Real household disposable income £1500 a year lower than pre-referendum forecast February 11, 2019 UK household incomes are around £1500 lower than they were expected to be before the Brexit referendum, new analysis shows. The UK has seen the sharpest income growth slowdown of any economy covered by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, while global growth has outperformed pre-Brexit vote expectations, according to data published this morning [...]
Chancellor needs to find extra billions to end austerity February 11, 2019 The chancellor Philip Hammond will have to find billions of pounds to prop up public spending to deliver on promises of ending austerity. According to a report from think tank the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS), over the four years from 2019-20 to 2023-24, Hammond would need to find a further £2.2bn to avoid cuts [...]
Record stockpiling not enough to hide manufacturing slump as cliff-edge Brexit fears heighten February 11, 2019 Output in the manufacturing sector has plunged to its lowest point since October 2017 despite firms ramping up preparations for a no-deal Brexit, according to an industry barometer. BDO’s manufacturing index fell 0.23 points from December to a score of 98.37 in January, its lowest level in 15 months. Read more: UK car industry on [...]
Quit nostalgic navel-gazing and get excited for the future February 11, 2019 The thing about the 1970s – if you lived through them – is that they were for the most part dull and dour years, devoid of political and economic energy. And as for the fashion, don’t even go there. Yet there seems to be no shortage of fresh-faced tweets proclaiming those years to be something [...]
The final frontier: Opportunities for global Britain lie in the stars February 11, 2019 This summer marks the fiftieth anniversary of the first humans landing on the moon on 20 July 1969. It was a defining moment of human achievement that still intrigues and fascinates to this day. First Man, Hollywood’s look at the life of the astronaut Neil Armstrong, played by Ryan Gosling, has just been nominated for [...]
Despite Brexit uncertainty, City links across the Irish Sea continue to flourish February 11, 2019 Amid the ongoing debate about the Irish border and the Brexit backstop, it would be easy to lose sight of the City’s flourishing links across the Irish Sea. Both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland share a long history with the Square Mile. These ties have grown in recent years as the City Corporation [...]
UK and Switzerland strike post-Brexit continuity agreement February 10, 2019 Britain and Switzerland have signed a continuity agreement that will allow the two countries to trade with each other once the UK leaves the European Union. The agreement will allow the countries to continue to trade freely without the imposition of new tariffs and will also mean no duties will be imposed on the vast majority [...]
May softens up to Corbyn talks as she pleads with MPs on Irish backstop February 10, 2019 Theresa May has moved to break the Brexit deadlock by inviting Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn for fresh talks on the UK's membership of a customs union with the European Union. In a letter to the Labour leader, published late last night, May said she was prepared to hold further talks on a permanent customs union [...]
James Brokenshire defends Chris Grayling after government scraps no-deal ferry contract February 10, 2019 Housing minister James Brokenshire this morning defended transport secretary Chris Grayling from calls that he should be sacked over the collapse of a no-deal Brexit ferry contract with a firm that had no ships. Asked by the BBC whether he had confidence in Tory MP Grayling following the cancellation of the contract, Brokenshire replied: "Chris Grayling [...]
Theresa May promises MPs another Brexit vote by end of February if no deal is agreed with EU February 10, 2019 Theresa May is bargaining with MPs to give her more time to secure a Brexit deal with the EU by offering them another Brexit vote by 27 February. The Prime Minister has been in Brussels this week seeking concessions on the Northern Irish backstop, the reason many MPs rejected her vote by historic margins in January. However, [...]