Retail sales growth slows in May as clothing sales dip June 18, 2015 Retail sales growth slowed to 0.2 per cent last month, after rising a downwardly revised 0.9 percent in April, according to data released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This meant sales rose 4.6 per cent year-on-year in May, and it also marked the 26th consecutive month of annual growth. Read more: UK retail sales smash [...]
German Chancellor Angela Merkel: Greek deal still possible – and EU must engage seriously with UK on Brexit June 18, 2015 German Chancellor Angela Merkel struck a conciliatory tone on the UK's plans to renegotiate its relationship with the EU, saying the bloc must "engage seriously" with the UK's demands. During a speech to the German parliament today, Merkel said she wanted the UK to remain a "strong, active" partner with the European Union. "It's about [...]
Greek official: Athens cannot pay the €1.6bn it owes the IMF June 18, 2015 Greece cannot pay the IMF the €1.6bn (£1.2bn) it owes, the government has admitted. Speaking to Reuters, one of Greece’s top negotiators, Euclid Tsakalotos, said Athens was willing to make concessions, but would not cross any of its red lines, such as cuts to pensions. He said: There is no financing. We haven’t got access [...]
Grexit from the euro means Greece will also have to leave the EU says Martin Schulz, as Athens claims ball is in creditors’ court June 18, 2015 There is no legal route for Greece to remain in the EU if it leaves the euro, the President of the European Parliament has said. In an interview with the Guardian, Martin Schulz said the Lisbon treaty stipulated that all EU members eventually join the euro: Once you are a member of the Eurozone there [...]
Greece on the brink ahead of crunch talks: UK prepares for Grexit as Varoufakis insists quick deal is “moral duty” June 17, 2015 Eurozone finance ministers head to Luxembourg this morning knowing that another day of failed talks could see Greece default on its debts and crash out of the single currency. Today had been considered the final chance to strike a deal in time for Greece to avoid a default. The prospect of a breakthrough is [...]
Zac Goldsmith says Heathrow airport expansion plan is undeliverable June 17, 2015 Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith stepped up his campaign against the expansion of Heathrow airport yesterday, and said adding to the existing site is “politically undeliverable”. The environmentalist MP for Richmond Park launched a new website, www.heathrowflightpaths.co.uk, which features on its homepage a map purporting to show the areas of London that will be affected [...]
Greek government balks at central bank’s Grexit warning June 17, 2015 With time running out to avoid a Greek default, a stark warning from Greece’s central bank proved sharply divisive yesterday. On the eve of a meeting of Eurozone finance ministers in Luxembourg, the Bank of Greece warned that the country risks a “painful” exit from the euro and even possibly the European Union if Athens [...]
Berkeley says interest rates hike could ease London house price rises June 17, 2015 Housebuilding giant Berkeley Group Holdings said yesterday that the prospect of an interest rate hike may help ease the pressure on London’s rising house prices, which have been fuelled by a lack of available homes in the capital. Data from the Office of National Statistic yesterday showed that wages have risen at their fastest [...]
Oxford Street property deals set to reach £1bn by end of this year June 17, 2015 The revamp of the eastern end of Oxford Street and the imminent arrival of Crossrail has sparked a flurry of property deals this year, with investors flocking to get a slice of London’s busiest shopping street. According to CBRE, seven record-breaking transactions totalling £645m have taken place since January, of which five were undertaken off-market. [...]
Report says Britain’s state debt amounts to £221,000 per family June 17, 2015 Britain needs an Office for Inter-generational Responsibility to keep a lid on its snowballing debt, reducing the burden on younger generations, a think tank has said. The Centre for Policy Studies has (CPS) today claimed in a new report that the current debt position of the UK is not fully appreciated due to the [...]