Business and Economics

By contrast, putting order out to international tender could cost shipbuilding jobs and prosperity, warns union GMB, the shipbuilding union, has revealed that the Ministry of Defence would not be liable to pay any compensation if Ministers changed their policy and kept a £1 billion order for up to three new military support ships in the UK. GMB research shows if the much-needed new Fleet Solid Support ships were built in British shipyards around 6,700 jobs would be created, and...

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...

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...

Another major business has signalled their fears for a Brexit deal that does not favour the UK. This time it is Jaguar Land Rover who has voiced concerns over the outcome of the UK withdrawal from the EU. The company is the UK’s largest carmaker and claim a Brexit deal could threaten £80bn investment plans for the UK, and may close factories, putting thousands of jobs at risk. Last year, the company made more than 600,000 cars, 20% of which...

Business preparedness over Brexit was ranked almost unanimously red by the British Chambers of Commerce in their latest assessment. The independent business network revealed their RAG ratings today, with just two amber ratings among the 24 otherwise red classifications. RAG ratings are used in project management to flag issues or status reports, based on red, amber and green colours used in a traffic light rating system. The system was used by the BCC to give business answers to practical questions they...

Whether you’re in charge of a small team, a large department or the entire company, it’s a huge responsibility. Your level of skill and performance not only determines your own performance – you’ve got to get the best out of everyone. But unless you’ve had the benefit of classical management training, most days you’ll be learning ‘on the job’ as part of the cut and thrust of business life. In fact, there are remarkably few hard and fast rules of...

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...

Millions of workers admit they feel 'trapped' in their office when the sun is shining outdoors, a study has found. As the UK basks in temperatures of almost 30C, three in five office-based employees admit they feel glum at the thought of being stuck indoors during the heatwave. And a third went as far as to say they feel trapped inside, while one in four believe they are wasting their life in front of their computer rather than making the...

A UBS survey of 600 companies that spells out the reality of a Brexit "dividend" for British business could signal disaster if the government doesn't get a grip on the process soon, Professor Brian Cox has said today. The physicist posted results from a recent business survey that showed 35 per cent of companies plan to reduce UK investment post-Brexit. A further 41 per cent plan to move a large amount of capacity out of the UK and 42 per...