Economics
Low levels of unemployment doesn’t translate into “improved living standards in London”
UK unemployment fell by 65,000 to 1.36 million in three months to June - the lowest for more than 40 years. They also show a rise in productivity, but a slowdown in wage growth. The official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on unemployment revealed that: 5% unemployment in London is near record low (persons aged 16-64, April-June 2018), driven in particular by fewer young people and fewer women out of work. The young person (18-24 year old) unemployment...
Outrage from devastated High Street as Amazon pays less tax in UK despite profits tripling
There has been an outcry after news emerged that the tax delivery giant Amazon pays in the UK has fallen despite profits almost tripling. Amazon’s turnover was nearly £2 billion in the UK and its profits leapt. Yet the internet delivery giant’s taxes fell, partly due to being able to pay some of the staff in shares. Amazon UK’s taxes fell to just £1.7 million last year, down from £7.4 million in 2016. Billionaire Jeff Bezos's company says it pays...
BoE’s interest rate hike is ‘premature & unnecessary’ & could be ‘motivated to protect reputations’
The Bank of England’s interest rate hike has been slammed as “premature” by the CEO of one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory organisations, who added the rate decision could be “motivated to protect reputations.” Nigel Green, founder and chief executive of deVere Group, is speaking out after the governor of the UK’s central bank, Mark Carney, announced today (Thursday) a rate rise from 0.5 per cent to 0.75 per cent, taking the UK's base rate of interest to...
Jacob Rees-Mogg warns of economic uncertainty as his investment firm launches second Irish fund
Jacob Rees-Mogg has suggested it could take 50 years to judge whether Brexit has been an economic success. The dire warning comes as the leading Brexiteer launched a second fund in Ireland. Somerset Capital Management (SCM), which ploughs millions of pounds into emerging markets, created the fund to meet demand from international investors. The UK’s withdrawal from the EU has forced many asset managers to set up replica product ranges in European investment hubs such as Dublin and Luxembourg in order to...
No deal Brexit will be a ‘catastrophe’ for environment
A coalition of environmental groups have warned that a no deal Brexit could have catastrophic consequences for the environment. Greener UK have published a paper that highlights the potential environmental problems that are likely to happen if the British government can not sign an agreement with the EU. The group, which includes WWF, Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth have said that a No deal Brexit would make UK ‘dumping ground’ for chemicals banned in Europe. Shaun Spiers, chair of...
Artificial Intelligence will create as many jobs as it displaces
A new report out today has revealed Artificial Intelligence (AI) will create as many jobs as it displaces by boosting economic growth in the UK. In absolute terms, around 7 million existing jobs could be displaced, but around 7.2 million could be created, giving the UK a small net jobs boost of around 0.2 million. While the overall net effect of AI on UK jobs may be broadly neutral, this varies significantly across industry sectors. The most positive effect of AI is...
Jaguar Land Rover factory closures would be “economic car crash”
This Government needs to start thinking of the lives of Britain’s workers – and their families – rather than internal Tory party bickering. GMB, the union for Jaguar Land Rover workers, has responded to the company’s warning they may have to close factories in the wake of a ‘bad’ Brexit. The UK's biggest carmaker, owned by India's Tata Motors, said its "heart and soul is in the UK". But without frictionless trade JLR said its UK £80 billion investment plans...
Government must not “bury its head in the sand” over Universal Credit failure
The Government must urgently reconsider the rollout of Universal Credit (UC) and heed the growing warnings about the damage the policy has caused, IPSE (the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed) has said. The call follows an intervention by the National Audit Office (NAO), who highlighted a series of inaccuracies made in an address by Esther McVey, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Jordan Marshall, IPSE’s Policy Development Manager, commented: “It’s extremely concerning that the Government continues to assert...
Francisco Reynés launches Naturgy, the new brand of Gas Natural Fenosa
Francisco Reynés announced that Gas Natural Fenosa has changed its brand name to Naturgy, in order to become more modern, digital and international. Francisco Reynés expressed that “we are embarking on a new era; one focused on innovation, experience and digitalisation. And we are doing so with a new image which is more modern, digital and global. It is also more environmentally-friendly, and reflects better the new era that we are entering”. During his speech in the General Shareholders’ Meeting...