Government outlines new voter ID law and plan to give PM power to call early election in Queen’s Speech May 11, 2021 The government has outlined its plans to force voters to produce ID at polling stations and to give the Prime Minister back the power to call early elections in today’s Queen’s speech. The Queen said a suite of new government legislation “will strengthen and renew democracy and the constitution”, including “to ensure the integrity of [...]
Analysis: Anneliese Dodds’ sacking was a long time coming May 10, 2021 Anneliese Dodds’ sacking last night makes her one of the shortest ever serving Labour shadow chancellors, after a little more than 13 months in the role. She impressed early on as she marked a clear tonal change from the far-left policies of Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell, before heavy criticism began to fall on her [...]
Boris Johnson to outline ‘levelling up’ plans in Queen’s Speech tomorrow May 10, 2021 Boris Johnson is expected to outline more of his plans to “level up” the North and the Midlands in tomorrow’s Queen’s Speech fresh off the back of winning a crucial by-election in Hartlepool. The Tories also made ground in traditional Labour heartlands of Sunderland, Durham and Newcastle in local elections as it won hundreds of [...]
Labour reshuffle: Former BoE economist Rachel Reeves named shadow chancellor May 10, 2021 Rachel Reeves has been named shadow chancellor after Anneliese Dodds was sacked from the role late on Sunday night. The move came as part of a reshuffle of Labour leader Keir Starmer’s top team after a host of miserable results in Thursday’s local and mayoral elections. Dodds, well-liked and a competent performer, failed to cut [...]
Service sector confidence surges as vaccine rollout continues May 10, 2021 Service sector confidence soared to its highest level in more than a year last month as the UK’s continued vaccine rollout and the easing of lockdown restrictions boosted optimism. Confidence among businesses in the service sector hit a 14-month high in April after rising 1.36 points to 99.86, according to BDO’s latest services optimism index. [...]
Taxman owed millions following Greensill collapse May 9, 2021 The taxman is owed millions of pounds following the collapse of scandal-hit finance firm Greensill Capital. Documents from administrator Grant Thornton show that HM Revenue & Customs is among more than 200 creditors out of pocket since the company’s collapse in March. It is owed $8m (£5.7m), the Sunday Times reported. In total Greensill owes [...]
Analysis: Extending superdeduction to creative industries would make a difference May 9, 2021 One of the most eye-catching measures in Rishi Sunak’s latest Budget was the introduction of the “super deduction” regime which will allow businesses to offset 130% of investment spending on plant and machinery against profits for the next two years. So, spend £10m on new equipment and firms reduce taxable income by £13m. This is [...]
Companies in conflict: 400 per cent increase in legal threats and complaints May 8, 2021 The number of legal threats and complaints made against UK businesses has more than doubled over the past two years and increased four-fold since 2016, with businesses more likely than ever to face the risk of legal action. In the past five years, more than half (56 per cent) of all businesses have faced an [...]
David Cameron and Lex Greensill to appear before MPs next week May 7, 2021 David Cameron and Lex Greensill will appear before MPs next week to answer questions on the collapse of the boutique bank of the same name amid a huge lobbying row. The former Prime Minister was an adviser to the firm, which provided supply chain financing to firms including billionaire industrialist Sanjeev Gupta’s GFG empire. In [...]
Britain’s plan for economic recovery should shoot for the moon with a radical rethink May 7, 2021 China was ground zero for the pandemic, but the nation also saw a huge profit from the crisis, with an unprecedented eight per cent growth in GDP as other countries’ economies tumbled. While many continue to ring the toll for Britain’s economic growth, there is, contrary to popular belief, the potential to shoot for the [...]