Business and Economics

Britain has been described as the “greatest enabler of corporate tax avoidance in the world” after it was revealed eight out of the ten jurisdictions with the highest corporate tax haven scores are British territories. Research by the Tax Justice Network found the UK and its “corporate tax haven network” to be by far the world’s greatest enabler of corporate tax avoidance, with scores of its territories and dependencies landing in the top 10 offender list. The British Virgin Islands,...

Staff were told there would be a conference call where they were given the devastating news

Flying first class on business trips, never having to contribute to the tea round, and having your name on the office door are among the signs of success in the workplace, it has emerged. A poll of 2,000 office workers found one in four also believe being asked about important business decisions means you’ve made it along with choosing when to work from home, someone else buying your lunch for you, and having a key to the office. Other signs...

Bankers have seen their pay increase by 9.3 per cent since 2009 as average wages fall by 3.1 per cent, new figures show. In the ten years since the financial crash the typical worker has been left nearly £1,000 worse off a year in real terms, the Trades Union Congress found. But the typical worker in finance or insurance has seen their pay increase by 9.3 per cent in a decade, giving them an extra £119 a week or £6,188...

Almost three years on from the EU referendum, Brexit is still dominating the headlines. Our exit from the EU is still shrouded in uncertainty. It is unclear as to what deals are still on the table, who supports these deals and even on who may be running the country after the next few months.Recent research, by Tech London Advocates, has unveiled the true effect that Brexit uncertainty is having on small businesses in the UK.  Almost 90% of technology businesses...

Bombardier is putting its Belfast operation up for sale as part of a reorganisation of the business. The aerospace firm is selling its entire aerostructures operations, which also has factories in Morocco, in a bid to create a single aviation unit. The Canadian aircraft manufacturer employs about 4,000 people across several locations in Northern Ireland. The company said it would be working closely with employees and unions, through any future transition period. In a statement, Bombardier announced the "strategic formation...

Political uncertainty and financial constraints have seen a halt to growth in London’s construction sector as sentiment turns negative in the capital, according to the RICS UK Construction and Infrastructure Market Survey, Q1 2019. Growth in workloads has slowed or declined across almost all sectors of construction this quarter in London. At the headline level, 2% of respondents in London reported a fall (rather than rise) in workloads, the lowest net balance since November 2010. Workloads in public housing and...

The public purse will take a £50m hit after the DoT (Department of Transport) ended its no-deal Brexit ferry contracts. Chris Grayling’s department had agreed £108m contracts with three ferry organisations, to assist with moving goods in the event of a no-deal Brexit. He has decided to terminate the agreements after the UK's departure date was moved to the end of October. Even though the deals were cancelled it is likely to cost around £50m to honour part of the...

Nearly a third of graduates are too educated for their job, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has found as part of its quarterly Economic Review. The data shows to 34.2 per cent of those who graduated after 2007 are overeducated for the profession they are in compared to just 21.7 per cent of those who graduated before 1992. London is the UK region with the highest proportion of overeducated workers, which is partly due to the relatively high proportion...