COVID-19, the perfect storm for women: Work, trade and immigration November 24, 2020 The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been profound. Economies around the world are in a state of extreme distress, and businesses in all sectors and of all sizes, are to reimagine if not transform their traditional work practices. Many are struggling with changing regulations or reduced demand, whereas others are wrestling with remote-work and [...]
Rishi Sunak’s spending review: Three things to look out for November 24, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak is no stranger to the House of Commons despatch box, having delivered numerous mini-budgets since March. But tomorrow he will lay out comprehensive spending plans for the 2021-22 financial year in one of his biggest announcements yet. Although it will not cover a three-year period, as originally planned, it will show the [...]
Sign Brexit deal to ‘give us our future’, pleads car industry November 24, 2020 The car industry has pleaded with the government to sign a post-Brexit free trade agreement by Christmas, saying that the failure to do so could cost the sector £55bn by 2025. Speaking at a Society for Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) summit, chief executive Mike Hawes said that a new partnership with the EU “could [...]
UK banks are yet to maximise the full benefits of the cloud November 24, 2020 In a year that demonstrated the importance of operational resilience, major UK banks have migrated less than 10% of business infrastructure onto the public cloud. The move to the cloud also requires a mindset shift for many. In the banking sector, AI and Blockchain have long been regarded as the technologies set to change the [...]
Retirees to be hit by inflation change in Rishi Sunak spending review November 24, 2020 Rishi Sunak is set to cost investors £100bn by announcing a change to how pensions are calculated in tomorrow’s comprehensive spending review. The Telegraph reports that Sunak is considering linking pension rises to CPI instead of the retail price index, which would mean smaller yearly increases. The change would mean that 10m retirees will receive [...]
‘Break’ London banks and give us access to data: fintech firms tell FCA November 24, 2020 A coalition of primarily London startups is calling on UK regulators to end the dominance of banking institutions over the use of consumer data as it would increase competition in the savings, credit, mortgages and pensions markets. The Coalition for a Digital Economy (Coadec), an advocacy group that represent a number of UK fintech firms [...]
Goldman Sachs plans EU trading venue in Paris as Brexit nerves grow November 24, 2020 Banking giant Goldman Sachs is set to launch a European stock-trading destination in Paris in an effort to make sure transactions in EU equities can continue smoothly even if there is no post-Brexit agreement.
Investor sentiment in City upbeat as Trump hints at orderly transfer of power November 24, 2020 Despite the lacklustre start to this week’s trading, investor sentiment in the City and beyond is certainly becoming much less pessimistic. This renewed push appears to have come about as a result of overnight events in the US, where Joe Biden is starting the transition process to a new US administration next year. “President Trump [...]
Ready your business for the UK’s new start November 24, 2020 This year hasn’t been what anybody expected, but one thing has stayed constant throughout: the UK, which has left the EU, will come out of the transition period at midnight on December 31. The year 2021 will therefore be a new start – and there are things that businesses need to do now, regardless of [...]
Meat producer Cranswick’s profits sizzle thanks to at-home cooking November 24, 2020 Cranswick’s first-half profits were up 31 per cent today as stuck-at-home consumers bought more of its pork and chicken products. Cranswick, which owns farms and supplies pork and chicken to British supermarkets, reported adjusted group operating profit of £62m for the six months ended September 26, compared with £47.4m a year ago. The firm supplied sandwiches [...]