Lessons from the Gulf: The UK must listen to business November 11, 2024 The UK may feel worlds apart from the Gulf monarchies, but there are lessons to be taken, writes Eliot Wilson.
As America goes to the polls, the world holds its breath November 4, 2024 Tomorrow is decision day in America, but with the polls on a knife-edge it’s not clear if there’ll be a decisive victor… or if both sides will even accept the result, says Eliot Wilson Tomorrow more than 240m Americans can cast their votes for the next President of the United States. Many have already done [...]
EY right: Is multitasking really unethical? October 28, 2024 Firing staff for watching multiple training videos at the same time raises questions about the accountancy firm’s corporate culture, says Eliot Wilson Internal disciplinary procedures in the US arm of one of the “Big Four” accounting firms may not seem like headline news. Last week, however, The Financial Times reported that Ernst and Young (now [...]
School smartphone ban is legislative overreach at its most unnecessary October 21, 2024 Schools already have the power to ban smartphones, adding pointless new laws to the statute book is bad for business and bad for democracy, says Eliot Wilson Parliament should never make law lightly. To legislate is to bring the coercive power of the state to bear in regulating conduct and behaviour as well as maintaining [...]
Alex Salmond obituary: The Scottish firebrand who shook up British politics October 14, 2024 Alex Salmond was the dominant figure in Scottish politics of the past three decades. He led the Scottish National Party for 20 years, was the first pro-independence First Minister of Scotland and brought about a referendum on the Union which ended his front-line career but put to bed any lingering notion that a separate Scotland was unimaginable.
Being ‘the grown ups in the room’ won’t cut it with investors October 14, 2024 At today’s International Investment Summit, ministers must recognise that businesses want concrete assurances about the kind of returns they can expect, says Eliot Wilson Today is the government’s long-anticipated International Investment Summit, which will bring together potential investors from abroad and within the United Kingdom and is intended to show, in the business and trade [...]
Britain’s economy can’t run on industrial nostalgia October 7, 2024 Just because an area like Port Talbot once supported a particular industry like steel, there’s no reason the state must ensure it always does, says Eliot Wilson When the government announced last month that it would give Tata Steel £500m to modernise its facility in Port Talbot, I noticed a revealing remark. The business and [...]
Labour’s relationship with business was never a love match September 30, 2024 A shambolic ‘business day’ at Labour Party conference reveals the government’s true feelings about the City, says Eliot Wilson Only those addicted to Sir Keir Starmer’s own-brand Flavor Aid would claim that last week’s Labour Party conference was an unqualified success. Assessments were mixed, but it was not the joyful fiesta a new government might [...]
‘Grown up’ Sue Gray is looking like a political ingenue September 23, 2024 Sue Gray awarding herself a more generous salary than the Prime Minister’s betrays a high-handed and naive approach to politics, says Eliot Wilson When the BBC revealed last week that Sue Gray, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, earned more than her boss, the story developed in a number of different ways. Some felt that [...]
Port Talbot shows what ‘tough decisions’ really look like September 16, 2024 The government’s £500m rescue package for the Port Talbot steelworks is an unsatisfactory trade-off between job losses and industry efficiency, says Eliot Wilson Was it a welcome reprieve or another sad measure of decline? Last week the business and trade secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, announced a revised deal with Tata Steel to provide a £500m subsidy [...]
