Burberry’s Christopher Bailey proves elusive again – Editor’s Letter May 19, 2015 When the fashion retailer Burberry unveils its full-year results today, it will be unsurprising if its chief executive and chief creative officer Chris Bailey keeps a low media profile, leaving the task of answering reporters’ questions to his finance director, Carol Fairweather. Bailey himself rarely makes an appearance in front of the media to [...]
Stop the dithering: David Cameron needs to make an early call on Heathrow or Gatwick airport expansion May 19, 2015 As MPs arrive in Westminster to take their seats in the House of Commons this week, one of the bigger decisions they will face – and one which I believe must be taken urgently – is the decision to build a new London runway. Having spent almost three years rigorously examining all the evidence, [...]
Microsoft founder Bill Gates has released his summer reading list – it includes Richard Dawkins’ latest, and the XKCD book May 19, 2015 Now in its third year, Bill Gates' summer reading list has become something of a tradition for Gates-watchers. While last year's was hardly a laugh a minute (it featured Tim Geithner's Stress Test and Elizabeth Kolbert's The Sixth Extinction. Festive), this year Gates is clearly in a breezier mood – 2015's list even features an anthology of [...]
Euro falls below 1.2 against the dollar as ECB hints it will ramp up QE May 19, 2015 The euro fell back below $1.12 today, after a European Central Bank (ECB) policymaker hinted that the Bank is preparing to ramp up its bond-buying programme before the summer. By mid-afternoon in New York, the currency had fallen 1.42 per cent to $1.1154 – the first time it has dropped below the $1.12 mark since [...]
Richard Branson calls for bike-only streets May 19, 2015 Richard Branson has called for whole streets in cities to be closed for all vehicles but bikes – a comment guaranteed to set the lycra brigade against drivers everywhere. London cyclists would likely welcome the idea – the capital’s streets are notoriously dangerous when compared to other European cities, even if the chances of any [...]
Potus tweets, world listens: Barack Obama finally gets his own Twitter account May 19, 2015 Barack Obama is used to enduring long battles but even by his standards, a six-year wait to get a Twitter account must have been something of a slog. Still, he's made his point, gaining 1.77m followers in less than 24 hours, easily beating poor old David Cameron, who languishes down the table with * [...]
“Flash crash” trader Navinder Singh Sarao returns to court this week to fight bail setting May 19, 2015 The trader accused of bringing about the flash crash of 2010 is to return to London's High Court tomorrow. Navinder Singh Sarao, 36, remains in custody after failing to pay his £5.05m bail. He is fighting efforts by the US authorities to have him extradited, with the Department of Justice claiming he made £26m [...]
David Cameron’s former adviser Steve Hilton: Bank bosses should be paid the same as top civil servants May 19, 2015 David Cameron's former director of strategy has argued that the bosses of some large banks should be paid the same as top civil service employees. Steve Hilton, now based in Silicon Valley since stepping down from the role in 2012, claims that banks that require bailing out should be considered part of the public sector. [...]
Sajid Javid to tackle late payments owed to small businesses in new enterprise bill May 18, 2015 The new business secretary will today promise to cut red tape and put at least £10bn back in the pockets of business owners over the next five years. Speaking at a business centre in Bristol, Sajid Javid will announce a new enterprise bill to be included in the Queen’s speech next week. He will say: “As [...]
Healthcare needs radical reform – but Cameron must brace for the backlash May 18, 2015 The new government’s policy on public services was launched yesterday by the Prime Minister, with an uncompromising statement of NHS reform. He pledged more competition, including in the private sector. He promised wholesale changes in the delivery of services, so that GPs, hospitals and other services work together and prevent ill health in the first [...]
