DEBATE: Should the weaker inflation figures stop the Bank of England from raising rates next month? April 19, 2018 Should the weaker inflation figures stop the Bank of England from raising rates next month? Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, says YES. Inflation’s rapid fall to 2.5 per cent in March – well below the MPC’s 2.8 per cent forecast – from 3.0 per cent at the start of this year should [...]
KPMG has South Africa contracts cancelled following spate of scandals April 17, 2018 South Africa’s auditor general has cancelled all contracts with big four accounting firm KPMG after a series of major scandals. The audit giant had been implicated in the scandal that led to the collapse of storied London public relations firm Bell Pottinger in September. Read more: Demise of a PR giant: The inside story of [...]
Monarch review launched amid heightened risk of further airline failures April 16, 2018 A government-commissioned review will be kicked-off today following Monarch Airlines’ collapse last October. The Airline Insolvency Review has published a call for evidence to examine reforms needed to ensure passengers are protected when airlines fail. As demand for air travel rises, the risk to passengers of a similar collapse happening again has risen, those conducting [...]
UK venture capital investment slumps in Q1, though London fintech is still on top April 11, 2018 Venture capital (VC) investment has slowed considerably in the first quarter of 2018, according to a new study from advisory firm KPMG. VC investment in the first three months of the year rose just above $1bn (£705m), well short of the $2.8bn invested in the fourth quarter of 2017. The dip follows a blockbuster 2017, [...]
After a bumpy end to 2017 what is the outlook for the London listing market in 2018? April 9, 2018 Nearly £3bn worth of initial public offerings (IPOs) were pulled in London at the end of last year. Deals that were announced but then failed to make it to market include debt collector Cabot Credit Management, professional services business TMF Group and phone mast company Arqiva. In the six months to December companies that had [...]
Legal & General boss Sir John Kingman in line to spearhead audit watchdog probe April 4, 2018 The chairman of Legal & General is on the shortlist to lead an investigation into Britain’s top accounting regulator, according to reports. Sir John Kingman, previously a prominent figure in Whitehall as Treasury second permanent secretary, is among those being considered to spearhead a review of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC). The candidate could be [...]
National Numeracy Day is needed to help improve the UK’s maths skills March 28, 2018 Many adults in the UK, through no fault of their own, don’t have the numeracy skills needed in everyday work and life. Less than half (49 per cent) of UK working-age adults currently possess the numeracy levels expected of primary school children. This is having a significant impact on their happiness and their day-to-day lives. [...]
Clifford Chance breaks ranks with magic circle to include partners in its gender pay gap figures March 27, 2018 Clifford Chance has included its partner pay in its gender pay gap report, the first magic circle law firm to do so. The firm revealed today that it had a mean hourly pay gap of 66.3 per cent, falling to 27.3 per cent in its partnership ranks, 27.7 per cent among its business services staff [...]
Revealed: David Davis flies RAF class, defence minister gets £1,000 pearl necklace and Theresa May has to buy her own gift back March 23, 2018 Brexit secretary David Davis has been flying to Brussels and other European cities using RAF aircraft, costing thousands of pounds a go, while department colleagues use Eurostar. This was one of a number of details published in today’s transparency data, which has also revealed that a defence minister was handed a £1,000 pearl necklace, while [...]
Legal ranking firm Chambers and Partners scooped up by Virgin Experience Days owner Inflexion March 20, 2018 Legal rankings business Chambers and Partners came top of Inflexion's books today, as the private equity firm announced it had bought the business for an undisclosed price. Founded in 1990, Chambers is used by corporates to help them choose legal advisers and by law firms to help select individual lawyers to hire. City A.M. understands [...]