London couriers to get “cycling airbags”
London couriers are to get cycling airbags to improve safety. 'Absolutely', one of the oldest courier companies in the UK, has announced a new safety initiative in collaboration with 'Hövding', the airbag for cyclists in a first-of-its-kind partnership to make the booming London industry safer. With couriers spending up to ten hours a day cycling on the busy streets of London, safety is a clear priority. However, many professional couriers shun helmets because they are uncomfortable to wear for long periods...
HgCapital leads reinvestment in Visma in Europe’s largest ever software buyout
HgCapital Trust has announced that it and other institutional clients of HgCapital will re-invest in Visma Group Holdings (Visma), which it describes as a leading provider of mission-critical business software to SMBs in the Nordic region. The transaction follows a decision by KKR to sell its holding in the group. HgCapital, the trust’s manager, is to be the lead investor in the new transaction structure, alongside Cinven, GIC, Montagu, ICG and the management team at Visma. HgCapital says that the...
Miton Global discount narrows on strong performance
For the year ended 30 April 2017, Miton Global Opportunities net asset value per share rose to 248.7p (2016: 182.4p), a total return of 36.3% (2016: 0.4%). The share price ended on an all-time high of 242.3p (2016: 164.3p), a total return of 47.5%. The fund has outperformed a number of other comparators such as the All-Share Index, measured on a total return basis, which rose by 15.4% over the same period (2016: -5.7%), the MSCI World Index, which rose by...
Far right “hire ship” to disrupt search-and-rescue missions in the Mediterranean
Far-right ‘Identitarians’ have paid to hire a ship in order to disrupt search-and-rescue missions in the Mediterranean. The "Defend Europe" group secured a ship with a range of 3000 nautical miles, a place for a crew of 25, and a crane for RIBs to disrupt the work of humanitarian search-and-rescue NGO ships, according to HOPE not hate. They plan to "defend" Europe at sea, and used the purchase as a publicity stunt, with videos uploaded later that evening and following morning announcing...
Risk: Film Review
By Linda Marric Director Laura Poitras (Citizenfour, 2014) spent 6 arduous and paranoia-filled years documenting the life of one of the most controversial figures in recent times. In Risk, Academy Awards winner Poitras offers a fascinating character study of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, and charters in a very detailed fashion his rise from revered freedom of information hero, to maligned villain hiding in a foreign embassy to escape a sexual offence investigation. Risk is a complex yet thoroughly accessible piece...
Public sector workers turning to payday loans – not that Theresa May minds
Damning new research has revealed public sector workers are turning to payday loans to make ends meet. The study has been revealed a day after Theresa May narrowly defeated a bid to end the pay freeze in the House of Commons. Labour’s amendment was defeated by 14 votes, with 309 MPs backing it and 323 voting against, with all ten Democratic Unionist Party MPs backing the Tories. But the issue is unlikely to be laid to rest there. A shocking...
Theresa May clings on to power with slim majority for Tory cuts to emergency and public services
Today Theresa May survived the first test of her slim minority government, clinging on with the support of ten DUP MP’s in Parliament’s first vote on her curtailed Queen’s Speech programme which did not include any easing of cuts to emergency and public services. A Labour amendment on easing emergency and public servants cuts that was the first test of her ability to govern was defeated by 323 to 309 votes. The Labour Party amendment to the Queen’s Speech pointed out...
Beer of the Week – Goose Island Beer Company’s Preseason Lager
Strength: 5.8% ABV Brewed: Chicago, Illinois Inspired by his travels of Europe, through which he managed to experience some incredible tasting beers from the continent, John Hall launched Goose Island Beer Company in 1988. Now one of America’s most popular craft breweries, Goose Island operates from Chicago, a city that was at the time an ideal start with plenty of rapidly evolving tastes, also aided by the the largest fresh water system on the planet. Launched as a limited release earlier...
Social mobility report should have carried Corbyn’s manifesto slogan
Today a new report by the Social Mobility Commission concluded once and for all that the British government’s performance on social mobility over past 20 years has failed to significantly reduce the gap between the “haves and have nots”. Without immediate reform by the government, it advised, the gulf between rich and poor will only grow larger with grave consequences for society. If the report had been released a month earlier reporters might have been quicker to note a mirrored correlation between Labour's election manifesto...