Horseracing: David Pipe on his weekend runners and looking ahead to the Welsh National December 13, 2018 AT THIS stage, it doesn’t look like I’m going to have a runner at Cheltenham over the next couple of days, but I will be running a few on Sunday. The feature race tomorrow is the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup and I see no reason why Baron Alco cannot win again. He was hugely impressive [...]
Ollie Phillips: Elliot Daly’s proposed move to Saracens makes sense for the England man – but Wasps need to be weary of their brewing exodus December 13, 2018 The rumour mill has begun to turn and there are some big names considering moves in the Premiership right now. The most active club appear to be Wasps – but not in the way they’d like, with the makings of an exodus brewing in Coventry. A third of the squad's contracts expire at the end [...]
Carrot or stick? For Aldi and Lidl, equal pay goes hand in hand with commercial success December 13, 2018 Kevin the Carrot, who once again features in Aldi’s Christmas advert, is proving a bigger hit with shoppers than even Elton John, star of the John Lewis ad. Soft-toy versions of the animated vegetable sold out at 4am on the day of release in some areas and have reportedly provoked fights among customers desperate to [...]
Give accountants the tools they need to fight money laundering December 13, 2018 THE GOVERNMENT estimates that around $90bn of dirty money comes through the UK each year. Inevitably, this money eventually comes into contact with finance professionals, which has prompted charges of widespread ethical failures. Clearly, there are people with financial skills who are knowingly laundering money. But the truth is more nuanced than the frequent accusations [...]
‘Non-sexy’ is the new cool: UK fintech predictions for 2019 December 13, 2018 Despite the continued uncertainties of Brexit, 2018 was another year for the UK’s fintech sector. Record levels of investment poured into the community, with $16bn secured in the first six months of 2018, exceeding the value of investment in US fintech by almost $2bn. In addition, progressive regulation and a thriving financial services sector attracted [...]
DEBATE: Should the government’s Making Tax Digital initiative be delayed? December 13, 2018 Should the government’s Making Tax Digital initiative be delayed? Suren Thiru, head of economics and business finance at the British Chambers of Commerce, says YES. The Making Tax Digital initiative represents a significant overhaul to the UK’s tax system, which could not be happening at a worse time for both business and government. HMRC already [...]
Time for a brave new online pension world December 12, 2018 Imagine a free, user-friendly, online service that offers you information about all of your pension savings at your fingertips, available in your own home and on your mobile. That’s why the government has championed the pensions dashboard, harnessing digital to make planning for retirement easier in the digital age. As we all know, most parts [...]
Designing a ‘people’s vote’ is a political minefield all on its own December 12, 2018 It’s like a giant jigsaw puzzle where, however hard you try, the pieces will never fit together. That’s the state of play with Brexit. Whichever way you present the options, nothing seems to command a parliamentary majority. Amid the chaos, talk has increased of a so-called “people’s vote” as the only way to break the [...]
DEBATE: Can we stop worrying now that earnings are rising at their highest rate in a decade? December 12, 2018 Can we stop worrying now that earnings are rising at their highest rate in a decade? Michael Hayman MBE, co-founder of Seven Hills and co-author of Mission: How the Best in Business Break Through, says YES. May you live in interesting times – the old Chinese curse has found new life in Brexit Britain. Mired in [...]
Hyperbolic discounting explains why the French are revolting over Macron’s fuel tax December 12, 2018 Economists have long argued that an effective way of reducing carbon emissions is by increasing taxes on energy consumption. This year’s Nobel laureate, Bill Nordhaus, advocated a global carbon tax over 40 years ago. The scientific logic is impeccable. But the practical politics of it are fraught with difficulties. To say that energy taxes, and [...]