Restaurant review: There’s more to Palm Court than afternoon tea, thank god October 29, 2015 If I could click my fingers and banish one element of our national cuisine, it would be afternoon tea. It’s a dreary throwback to a time when we felt the need to ape our social betters, in this case by eating wildly overpriced cucumber sandwiches. Its emergence is often credited to Anna Maria Russell, the [...]
Ineos is reportedly in talks with Fairfield Energy over its holdings in the North Sea October 27, 2015 Chemicals firm Ineos is reported to be looking at extending its presence in the North Sea oil and gas business. The group is in advanced talks with Fairfield Energy to buy a stake in the Clipper South gasfield, according to Sky News. The deal bring Ineos' holding in the field up to 75 per cent, [...]
‘Stupid’ Anthony Martial earns pardon from Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal with Champions League equaliser in Moscow October 22, 2015 CSKA Moscow 1 Manchester United 1 Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal insisted he had forgiven Anthony Martial for a “stupid” blunder after the teenager rescued a point for his side against CSKA Moscow in the Russian capital last night. Returning to the scene of their 2008 Champions League triumph over Premier League rivals Chelsea, [...]
After Assad’s surprise visit to Moscow, is Russia Syria’s best chance of reaching a political solution? October 22, 2015 Kamal Alam, a fellow at RUSI and a military analyst advising the British Army on Syrian affairs, says Yes It is quite clear that Vladimir Putin has shown decisive leadership – not just in Syria but also in the wider Middle East. He has outsmarted Nato by forging close ties with Egypt, Algeria and even Saudi [...]
London-listed Russian hypermarket chain Lenta raises $150m for expansion October 21, 2015 Russia's second biggest hypermarket chain Lenta has raised $150m (£97m) through the sale of new shares to fund its expansion, despite a tough economic backdrop at home. The London-listed company, which has 122 hypermarkets in 63 cities across Russia and 27 supermarkets around Moscow, said it sold 21.1m new global depositary receipts (GDRs) through an accelerated [...]
Forget Syria: Putin is on the verge of victory in Ukraine October 18, 2015 The western commentariat doesn’t know what to do with Russian President Vladimir Putin, or the enigmatic country that he leads. This can be seen in the comically diverse opinions presently being gravely intoned as to what Putin is doing in both Syria and Ukraine. “Putin is a genius”; “Putin is a fool”; “Russia is regaining [...]
The war on the driver is a war on freedom – and autonomous cars are part of the problem October 14, 2015 Freedom-hating municipal politicians have it in for the motorist: London has its congestion charge, Dublin is closing off ever more of its urban core, and Paris is now experimenting with sporadically banning all private transport. Young people, faced with turbo-charged costs, onerous restrictions and absurd taxation – not to mention rising housing costs – [...]
E.On to sell Norwegian oil and gas assets to firm owned by Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman October 14, 2015 German utility giant E.On is selling its Norwegian oil and gas assets to a company owned by Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman for $1.6bn (£1.04bn), as part of its ongoing restructuring plan for its oil and gas division. The blue-chip firm, whose UK supply arm is one of the big six energy providers, saw its share price [...]
Arsenal AGM: Three key questions as Arsene Wenger, Ivan Gazidis, Stan Kroenke and Sir Chips Keswick get grilled by shareholders October 14, 2015 Arsenal's directors will sport their best smiles and lay on the charm as shareholders gather at Emirates Stadium for the club's AGM today. Chief executive Ivan Gazidis, manager Arsene Wenger and majority shareholder Stan Kroenke are expected to be in attendance to proudly present the club's record profits, detail plans for the future and field some [...]
Flight MH17 final crash report released: Dutch investigators confirm Malaysian Airlines plane was brought down by Buk missile October 13, 2015 Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was brought down by a Russian-made Buk surface-to-air missile, Dutch investigators have confirmed. Speaking at a press conference in Gitze-Rijen today, Tjibber Joustra, the Dutch Safety Board chairman, showed an animation of MH17's last moments. The missile hit the front left hand side of the plane – the cockpit – killing three crew [...]