The Brit who managed to tough it out in unfamiliar territory December 9, 2013 Annabel Palmer talks strength, endurance and electric wires with Will Dean, co-founder of Tough Mudder and Englishman in New York THE growing obsession with wellbeing has now reached a point where 12-mile obstacle courses, designed by British Special Forces and incorporating icy cold water and electric wires, are among the most popular fitness events in [...]
Mayor’s office sold in £1.7bn Kuwaiti deal December 9, 2013 KUWAITI firm St Martins Group has paid around £1.7bn to buy the More London complex next to Tower Bridge, which includes Boris Johnson’s headquarters City Hall. The sale, one of the largest ever UK commercial property deals, is due to be formally completed next month. The 10-year old development on the south bank of the [...]
Marks & Spencer chooses a new auditor after 87 years with PwC December 5, 2013 MARKS & Spencer has parted ways with PwC, picking a new auditor for the first time since the FTSE 100 retailer became a public company in 1926. M&S said yesterday it has appointed Deloitte as its new auditor following a competitive tender. The switch comes at a time when the close and often decades-long relationship [...]
Europe stalls on plan to force audit switching December 5, 2013 NEGOTIATIONS on a European Union draft law forcing companies to switch accountants around once every ten years are on hold due to disagreements over other planned curbs on auditors, according to a British MEP involved in the talks. The law, which goes further than recent changes to UK auditor rules, are meant to boost competition [...]
Bank levy increased again to stop lenders benefiting from tax cuts December 5, 2013 THE BANK levy was raised again yesterday to take more from lenders and stop them benefiting from falling corporation taxes. But analysts said it risks having a perversely negative impact on lending – just when the government wants more lending to businesses and households. The tax will take 0.156 per cent of each large bank’s [...]
Employers get £500m per year break to hire under-21s December 5, 2013 FIRMS hiring young workers will not have to pay national insurance contributions, the chancellor said yesterday, cutting the cost of taking on the employees. The charge, which can be up to 13.8 per cent, will be cancelled for employees below the age of 21 and earning below the higher threshold of £813 per week. It [...]
UK tipped for faster growth to end the year December 4, 2013 THE UK economy is on track to grow by an impressive one per cent in the final three months of the year, analysts said yesterday. A leading survey of Britain’s services sector fell below expectations but still pointed to strong expansion in the industry. Markit’s latest purchasing managers’ index (PMI) recorded a headline level of [...]
Forecast points to £3bn in gifts from Osborne December 3, 2013 AS CHANCELLOR George Osborne’s Autumn Statement draws nearer, a new report today lays out what is expected from the Treasury. EY’s Item Club are the latest group to suggest Osborne’s giveaways will run to around £3bn, projecting that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) will slash the UK’s borrowing forecast to £110bn. This would mean [...]
Foreign firms rush to buy up UK businesses December 3, 2013 THE ECONOMIC recovery is making the UK an increasingly attractive investment destination for overseas firms, analysts said yesterday, as official data showed a sharp rise in foreign firms buying UK businesses. In the third quarter 46 UK firms were acquired by overseas buyers, a rise of 39 per cent on the previous three-month period. The figure is also [...]
City A.M.’s bumper Autumn Statement preview December 3, 2013 As chancellor George Osborne gets set to unveil this year's Autumn statement on Thursday, we've pulled together all the expected announcements, and what others are hoping for. Ladbrokes have 11/5 odds on the speech to run for 45 to 50 minutes (it's scheduled to start at 11.15am). You'll get 6/4 odds on the speech running [...]