Chancellor George Osborne told to “sit down man” by speaker John Bercow July 21, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne was already looking at a fairly stressful day, given he's being grilled by the Treasury Select Committee about the Budget and the spending review he announced earlier in the day. Read more: Chancellor George Osborne defends bank surcharge as he faces Treasury Select Committee What he probably didn't expect was to be [...]
Government spending review: More public land to be sold off for homes as George Osborne seeks £20bn in savings July 21, 2015 Remember, remember 25 November: that's when the government will publish its spending review, setting out exactly how it will cut £20bn to eradicate the country's deficit over the next five years. And it looks like that a pretty major literal land-grab will be taking place. The chief secretary to the Treasury Greg Hands [...]
Treasury to cut Bank of England monetary policy committee meetings from 12 to eight July 21, 2015 If you've been getting fed up with months of MPC updates with no change – and let's face it, after six years of the same update, who isn't – then there's some good news. The number of monetary policy committee meetings is about to be reduced to just eight per year, down from 12. This [...]
George Osborne set for a grilling over new bank tax July 20, 2015 George Osborne is expected to face a grilling from MPs today over the new bank surcharge – set to be introduced next year – when he appears before a Treasury select committee for the first time since the Budget. Mark Garnier, a Conservative minister on the Treasury select committee, told Morning Wire that while [...]
The Bank of England could – and should– have raised UK interest rates much sooner July 20, 2015 Heartening as it was to hear the governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, dropping hints last week about the raising of Bank Rate, serious doubts remain over the effectiveness of the low interest rate regime in reviving the economy. Moreover, the impression continues to be given that the delay in raising rates carries [...]
French President François Hollande calls for a Eurozone parliament with a shared budget July 20, 2015 French President François Hollande wants to see a new parliament and a shared budget for Eurozone countries. Writing in Le Journal Du Dimanche, a French Sunday paper, Hollande said: Europe has let its institutions weaken and the 28 governments struggle to agree to move forward. [National] parliaments remain too far from decisions. And the peoples [...]
David Cameron sets out five-year plan to fight Islamic extremism in UK July 19, 2015 The Prime Minister will today call on Britain to fight the “subversive” doctrine of Islamist extremism and its “sick worldview”. In a keynote speech in Birmingham today, the Prime Minister will set out the principles he will adopt over the next five years to defeat extremism. Addressing the “struggle of our generation”, he [...]
Angela Merkel calls for action on Greek banking rules as lenders reopen July 19, 2015 Greek banks opened again today after a three-week closure, as European politicians try to restore trust inside and outside of Greece after it narrowly avoided bankruptcy with a last-minute financial reforms deal last week. German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for swift aid talks so that Athens can also lift withdrawal limits, which were previously set [...]
Barclays boss John McFarlane to join Treasury financial services board July 19, 2015 John McFarlane, executive chairman of Barclays, is set to join the Treasury’s Financial Services Trade and Investment Board (FSTIB) as an external member today. The FSTIB was set up to identify opportunities for growth across the UK financial sector. McFarlane, who has been nicknamed “Mack the Knife”, played a pivotal role in the recent high-profile [...]
George Osborne aims to curry favour in the Square Mile with Martin Wheatley dismissal July 19, 2015 As the chancellor who introduced the banking levy back in 2011, George Osborne is not as popular in the City as he could be. But last week it looked like he may be trying to work his way back into bankers’ good books. On Friday, Martin Wheatley, chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority [...]