Tfl Confirms Longer Delay
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BUSINESS WITH PERSONALITY WHERE NOW?TENSIONS IT’S NOT A GOLF THE CONTINUE IN MIDDLE SUPERCAR WITH SPACE EAST AS NEXT STEPS FOR YOUR CLUBS P24 REMAIN UNCLEARP9 TUESDAY 7 JANUARY 2020 ISSUE 3,528 CITYAM.COM FREE Angry-Rail: TfL confirms longer delay STEFAN BOSCIA @Stefan_Boscia TRANSPORT for London (TfL) has confirmed that the central portion of Crossrail will not open before the autumn of 2021, making it a full three years late. Speaking to the London Assembly’s Budget and Performance Committee yesterday, commissioner Mike Brown said TfL was working to a timetable of between September and December 2021 for the service to begin operating. Brown’s statement comes after City A.M. first reported last month that the main section of the £18.25bn project would be delayed due to the timescales involved in trials of equipment and trains. The line — which will connect Reading and Heathrow in the RECORD CITY TAX TAKE IN 2019 FILLS TREASURY COFFERS ONCE AGAIN west to Shenfield and Abbey KERCHING Wood in the east — was supposed to open in December HARRY ROBERTSON employment taxes thanks to with the EU or with other partners The amount of corporation tax 2018 at a cost of £14.9bn. significantly higher average salaries. around the world to lead us to a position financial services firms paid fell 9.5 per “We’re waiting for the @harrygrobertson City minister John Glen told City A.M. where we accept a very flimsy trade cent year on year, meaning the sector Crossrail board to give an BRITAIN’S financial services sector the figures showed “the significant agreement when it comes to services.” paid less than it did in 2008. McGuiness assessment of the opening date, contributed a record £75.5bn in tax in contribution the sector makes”. The £75.5bn figure was only a slight said this was a “worry” and said it was but actually we’ve taken... a very 2019, according to a new report on “Only by maintaining Britain’s world- increase from the £75bn collected in the due to the lower profitability of firms. pragmatic look at the demand behalf of the City of London Corporation, leading status in financial services can year to March 2018, reflecting a Global trade tensions, political forecasts,” Brown said. amounting to 10.5 per cent of all we continue to attract business and challenging year for the sector. It was a uncertainty and persistently low interest “Both the chief executive of government tax receipts. bring in record amounts of tax for our notable slowdown from the £2.9bn rates have created challenging Crossrail [Mark Wild] and the The report, carried out by accounting vital public services,” he added. growth in tax contributions seen conditions for much of the sector. board... know the imperative of giant PwC and released today, Financial services are expected to be a between 2017 and 2018. Barney Reynolds, head of financial bringing that date as far highlighted the value of financial sensitive issue in UK-EU negotiations. PwC’s report showed that of the 2019 regulation at law firm Shearman & forward as they can possibly and services to the UK economy. Across the Catherine McGuinness, policy chair at figure, £33.4bn was paid by companies Sterling, said he was positive about safely do so because of the country the sector employs around three the City of London Corporation, told City directly. The other £42.1bn was paid by negotiations with the EU. He said the imperative that revenues will per cent of the UK workforce but A.M.: “We mustn’t allow our enthusiasm employees through income tax and City is “not only important to the UK, it’s begin to flow in to TfL overall.” contributed 11.6 per cent of all UK to strike an early trade agreement either customers through levies such as VAT. an important global asset”. £ CONTINUES ON P5 FTSE 100▼ 7,575.34 -47.06 FTSE 250▼ 21,760.53 -227.66 DOW▲ 28,703.38 +68.50 NASDAQ▲ 9,071.47 +50.70 £/$▲1.316 +0.007 £/€▲1.177+0.005 €/$▲ 1.119 +0.002 02 NEWS TUESDAY 7 JANUARY 2020 CITYAM.COM LIFE BEFORE THE DINOSAURS... IN DULWICH The Horniman shines a light on the little-known Permian in winter exhibition THE CITY VIEW Retail landscape will STUDIOS GONDWANA continue to evolve T FIRST glance, the £50m deal to convert a north London retail park into a warehouse and logistics hub is a perfect Arepresentation of the forces upending an embattled sector. The relentless rise of online shopping and home delivery means plots like the Ravenside site in Edmonton, snapped up by warehousing giant Prologis, is worth more as a distribution centre for Amazon and Argos than as a space for Mothercare and Carpetright. Prologis acquired the site from M&G, whose commercial property fund was suspended last month after investors clamoured to withdraw their cash. Taken together, the elements of this story appear to provide yet more evidence that traditional retail operations may have had their day. But the truth is that a brand such as Mothercare falling into administration attracts more attention than investment into THE HORNIMAN Museum in south London announced yesterday that its newest exhibition will focus on the sabre-toothed predators of the Permian period, the last era before the dinosaurs arrived. The Permian, which is believed to have lasted around the future of retail. Furthermore, this shift from bricks and 47m years, ended with the largest mass extinction in the Earth’s history. More information can be found at horniman.ac.uk mortar to online shopping is only part of the picture. The Sunday Times reported over the weekend that the head of one of Britain’s biggest property investment firms, Bruntwood, has “called the bottom of the shopping centre slump.” Chief executive Chris Oglesby believes that the tide is about to turn Oil prices spike and physical retail sites now represent “a huge opportunity”. Election bounce Not everyone agrees, and plenty of investors remain wary of the low rents and, therefore, low values of such assets, but the amid tensions prospect of a smart revival cannot be written off. Oglesby thinks the shift to online in certain parts of the retail landscape “has in Middle East probably plateaued” and that consumers still value experiences for service firms and interaction alongside the convenience of ordering from an EDWARD THICKNESSE app. The other element in the retail landscape is the high street, HARRY ROBERTSON @edthicknesse whose death has been greatly exaggerated or, at least, Business optimism rebounded to its highest since September 2018, the sur- OIL PRICES spiked yesterday amid misinterpreted. For a start, independent retailers are enjoying a @harrygrobertson vey showed. A number of respondents inflamed tensions in the Middle boom. According to consumer research giant Which, no fewer SERVICES companies became much predicted a short-term boost to the East, after the US exchanged than 10 sub-sectors of retail have seen an increase in premises more positive last month following sector after Britain leaves the EU at threats with Iran over the weekend. on high streets in recent years. These include eating out, Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s the end of the month. Brent crude crossed the $70 thumping election victory, survey Although the business community threshold for the first time since services (such as salons), food and drink retailers and event data showed yesterday, with firms was largely opposed to Brexit, after September’s attacks on Saudi spaces. In other words, offerings that cannot be replicated grateful for some certainty. three years of political wrangling Arabia’s state-owned oil company, online. As the new decade gets underway, retail remains a A key gauge of services activity firms are now grateful for some cer- before slipping back to $68.4. At picked up in December but the sector tainty upon which to base decisions. one point, West Texas Intermediate mixed bag. There will be more failures but, also, many more still failed to expand, data from IHS Increased confidence and rising touched $64.72, its highest level openings. Physical space will be repurposed and investors will Markit and the Chartered Institute of workloads led to a marginal increase since April 2019, before dipping look for new opportunities. This is a complex and evolving Procurement & Supply (Cips) showed, in staffing levels in December, IHS back to $62.75. sector, and while its fortunes remain far from certain there are marking the fourth month in a row Markit and Cips said. The rises follow a three per cent without growth for the vital compo- “The decisive result of the General surge in prices on Friday after the plenty of green shoots among the rubble. nent of the economy. Election appears to have given the killing of Iranian general Qasem The services purchasing managers’ services PMI a bit of a boost,” said Soleimani, raising concerns that index (PMI) — a closely-watched Thomas Pugh, UK economist at Capi- unrest in the Middle East could barometer — came in at 50 in Decem- tal Economics. disrupt oil supplies. ber, up from 49.3 in November. A “That may start to come through in The region accounts for almost score of 50 means business activity other data in the first quarter, half of the world’s oil output, and a was unchanged. Economists had pre- although the fourth quarter was fifth of global oil shipments pass Follow us on Twitter @cityam dicted a reading of 49.2. clearly very weak.” through the straits of Hormuz. FINANCIAL TIMES THE TIMES THE DAILY TELEGRAPH THE WALL STREET JOURNAL CREDITORS OF JAMIE’S WHAT THE BRITAIN’S MOST PROLIFIC SACKED DELOITTE PARTNER WEINSTEIN FACES SEX CRIME ITALIAN SET TO LOSE £80M OTHER RAPIST JAILED FOR LIFE TO PAY £125,000 IN COSTS CHARGES IN LOS ANGELES Creditors of celebrity chef Jamie The UK’s most prolific rapist has been A Deloitte partner who was sacked over Former Hollywood producer Harvey Oliver’s failed Italian restaurant chain PAPERS SAY jailed for life after drugging and allegations of bullying and favouritism Weinstein was charged with sex crimes are set to lose most of the £80m they attacking nearly 200 vulnerable young has been ordered to pay £125,000 after in Los Angeles yesterday as his criminal are owed after its collapse last May, THIS men who he targeted outside losing a legal claim against the trial on similar accusations opened in according to administrator KPMG.