David Cameron fires starting gun for grand bargain with Europe May 22, 2015 Newly re-elected Prime minister David Cameron will hold his first talks with European Union leaders today, as he attempts to renegotiate the terms of Britain's membership in the bloc ahead of a referendum in 2017. "Today I will start discussions in earnest with fellow leaders on reforming the EU and renegotiating the UK's relationship with [...]
Why it’s highly unlikely that David Cameron’s immigration crackdown will work May 21, 2015 The government yesterday unveiled its latest plan to crack down on illegal immigration, by making it significantly less attractive for people to remain in the UK, working illegally. To achieve this, it is proposing to introduce a new criminal offence – “illegal working” – together with plans to seize the wages of those working illegally. [...]
Entreprise bill: Bigger steps needed to help small companies tackle late payments May 21, 2015 Sajid Javid’s new enterprise bill, announced this week in Bristol, is certainly well intentioned, but it's unlikely to have a significant impact on late payment. Late payments are a silent but significant killer of UK businesses. It is not yet clear what tools the government has to resolve this problem. The third party conciliation [...]
David Cameron: Firms must crack down on illegal migrants May 21, 2015 Prime Minister David Cameron took his hardest line yet on illegal immigration this morning, when he introduced sweeping legislation cracking down not only on foreign workers, but on the landlords, banks and employers that help them as well. In a speech today in Westminster, Cameron said the Queen’s Speech will include an immigration bill intended to [...]
George Osborne says Britain wants to be in Europe, not run by Europe May 20, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne told business leaders last night that they need to “confront some hard truths about Europe”. In a speech at the pro-European Confederation of British Industry’s annual dinner, Osborne said that the government wants “Britain to be in Europe, not run by Europe.” “The continent is sleepwalking towards a future where it has [...]
Marks & Spencer smartens up: Marc Bolland says turnaround plan is finally working as profit rises May 20, 2015 Marks & Spencer chief executive Marc Bolland was cautiously optimistic yesterday that the high street stalwart had turned a corner towards recovery, as the retailer posted its first profit rise in four years. The retailer, which has been battling to revive its clothing arm, reported a 6.1 per cent rise in pre-tax profits to [...]
David “London” Lammy and John “Flashy” Whittingdale recorded in Hansard May 20, 2015 Making sure the political back-and-forth is properly noted in Parliament’s official record – Hansard, is a difficult job. You might think though that just listing the names of the MPs, in the order in which that are sworn in, is one of the easier tasks that the minuters have to do. Apparently not. A quick [...]
New budget 2015: George Osborne uses CBI speech to lay out government plans to tackle the productivity puzzle May 20, 2015 George Osborne offered a glimpse of what to expect at the 8 July budget when he gave a speech to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) this evening, with productivity a major focus. Also top of the agenda is the merging of the Shareholder Executive – the body that runs the government’s financial interests in [...]
George Osborne CBI speech: Government to merge Shareholder Executive and UK Financial Investments to help return public assets to the private sector May 20, 2015 George Osborne announced this evening that the government is to merge the two bodies that manage the majority of the taxpayer’s stakes in businesses into one company. In a speech to the Confederation of British Industry, the Chancellor said the Shareholder Executive (ShEx) and UK Financial Investments (UKFI) would be made into one holding company, [...]
“Flash crash” trader Navinder Sarao loses £5m bail appeal May 20, 2015 The British trader accused of sparking the 2010 US flash crash has lost a bid to overturn his bail conditions at High Court, landing him back in custody. Navinder Sarao, who is charged with 22 counts of illegal trading activity in a US court, is fighting extradition and has been in custody since his [...]
