Explainer-in-brief: Fracking problems on the horizon for net zero February 15, 2022 The latest flashpoint over the cost of green policies has been about fracking – a way to extract natural gas and oil from shale by pumping a water mixture down into the earth. Around 30 Tory MPs and peers, including Lord Frost, are calling for the ban on fracking to be scrapped. They argue that [...]
Britain’s productivity has been battered by the scarcity of affordable homes in cities February 15, 2022 Londoners are feeling the squeeze. The Bank of England has forecast the biggest annual fall in living standards for at least three decades: energy costs are surging, and rents are going up by 5.5 per cent. The high cost of housing leads to a worse quality of life in familiar ways, through lower disposable incomes, [...]
Looming Russia-Ukraine conflict sends chill through City February 14, 2022 Mounting fears over an imminent Russian insurgency of Ukraine rippled throughout the City yesterday, wiping billions off of the value of the UK’s top companies. The potentially devastating impact of a war in eastern Europe spooked investors and sent them flooding into safe assets. In a bruising day on the Square MIle, the FTSE 100 [...]
Government to crack down on developers trying to dodge cladding contributions with new powers for courts February 14, 2022 The government has announced amendments to its building safety bill which will allow cladding companies to be sued for defective products. The amendments also confirm the government’s intentions to block firms from the market if they do not financially contribute to remediations on buildings with unsafe cladding. The department for levelling up, housing and communities [...]
Young workers cooped up in flats have budgets squeezed by home working February 14, 2022 Young renters cooped up in small flats amid working from home orders during the pandemic have had their budgets squeezed, revealed official figures released today. Almost every person in the UK living in rented housing was hit with higher energy bills, according to research by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Younger workers just starting [...]
UK inflation to scale even higher as cost of living squeeze tightens February 14, 2022 Inflation will soar even further above a near three decade high this week as the squeeze on households tightens its grip, City experts are betting. Fresh figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Wednesday will reveal the the cost of living is running at 5.5 per cent, according to the consensus forecast [...]
Unprecedented: UK petrol prices hit staggering 148p per litre for the first time ever February 14, 2022 The average UK petrol price per litre has surpassed 148p for the first time ever, breaking the record price levels for the third time this year.
Britain’s banks prepare to pay out bumper bonuses amid cost of living crisis February 14, 2022 Britain’s banks are bracing themselves for a public backlash as they prepare to dish out more than £4bn in bonuses while customers grapple with a growing cost of living crisis.
Best of this week in our opinion pages: from community-based solutions for fighting terrorism to the Bank of England’s dilemmas February 12, 2022 As talks of a definitive lifting of Covid-19 restrictions intensify, workers are coming back to their offices in flocks, bringing liveliness back into the Square Mile. Richard Kauntze wrote about an often overlooked aspect of the City’s inner workings: the unofficial economy of gossip. The City has long thrived on whispered tittle-tattle, which plays a [...]
Klarna eyes up $60bn valuation with new funding round February 10, 2022 Buy now pay later (BNPL) giant Klarna is eyeing up a new funding round that could see its valuation jump to $60bn (£44bn) as it looks to fund an expansion.