Small and medium-sized towns and cities (SMCs) are essential to boosting growth in the Northern Powerhouse, according to a new report from think tank, IPPR North. The research finds that the North’s smaller cities represent one third of the Northern economy and play a key role supporting the growth of their bigger neighbours. The report…
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) is to merge with three other bodies to form a new group representing the UK finance sector. The BBA will join the Council of Mortgage Lenders, Payments UK and UK Cards Association in a new trade association, after 94% of its voting membership found in favour of the proposal. The…
Adrian Flux has launched the UK’s first personal driverless car policy. The insurer hopes the new policy will encourage debate and discussion around the issue of liability and autonomous technology – the policy is designed for consumers who may already have driverless features in their existing cars, such as self-parking, or who may be thinking…
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has responded to concerns over cloud storage, having found that some businesses have some contract terms and practices that could be in breach of consumer law. These include giving cloud storage companies the ability to: •change the service or terms of the contract at any time, for any reason…
The Ministry of Justice says it will be consulting on plans to extend the scope of the criminal offence of a corporate “failing to prevent” beyond bribery and tax evasion, to other economic crimes. Apparently, police and other law enforcement agencies can struggle to prosecute corporations for money laundering, false accounting, and fraud under existing…
April saw business activity growth slow across England and Wales, according to the latest Lloyds Bank Regional Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). Employment rose only slightly, signalling caution among businesses, while cost pressures picked up amid the introduction of the National Living Wage and higher fuel prices. The index measuring business activity across England’s private sector…
The Enterprise Act is now on the statute book, affecting the UK’s 5.4 million businesses. According to the Government, the Act will help it deliver on many of its commitments, from cutting red tape and tackling late payment to boosting the quality and quantity of apprenticeships. It includes measures to: •establish a Small Business Commissioner…
April saw the seasonally adjusted Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fall below the critical no-change mark of 50.0 for the first time since March 2013. At 49.2, from a downwardly revised reading of 50.7 in March, Markit suggests that the headline index was dragged lower by lacklustre trends in production and new orders and declines…
UK quoted companies issued 76 profit warnings during the first three months of this year – down from 77 in Q1 2015, and 24 fewer than Q4 2015. However, according to EY restructuring experts, this is remarkably high given the substantial downgrade in profit expectations at the end of 2015. In the twelve months to…
Lloyds Bank has announced cuts to 625 jobs across several divisions including commercial banking, according to Unite. The trade union also reports that the move includes the offshoring of up to 82 roles in IT across the bank’s departments. In addition to commercial banking, other impacted divisions include consumer finance, group risk and legal &…
The EU Commission has published details on how businesses, including those in the UK, can get better access to the technologies that will help them to modernise. The package includes improving access to cloud computing and services, data analytics and the Internet of Things. Four areas of working are suggested as follows: •digitising European industry,…
Tracey McDermott is to leave the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) following a stint as its acting chief executive. She has previously been the regulator’s director of supervision and authorisations and prior to that director of enforcement and financial crime. Andrew Bailey was appointed as the new chief executive in January and is due to take…
Growth in output and employment was slightly higher in March compared to February, but the first quarter of 2016 as a whole was the worst in almost three years, according to the latest Lloyds Bank Regional Purchasing Managers’ Index. The business activity index for England – which tracks changes in the combined output of manufacturing…
Highways England has set out plans to create a connected corridor or “wi-fi road” that will see cars and infrastructure wirelessly connected and drivers receiving advanced news of road closures or congestion warnings. The strategy builds on the announcement by Chancellor, George Osborne, in the March Budget that driverless cars will be tested on motorways…
UK construction companies indicated a sustained upturn in overall business activity during March but the pace of expansion remained relatively subdued in comparison to the trends seen for much of the past three years. At 54.2 in March, the Markit/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index posted above the neutral 50.0 value for the thirty-fifth month…
From 6th April 2016 people seeking to make themselves bankrupt will no longer need to apply to the court. Instead they will complete an online application on GOV.UK, which will be submitted to an Adjudicator employed by The Insolvency Service. Online applications will be less expensive and, for the first time, will be able to…
The Minister for Civil Society, Rob Wilson, has launched a review to increase the economic and social impact of mission-led businesses in the UK economy. Mission-led businesses use their business models to achieve both social and economic impact but do not register their mission in legal terms by becoming a charity or a community-interest company….
The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, Matt Hancock, has confirmed that the UK’s new cyber centre, announced by the Chancellor in November, will be called the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). According to the Government, the UK faces a growing threat of cyber-attacks from states, serious crime gangs, hacking groups as well…
The process of transferring the UK’s Green Investment Bank (GIB) into private ownership has begun with the Government inviting private sector investors to register their interest. According to Business Secretary, Sajid Javid, the move will allow the GIB to maximise investment into green energy projects by attracting greater private sector investment, which has so far…
The first quarterly EEF Manufacturing Outlook survey this year shows signs that the sector’s slide into negative territory may be coming to an end, with improvements reported in output and orders. Output has edged up after hitting its weakest point in six years in the final quarter of 2015. It is still in negative territory…
As an associate of the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association, Graham Allen (CMM Rural and NRGsense) was a guest at the House of Commons on the evening of Tuesday 1st March. The Minister of Agriculture, Minister of Agriculture for Wales and Shadow Minister of Agriculture set forth their vision, parliamentary aims and perceived future involvement…
The use of complicated and extensive Terms and Conditions (T&Cs) is under government review, Business Secretary, Sajid Javid, has announced. Last year, research from consumer group Which? found that some of the longest T&Cs were over 38,000 words, longer than Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”! The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is now asking consumers who have…
The UK has seen a double-digit rise in economic crime against corporates in the last two years with 55% of organisations affected (up 11% since 2014), according to PwC’s latest Global Economic Crime Survey. Sixty per cent of economic crime in the UK was committed by external perpetrators, up from 56% in 2014. While there…
Councils will be expected to compete to process planning applications and offer fast-track application services, such as those available for getting a passport, in a shake up of the planning process. Ministers want pilots to tackle the lack of incentives for councils to improve and speed-up their planning services by giving applicants the choice of…
‘Exploiting Opportunities in Uncertain Times’ Graham Allen attended seminars led by academic and industry experts at the 2016 Farm Business Update event. The team included Professor Simon Blackwell, Head of Engineering at Harper Adams University and the European Future Farm project. All speakers are right at the forefront of exploring and developing agricultural efficiency, while…