Upgrades for road, rail and IT take shape March 21, 2012 THE COALITION’S multi-billion pound plans for sweeping infrastructure upgrades are starting to take shape, with £2bn of pension involvement revealed yesterday and new plans to upgrade London’s transport and technology networks. George Osborne said British pension funds have pledged the first £2bn towards a new Pension Infrastructure Platform, first trailed in autumn, with more firms [...]
Top tax rate to be cut to 45p March 21, 2012 Chancellor George Osborne announced that the top rate of tax would be cut from 50p to 45p from April next year, in his Budget speech. He said the rate – for those earning over £150,000 a year – is the highest in the G20 and “it is widely acknowledged as harming the British economy.” The [...]
Mayoral race kicks off with jobs and fares March 20, 2012 BORIS Johnson has taken an eight-point lead in the battle to be Mayor of London, according to a YouGov poll issued to mark the start of the official campaign. Johnson’s campaign has pulled ahead of the competition in recent weeks and the latest polling gives him 49 per cent of first preference votes, against 41 [...]
Economy is the defining issue for Londoners March 20, 2012 THE ECONOMY is set to define the election, according to an Ipsos MORI poll that found 59 per cent of Londoners cited the financial outlook as one of their most important concerns. Respondents said the other important factors are tackling crime (49 per cent), improving public transport (38 per cent) and building cheap homes (37 [...]
Petrofac and National Grid plan UK carbon capture plant March 20, 2012 British energy network operator National Grid and London-listed oil and gas services firm Petrofac plan to build a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in Britain with US partner Summit Power, the companies said. The consortium will apply for funding from the British government, which is due to relaunch a £1bn tender for CCS projects [...]
CITY VIEWS: SHOULD DAVID CAMERON PRIVATISE THE ROADS? March 19, 2012 ANDREW CAULFIELD | CAULFIELD SEARCH “Given that our infrastructure is a bit of a mess I don’t think rail privatisation is the best model to follow on the roads: it certainly hasn’t benefited commuters, just the shareholders of Stagecoach.” ROB WILLIAMS | PARLIAMENT HILL “It wouldn’t affect me as I don’t drive because the prices [...]
Tube workers to reject Games offer March 18, 2012 TUBE workers are set to reject yet another Olympics bonus offer this week, leaving transport bosses scrambling to avoid strikes during the Games, which are now just over four months away. Almost 150 reps for the RMT will today call on the union to turn down the latest £850 overtime and bonus package. The reps [...]
Mayoral rivals clash on transport while courting the business vote March 15, 2012 LONDON’S mayoral candidates clashed last night as they delivered their pitch to business leaders, explaining how they would attract investment and boost infrastructure in the capital. Transport dominated the agenda, with Conservative candidate Boris Johnson saying the city was in the middle of a “neo-Victorian surge in transport investment” while Labour’s Ken Livingstone attacked fare [...]
Stunning new concourse at King’s Cross opens March 14, 2012 THE NEW concourse at King’s Cross station was unveiled yesterday, marking the end of a five-year makeover at the central London station. The steel and glass dome, which weighs 1,700 tonnes, was designed by architect John McAslan to complement the rest of the Grade I listed station. Commuters will be able to walk through the [...]
Unite rejects Olympics Tube bonus March 14, 2012 Unite the union yesterday rejected London Underground’s offer of an £850 Olympics bonus for its maintenance and management workers. Unite said the offer, which is still being considered by transport union RMT, had “strings attached [that] are totally unacceptable” including a requirement to work flexibly. Unite has also announced a ballot of London bus drivers [...]