2015 General Election TV debates in doubt as scrapping over line-ups and schedules rumbles on March 5, 2015 A serious of election television debates between party leaders is looking increasingly unlikely, as the impasse between political parties and broadcasters deepens. On Wednesday, David Cameron made it clear that he didn’t want a one-on-one debate with Ed Miliband, just a week before the election. Later that evening, Downing Street head of communications Craig Oliver [...]
MLS strike avoided after talks go into injury time March 5, 2015 AMERICA’S most eagerly anticipated Major League Soccer season to date is set to kick off tonight after the threat of strike action was averted just 48 hours before the first match. Four days of negotiations between the players’ union and the league finally resulted in a new collective bargaining agreement and avoided a humiliating delay [...]
Alastair Campbell on winners: Are there any left in the Labour party? March 5, 2015 When the political satire In The Loop came out in 2009, the Culture Show did a segment in which the critic Mark Kermode watched the film with Alastair Campbell. Afterwards, a sourfaced Campbell delivered his verdict: “I didn’t find it terribly funny.” Kermode said he had sympathy with any representation of politics as venal and [...]
Former Virgin Media exec Eamonn O’Hare plots telecoms raid March 4, 2015 The man who engineered Virgin Media’s $24bn (£15bn) blockbuster sale to Liberty Global has unveiled ambitious plans to take advantage of frenzied deal activity in Europe’s telecoms market. Ex-Virgin Media finance boss Eamonn O’Hare’s dramatic comeback, revealed last night, will involve raising cash in London to snap up struggling telecoms assets across the continent. [...]
Former Virgin exec plots telecoms bid March 4, 2015 THE MAN who engineered Virgin Media’s $24bn (£15bn) blockbuster sale to Liberty Global has unveiled ambitious plans to take advantage of frenzied deal activity in Europe’s telecoms market. Ex-Virgin Media finance boss Eamonn O’Hare’s dramatic come-back, revealed last night, will involve raising cash in London to snap up struggling telecoms assets across the continent. Along [...]
UK sells off £750m stake in Eurostar in boost to George Osborne’s “long-term economic plan” March 3, 2015 The government is set to sell its stake in Eurostar for £757.1m as part of the coalition’s pledge to raise £20bn from asset sales by 2020. A consortium comprising Canadian pension fund Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec and British fund Hermes Infrastructure will buy the UK’s 40 per cent stake in the rail [...]
New press regulator shoots down accusations about independence March 3, 2015 DOUBTS over the independence of members of the new press regulator were strongly denied by its chairman last night. A document from an unknown author given to Labour’s former secretary of state for culture, media and sport (CMS), Ben Bradshaw, makes assertions about members of Ipso’s board and complaints committee. Bradshaw is now a member [...]
Ryanair charm offensive continues with launch of eight-point “customer charter” March 3, 2015 Ryanair – the airline that once considered charging extra for people to use the toilet – has issued an eight-point “customer charter”. Among the points are the promise of “the lowest fares”, to make sure travelling is “an enjoyable experience”, to be “Europe's most reliable airline” and alarmingly for an airline “to make your travel [...]
Denis MacShane in comeback bid as author of Brexit book March 2, 2015 What might we see if Britain left the EU? Planes falling out of the sky? Excessively bendy bananas? Global economic carnage? Maybe not. Yet the prospect has been sufficient to prompt warnings from financial giants HSBC and Goldman Sachs already this year. “Having the UK be part of Europe is the best thing for all of [...]
Sol is gunning for a Tory seat March 1, 2015 IS IT April fool’s day already? Sol Campbell, the ex-England footballer, yesterday said he could be the next MP for Kensington, succeeding Sir Malcolm Rifkind who resigned after the cash for access scandal. Campbell, formerly a member of Arsenal’s 2004 “Invincibles” side, indicated while speaking to Sky that he is potentially being lined up to [...]