Business and Economics

By Gregory Taylor  It was not the best start for the Conservative Party Conference, but things have gone rather better than some would have thought. On Saturday night we had seen one MP joining UKIP and another minister standing down because of a sex scandal. For political geeks like me, it’s great political news. The Tories came back fighting and managed to avoid just discussing the EU and immigration, although both are very important. Rather, welfare, economic policy, the NHS and education...

By Alex Barrett Getting an independent film funded and made has always been, and probably always will be, extremely difficult. There's been much talk of the 'democratisation' of filmmaking and of how the digital 'revolution' has levelled the playing field, enabling films to be made quickly and cheaply. This is true to an extent, but it's also relative. For instance, £150,000 is considered, in filmmaking terms, a 'microbudget' – but while that might be next-to-nothing for a film budget, for...

By Ana Zoria Go west doesn't mean go broke: young professionals West London survival guide West London became popular amongst the wealthy centuries ago and that’s still true today. The Village of Palaces, known today as Chelsea, has been a residence of royalties and a hangout of bourgeois bohemians since the 17th century. Today, the Victorian-style accommodation found in abundance across West London is home to financiers, socialites, Russian oligarchs and other Gucci-belted wealthy individuals. No secret, these lucky individuals and...

By Valentina Magri 'Welcome to the world’s most costly city' should be placarded at every entrance of London. Mindful tourists and Londoners have already noticed house prices rocketing, but an official confirmation came on 23th September. In light of this news, let’s have a look to the prospects for real estate in Britain, along with some useful tips to cope with the housing bubble. The new record of London A survey by the real estate agent Savills reports that London...

By Simon Bartram Tesco is being investigated by the Financial Conduct Authority following its admission that it overstated its half-year profit guidance by a quarter of a billion pounds, leaving the troubled supermarket giant red-faced. However, what do we know about this accounting scandal, and why should people care? Tesco has been embroiled in scandal after the supermarket giant admitting it had overestimated first-half profits to the tune of a quarter of a billion pounds. Early reports suggest that Tesco misapplied...

By Steve Taggart It is easier to start a business in Lithuania than the UK, according to the latest Global Competitiveness Report from the World Economic Forum (WEF). It takes almost twice as long to start a business in the UK (12 days) as compared with Lithuania (6.5 days). The yearly report is regarded as a barometer of business competitiveness and rates 144 economies across over 100 global rankings: from property rights, to tax rates and the level of local...

UCL Launches New Curriculum in Economics “Economics teaching has failed to convey the exciting progress made in many fields in economics over recent decades in addressing the big questions about the economy,” Professor Antonio Cabrales of the University College London said in the run up to the launch of a new curriculum in economics at the university. “We are hoping to change that.” From October 1st London will become part of a worldwide beta test of The Economy, a new online introduction...

By Steve Taggart It is hard to believe but there are only 87 days to go to xmas. Shops are already advertising for the festive season, which can make you feel quite unsettled. But that is nothing compared to the panic that will set in, if you are playing to sell your home before then. Well fear not, here are ten top tips to ensure can before Santa pays you a visit. Get a signboard. Ensure you have a signboard,...

Jack Peat meets Gavin Monery, Winemaker at urban winery London CRU Terroir is a hot topic in the wine world. Never has such an elusive concept caused such division amongst growers, experts and consumers of wine, but what’s the big deal? Well, in the parlance of Bill Shakespeare; nature or nurture, that is the question. Terroir comes from the French ‘terre’, or ‘land’, and is defined by the clever folk at Wikipedia as being a “set of special characteristics that the...