Climate sceptic Bjorn Lomborg’s stark warning: ‘People will rebel against green policies’ September 14, 2022 Climate sceptic Bjorn Lomborg is President of the Copenhagen Consensus and Visiting Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution. Today he explains in City A.M. why green policies will simply not work. The disconnect between the global elite and the real world is growing by the day. Most people are worn down by the pandemic, food [...]
Desperate small businesses beg government for immediate help as bills spiral out of control September 14, 2022 A range of small businesses said this morning that their energy bills have more than doubled in the past three months alone. Firms are therefore eagerly looking to next week’s expected mini budget for help with soaring bills despite the slight easing in inflation. Lesley So, founder of Derby-based eco-friendly drinks manufacturer So Good Kombucha, [...]
Discounters Aldi and Lidl keep taking market share as Brits now pay £571 more for groceries September 13, 2022 Discounter Aldi has become Britain’s fourth largest supermarket for the first time while Lidl’s market share is also in the lift, according to new data out this morning. The findings come as Brits are now paying a record £571 more on average for their groceries than last year Grocery price inflation hit 12.4 per cent [...]
Gaucho boss: Restaurant menus featuring more seasonal produce could be ‘silver lining’ of high inflation September 12, 2022 Restaurants shifting to more seasonal menus may be the “silver lining” of sky-rocketing food prices, Gaucho boss Martin Williams has said. Hospitality venues have been forced to grapple with heightened prices for vegetables and proteins this year, in addition to energy bill increases that bosses say pose an existential threat to the sector. However, the [...]
Lloyd’s of London to give staff £2,500 helping hand ahead of winter September 8, 2022 Lloyd’s of London is to give staff earning less than £75,000 per year a £2,500 one-off payment later this month to help with surging inflation. Chief Executive John Neal told City A.M. this morning that it was set to be a “pretty rotten winter” and “as employers we’ve got an obligation to think, to care [...]
Primark profit margins to be hit by high energy costs and shoppers’ budget worries September 8, 2022 Primark owner Associated British Foods said it expects the retailer’s profit margins to take a hit next year due to rising energy costs. In a trading update on Thursday morning, the retailer said it anticipated Primark’s profit margin to be lower than expected as the budget-chain has opted to limit further price hikes. ABF acknowledged [...]
M restaurant founder Martin Williams on his new Canary Wharf venue September 6, 2022 Sitting in the new M restaurant in Canary Wharf, a few days before it officially opens today, is a slightly surreal experience. Overlooking the river in the new, diamond-shaped Newfoundland Quay tower, a row of people in wetsuits are doing laps around the docks below us. As they approach the restaurant they glide past a [...]
Gaucho restaurant boss claims steaks would have to cost £100+ to cover rising energy bills September 6, 2022 The hospitality chief behind the Gaucho steak restaurants has said his venues would have had to charge beyond £100 for steaks in order to cover energy costs if they were not fixed. Restaurant bosses have urged the new Prime Minister Liz Truss to issue emergency support for the sector as some venues grapple with bill [...]
Londoners defaulting on debt faster than rest of UK as borrowing used to meet rising costs September 5, 2022 Londoners are defaulting on their debts faster than the rest of the country, as Brits are forced to borrow more at higher rates to keep up with soaring inflation. Figures released by the Urban Institute in its Financial Vulnerability Index showed households increased borrowing in spite of interest rates going up, in a bid to [...]
Issa brothers’ EG Group posts subdued profit due to cost of living pressures on consumers September 1, 2022 The Issa brothers’ EG Group has posted subdued profit for the second quarter, as the petrol station forecourt operator said “the cost-of-living squeeze remains front of mind for all of us.” EG Group saw group EBITDA slump 6.5 per cent to $355m (£308m), for the three months to 30 June, it shared on Thursday. The [...]