Everton takeover: Are the club really worth £200m? A former director explains what Farhad Moshiri will consider February 27, 2016 As the club’s Commercial Director, I helped Everton to achieve their aim of becoming one of the 20 richest clubs according to the annual Deloitte Football Club report. It was felt that, by attaining this position, Everton would be attractive to prospective purchasers. That was ten years ago, and they have still not found a buyer [...]
Gianni Infantino’s victory means little – Fifa has shown few signs of cleaning up February 27, 2016 If you believe the hype out of Zurich, you’d think that Fifa has turned the corner. The ‘bad guys’ are gone. There’s new management. And Fifa has had a Damascene conversion to good governance, transparency and accountability. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. The overwhelming emotion for many when Gianni Infantino won the ‘beauty contest’ of the Presidential [...]
Ignore the scaremongers: America wouldn’t abandon Britain post Brexit February 26, 2016 Much as was the case for Harold Wilson in the 1970s, Prime Minister David Cameron accomplished next to nothing in terms of renegotiating the UK’s ties with the EU. Sadly, if predictably, Cameron’s allies have again copied the Wilson playbook, attempting to make up for their diplomatic failure by scaring the bejesus out of the [...]
Negative interest rates are a bad idea – even if they do stimulate the economy February 26, 2016 Negative interest rates are the economic hot topic du jour. The Bank of Japan recently moved to join the club of central banks that charge commercial banks for depositing excess reserves. The European Central Bank, already a member of the Negative Interest Rate Policy (NIRP) club, is widely expected to drag rates deeper into negative [...]
Helicopter money won’t save us: We’ll only revive global growth if governments lead from the front February 26, 2016 The rhetoric from the G20 finance ministers meeting in Shanghai this week will probably be dominated by urging central bankers to do more to give an ailing global economy a fillip. But they have leant on central bankers for too long and should get on with adopting sensible fiscal policies if they want sustainable growth. [...]
BT Openreach ruling: Has Ofcom done enough to ensure broadband competition? February 26, 2016 Dana Tobak, managing director of Hyperoptic, says Yes. Yes – for now. Ofcom has rightly focused on the key areas of change required to promote investment in fibre and to support true product competition for consumers. By keeping structural separation as the potential “naughty step”, Ofcom has ensured that Openreach should be compelled to partner in [...]
Help to buy could be worsening London’s housing crisis and driving young people out of the capital February 25, 2016 Are you tired of London? Want to move to a quieter, cheaper part of the country? If so, you’re not alone – every year, thousands of people quit the city in search of a more tranquil existence. However, they tend to be replaced by a new wave of incoming urbanites, typically young people attracted by London’s [...]
Why the build-to-rent sector is key to solving London’s dire housing affordability crisis February 25, 2016 London's housing shortage is putting the capital’s future at risk. The success of this great city is fuelled by its ability to attract talent, both nationally and internationally. But there is a danger that young professionals will be put off working here by growing housing costs, cramped and insecure conditions, or long and expensive commutes. [...]
EU membership: The true cost to Britain’s economy – and the unrealistic assumptions you need to make the numbers net positive February 25, 2016 Many people are surprised to find that, back in the early 1970s, all the studies undertaken before we joined the then EEC pointed to a negative economic impact. This was due to direct payments to Brussels, alongside the effect of the customs union (common external tariff), which raised prices above world levels, most notably in [...]
Islamic State earnings call: Why the terrorist group’s 2014 financial boom is a distant memory – but the 2015 decline won’t be fatal February 25, 2016 In these pages 12 months ago, as companies revealed their year-end financial results and governments made their annual promises of greater things to come, I reflected on the financial reporting of a new arrival – an entity that had, during 2014, emerged from the financial shadows, and was heralded as being “…as sophisticated and well-funded as [...]