George Osborne hits out at Sunak’s ‘unenterprising’ corporation tax hike March 9, 2021 Former chancellor George Osborne has slammed Rishi Sunak for his £45bn plans to raise corporation tax, saying they will send a message to other countries that “Britain isn’t a very enterprising place”. Osborne said today that he would have preferred to raise VAT to raise government revenues instead of Sunak’s plan to hike corporation tax [...]
NHS workers were originally set for 2.1 per cent pay rise, says chief executive March 9, 2021 NHS staff were originally in line to receive a 2.1 per cent pay rise before the pandemic, the health body’s chief executive has said. The government sparked widespread outrage last week after ministers announced health workers were set to receive a 1 per cent pay rise this year. Labour said the annual increase amounted to [...]
More than 1m small businesses ‘at risk of collapse’ due to cyber threats March 9, 2021 The government has been urged to pump more money into cyber defences after new research revealed that more than 1m small businesses would collapse if they were targeted by hackers. A poll of more than 500 business leaders found nearly a quarter of UK SMEs — equivalent to 1.3m companies — were likely to go [...]
Exclusive: London pubs, restaurants and hotels to claim almost £200m in restart grants March 8, 2021 London pubs, restaurants and hotels are set to receive almost £200m in extra government grants to help them reopen after the latest coronavirus lockdown. Around 13,000 hospitality businesses across the capital will be eligible to claim £184.2m in the restart grants, City A.M. can reveal. Research by real estate adviser Altus Group showed 3,632 pubs [...]
BoE boss says Covid recession will have fewer long-term effects than previous UK downturns March 8, 2021 The Covid crisis will not have as many long-term economic effects in the UK as previous recessions, according to Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey. Bailey today said his diagnosis of the UK’s economic recovery prospects was “positive, but with large doses of cautionary realism”. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) last week said it [...]
Service sector confidence hits 12-month high on UK vaccine rollout March 7, 2021 Service sector confidence has risen to a 12-month high amid hopes the UK’s successful vaccine rollout will fuel an end to lockdown measures. The services optimism index, compiled by accountancy firm BDO, surged to 94.13 in February from 86.60 the previous month, marking its highest level since the Covid-19 outbreak last year. The rising index, [...]
The City View with Totaljobs CEO Jon Wilson March 7, 2021 In this episode of The City View, Andy Silvester talks about Rishi Sunak’s budget and the week to come with former BBC Business correspondent Susannah Streeter, before he’s joined by Totaljobs CEO Jon Wilson. Andy and Jon discuss a new report which heralds good news for the capital, the world of recruiting in the middle [...]
Rishi Sunak to rally US to agree to G7 tax on tech giants March 7, 2021 Rishi Sunak will call on his US counterpart Janet Yellen to help coordinate an international tax on tech giants like Amazon at the upcoming G7 summit. Sunak has already said that one of his priorities at the G7 summit, which will be held in Cornwall this year, will be to get the ball rolling on [...]
Review: How socialism became the failed idea that never dies March 6, 2021 German writer and economist Rainer Zettleman looks at a new book on the enduring – and illogical – appeal of socialism Why have socialist ideas once again developed such a strong appeal, even though every single socialist experiment over the past 100 years has failed? British economist Kristian Niemietz provides an answer in his book Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies. He cites over two dozen socialist [...]
Fight for the high street: Sunak’s Budget will stop the bleeding, but we must look long-term March 5, 2021 For London’s struggling retailers and leisure operators, Rishi Sunak’s budget provided some welcome respite. The three month extension to the business rates holiday, the £5 billion Restart Grant scheme and the extension to the furlough initiative should enable some of the brands on the high street to survive, at least until they have the opportunity [...]