issued in the UK will be blocked from use on its site from January 19. The move sent shockwaves through Britain’s consumer [...]