Members of The Hundred Group considering taking a public stance on Brexit March 31, 2016 The finance directors of Britain's biggest companies are being polled on whether to take an official, public stance on Brexit ahead of the European Union membership referendum in June. Finance chiefs from the Hundred Group, a deliberately low-profile organisation comprising finance directors of FTSE 100 and other major UK companies, are being questioned about their corporate and [...]
Tesco prepares to sell off restaurant chain Giraffe March 31, 2016 Tesco is preparing for another disposal and sounding out potential buyers for restaurant business Giraffe. The supermarket bought the chain in 2013 for £49m, with plans to open Giraffe branches beside its stores. At the time, Tesco said the deal was an "opportunity to develop some of the space in our larger stores to create retail destinations [...]
Co-op Bank kicks off search for new boss to replace Niall Booker, update expected with tomorrow’s results March 31, 2016 The troubled Co-op Bank has begun its search for a replacement for its outgoing chief executive Niall Booker, with top bankers at Barclays and Santander already approached for the role. Stephen Jones, who stepped down as Santander UK's chief financial officer several months ago, and at least one internal candidate are thought to have been shortlisted. [...]
Landlords make last minute dash to beat buy-to-let stamp duty hike deadline March 31, 2016 Landlords and agents were scrambling to complete last-minute purchases of second home and buy-to-let properties today ahead of stamp duty hike which comes into effect at midnight. George Osborne's clampdown on buy-to-let properties was announced in November's Autumn Statement as part of a raft measures designed to tackle the housing crisis and help more first-time buyers on the property [...]
Prime minister David Cameron says “nationalisation not the answer” to steel crisis March 31, 2016 Prime minister David Cameron said today that nationalisation isn't the answer to a deepening crisis in the UK steel industry. He said "we're not ruling anything out" when asked if the government was ruling out nationalisation in the long-term. "I don't believe nationalisation is the right answer. What we want to do is secure a long [...]
Government says nationalisation of Port Talbot “not the solution” March 30, 2016 The business secretary has said the government will "look at all viable options" to save Port Talbot's steel industry, but nationalisation is "not the solution". Sajid Javid said that the sector is "absolutely vital" for the UK, however he isn't convinced that nationalisation is a "long-term viable solution", ITV news reported. Downing street has said that [...]
Zac Goldsmith, Sadiq Khan or Caroline Pidgeon: Why the next mayor of London will be the candidate who puts renters first March 29, 2016 “This election is a referendum on housing”, Sadiq Khan has claimed. He's right – no section of London society has been let down as badly as its legion of renters. There are problems across the full scale of renting, not least with the dearth of affordable housing. The capital’s private lettings market is outdated, fragmented [...]
China’s Legend Holdings on the brink of purchasing a £500m stake in London’s Pension Insurance Corporation March 29, 2016 Chinese investment company Legend Holdings is on the brink of purchasing a major stake in London-based Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC). Legend, which is also the part-owner of computing company Lenovo, is said to be in the final stages of several months worth of talks to buy a stake worth £500m in PIC, which insures the pension schemes [...]
Many UK businesses face a perfect storm, as uncertainty over a potential Brexit, a slowdown in China and the introduction of National Living Wage looms March 29, 2016 It's not just the bank holiday's miserable weather that looked bleak, with many of the country's key employers predicting grey skies ahead as a perfect storm of economic uncertainty brews. According to a report out today by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and PwC, optimism among financial services firms is falling at its fastest pace [...]
Romelu Lukaku hints at future away from Everton after expressing Champions League ambitions March 26, 2016 Romelu Lukaku has hinted at a desire to leave Everton after expressing his hopes to play Champions League football. Lukaku says he wants to perform in Europe's elite competition as soon as next season, meaning he would need to leave the Toffees. The Belgium international has been in great form this season with 18 goals but [...]