Football transfer system unfairly benefits top clubs and fails players argues economist Stefan Szymanski in new Fifpro study October 15, 2015 Football's transfer system fails all but a handful of elite clubs, a new study from sports economist Stefan Szymanski has found. The study commissioned by world players' union Fifpro concluded that Fifa's transfer system as it currently exists impedes on the free movement of players and fails to achieve its pro-competitive intentions. "The transfer system is [...]
Andrew Tyrie ramping up efforts to block George Osborne’s proposed new bank tax October 8, 2015 The chairman of an influential parliamentary committee is doubling down today on his efforts to block a new tax on banks. Andrew Tyrie, who chairs the Treasury Select Committee, has written to Andrew Bailey, deputy governor for prudential regulation at the Bank of England, about the effect of the so-called bank tax surcharge. The new tax, [...]
Is Theresa May’s claim that mass immigration has “close to zero” economic benefits a dangerous one? October 6, 2015 Philippe Legrain, senior visiting fellow at the LSE’s European Institute, author of “Immigrants: Your Country Needs Them” and founder of OPEN, an international think tank on openness issues, says Yes Theresa May is wrong. Foreign students subsidise Brits. Foreign doctors fill skills shortages. Young, hard-working immigrants do jobs that most Brits spurn, like care for [...]
FCA proposes changes to new pensions regime in wake of George Osborne’s reforms October 6, 2015 Customers will receive more guidance and information when purchasing retirement products, under new proposals from the Financial Conduct Authority. Chancellor George Osborne shook up the pensions market in his 2014 Budget, when he announced that retirees would no longer be required to purchase annuities with their pension pots. The new pensions rules, which came into [...]
The proto-Corbyn years of the 1970s were awful: We must fight what remains of them October 4, 2015 During the late 1990s and early 2000s, think tanks such as the IEA had a difficult time. We were told that the argument for the market economy had been won. A so-called neo-liberal hegemony had been created, and even a Labour government had accepted free markets. Meanwhile, water was being poured into the foundations [...]
The Competition and Markets Authority wants to review O2 merger with three October 2, 2015 The UK's competition regulator has asked the European Commission for a review an upcoming deal to create one of the UK's biggest mobile operator to be referred to it. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said that the proposed deal between Hutchinson's Three and Telefonica's O2 threatens to significantly affect competition in the UK mobile markets. This is because a successful [...]
Ball’s proposed takeover of Rexam faces hurdle from the European Commission October 1, 2015 The European Commission has sent a list of concerns to US can maker Ball over its proposed £4.3bn takeover of FTSE 250-listed firm Rexam. This doesn't mean Ball's takeover of Rexam can't go ahead, but the US company will have to come up with some concessions to appease the antitrust regulator. It's likely the two [...]
Financial Conduct Authority’s Martin Wheatley plays down fears of the UK leaving the EU September 24, 2015 The Financial Conduct Authority's chief executive Martin Wheatley has said that the short-term impact on the City of a dreaded "Brexit" would be minimal. Read more: There will be no 5 May EU referendum vote as Cameron offers concession to Eurosceptics Even if the UK leaves the EU, it's still likely to abide by the financial [...]
Best of the Brokers for 24 September 2015 September 24, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com DAILY MAIL AND GENERAL TRUST Panmure Gordon maintained its “hold” rating on the media trust, noting that its shares have weakened by 10 per cent since the investor day on 9 September. The broker said that while it remains cautious on the stock, [...]
Dairy Crest churns out strong sales of cheddar cheese as spreads suffer September 22, 2015 DAIRY Crest said yesterday that Britons tucking into its Cathedral City cheddar cheese had helped offset falling sales across its spreads business in the first half of the year. The company said first quarter sales of its four key brands, Cathedral City, Clover, Country Life and Frylight, were in line with the same quarter of [...]