The audit market wasn’t working: here’s how to fix it February 24, 2013 IN A wide-ranging set of findings, the Competition Commission has concluded that there are significant flaws and a lack of competition at the large company end of the UK audit market. The Big Four group of accountancy firms now acts as auditors for 90 per cent of Britain’s listed big companies. The problem, as diagnosed [...]
Letters to the editor February 24, 2013 Rising inflation [Re: Britain: a case study in low-growth economic mediocrity, Friday] Historically, inflation has followed an economic recovery – but not this time. British manufacturing (secondary sector) may be helped by a lower pound, but our economy now operates more in the tertiary sector. The real concern is not the manufacturing industry, but the [...]
Coalition U-turn on private prisons will undo 20 years of real progress February 22, 2013 THE coalition’s pursuit of competition in healthcare may have grabbed the headlines, but it was the Ministry of Justice that had made the most headway. In 2011, its Competition Strategy set out a “guiding principle” that competition will apply to all services not bound to the public sector by statute. After two decades of limited [...]
Google Glass won’t save humanity – but could show us a larger richer world February 22, 2013 THE LONG VIEW TWO VISIONS of our technological future are battling it out this week. Google has released a promotional video celebrating the potential of its astonishing, voice-activated heads-up display Google Glass, complete with acrobats on video chat in mid-air. Meanwhile, the new series of Charlie Brooker’s TV show Black Mirror continues with a bleak [...]
How clever traffic management can boost UK growth February 22, 2013 BRITAIN’S roads are being choked by a swarm of unnecessary, expensive, and damaging restrictions. Between 2000 and 2008, the number of traffic lights rose by over 30 per cent, boosted by an extra 1,800 imposed on London’s streets under former mayor Ken Livingstone. There are now over 30,000 signal-controlled junctions and 25,000 pelican crossings across [...]
The Debate: After interest on QE gilts boosted UK’s £11.4bn January surplus, do the figures lack credibility? February 22, 2013 YES Nida Ali The public sector finances demonstrate the problems caused by the statistical fudges of the past couple of years – like the transfer of coupon interest that the Bank of England has earned from buying gilts under its programme of quantitative easing. It’s difficult to decipher the underlying trends. It appears that the [...]
Letters to the Editor February 22, 2013 Runaway inflation [Re: Sorry savers: More easing is still needed to support UK recovery, yesterday] Employment is at its highest level since 1971. Meanwhile, real wages are being driven down by runaway inflation induced by the Bank of England’s weak pound policy. In past recessions, it was the UK consumer that was the driving force [...]
The hawk and the dove give their verdict February 21, 2013 Confusing Bank policy is failing to contain persistently high inflation MONETARY policy in the UK is becoming increasingly confusing. When the Bank of England assumed responsibility for setting interest rates in 1997, it was given a clear objective – keeping inflation on target at a low target level (retail price index, excluding mortgage interest payments [...]
Sorry savers: More easing is still needed to support UK recovery February 21, 2013 THE Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) minutes of its meeting on 20 February make some very interesting reading. They suggest that the Committee is ready to adopt a more flexible approach to policy-making. And of particular interest is that, for an unprecedented fifth time, governor of the Bank of England Sir Mervyn King voted in the [...]
Taxing poor less won’t make them back hikes for rest February 21, 2013 ONE of the best ways to ease the tax burden on low earners is to increase the personal allowance, the amount you can earn before you start paying income tax. Letting people keep more of their own money is far better than taking it away in tax and giving it back in benefits. Fiscal churn [...]