Past Editions

September 21, 2016

Don’t blame globalisation, blame domestic policy

Globalisation has been blamed for many of the woes of the lower middle classes in western societies, as well as the subsequent rise of populism…

September 16, 2016

Born in unusual times

Capital in the 21st Century is a surprising international best-seller. A highly detailed monograph from the renowned French economics professor, Thomas Piketty, the 690 page book seems an unlikely…

September 15, 2016

Immigration Exemptions Emerge

Leave supporters voted in droves to cut immigration, but implementing this demand would be no easy task as Home Secretary Amber Rudd said when pushed…

September 13, 2016

Minister Backs Creative Industries

The United Kingdom’s creative industries will be “absolutely central” to the UK’s Brexit future, the new minister for Digital and Culture, Matt Hancock, said on…

September 8, 2016

Checkpoint: September 2016

What Do We Know? Activity surveys in the UK manufacturing and services sectors have rebounded from an unprecedented record drop in July with a monthly…

September 7, 2016

University Challenge

Universities in the United Kingdom today called on the Government to make clear whether or not European Union students will pay the same fees and…

September 6, 2016

DB0916c What Brexit Means Brexit Means

Data from the focus group surveys of Lord Ashcroft Polls have a primary purpose of providing background support to guide policy development in the Conservative…

September 5, 2016

DB0916b UK Services PMI

According to the Markit/CIPS UK Services PMI® survey of purchasing managers there has been a marked return to growth in August after abrupt contractions in…

September 2, 2016

DB0916a UK Manufacturing PMI

According to the August findings of the Markit/CIPS UK Manufacturing PMI® survey of purchasing managers in manufacturing, there has been a solid rebound from the…

September 2, 2016

DB0816c European Economic Sentiment

In August the Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI) compiled by the European Union decreased marginally in both the eurozone (by 1.0 points to 103.5) and slightly…

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Honda to shut flagship UK plant at Swindon in 2021 amid Brexit uncertainty
Honda will shut down its flagship British plant in 2021 in the wake of the uncertainty caused by Brexit, dealing a massive blow to the UK car industry as the country prepares to leave the EU. The Japanese carmaker said on Tuesday it would close the factory west of London in Swindon as part of global restructuring of its manufacturing network to prepare for the age of electric vehicles. The closure of Honda’s sole manufacturing site in Europe is expected to lead to the loss of 3,500 British jobs and is the company’s first ever closure of a vehicle factory in its 71-year history. Financial Times, February 19

‘Demoralised’ Tories urged to join Labour split
Chuka Umunna has issued a direct appeal for Conservatives to join his new independent group after he and six other MPs quit the Labour Party yesterday. “We are inviting anybody who shares our values to join us,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning. “There’s clearly not only a lot of Labour MPs wrestling with their consciences but also Conservatives who are demoralised by the ‘Ukipisation’ of their party.” Mr Umunna’s comments came after he and Luciana Berger led the most significant party split in a generation. … Conservative MPs who have been at the centre of speculation about a breakaway political group remained quiet yesterday as both main parties braced for word of further resignations. The Times, February 19

Farmers promised safeguards against no-deal
Michael Gove, the environment secretary, will seek to reassure British farmers in a speech to be delivered on Tuesday that the government will act to protect them as Brexit looms, including if no deal can be reached for an orderly departure from Europe. Mr Gove, who will make the remarks at the National Farmers’ Union annual conference in Birmingham, is also expected to reiterate earlier pledges that Brexit will not cause the UK to lower its food standards in any way. “We have been clear that we will not lower our standards in pursuit of trade deals and that we will use the tools we have at our disposal – tariffs, quotas and legislation – to make sure standards are protected and you are not left at a competitive disadvantage,” Mr Gove is to say. Financial Times, February 19

Labour must change direction to stop splitting
Labour’s deputy leader, Tom Watson, has told Jeremy Corbyn that he must change direction or face a worsening Labour split after seven MPs quit to form a new movement in the party’s biggest schism in nearly 40 years. Watson’s emotional intervention came as a number of Labour MPs were poised to follow the founders of the new Independent Group – and after reports on Monday night that some Conservatives were also ready to defect. Saying that he sometimes “no longer recognises” his own party, Watson urged Corbyn to ensure Labour remains a broad church and reshuffle his shadow cabinet to reflect a wider balance of MPs. The Guardian, February 19

Commons pantomime catastrophic for business
The head of Britain’s industrial manufacturers’ lobbying group is set to attack the warring political classes for selfishly pursuing ideology in the delivery of an unsatisfactory withdrawal from the European Union that could end up as a catastrophe for UK businesses. In a broadside that appears to be aimed at Jacob Rees-Mogg’s European Research Group and the former foreign secretary Boris Johnson, as well as the Labour leadership of Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell, Dame Judith Hackitt lays the blame for disruption in British industry at Westminster. News of her anger over the “pantomime in parliament” came as it emerged that Honda is set to close its car manufacturing plant in Swindon, which employs 3,500 people. Over the past year Jaguar Land Rover, Ford, Nissan, Vauxhall and Michelin have announced job losses totalling more than 10,000. The Times, February 19

Small businesses may need agent for EU trade
Businesses dealing in a vast array of consumer goods may have to appoint a representative inside the EU after Brexit in order to keep trading with the single market. The Federation of Small Businesses warned that companies selling to customers in the EU could face an additional “massive barrier to trade” when Britain leaves, if proposals to force businesses from third countries to appoint authorised representatives are implemented. The EU is planning to require businesses from countries outside the bloc that trade in certain goods to appoint an “authorised economic operator” within the single market. The proposal, meant to prevent unsafe products entering the EU, would force manufacturers to designate a person to hold compliance documentation inside the bloc and to be accountable for non-compliance, including criminal penalties. The Times, February 19

UK labour market bucks growth slowdown
Britain’s robust labour market added more jobs in December, despite a slowdown in growth and concerns about the impact of Brexit uncertainty on the economy. There were 167,000 more people in employment during the final quarter of 2018 than during the previous three month period, the UK’s Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday. The employment rate remained stable at a record high of 75.8 per cent. The jobs growth was above market expectations of a 140,000 increase in employment, according to a poll conducted by Thomson Reuters before the data were released. A combination of weak overall economic growth and continued jobs growth meant that productivity was lower than a year earlier. Compared to 2017, output per hour in the final quarter of 2018 was 0.2 per cent lower. Financial Times, February 19

Job worries push consumer confidence to lower
People’s confidence in their finances has deteriorated at its sharpest rate in almost a year and employees are growing increasingly concerned about their job security, a survey has suggested. Anxieties about Brexit and a slowdown in economic growth have knocked confidence to its lowest level since March 2018, according to IHS Markit, a financial data company, which reported that household sentiment had fallen to 43.4 this month. The household finance index measures overall perceptions of financial wellbeing. Any reading above 50 indicates growth, while any figure below that means that sentiment has deteriorated. Although wage growth has been outstripping inflation since the beginning of last year, IHS Markit said that this would not “necessarily translate into boosted spending by UK consumers” because the impact on confidence caused by Brexit uncertainty “continues to pose a notable risk to the domestic economy”. The Times, February 19

Fast fashion: ‘Penny on a garment’ to drive clothes recycling
Clothing brands and retailers should pay a penny on every garment they sell to fund a £35m annual recycling scheme. That’s the view of MPs, who say “fast fashion” is a major contributor to greenhouse gases, water pollution, air pollution and over-use of water. And they urge the government to force clothing manufacturers to pay more towards collecting and recycling the waste they create. Green campaigners argue the MPs’ recommendations are really quite tame. They’re calling for an end to what they regard as the over-consumption of clothes. BBC news, February 19

16 US states sue over Trump border wall
A coalition of 16 US states led by California has launched legal action against Donald Trump’s administration over his decision to declare a national emergency in order to fund a wall along the Mexico border. The lawsuit was filed on Monday in the US district court for the northern district of California after Trump invoked emergency powers on Friday when Congress declined his request for $5.7bn to help create his signature policy promise. His move aims to let him spend money appropriated by Congress for other purposes. “Today, on Presidents Day, we take President Trump to court to block his misuse of presidential power,” California attorney general Xavier Becerra said in a statement. The Guardian, February 19

Huawei: US cannot crush technology firm
The US cannot crush Huawei, the company’s founder has insisted, as he hit back against criminal indictments levelled at the firm and allegations that it poses a security threat. Washington has warned allies off using Huawei products in recent weeks. But Ren Zhengfei, whose daughter Meng Wanzhou – a fellow senior Huawei executive – is among those charged by US prosecutors, told the BBC that the firm would survive the pressure. “There’s no way the US can crush us. The world cannot leave us because we are more advanced. Even if they persuade more countries not to use us temporarily, we can always scale things down a bit,” Huawei’s founder said. His daughter was arrested in Vancouver in December at the request of the US and charged with bank and wire fraud to violate American sanctions against Iran. Ren accused Washington of leading a politically motivated investigation into his firm. The Guardian, February 18