How business can fight back and win against opportunistic political attacks September 26, 2013 ED MILIBAND’S move against energy firms at this week’s Labour conference was the latest in a long line of political attacks on British businesses. Drinks firms, airlines, supermarkets, food retailers and, of course, banks have all been recent targets for politicians. This trend shows no sign of abating. It would be wrong to suggest that [...]
Labour wipes billions off energy firms as price freeze predicted to cost £6.8bn September 25, 2013 ED MILIBAND yesterday wiped £2bn off the value of leading energy firms, as investors rushed to sell shares in gas and electricity suppliers following the Labour leader’s announcement that he would freeze bills if elected in 2015. British Gas owner Centrica saw £1.1bn wiped off its market value and fellow supplier SSE shed £870m, as [...]
Britain’s ability to attract so much foreign capital has saved us September 25, 2013 IF you want to understand why it is so vital for the UK to remain an open economy, look no further than our front page story on who now owns British firms. For the first time, more than half of all the shares in UK-listed companies – 53.2 per cent, to be precise – are [...]
Mandelson says Miliband taking party backwards September 25, 2013 FORMER business secretary Lord Mandelson yesterday accused Ed Miliband of dragging the Labour party backwards with plans to freeze energy prices. Mandelson, widely seen as the architect of new Labour, lashed out after Miliband told the Labour Party conference he would impose a 20-month suspension of household fuel bills if he wins the next election. “As [...]
Q and A: What determines our gas and electricity bills? September 25, 2013 Q My electricity bills seem pretty steep. Are they higher in the UK than elsewhere? A In short – not really. Compared to the 15 countries that made up the European Union prior to the 2004 accession (known as the EU15), the UK had the fourth lowest prices in 2012 – when including taxes that [...]
We can bring down UK energy costs without Miliband’s populist price fix September 25, 2013 WELL, no one can say we don’t know what Ed Miliband stands for any more. Whacking business with higher taxes, strangling them with regulation, expropriating land from owners who don’t develop, and reversing benefit cuts. The list of Wonga policies – superficially attractive in the short term, punitively expensive in the long term – was [...]
Letters to the Editor – 26/09 – Energy price fix, Inflation target, Best of Twitter September 25, 2013 Energy price fix [Re: Miliband’s lurch to left is a recipe for disaster, yesterday] Labour claims that it wishes to promote a more competitive energy industry by breaking up the largest firms. Of course the irony is that the plan to freeze energy prices will likely result in a far less competitive market. Centrica has [...]
Labour declares war on business September 24, 2013 Miliband hits energy firms with plot for £4.5bn price freeze British Gas owner Centrica threatens to quit UK over plan Policies on tax, energy and construction slammed ED MILIBAND yesterday launched an extraordinary attack on swathes of British business as he returned his party to its left-wing roots by unveiling a range of punitive policies [...]
Centrica labels Labour plan as a recipe for ruin September 24, 2013 BRITAIN’S big six energy companies yesterday lambasted Labour leader Ed Miliband’s pledge to freeze energy bills until 2017, saying his planned reforms could financially ruin firms and discourage infrastructure investment. Sir Roger Carr, chairman of British Gas owner Centrica, said Labour’s plan to implement price controls could leave companies in a vulnerable position. “When costs [...]
Riverstone aims to raise £1.5bn in energy float September 24, 2013 PRIVATE equity firm Riverstone Holdings yesterday said it is planning to float a new energy investment vehicle, Riverstone Energy, on the London Stock Exchange, in an initial public offering to raise up to £1.5bn. Lord Browne, former boss of oil major BP, is a partner at Riverstone Holdings and will take a board seat at [...]