First Legoland in Japan set to open in 2017 June 30, 2014 Merlin Entertainment has announced an agreement to build a Legoland theme park in Japan. The plans represent an attempt to capitalise on Japan's status as the second biggest theme-park market in the world, worth around £4bn annually. The park will cost £185m, and will be built using Merlin's operated and leased framework, where the [...]
Carlyle ponders sale of London minicab firm Addison Lee June 30, 2014 Carlyle Group, the US-based private equity firm, is considering selling Addison Lee, the London minicab company. The decision is part of an evaluation of the business, which Carlyle bought a majority stake in for around £300m in April 2013. The evaluation, to be conducted by Credit Suisse and likely to be completed by autumn this [...]
Support pours in for JP high-flyer James Haymore June 30, 2014 Twitter was awash with supportive messages for JP Morgan account manager James Haymore yesterday, following the revelation he will go to court to defend his right to take his children out of school in term time. “Haymore definitely has a case,” tweeted one supporter. Another tweeted: “Very good luck indeed to James Haymore who [...]
City Matters: Britain’s infrastructure crunch is coming: Doing nothing is not an option June 29, 2014 AS THE British summer makes a fleeting appearance, the demands placed on our infrastructure are only set to increase. The roads, trains and airports will all face additional strain over the coming months, as commuters jostle with overseas tourists and British holidaymakers. This is part of a longer-term trend that has serious consequences for the [...]
This 12 acre Caribbean island costs the same as a three bedroom London flat June 27, 2014 As any good economist will tell you, when you're considering a purchase ask not if you should spend the money or not but what else you could buy for the amount you're considering parting with. To put that into context, if you have £5.7m burning a hole in your pocket should you buy a three-bedroom [...]
Amazon’s lockers arrive in London Tube station car parks June 25, 2014 Amazon has introduced new lockers at Finchley Central and Newbury Park tube station car parks in a partnership between the online retail giant and Transport for London that will let customers collect their purchases at the lockers – like they can do in some Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury’s car parks. Amazon has lockers in over [...]
Stagecoach meets expectations as confidence in buses grows June 25, 2014 Stagecoach has announced financial results in line with the company's expectations for the year ended 30 April. Profit before taxation was in line with analysts’ forecasts of £180m. The FTSE 250 company's performance in the UK was was boosted by new contract wins in London and solid cost control. North American business has been booming, [...]
London’s iconic double deckers are about to get a lot smarter June 23, 2014 Transport for London (TfL) will be introducing screens displaying how many people are sitting upstairs and which seats are available, in a trial system to begin in two weeks. The display screens will be situated next to the driver as people board the bus and between the driver and the staircase before passengers go upstairs. [...]
The new map tool that has data geeks crying with joy June 23, 2014 Two University College London (UCL) researchers have set up a paradise for data-lovers, giving people the ability to map a huge range of social and economic indicators onto their own area, or any in England and Wales. The site looks almost effortless, and is far superior to any similar offerings from government databases. [...]
Amazon joining with Doddle to start railway station collections June 23, 2014 AMAZON customers will soon be able to pick up parcels from railway stations as part of a new deal between the online retail giant and Doddle, the click-and-collect joint venture between Network Rail and Travelex millionaire Lloyd Dorfman. Doddle is currently running a pilot operation at Milton Keynes station, with plans to expand the service [...]