I lost my job over the Iraq War: Chilcot has restored my faith in democracy July 6, 2016 “In the name of God, go!” – Oliver Cromwell, On The Dissolution of the Long Parliament, 1653 The Iraq war presented me with the most profound moral crisis of my life. I was working in Washington, immersed in two major efforts offering advice on post-war Iraq planning. Yet I could see there was none. The [...]
Brexit is a chance to be even bolder on corporation tax cuts and infrastructure to unleash Britain’s competitive dynamo July 6, 2016 US foreign policy was said to have undergone a pivot towards Asia and a reset towards Russia during the first Obama administration. Those two words, pivot and reset, could now be applied to UK economic policy in the wake of Brexit. The pivot is a new potential focus on reducing the tax burden to boost [...]
This is no new financial crisis – but Britain needs to show the world that it’s open for business July 6, 2016 The UK economy was on a reasonably firm footing going into the referendum, though growth had lost some of its momentum from last year. While uncertainty was already affecting business confidence, household spending was supported by stable job creation in a low inflation environment. Since then, the falls in financial markets partly reflect expectations of [...]
Don’t write London off yet: The City will remain Europe’s financial centre July 6, 2016 The City has a strange identity in political discourse. In one news cycle, a government can at once be criticised for protecting already flush bankers from regulatory harm while also pilloried for not doing enough to shield their competitiveness from heirs to London’s throne in Paris and Frankfurt. Now the pendulum has swung firmly to the [...]
With Italian banks in the cross hairs, could the Eurozone crisis be about to return? July 6, 2016 Ben May, senior Eurozone economist at Oxford Economics, says Yes. During the Eurozone crisis, the Italian economy largely remained on the sidelines of the troubles. But this also meant that Italy failed to restructure its banks and make the painful structural reforms essential for long-term survival in the Eurozone. Added to that, it appears increasingly likely [...]
George Osborne should turn attention from cutting corporation tax to helping smaller businesses July 6, 2016 The Chancellor’s biggest ever policy U-turn appears to have snuck under the radar amid the political resignations, betrayals and leadership bids currently dominating the headlines. On Sunday, Mr Osborne announced that he plans to cut corporation tax to less than 15 per cent in an effort to attract companies deterred from doing business in a [...]
Theresa May’s pitch for Tory leadership: Distilling the persuasion July 6, 2016 Aristotle suggested that effective persuasive communication turns on three different elements: the character of the speaker (ethos), the emotions stirred within the listener (pathos) and the strength of the logical argument presented (logos). In her pitch for the Tory leadership – and Prime Minister – candidacy late last week, Ms May tapped into all three of these elements. [...]
Ikea’s drawer debacle won’t destroy UK image July 6, 2016 Last week, Swedish furniture retailer Ikea recalled 29m Malm chests of drawers in North America, following the tragic death of three children in the US. The drawers had toppled over, despite advice from the company to use wall mounts along with the product. Ikea has received 41 separate reports of tip-over incidents since 2014,17 of which [...]
Tory race should come down to experience July 6, 2016 By Thursday night we'll know which two Tory MPs will face a ballot of the party membership. One will emerge as David Cameron's successor in No 10. Five aspiring PMs entered the first round of voting yesterday, and now just three remain. Liam Fox was the first to fall. Having stood unsuccessfully for the party [...]
Pensions under threat from Brexit July 6, 2016 Savers have faced the biggest shake-up to the pensions system in a generation under the watch of chancellor George Osborne. Many of the changes are controversial, and others have been announced yet not formalised. But Brexit has put a spanner in the works – as negotiations over a deal with Europe under a new Conservative leader [...]