By J T Coombes www.globalmagnacarta.com @GMagnaCarta Looking at the television screens I, like millions of others, struggled to understand the latest horror to come out of this troubled land and the resultant five hour ceasefire. But almost immediately afterwards I thought, “Why five hours?” What is the mind-set of the people responsible that they come up with such a figure? What was the instruction that came from the command post? "Oh Fuck!!! Some more kids got killed. Better have a...

  By Simon Middleton of Watershed Entrepreneurs Ask any entrepreneur and they most likely will point to the UK as one of the most entrepreneurially friendly environments in the world. Yet if we look more closely at the figures it is evident that the UK entrepreneurial landscape still needs to be sustainably leveraged. The US alone has seen 900 000 new businesses registered in 2012 against the UK’s 450 000, according to the Young Report in 2012. Scratch the surface and you...

By Stephen Angus Peter Junor It is well-known that China has invested heavily in Africa for some years now and it is no coincidence that Africa is beginning to record increasing levels of growth. The World Bank estimated 2013 growth at 4.7 per cent with growth this year set to be around 5.2 per cent, supported by strong foreign investment primarily from China. The recently announced New Development Bank (NDB), founded by BRICS will further increase the influence of China on...

By Jonathan Hatchman, music writer With Field Day, Wireless and last weekend's LeeFest having passed us by, the Capital's live music spotlight is now shining brightly upon this weekend's Lovebox Festival. Held in East London's Victoria Park, the event boasts two days of live music from a range of acts with a embracing a broad spectrum of, slightly more mainstream, musical tastes. Set to open its doors on Friday afternoon, we've compiled a handy guide of ten great acts that...

  By Guy Dorrell @GuyDorrellEsq The Cabinet reshuffle instigated by David Cameron on 15 July has generated more media coverage than almost any other. As with any reshuffle, comparatively little of this coverage is positive – the exception to this being the deafening chorus of approval of Michael Gove’s removal from Education, applauded by teachers and parents alike. The excess of coverage can, in part, be ascribed to how we now consume our media; social media counts for a huge...

By Guy Dorrell @GuyDorrellEsq Sir Thomas Beecham, born in St Helens, Lancashire in 1879 will forever be associated with London. Grandson of the famous founder of the company behind Beecham’s Powders, Thomas was born into a family of immense wealth and of immense expectation. The path that his family had mapped out for him was stellar, following in his father’s footsteps to further enrich the family business. Ambitious though this path was, Thomas was to turn his back on it,...

  By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Print and mailing specialists, CFH Docmail, recently announced energy savings of 20% at its main facilities in Radstock, Somerset, and is now busy rolling-out the most energy efficient postal service in the UK. Through Velopost – a local bicycle mail collection and delivery service – CFH Docmail has achieved the UK’s first carbon-neutral postal service, operating in three cities currently, with further expansion planned. The journey to energy-saving has been a long one, but...

By Marcus Hunt Whether it is welcomed or not, Western Europe is in the midst of a great upheaval driven by immigration, one that poses questions about ethnic and national identities and how the state and civil society should relate to these identities. It may at times seem as though this upheaval is the first of its kind: that there is nothing to be gleaned from history with which we might infer our future course. Although it is true that...

By Harry Bedford  The Union Chapel in Islington provides a stunning setting for a music concert, especially on a summer’s evening when the dimming sunlight shines through the stain glass windows and the chatter from the crowd resonates up to the rafters. The old wooden pews surround the stage allowing the entire audience a perfect view of the stage where the artists deliver their musical sermons. Tonight is the turn of country music songstress Caitlin Rose on the eve of...