Investigation launched into Network Rail reliability after delays and cost overruns June 12, 2015 Network Rail is to be investigated by Britain's rail regulator after it was accused of delivering poor punctuality and reliability on some of its key routes. The routes, some of which are the busiest commuter routes in the country, were "below requirements", according to the regulator, the Office of Road and Rail (ORR). They are operated [...]
Lessons learned as final parcel of Royal Mail goes on sale June 9, 2015 Last week chancellor George Osborne announced that the government will sell off its remaining 30 per cent stake in Royal Mail, meaning the company will become completely private. There is no immediate timeline for the sale. Currently the market value of the shares is around £1.5bn. Osborne was forthright in saying the transaction would [...]
Nigel Farage fires the starting gun for the EU referendum No campaign June 6, 2015 Nigel Farage has put himself forward as a potential leader of the No campaign in the EU referendum. While Farage’s charisma may make him seem an obvious candidate, many No supporters will see him as too polarising and unlikely to appeal strongly to moderate or undecided voters. Douglas Carswell, Ukip’s only sitting MP, said he [...]
Ghost in the machine: Rolls-Royce’s new Ghost hits the almost imperceptible sweet spot between manufacturing and art June 4, 2015 Automobiles are no strangers to art galleries. Among the MoMA’s permanent collection in New York is a pristine multi-story car park that includes a scarlet 1946 Cisitalia 202 GT, a matt olive ‘52 VW Beetle, and a blue metallic 1961 Jaguar E-type roadster. For three days in London last Christmas, though, there was a marque [...]
Google I/O 2015: From Projects Vault and Brillo to smart jeans and cardboard virtual reality, the impossibly advanced technologies unveiled in San Francisco June 3, 2015 BRILLO Essentially an operating system for the Internet of Things (IoT), Google’s Project Brillo is an adapted version of Android designed to manage a number of connected devices from a central management console. It’s Google’s attempt at standardising the way we control devices, from household appliances like Nest (which, incidentally, Google owns) to wearables [...]
Boohoo’s finance chief Neil Catto granted options over 1.6m shares May 26, 2015 Boohoo’s finance chief Neil Catto was yesterday granted 1.6m share options worth £400,000 after his previous options effectively went under water following a slump in the online retailer’s share price. Catto, who steered the company through its float in March last year, was rewarded at the time with options over 2m shares. These would have [...]
Tapping into a priceless showcase for sport: MasterCard’s Mark Barnett wants the World Cup to pay off for rugby and his brand May 25, 2015 For those of a certain age, the day that Erica Roe streaked at Twickenham during an England-Australia rugby international is a sporting image to rival anything that the greats of that generation, from Duckham to Underwood, Beaumont to Carling, achieved on the field of play. For Mark Barnett, president in the UK and Ireland for [...]
Royal Mail profit hit amid fierce UK competition May 21, 2015 ONGOING brutal competition and declining letter volumes led to plunging profits at Royal Mail as Britain’s oldest delivery service continued to seek further savings. Admitting the trading environment “remains challenging”, Royal Mail reported stagnant revenue growth for the year ending 29 March, at £9.3bn. The top-line figures come as the company recorded a four per [...]
Royal Mail share price falls despite shrinking costs May 21, 2015 The figures The 500-year old postal service's revenues rose by one per cent to £9.4bn in the year to March 2015. Meanwhile, pre-tax profit fell from £1.6bn to £400m, although on an adjusted basis it rose to £569m, up from £421m in 2014. Operating profit after transformation costs rose to £466m, up from £428m a year earlier, with analysts saying this could signal [...]
Marks & Spencer’s share price rises after it posts first profit increase in four years May 20, 2015 Marks & Spencer has beaten expectations as its returns to profit growth – but its full year results show a mixed performance across the group. Nevertheless investors were impressed with shares rising 1.4 per cent to 593p in mid-morning trade. [stockChart code="MKS" date="2015-05-20"] The figures Marks & Spencer has beaten expectations on its underlying pre-tax [...]