TSSA union members vote in favour of more industrial action November 29, 2016 London Underground workers in the TSSA union have voted in favour of striking, the union announced today. In a ballot of 237 members, with 235 valid papers returned, 159, or 67.7 per cent, voted in favour of a strike, with 76 – 32.3 per cent – voting against. When asked whether they would be prepared [...]
Traffic congestion costs London businesses £237m each year November 29, 2016 Congestion in the capital has long been a bugbear for drivers, passengers and residents alike. And TomTom's Traffic Index, which measures congestion on the roads in 295 cities, has found it's also proving costly for London's businesses. Research it conducted noted that traffic in the capital increases the time each vehicle spends on the road [...]
Sadiq Khan reveals his spending plans for £3bn Treasury housing fund November 29, 2016 A huge injection of Treasury cash will be used to build a combination of homes to rent and buy in the capital following a deal between the government and City Hall. In the Autumn Statement, chancellor Philip Hammond revealed the Treasury has agreed to hand City Hall of control of £3.15bn in funding to develop 90,000 [...]
The EU court will start trying to answer an incredibly existensial question about Uber November 28, 2016 The battle between Uber and taxi drivers in Europe is ramping up as they pull up at the European court on Tuesday over a rather existential question: what exactly is Uber? The first hearing in what is expected to be a landmark case that will decide its fate in key European markets will take place in the [...]
The City’s tallest skyscraper gets the go-ahead November 28, 2016 The tallest building in the City of London, 1 Undershaft, has just received planning approval. Rising up 73 storeys, the new glass giant will be the second tallest tower in western Europe after the Shard. To make room for the building, Aviva Tower will be demolished. Read more: Steel group Severfield sets its sights on [...]
RMT calls for total closure of Piccadilly Line until trains are fixed – and it wants the Night Tube launch date postponed November 28, 2016 The RMT union has called for the Piccadilly Line to be closed until trains are fully fixed, as delays on the line continue this morning, and wants the Night Tube services start date to be postponed. Around half of the Piccadilly Line fleet has been taken out of service due to a need for wheel [...]
Private equity giant KKR lends a hand to Dutch holiday parks operator and UK advertiser November 28, 2016 A holiday parks operator and outdoor advertiser have become the latest companies to receive loans from US private equity giant KKR. The two deals will deliver $275m (£220m) in financing to Dutch holiday parks firm Roompot and the UK’s Exterion Media. Read more: KKR-backed oil and gas group targets UK fracking company's assets KKR has [...]
Monday misery for commuters as Piccadilly Line delays continue and District Line is hit by signal failure disruption November 28, 2016 Commuters are facing continued delays on the Piccadilly Line today, as half its fleet of trains remain out of service. Transport for London warned people to allow longer for their journeys, with a reduced service running between Cockfosters and Heathrow. A train shuttle service is operating between Acton Town and Rayners Lane in West London. [...]
Uber says a quarter of Londoners ditching car ownership have done due to alternatives November 28, 2016 More than a quarter of Londoners who have ditched their cars have done because of alternatives such as Uber, new research by the on-demand taxi service claims. A YouGov poll of 1,000 residents in the capital for the startup found 28 per cent of those who no longer own a car, but used to, said it was down to using [...]
The chancellor’s economic programme contains much the City should welcome November 28, 2016 The chancellor stepped up to the despatch box last week to make his most important speech since taking office in July. Where previously the Autumn Statement was an important political date on the calendar for UK media, it had gone largely unnoticed by the European press. This year, however, was different. Philip Hammond’s address was [...]