Internet provider Kcom admits to debt rise in first half results September 30, 2013 COMMUNICATIONS and IT services provider Kcom Group yesterday said that it has performed in line with expectations ahead of its interim results due on 26 November. The Yorkshire-based company said that its net debt has increased since 31 March (reported at £88.2m), but that it expects to reduce its debt in the second half of [...]
Management shakeup for M&S as Asia exec leaves September 30, 2013 British retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) is to see more change to its senior management. Sky News' City editor Mark Kleinman reported that Pascal Martin, the executive responsible for the 120 M&S stores in Asia, is to leave next month, having been with the company only since 2011. His replacement, says Sky, is Bruce Findlay, [...]
Ex-Barclays boss Martin Taylor lined up as possible Lloyds chair September 29, 2013 VETERAN financier and corporate chairman Martin Taylor could take over from Sir Win Bischoff as the chairman of Lloyds Banking Group, it emerged over the weekend. Taylor was chief executive of Barclays in the 1990s, followed by a stint as chairman of high street giant WH Smith as well as six years spent as an [...]
Tiernan-Locke probe strengthens Cookson testing stance September 29, 2013 WORLD cycling’s top official has reiterated calls for anti-doping to be implemented independently of governing body the UCI after English rider Jonathan Tiernan-Locke withdrew from racing to clear his name. Tiernan-Locke, who earned a prestigious move to Team Sky by winning the Tour of Britain last year, is preparing a response after being informed of [...]
Live with your head in the clouds September 26, 2013 Booming demand for residential property causes developers to reach for the sky LONDON has lifted its head firmly into the clouds in recent years as more gargantuan skyscrapers have sprouted up around the city. The Shard, the Heron Tower, the Walkie Talkie and their contemporaries have pierced the skyline and made a similar hole in [...]
35,000 customers switch banks in first week of new scheme September 26, 2013 According to reports, around 35,000 Britons have moved their current accounts during the first week of a new industry switching scheme aimed at promoting greater competition in the banking sector. Last week the Payments Council announced the launch of the Current Account Switching Service, which involves 33 banks and building societies, including Halifax, Barclays, Bank [...]
Fly away to the fantastical mountains of St Lucia September 26, 2013 There’s a lot of local charm beyond the idyllic beaches, azure waters and postcard sunsets, says Oliver Pickup WHAT connects Superman, Amy Winehouse, Oprah Winfrey, Blackbeard and Napoléon Bonaparte? No, it’s not my ultimate dinner party guest list – although that would be some karaoke line up. The link is that they have all been [...]
Inside Track: More than one elephant in the Royal Mail sorting room September 25, 2013 IT’S NOT hard to identify the biggest of the elephantine threats to Royal Mail’s imminent stock market listing, which heralds the most contentious privatisation since the 1980s. With unions poised to ballot members over the prospect of industrial action within weeks, the prospect of a multi-day walkout at the precise time that the company’s shares [...]
HBO swoops for Sky Living comedy series September 25, 2013 US NETWORK HBO yesterday snapped up the North American broadcast rights for a new Sky Living comedy series, written by and starring The Newsroom’s Emily Mortimer (right). Doll & Em, a six-part series produced by Mortimer and Alessandro Nivola’s King Bee Productions, will air on Sky this year.
Stay ‘Appy: five of the best iO7 apps September 25, 2013 Citymapper FREE Forget Googlemaps, Citymapper is the ultimate transport app for London. It’s easy to use, utterly comprehensive and a lifesaver when you’re out late and unsure of how to get home. Essential for Londoners. Runkeeper FREE Who needs a personal trainer when you’ve got a smartphone? Getting fit doesn’t seem so impossible when you [...]