Plans ‘in the pipeline’ for more Ivy restaurants October 11, 2021 Restauranter Richard Caring’s firm plans to open more Ivy venues, as financial accounts lay bare the impact of the pandemic. In full-year accounts filed to Companies House, Caprice Holdings reported a £28.4m turnover for the 53 weeks ended January 3. The company owns London private dining rooms including Sexy Fish, Daphne’s and 34 Mayfair. Turnover [...]
Whitehall: Climate activists block roads with oil-stained statue of Boris Johnson October 11, 2021 Climate activists have taken on Whitehall today by blocking the road outside Downing Street with a statue of Boris Johnson stained with oil. The protestors, from environmental group Greenpeace, have chained themselves to fake oil barrels in a bid to halt traffic. The Metropolitan police are in attendance, according to the Metro, who have warned [...]
Further oil price gains boosts FTSE 100 October 11, 2021 Further gains in oil prices boosted industrial stocks this morning, lifting the FTSE 100 into positive territory. The capital’s premier index was up 0.12 per cent to 7,104.27 points during the first couple of hours of trading. Industrials led the FTSE higher this morning, with oil megacaps BP and Royal Dutch Shell both climbing more [...]
Tony Blair: The UK must accept vaccinated people from everywhere October 11, 2021 The UK must open its borders to all vaccinated people, regardless of country of origin, said the Tony Blair Institute. In a paper entitled “Keeping Travel Open: A Vaccine Anywhere, A Vaccine Everywhere”, the NGO funded by the former Prime Minister outlined several key recommendations the government should follow if it wants to help travel [...]
Editorial: If the PM returns with a plan, it’s a worthwhile holiday October 11, 2021 Climbing the greasy pole of politics is fraught with risk; chief among them, the opportunity for the world to go hell in a handcart whilst you’re on holiday. See Raab, Dominic, for one recent example; a mistimed holiday to Crete and the now former Foreign Secretary ends up on the wrong side of a Cabinet [...]
Brexit: UK set to renew EU hostilities with call for courts overhaul in Northern Ireland Protocol October 10, 2021 The UK is set to reignite hostilities with the EU over the Northern Ireland Protocol, with Boris Johnson’s Brexit minister to call for an overhaul of how the treaty is legally overseen. Lord David Frost will say removing the European Union of Justice’s (CJEU) jurisdiction over the post-Brexit protocol will be a new “red line” [...]
Queen’s Platinum Jubilee pageant will be bigger and bolder than Victoria’s in 1897 October 9, 2021 About 6,500 performers will turn the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee pageant into the “largest ever put on”, an organiser has revealed. V&A chairman Nicholas Coleridge, who is co-chairing the pageant, said the event on the final day of jubilee celebrations will top those held in 1897 for Queen Victoria. He added that the BBC predicts the [...]
Property of the Week: Lancer Square, a shiny new development on the edge of Kensington Gardens October 8, 2021 At the Kensington High Street end of Kensington Church Street, Lancer Square, which has been in development for many years, saw its first residents move in this week. The show apartment is a four-bedroom, five-bathroom enclave on the fourth floor overlooking the development’s sunken garden, and I think I can safely say that £15m doesn’t [...]
Is bling out? What Chinese “common prosperity” means for luxury goods October 8, 2021 Evergrande Group will not have helped to calm the nerves of investors in European luxury goods companies. They’ve viewed recent developments in China with some trepidation. The difficulties facing the country’s second largest property developer (by sales) add to a checklist of concerns. These concerns include a slowdown in economic activity (for background, see: China: what [...]
Rain and fuel chaos kept shoppers away from the high street October 8, 2021 Shoppers were deterred from the high street last month because of rain and chaos surrounding fuel buying. Total UK footfall dropped by 16.8 per cent in September, compared to pre-pandemic levels, BRC-Sensormatic IQ data found. Out of all regions, London saw the biggest drop of 26.3 per cent, compared to 2019. The city has suffered [...]