Political pay: Speaker of the House John Bercow now earns more than Prime Minister David Cameron December 28, 2015 Speaker of the House John Bercow now takes home more than Prime Minister David Cameron in his pay packet, after having accepted an extra pay rise on top of the 10 per cent given to MPs earlier this year. The speaker earns £150,236 a year, comprised of the MP's salary of £74,000 and the additional salary for [...]
How Labour has performed in by-elections since Jeremy Corbyn became leader of the Labour party December 23, 2015 There has only been one by-election so far this parliament for a seat in Westminster, which was won by Labour in leader Jeremy Corbyn’s first national electoral test. But there have been many more council by-elections since Corbyn took the reins of the Labour party, and there is a distinct regional pattern to how Labour [...]
EU referendum: New survey shows leading institutional investors are more concerned about Donald Trump than Brexit in 2016 December 23, 2015 Nearly half of leading institutional investors are concerned about Britain leaving the European Union next year, according to a new survey. Forty-seven per cent of global institutional investors polled by FTI Strategy Consulting and Research this month said that they were concerned about a 2016 Brexit harming their portfolio. Investors remain sceptical, however, that British [...]
London airport expansion: Back Heathrow group says Zac Goldsmith has serious questions to answer after saying Volkswagen changes the debate December 22, 2015 A group campaigning for the expansion of Heathrow Airport has hit out at Tory mayoral candidate Zac Goldsmith, accusing the Richmond Park MP of making “misleading” comments about air quality. Back Heathrow says Goldsmith has “serious questions to answer” after saying that the Volkswagen emissions scandal “changes everything” in the airports debate. Goldsmith recently told journalists [...]
EU referendum: The City must speak out to avoid a Brexit December 22, 2015 Canada is a global financial powerhouse and the largest financial centre in Europe. It should be a significant player in the EU debate. However, while the industry is in general supportive of the UK remaining a member of the EU, direct expressions of support have been thin on the ground. City executives [...]
Scottish National Party’s lead in the polls grows with under six months to go until Scottish parliamentary elections December 21, 2015 With less than six months to go until the elections for the Scottish parliament, support for the Scottish National Party has swelled, increasing its lead in a new survey by TNS. The survey of 1,035 people aged 16 and over found support for the SNP steady at 58 per cent, while Labour dropped three per cent to [...]
England’s nurse shortage: 90 per cent of hospitals don’t have enough to cover all shifts December 21, 2015 NHS hospitals in England are suffering a “dangerous” shortage of nurses, according to new figures published in the Health Service Journal. A study of 232 hospitals across the country revealed 90 per cent did not meet “safe staffing” levels to cover all daytime shifts, raising concerns the NHS is not equipped to deal with the [...]
Government accused of doing too little to protect UK steel industry December 21, 2015 A committee of MPs has accused the UK government of taking “little action” to safeguard the nation's steel industry. The group said unlike other European nations, Britain was not alert enough to the implications of falling prices, and as a result didn't do enough to stop the crisis from escalating. Thousands of jobs have been slashed [...]
Treasury says senior civil servant will be chief executive of National Infrastructure Commission December 21, 2015 A senior civil servant has been tapped to lead the government’s efforts to deliver more infrastructure projects. Phil Graham, a longtime civil servant in the department for transport, will be chief executive of the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), a new independent body chancellor George Osborne first announced at this year’s Conservative Party Conference. At the [...]
CBI director-general Carolyn Fairbairn says apprenticeship levy will inevitably lead to job losses as new poll shows 5 in 6 businesses think levy is the wrong approach December 21, 2015 The government's apprenticeship levy could lead to “significant” job losses, Confederation of British Industry (CBI) director-general Carolyn Fairbairn has warned, as a new CBI survey shows just one in six businesses think the new tax is the right approach. Chancellor George Osborne first announced the apprenticeship levy in July’s summer budget, and revealed in last [...]
