Nigel Farage will not stand for a seat at the general election November 3, 2019 Nigel Farage has said he won’t stand in the general election so he can concentrate on helping other Brexit Party candidates win their seats. Farage, who announced on Friday the party would run in hundreds of seats unless Boris Johnson agrees to an alliance, said he wanted to focus his time on making appearances across [...]
Carlyle in driving seat to acquire Arriva in £2.2bn deal November 2, 2019 American private equity firm Carlyle is the front-runner to buy Arriva in a deal worth £2.2bn. Carlyle has entered talks with one of the UK’s largest public transport operators, which runs rail franchises including Northern and London Overground, as well as buses across Britain. Read more: Stagecoach to stop share buy-back programme at £30 Arriva’s [...]
Boris Johnson rejects Nigel Farage offer of election pact as it increases ‘risk’ of Jeremy Corbyn becoming Prime Minister November 2, 2019 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has rejected an offer from Nigel Farage to work with the Brexit Party during the general election. Farage had called on Johnson to drop his Brexit deal, seek a free trade deal with the EU and “build a Leave alliance” with his party or face a candidate from the Brexit Party [...]
Nancy Pelosi expects Donald Trump impeachment hearings to begin this month November 1, 2019 Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi has said she expects the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump to begin public hearings this month. “I assume there would be public hearing in November,” the top House Democrat said in an interview with Bloomberg, but insisted there was no deadline to finish the investigation. [...]
Botticelli in the Fire at Hampstead Theatre review: A giddy nihilistic romp November 1, 2019 Botticelli in the Fire is a giddy nihilistic romp. A pyrotechnic period drama that vigorously thrusts its way into a position of contemporary cultural relevance, somewhere between Brexit and RuPaul’s Drag Race. Jordan Tannahill’s script is Shakespearean in its regard for historical fact and Brechtian in its regard for the fourth wall, a mish-mash of [...]
Nigel Farage: Brexit Party will contest ‘every seat’ if PM rejects olive branch November 1, 2019 Nigel Farage has offered an olive branch to Boris Johnson by calling for a “leave alliance” with the Brexit Party in return for softening his Brexit position. Farage launched the party’s campaign this morning, where he said the party planned to field candidates in every constituency in England, Wales and Scotland in next month’s general [...]
Former Sainsbury’s boss: Halve business rates and raise VAT to save high street November 1, 2019 Jasper King, the former head of supermarket giant Sainsbury’s, has called for business rates to be halved and VAT increased to help high street retailers compete with their online rivals. Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, King said it was unfair that bricks and mortar retailers were forced to pay the rates when their [...]
Three problems at the top of new RBS boss Alison Rose’s to-do list November 1, 2019 Alison Rose begins life as the new boss of RBS today with her work cut out for her. In a letter to staff this morning, the RBS lifer set out her commitments, which included “a clear focus on shared success” and “investment in people”. But as the firm’s recent quarterly financial results demonstrated, there is [...]
Brexit stockpiling fails to save UK manufacturing from recession November 1, 2019 The UK manufacturing sector looked to be firmly stuck in recession as Brexit stockpiling could not prevent a sixth month of contraction in October, a closely followed survey found today. Jobs, new orders and factory ouput all fell last month, according to IHS Markit’s UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). Read more: Hong Kong falls [...]
Lookers shares slump as it warns profit will halve November 1, 2019 Troubled car company Lookers gave the City a double-whammy of surprises this morning after revealing two senior departures and worse-than-expected profit forecasts. Profits are expected to more than halve this year to roughly £20m, falling significantly below City estimates. Read more: Treasury committee urges reform of ‘broken’ business rates system The London-listed motor retail group, [...]