George Osborne is offering greater devolved powers to English cities if they agree to have their own directly elected mayor May 14, 2015 More large English cities could soon have their own directly elected mayor like Boris Johnson under new plans to be unveiled by Chancellor George Osborne later today. Osborne wants to offer English cities greater devolved powers over housing, transport, planning and policing as long as they agree to be governed by a directly elected mayor. Greater Manchester will [...]
Mix it up: World’s Best Bar finalist Nightjar has a new cocktail menu May 12, 2015 Nightjar has a new cocktail menu. For anyone who likes mixed drinks this is kind of a big deal. Nightjar is one of London’s – nay, the world’s – best bars. It’s a true destination venue and the only place in the country that successfully nails the speakeasy theme (not least because it whisks you [...]
Labour must ditch tribalism to reclaim London’s suburbs May 11, 2015 There is no getting away from it: last Thursday’s result was a crushing defeat for the Labour Party. This new era requires a new generation of leaders, who must have a vision that appeals across political and geographical divides, and the ability to reach beyond Labour’s core base. Those who turned away from Labour need [...]
It’s crunch time for London’s competitiveness – and alarm bells are ringing May 7, 2015 THE BIG question for London’s business community this morning is this: will our new government, whatever its make-up, help keep Britain open for business? London gives the UK a place on the world stage, and is the country’s principal gateway for investment and tourism. Last year, the city’s success allowed it to contribute £34bn more [...]
The A-Z of the 2015 General Election night: What time do polling stations open, how to find your nearest one, and when results come out May 7, 2015 If you're wondering what time the polling stations open, to how you can you find out which one they need to go to, to how long you'll have to stay up if you want to watch the results as they come out. From absentee ballots to voters who choose "zero", here's our quick A-Z guide of [...]
Glastonbury’s oasis of calm May 6, 2015 LESS than seven weeks to go before Glastonbury, with Foo Fighters, Kanye West, and The Who confirmed among the headliners. Come rain or…well probably rain, The Capitalist is determined not to repeat past mistakes. Aside from the pharmaceutical-fuelled inappropriate dancing and random 24-hour relationships, there was the tent that never quite survived, the mud-logged trek [...]
Why Crossrail risks being London’s last major infrastructure project May 5, 2015 It is difficult to believe that it was half a decade ago that Liam Byrne – a Treasury minister in Gordon Brown’s government – left that infamous note for his successor. It apparently read, “Dear chief secretary, I’m afraid there is no money left… Good luck.” Of course, Byrne was only half right. Since 2010, [...]
Here are the most expensive places to rent outside of London May 1, 2015 A short supply of housing means London is becoming ever more crowded, which is stretching resources, pushing up prices, and prompting people to move further out. But before you make the leap into a cosy commuter town, it isn't necessarily any better elsewhere, as rents are still pretty high and you'll have to pay through [...]
Clapham Junction train chaos: Incompetence leads to more travel delays for commuters, says Chuka Umunna April 30, 2015 Shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna said last night that “everyday incompetence, more than extraordinary circumstance,” is causing repeated travel delays for London commuters. Umunna’s comments came after a day of disastrous travel for south Londoners. An electrical problem at Clapham Junction prompted the cancellation of all trains in and out of Victoria station, leaving [...]
Clapham Junction travel delays: This is the reason why Southern train passengers couldn’t be rescued for hours April 30, 2015 Thousands of passengers were delayed this morning as a power failure halted trains travelling from Clapham Junction into Victoria station. (And there'll still be delays on the commute home as a result.) There were 1,000 unlucky commuters stuck on one train for five hours who were eventually rescued by London Fire Brigade with the help [...]