A box office approach to leadership could yet break the Brexit deadlock July 31, 2019 A week into Hurricane Boris, and the impact of its arrival shows no signs of abating, nor does its box office appeal. Godfather style, a trail of bodies litter the Conservative backbenches, victims of the “Night of the Blond Knives” as one newspaper called it. The ancien regime has been largely replaced by Vote Leave [...]
DEBATE: Are the citizens’ convention on UK democracy proposals a good idea to restore faith in politics? July 31, 2019 Are the citizens’ convention on UK democracy proposals a good idea to restore faith in politics? Eliot Wilson, chief writer at Right Angles and a former House of Commons official, says YES. “Politics is broken.” That’s been the mantra for years now, at least since the expenses scandal of 2009. There has been a terrible [...]
What the mayor-turned-Prime-Minister can do for London July 31, 2019 Boris Johnson is the first Prime Minister to have served as mayor of London. He gets London: he knows what make our city a success and understands the challenges we face. And that’s why his premiership is a great opportunity for our city. With the right approach, Boris can help to fill the leadership vacuum [...]
UK manufacturers gloomy but consumers more upbeat July 31, 2019 Optimism among UK manufacturers has fallen rapidly but British consumers have become more positive, two surveys showed today, in the latest sign of a big divide in the economy. Read more: UK mortgage approvals rise but consumer lending slows Business optimism among small and medium-sized (SME) UK manufacturers fell at its fastest pace in three [...]
Car industry investment grinds to a halt as Brexit uncertainty cripples sector July 31, 2019 Investment into Britain’s car manufacturing industry has come to a near-standstill, as companies divert hundreds-of-millions of pounds towards mitigating a potential no-deal Brexit which they fear will plunge the sector into chaos. Inward investment into the sector plummeted more than 70 per cent to just £90m in the first six months of the year, according [...]
Boris Johnson at odds with Leo Varadkar over Irish backstop July 30, 2019 Boris Johnson and his Irish counterpart Leo Varadkar are at odds over how to solve the Brexit impasse, with Leo Varadkar stating that the EU was united in its insistence that the withdrawal agreement could not be reopened. The Prime Minister held a phone call with Varadkar today, in which the two leaders discussed Brexit. [...]
Sterling tumbles further as PM pledges Brexit ‘no matter what’ July 30, 2019 Sterling hit its lowest level since March 2017 today as new Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged to take Britain out of the European Union on 31 October “no matter what”. Read more: ‘Doomsday narrative’: Sterling hits 28-month low on no-deal Brexit fears The pound plunged below $1.22 to hit $1.215 this morning, a drop of [...]
MPs attack government over lack of post-Brexit investment policy July 30, 2019 MPs have strongly criticised the government for failing to prepare a policy on international investment agreements ready for Brexit, which the new administration has pledged will happen “come what may” on 31 October. Read more: Dominic Raab: Britain ‘turbo-charging’ no-deal Brexit preparations The International Trade Committee (ITC) said it was “alarmed” that ministers have not [...]
Alastair Campbell says he does not want to rejoin Corbyn’s Labour July 30, 2019 Tony Blair’s former spin doctor Alastair Campbell has said he does not want to rejoin the Labour party after he was expelled for voting for the Liberal Democrats in May’s European elections. Campbell, a former political journalist who served as the former Prime Minister’s chief press secretary until 2000, said he did not want to [...]
Virgin Money owner CYBG share price falls as it warns of softer full-year margins July 30, 2019 Shares in CYBG are down over 11.5 per cent this morning after the challenger bank warned that net interest margins (NIM) were likely to be at the lower end of its forecast. Read more: CYBG to rebrand as Virgin Money to ‘disrupt status quo’ of UK banking The group, which owns Virgin Money, stood by [...]