The Treasury will gain nothing from property tax hikes December 4, 2012 A S THEY consider a “back-door” mansion tax and another increase in stamp duty in today’s Autumn Statement, George Osborne and Vince Cable should take a quick look at a dramatic drop in tax receipts after the last Budget. In March, stamp duty was hiked to 7 per cent for people buying property over £2m [...]
HS2 critics tell court coalition’s decision to build was flawed December 3, 2012 OPPONENTS of the controversial High Speed 2 (HS2) rail link yesterday kicked off a major legal challenge, in an attempt to force the government to think again about the £34bn project. Lawyers for a group of local authorities, called 51m, told the High Court that the government has not properly consulted on the benefits and [...]
Focus on: Kentish Town November 29, 2012 The area has become a popular choice for buyers wanting to be within close proximity of the Heath in Hampstead but whose budgets do not extend to the prices that properties in Hampstead command. There’s a lot to do in the area. Kentish Town has a buzzing nightlife and music scene thanks, in part, to [...]
Train pain for season ticket commuters November 28, 2012 COMMUTERS should brace themselves for season ticket price hikes of up to six per cent in January, despite the government’s intervention to stem inflation-linked fare rises. Passengers from Canterbury will be worst hit in percentage terms, with the price of an annual season ticket to London rising 5.9 per cent to £4,860 in the new [...]
TfL hopes to push Overground onto key suburban rail routes November 28, 2012 TRANSPORT for London (TfL) remains optimistic that it will get the go-ahead to take control of key suburban rail routes early next year. Howard Smith, chief operating officer for TfL’s rail operations, told City A.M. that he is “hopeful of coming to some conclusions in the next few months” following discussions with the Department for [...]
Gatwick looks to grow through single runway as traffic rises November 28, 2012 GATWICK executives talked up the airport’s chances of competing with London’s biggest hubs yesterday as the firm posted rising revenues and traffic. Britain’s second-biggest airport said passengers rose 1.2 per cent on last year to 19.9m in the half-year to the end of September. Turnover jumped 3.6 per cent to £325.8m, helped in part by [...]
Telford quadruples profit on the back of Olympics success November 28, 2012 EAST London developer Telford Homes yesterday reported a fourfold increase in pre-tax profits driven by a step up in demand for its properties on the back of the Olympics. The group has sold £60m of new homes at its Stratford Plaza development near Westfield shopping centre which is due to be completed in 2015. Some [...]
Who’s switching jobs November 28, 2012 Aviva Phil Pavitt has been appointed to the role of IT transformation director at the insurance group. He joins from HMRC, where he was general director of change. Pavitt has also held chief information officer positions at Centrica, Virgin Media and BT. MasterCard Will Judge has been appointed vice president for travel and transit. He [...]
…but coalition struggles with transport work November 25, 2012 AMBITIOUS plans to upgrade the UK’s transport network have become snared in political and planning delays, the British Chambers of Commerce said today. Six key projects remain stuck in the starting blocks, the BCC complained, while a further two have been scrapped for the foreseeable future. The chancellor’s Autumn Statement last year set out details [...]
Capital & Counties moves one step closer to Earls Court plan November 21, 2012 CAPITAL & Counties (Capco) yesterday cleared another hurdle after its £8bn regeneration plans at Earls Court were approved by Kensington and Chelsea council. The Sir Terry Farrell-designed scheme will see the Earls Court Exhibition Centre and several housing estates demolished and replaced with 7,500 new homes creating a “new London district”, according to the developers. [...]