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Analysis

Election Comment: Terry Murden

How thrift became a dirty word in the battle against austerity

As I write, the journalist Hugo Rifkind is presenting a programme on BBC Radio Four about austerity. It has become the buzzword of the General Election campaign. Yet, as heRead More

Business Comment: Terry Murden

HSBC: the reasons for leaving UK are mounting

There is much to digest in what is a lengthy statement from HSBC chairman Douglas Flint: the bank’s failings and fines, geopolitical and consumer change, and the new regulatory framework.Read More

Election Comment: Terry Murden

SNP Manifesto: something borrowed, nothing new

Nicola Sturgeon manifesto
The SNP manifesto was published today, although anyone wanting to know the party’s plans only had to look at last year’s ‘White Paper’, a so-called blueprint for a new constitutionRead More

Election Comment: Terry Murden

Cameron is missing a trick and must play the enterprise card

Few should be surprised by the Tories’ plan to sell more shares in Lloyds Bank. For David Cameron and George Osborne, getting the bank off the Treasury’s books has been aRead More

SNP Business Manifesto: Terry Murden

Same old policies, same old worries in this wishy-washy list

Sturgeon and beer
One of the most striking features of the SNP’s manifesto for business is how little it contains that is not already SNP policy. Devolution of air passenger duty and continuedRead More

Election Comment: Terry Murden

End of ideology. Politicians now prefer to buy votes

Ain’t it wonderful how politicians can suddenly find the money just when they need it most? No sooner had George Osborne finished telling us how the coalition is committed toRead More

Election Comment: Terry Murden

Sturgeon on the ropes as hard truths emerge

It was all going so well. Nicola Sturgeon, feted by the English no less after her stirring performances in the first of the televised leaders’ debates, was on a roll.Read More

Speculation mounts after Shell deal

Who’s next in the oil and gas merger pipeline?

Shell’s blockbuster acquisition of BG Group has not only created the second biggest company on the London Stock Market, it has sparked a flurry of excitement over which companies mightRead More

Election Comment: Terry Murden

Nicola: why she must learn to love the Tories

There are more of us in work than ever before, and the economy is on course to become bigger than Germany’s. Whisky and oil, two of Britain’s biggest industries, have been handedRead More

Business Comment: Terry Murden

M&S benefits from a woman’s touch

If, as they say, first impressions count, then the customer will probably be encouraged by the simpler and stylish window dressings at Marks & Spencer. And it may be dueRead More