Budget 2016: In the run up to the EU referendum, does Britain have to leave the blue to get out of the red? March 14, 2016 The news that the Britain’s goods-trade deficit with the European Union has widened to a record £8.1bn will leave the chancellor's Byron Burger tasting somewhat tough just a few days before his Budget. The record figures, released by the Office of National statistics (ONS), also showed a deficit of £23bn over the past three months. It is staggering [...]
Chinese investments into Europe and United States reach record high in 2015 – but UK levels dip 35 per cent March 10, 2016 Chinese investment into Europe hit record levels last year – but dipped in the UK, according to a new report. Foreign direct investment (FDI) from China totalled $23bn (£16bn) in Europe in 2015, according to Baker & McKenzie research. On the other side of the Atlantic, last year marked a record for Chinese FDI into [...]
While you were watching Arsenal v Tottenham, football’s lawmakers announced fundamental changes to video replay rules March 5, 2016 Football's lawmakers have given the green light to trials of video replay technology being used for the "game changing decisions" of red cards, penalties, mistaken identities and goals. On Saturday, the International Football Associations Board, made up of the four home nations FAs and Fifa, said it had made a "historic decision" regarding the laws [...]
MPs slam HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) over Google £130m corporation tax settlement and call on the taxman to take the lead in reforming complicated international tax laws February 24, 2016 MPs have today condemned HM Revenue & Customs' (HMRC) recent deal with Google to pay £130m in unpaid corporation tax, and called on it to lead by example in reforming international tax laws. A report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) slammed the settlement for seeming "disproportionately small" compared to the size of the technology company's business [...]
EU referendum: Why protecting the pound is the jewel in the crown of Cameron’s deal February 24, 2016 Following the Prime Minister’s EU renegotiation, the debate is already raging. Myriad topics, from sovereignty to benefits, are dominating the headlines. But what shouldn’t be lost in the detail – and should be celebrated – is David Cameron’s success in protecting the pound. This, alongside related hard-won measures, has far-reaching and positive consequences for Britain’s [...]
Forget Foreign Office pessimism: Britain can leave the EU and find a role by embracing the Anglosphere February 18, 2016 Mention the costs and benefits of UK membership of the EU, and thoughts immediately turn to an economic calculation. But there is also another cost-benefit calculation, namely the geopolitical impact of any future Brexit on the UK’s power and influence in the world. For over 40 years, the grand strategy has been to exploit the leverage [...]
As the world descends into global chaos, the United States is on the border of disorder February 12, 2016 As the world’s foreign and defence policy elite descend on the Bavarian capital for this weekend’s 52nd annual Munich Security Conference participants and observers are likely to ask: Where are the Americans? True, the congressional delegation is strong, with a dozen or so senators and representatives making the trip. But apart from secretary of state [...]
Six Nations 2016: England head coach Eddie Jones hits back at caution jibes February 4, 2016 Head coach Eddie Jones has hit back at criticism of his maiden squad selection by insisting the 23 on show against Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday are the best group to hand England the perfect Six Nations start. Australian Jones has opted for Danny Care at scrum-half in preference to Ben Youngs and Joe Marler rather [...]
Billy Zane talks Zoolander 2, the future of Hollywood and having the ghosts of Picasso and Hemingway hanging over him February 4, 2016 Billy Zane is drawing me a diagram of his Theory of Everything. He’s on his fourth draft and a little pile of crumpled sheets of paper are piling up beside his Bloody Mary. It’s a kind of business model for the creative industries, a way to bring together media, advertising, luxury goods and philanthropy, dotted [...]
CMS launches an office in Tehran, Iran, making it the first major international law firm to establish a base in the country February 2, 2016 An international law firm has journeyed to a place where few legal eagles have ventured before by setting up an office in Iran. CMS today revealed that it opened its office in the Iranian capital of Tehran yesterday, making it the first major international law firm to launch in the country. The legal firm first started eyeing [...]