Queen’s Speech 2014: The proposed Recall Bill will do little to strengthen the accountability of MPs

2^nd June 2014

This week’s Queen’s Speech will see the Government finally announce their intention to bring forward for debate the long awaited Recall Bill. This should be an opportunity for the Government to propose a simple mechanism to empower voters with the right to recall an MP who no longer commands the majority of their constituents’ confidence.

Re-evaluating the Greenbelt will deliver more homes

27^th May 2014

Mark Carney’s comments on the dysfunctionality of our housing market are only the latest in a long line of warnings about our incapacity to increase housing supply. Indeed it has been a matter of concern for at least thirty years with the problem worsening with every boom and bust cycle.

A&E: Facts from the front line

22^nd May 2014

A joint report by Candesic and the College of Emergency Medicine (CEM) analysed over 3,000 patient records who visited twelve Emergency Departments (A&Es) across the country and found that most people (85%) who attended A&E needed to be seen in an emergency setting.

A&E + Health + NHS

Machopolitik: Why America still needs a strategic Britain

13^th May 2014

Alphen, Netherlands. 12 May. Seventy years ago to the day on 6 June 61,715 British troops landed on the Normandy beaches alongside 57,500 Americans and some 21,500 Canadians. The liberation of Western Europe from Nazism had begun.

Machopolitik + Strategic Britain + US policy

Capital (and income) in the 21st century

29^th April 2014

Thomas Piketty’s magnum opus Capital in the 21st Century, with its charge that inequality in much of the Western world is reaching Victorian levels, has rightly pushed the subject to the top of the political agenda.

Income inequality + Shareholder value

Empowering communities via complementary currencies

10^th April 2014

The current economic situation is often identified as the most cataclysmic financial predicament since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Most analysts strongly agree that traditional banking is no longer sufficient for the general public, and an ethical model for banking is required that can empower the more vulnerable elements within our society.

Communities + Complementary currencies + Empowering communities

Tax: The last corporate taboo?

21^st March 2014

A day in the life of a corporate social responsibility professional would unearth a whole gambit of complex and disparate issues they must work through. Human rights, ecological degradation, fair trade, child labour, charity fundraising, sweatshops, supplier relations and anti-bribery strategies are to name but a few.

Corporate social responsibility + Corporate tax + Tax + Tax avoidance

Budget 2014: What do manufacturers want?

19^th March 2014

Ahead of today’s budget here is a quick recap of the economic environment and EEF’s key Budget asks that would reconfirm to manufacturers that a competitive business environment is front and centre of the government’s priorities.

Budget 2014 + Manufacturers

Budget 2014: The decade of Employee Ownership

18^th March 2014

Employee ownership is the model in which a business is totally or significantly owned by its employees. It already contributes more than £30bn each year to the UK economy, equating to approximately 4% of GDP.

Budget 2014 + Employee ownership

Budget 2014: More homes please

17^th March 2014

The fact is, we’re still not building enough homes. People across the country are struggling to get on the property ladder, move out of their parents’ homes, or find a rental place they can afford.

Budget 2014 + Housing + National Housing Federation