Khan on the pedestrianisation of London’s streets: ‘Watch this space’ September 17, 2024 The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan announced plans to pedestrianise Oxford Street earlier this week, which he said will revitalise the area and bring customers back. It’s the second time the Mayor has tried to pedestrianise the street, which welcomes some 500,000 visitors a day, with his last attempt in 2018 blocked by Westminster council. [...]
Oxford Street: Former MP for the City and Westminster brands pedestrianisation ‘bullying’ September 17, 2024 A row has erupted over Sadiq Khan’s plans to pedestrianise Oxford Street as the area’s former MPs branded the move “bullying”. The mayor of London today unveiled proposals to ban traffic from the iconic central London retail destination, in what he hopes will reinvigorate the nation’s “most famous high street”. But Nickie Aiken, the former [...]
London Bankside awaits approval for £14m injection into local business development September 17, 2024 London's Bankside neighbourhood could see a substantial investment into local business growth and expansion over the next five years if a new development manifesto is approved this autumn.
Oxford Street: Sadiq Khan plans to pedestrianise iconic retail centre September 17, 2024 Sadiq Khan has announced plans to pedestrianise Oxford Street in a bid to reinvigorate the nation’s “most famous high street” and attract more shoppers. The mayor of London has announced the proposals to turn the road into a traffic-free avenue, alongside a wider regeneration of the shopping destination. Pedestrianisation plans would be delivered via the [...]
West End: Tourist tax ‘disadvantage’ costs retailers hundreds of millions September 16, 2024 Retail business in London missed out on a projected £220m in the first half of 2024 due to the ongoing effect of the so-called tourist tax, despite continued growth in international visitor numbers. The number of international visitors to London was three per cent above pre-pandemic levels, but spending in the West End fell nearly [...]
Grenfell Tower fire: ‘Systematic dishonesty’ by construction firms, report reveals September 4, 2024 The 72 deaths in the Grenfell Tower fire were avoidable, and the blaze was a result of “decades of failure” by government and the construction industry, a report into the disaster has concluded. Scores of people who lost their lives in the blaze which engulfed the 24-storey tower block in north Kensington, on June 14, [...]
Labour can’t resist flirting with economic populism September 4, 2024 Keir Starmer’s closest advisors spent last week briefing journalists that this government would be straight with people, and that it would reject the “fake populism” of the Tories which, they claim, raised people’s hopes before disappointing them. Labour figures said that the Prime Minister’s doom-laden introduction to the country was more responsible than attempting to [...]
Labour gives TfL go-ahead to build 350 new homes near Cockfosters tube station September 3, 2024 Some 350 new homes, 40 per cent affordable, will be built at Cockfosters tube station on the Northern end of the Piccadilly Line.
Kurt Geiger boss joins list of retailers slamming the end of tax-free shopping September 2, 2024 Kurt Geiger’s boss has said the UK is shooting itself in the foot by not bringing back tax-free shopping for international visitors. Kurt Geiger’s chief executive, Neil Clifford, told The Times that the end of VAT-free shopping has had a “massively negative effect” on Britain”. “International tourists, whether it be Middle Eastern or American travellers, [...]
Telegram boss Pavel Durov charged: What next for social media moguls like Musk and Zuckerberg? August 29, 2024 Like his recent collection of topless Instagram photos, Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, is probably feeling slightly exposed right now under the scrutiny of global powers. He has just been charged by French authorities for allegedly allowing criminal activity to flourish on his platform. Durov has avoided jail time for now, out on a [...]