Eat, drink, sleep, repeat: The best restaurants in Florence March 20, 2025 Last week began with a wonderfully long lunch in Bluebird Chelsea with Mirabeau founder Stephen Cronk and his chief exec Richard Larkin. Everyone in the drinks business loves these guys, but I take credit for introducing the Batman and Robin of Provencal rose to each other back in 2017. In Bluebird, the restaurant atmosphere was [...]
Is Sadiq Khan finally getting something right on London’s nightlife? March 20, 2025 It has taken eight years – and the appointment of one disastrous night czar – but Sadiq Khan is finally listening to industry when it comes to the future of London’s after hours leisure economy, writes James Ford As a former aide to the previous Mayor of London, it is very rare that I find [...]
Radical honesty on net zero is Badenoch at her best March 20, 2025 Kemi Badenoch has said that net zero by 2050 is impossible and she has the evidence to prove it. Now she needs to prove she has the energy to take on the reform Britain so badly needs, says James Price At last, I have seen the Kemi Badenoch that her supporters see. The leader of [...]
London firms struggling to recruit staff as people want to WFH March 20, 2025 Firms in London are struggling to recruit staff as over four in five businesses have vacancies, according to a new survey of 1,000 companies. Mayor Sadiq Khan recently announced plans to boost economic growth in the capital, but the latest survey by BusinessLDN suggests he may have a mountain to climb before he achieves his [...]
Trump’s attack on Big Law puts London lawyers into an awkward place March 20, 2025 US President Donald Trump has set his sights on a new target for his attacks: American lawyers and law firms. But this problem has shifted across the Atlantic
Great Britain to host Tour de France Grand Depart in 2027 March 19, 2025 The Tour de France will return to Britain for the first time since 2014 after England, Scotland and Wales won the bid to host the 2027 Grand Depart. The Tour will begin in Edinburgh, with culture secretary Lisa Nandy saying the move “will stimulate growth, attract new visitors and leave a lasting legacy for athletes [...]
Exclusive: Top transport civil servant who oversaw HS2 to step down March 19, 2025 Dame Bernadette Kelly, the top civil servant at the Department for Transport (DfT), is to step down after nearly eight years in the role. A Whitehall veteran with four decades of experience, Kelly was appointed permanent secretary in April 2017 following a stint as director general of the DfT’s rail group. She led work on [...]
Will Rachel Reeves hike taxes in her first Spring Statement? March 19, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to make her first Spring Statement next week, and rumours are starting to swirl that the tax hikes could be on the cards as she tries to get the government debt under control. Given the Chancellor’s commitment to just one major fiscal event a year the Spring Statement is intended [...]
Rio Tinto hits back at ‘unfounded and misleading’ pressure to ditch London March 19, 2025 Rio Tinto has hit back at calls for it to ditch its London listing in favour of Australia, arguing that claims made by an activist investor were both “unfounded and misleading.” The mining giant holds a dual-listing in the UK capital and Sydney, but has faced pressure from investors to abandon its current set up [...]
In The Style: Fast-fashion brand saved after administration collapse March 19, 2025 In The Style has been sold after collapsing into administration in a move which put hundreds of jobs at risk of being lost. FTS Recovery had been appointed to oversee the administration process at the Manchester-based company before a deal with Alps Sourcing Limited was agreed. It has now been confirmed that 87 jobs in [...]