The UK will get a US free trade deal post-Brexit – but Donald Trump will drive a hard bargain March 13, 2017 Back in 1783, when Britain signed a trade deal with the fledgling United States as part of the Treaty of Paris which concluded the revolutionary war, the world-class British delegation was infinitely more experienced and better prepared than their novice American counterparts. Sadly, this is not the case today. Fast forward 234 years and Britain’s [...]
Redirect £76bn from former EU budget to fuel inclusive growth says RSA commission March 7, 2017 The government should reroute billions of pounds that currently goes to the EU budget to support inclusive growth after Brexit, according to a commission set up by businesses, local government and non-profit groups. A new £76bn fund would deliver growth across the whole of the UK, lowering inequality and raising overall productivity, the report by [...]
Former Tesco finance chief Laurie McIlwee to join the board of Giraffe restaurant chain and Ed’s Easy Diner parent group March 7, 2017 A former Tesco finance chief is poised to join the board of the restaurant group that owns the likes of Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner, according to reports. Laurie McIlwee has been appointed executive chairman of Boparan Restaurant Group, Sky News reported, months after being cleared of any involvement in Tesco’s 2014 profit overstatement scandal. Read [...]
British Land is offering enhanced shared parental pay after rejigging its shared parental leave policy March 6, 2017 Real estate giant British Land has announced it is upping shared parental leave (SPL) for employees, providing parents with equal benefits in terms of pay following the birth, or adoption, of a child. British Land said the approach will allow more parents to enjoy the benefits of SPL, as it goes "above and beyond" statutory requirements. [...]
City Moves for 6 March 2017 – who’s switching jobs? March 6, 2017 Today's City Moves cover alternative investments, PR and payment processing. Take a look at these movers and shakers: Global Alternatives Global Alternatives, an owner-operator of marketplaces for alternative investments, has appointed Brendan Bradley as non-executive chairman as it prepares to launch Prop-X, a cross-border property trading exchange. Brendan was previously chief innovation officer and a [...]
Oscars Best Picture screw-up: City stalwart is investigating how the award was handed to the wrong film February 27, 2017 Last night's Oscars ceremony took a surprising and extremely awkward turn when the big prize – the Best Picture award – was mistakenly handed to the wrong film. Stars Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway announced that La La Land had won, as was widely expected. The film's producers were midway through their acceptance speeches when Beatty interrupted [...]
Formula One: MEP hits back at governing body claims of malicious intent February 22, 2017 The MEP championing change in Formula One has hit back at claims by the sport's governing body that her cause is “inaccurately informed or made maliciously”. In an open letter Anneliese Dodds highlighted a conflict of interest in Formula One's regulator, the FIA, allegedly profiting from signing off on the sale of Formula One to Liberty Media. One [...]
Don’t dig yourself into a hole! Here are our top tips to keep in mind if you’re planning to dig out your basement February 18, 2017 Barely a week passes without news stories reporting various problems with botched basement digs throughout London. Just recently a Georgian townhouse in Barnes collapsed “like a pack of cards” due to basement work, and similarly a family in Chester Row are still waiting for repairs worth £250,000 to their house after a neighbour’s skip fell [...]
Industry calls for corporate governance clampdown for private firms to avoid BHS-style scandals February 17, 2017 Business groups are urging the government to strengthen corporate governance rules for privately-run firms, or risk a repeat of high-profile scandals like last year's collapse of BHS. The UK's private companies are currently not held to the same set of standards as the country's listed companies. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is [...]
After BHS: MPs eye stricter transparency rules for private companies February 12, 2017 The UK's biggest private companies and those with large pension schemes should have to abide by the same financial reporting rules as listed firms to ensure the fallout from the collapse of BHS is not repeated, MPs have said. Any private company with more than 5,000 members of a defined benefit pension scheme, or those defined as large [...]