Margareta Pagano



Profile:
Full name: Margareta Pagano

Area of interest: Business and Finance

Journals/Organisation: The Independent on Sunday | The Independent

Email: [mailto:m.pagano@independent.co.uk m.pagano@independent.co.uk]

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Website: http://www.independent.co.uk/biography/margareta-pagano

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Biography:
About: http://www.nctj.com/careers/nctj-alumni/margareta-pagano

Education:

Career: Sunday Correspondent; City editor, 1989/1990; wrote for The Sunday Times and was a founding editor (in 1996) of the City newspaper and online news service Financial News, leaving in 2004; worked freelance for a range of papers, including The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph, The Guardian, The Times; joined The Independent on Sunday, as business editor, beginning of 2008 Current position/role: Business editor


 * also writes/has written for: (regular contributor) The Spectator, the First Post

Other roles/Main role: business consultant

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The Independent/The Independent on Sunday:
Column name: Wednesday: Midweek View Sunday: The Square Mile

Remit/Info: Business and finance

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Role: Business editor

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Email: [mailto:m.pagano@independent.co.uk m.pagano@independent.co.uk]

Website: http://www.independent.co.uk/biography/margareta-pagano

Commissioning editor:

Day published: Wednesday & Sunday

Regularity: Weekly

Column format: (usually) one lead item, plus two other

Average length:



Articles: 2013

 * Don't blame Mrs T for today's fractured Britain - The City was shaken up under Margaret Thatcher but she would not have tolerated the bonuses, credit bubbles and bailouts - 14th April
 * Can Aphrodite reunite Cyprus and Turkey? - The current plight of the Mediterranean island could be eased if it can build bridges with its former enemy to exploit nearby gas fields - 30th March
 * Some Britons aren't too posh to push for economic success - Lord Heseltine's comments last week suggesting that the British may be too wealthy to push for economic recovery have predictably caused a flutter, especially in the blogosphere, where Tarzan is now being accused of being an uncaring rich Tory toff who doesn't give a toss about the poor - 30th March
 * This helping hand on homes is sheer lunacy - George Osborne has failed to realise that building affordable houses is the way to solve would-be buyers' problems – and boost the economy too - 24th March
 * Budget 2013: Some of Osborne's tiny changes could give a big boost to British industry - Help for the housing martket, more apprenticeships, investment in research and development: all could help create jobs on our shores - 22nd March
 * Trinity Mirror executives need to face up the murky past - Simon Fox, the chief executive of Trinity Mirror, should have known better than to go to ground over the allegations of phone-hacking at his newspapers - 17th March
 * Engineering a solution to our acute skills shortage - Schools are in need of an urgent reminder that they should be promoting to both sexes a career that is thrilling, secure, well-paid – and understaffed - 10th March
 * Diocletian needn't worry us, but Henry VIII should - The flawed, but rather good, EU proposal to cap bankers' bonuses could lead to a European rupture akin to the Tudor king's fallout with Rome - 3rd March
 * It's time to stop playing politics with our energy - The warning from Ofgem that the UK is careering towards electricity shortages should focus politicians' minds on a solution, beyond ideology - 24th February
 * The Goose said to the Owl: Fancy a Penguin? - When two billionaire friends met on a business flight, the talk turned to birds and business deals. The $28bn swoop on Heinz was the result - 17th February
 * Banks need to get their boardrooms in order - A radical overhaul of senior management is needed to ensure that we are not overtaken by similar scandals in the future - 10th February
 * If Jenkins wants our trust, he needs to say sorry - The Square Mile: After the latest bombshells, the Barclays CEO cannot expect to regain his bank's tattered reputation unless he says, and does, the right things - 3rd February
 * With Merkel on side, PM's gamble may yet pay off - Germany's – possibly surprising – support for David Cameron's audacious EU speech, makes reform from the inside more likely - 27th January
 * Terrorist outrage won't scare BP out of Algeria - Attacks like this are endemic and par for the course to the oil and gas industry, which operates in some of the most dangerous parts of the world - 20th January
 * We're a nation divided by our eating habits - Half of us spent more on food at Christmas, the rest spent less. It's a widening gap that politicians of every hue should be worrying about - 13th January
 * The UK's lost boys need better careers advice - Business needs to get behind proposals for specialist mentors who will be far more effective at setting school children on the right work route - 6th January



Articles: 2012

 * Can London still get some Liffe out of ICE? - The LSE made a huge mistake by not buying the futures exchange but can salvage something by grabbing European assets, such as the Paris bourse - 23rd December
 * Lessons from Darwin - how life sciences are evolving for the better - Links between academia, business and the Government are making sure Britain is kept at the forefront of a vital industry - 16th December
 * Extend the festivities with retailing's AAAs - The shares of Asos, Argos and Apple could help soften the blow of Christmas spending for the canny investor - 9th December
 * He's no messiah, but can Mark Carney lead us to growth? - He's been hailed as the banker who saved Canada from the Great Crash, but the UK is a far tougher hand for the new Bank of England Governor - 2nd December
 * To stay in touch with the EU, we need a third way - With fewer officials in Brussels corridors of power, the UK's voice is being stifled, but that doesn't mean the choice is the stark in or out - 25th November
 * Bank of England needs to keep its brave maverick - If, as the noises off suggest, Paul Tucker is the next Governor, he has to persuade Andy Haldane to stay and maintain his fight against the system - 18th November
 * Last chance saloon for private-equity cowboys - Comet tale of woe shows that so-called knights on white chargers who help companies have questionable motives, and their time should be up - 11th November
 * Trinity Mirror’s Simon Fox must box cleverer than this - The boss of one of biggest newspaper groups cannot afford to sound so dismissive of phone-hacking claims. Has he learnt nothing from News International? - 27th October
 * Those banking problems just keep on coming ... - Another week and another litany of wrangles emerges – from a bigger PPI bill than expected for Barclays, to a collapse in lending for businesses - 21st October
 * Merkel's heart forced the 'nein' on BAE merger - The German Chancellor's veto of the EADS deal has left both companies' bosses and investors with questions to answer on their future strategy - 14th October
 * We need a railway to make the Stephensons proud - The West Coast Line shambles is the end result of a franchising system that has made our once-great network a global laughing stock - 7th October
 * Candid truths on the euro crisis from a man who knows his facts - Issing fears that giving more power to Brussels and Frankfurt and sharing financial risk will lead to a backlash - 3rd October
 * A breakdown of trust is Rajoy's biggest headache - Increased civil unrest is staring the Spanish Prime Minister in the face as he strives to introduce reforms aimed at resolving his country's economic crisis - 30th September
 * It's time to try new ways to fill the business funding gap - Crap mortgages brought down Lehmans in the crash. We don't want crap business loans leading to the next - 27th September
 * It's Murdoch's fault he hasn't built a dynasty - Now the media tycoon must anoint an heir and sort out the succession - 23rd September
 * Dr Doom predicts a housing disaster – and he's got history on his side - Prices are at least 20 per cent too high or earnings are 20 per cent too low. We know the answer to that - 19th September
 * BAE shows attack is the best method of defence - The proposed tie-up with EADS is a bold move by Britain's military giant in the face of tough competition and cuts in spending in the West - 16th September
 * Don't tell anyone, but Britain has an industrial policy - The big test will be how politicians and business people nurture them future gazelles - 12th September
 * Policy-makers' kick towards growth goal - They are stepping on the gas. Over the next few weeks the world's economic policy-makers will take action to try to speed up global growth - 9th September
 * Blair - The 11th-hour rabbit out of Glasenberg's hat - It looked as if the mega-merger of Glencore and Xstrata was dead in the water, until the former PM was pulled in to sweet-talk the Qataris - 9th September
 * Osborne needs to wear killer heels if he wants to stop the booing - If the cost of rates is putting people out of business then keeping them high is simply ludicrous - 5th September
 * Why won't the banks back small business? - Potentially lucrative opportunities are beckoning would-be exporters but they are frustrated because they cannot take advantage without funding - 5th August
 * The same old banking model needs to change - Barclays and most of Wall Street's banks are backing Mitt Romney to be president as he will keep the status quo. But investors are shunning them - 29th July
 * Favourites fade as Bank Governor race hots up - New names in the frame to take on huge challenge of rebuilding the City's reputation with plenty of question marks hanging over the leading fancies - 26th July
 * Why it makes sense for banks to do the splits - The Square Mile: There is a growing recognition that a break-up of banks such as Barclays between retail and investment banking is the way to make things safer - 22nd July
 * Time for a 'Condor moment' if we want to restore trust in the banks - Without question, there has been a total collapse of ethical behaviour in the industry. We've seen that in a litany of events - 18th July
 * Favourites fade as Bank Governor race hots up - New names in the frame to take on huge challenge of rebuilding the City's reputation with plenty of question marks hanging over the leading fancies - 15th July
 * Too much dopamine, Lord Turner? - Scientists say they can prove too much power can affect the brain. The FSA's handling of Barclays may be further evidence - 8th July
 * Why didn't the watchdog bark as Libor alarms were sounded? - It’s pathetic to say the FSA didn’t have the powers; of course it did, but has failed to use them properly - 4th July
 * Heads surely have to roll after Barclays scandal - Bob Diamond, the bank's chief executive, has denied any knowledge of the Libor fixing conspiracy, but senior management must bear responsibility - 1st July
 * Icap targets an Aladdin's cave of opportunity - Michael Spencer's inter-dealer broker is buying Plus Markets, the tiny UK stock exchange, but he may have even bigger ambitions up his sleeve - 24th June
 * Muddled analysis behind this new lending plan - Supplying more money to the banks so they can provide loans to small businesses and for mortgages is a gamble and potentially dangerous - 17th June
 * TNK sale will leave BP free for more Russian quests - The fragile relationship with its oligarch partners has enriched investors, but a divorce will not see the end of the British oil giant's affairs in the country - 3rd June
 * It's wrong to try to kick out Davis's pay prize when he's such a winner - Now there is another danger, that the newly discovered evangelism of investors will be directed at the wrong targets - 30th May
 * Eurobond or no? The Iron Lady is not for turning - The bloc's big noises are trying to persuade German Chancellor Angela Merkel to support the latest patch-up measure. But she is determined to resist - 27th May
 * Talk about an own goal - Beecroft's 'fire-at-will' plan is just plain daft - What was meant to be an attempt to boost business and growth with a bonfire of silly, red-tape laws has backfired into a PR fiasco - 23rd May
 * Mr Facebook, who do you think you are? - An astronomical price tag for the social network but, not only does no one seem to know what it may become, it could already be on the way out - 20th May
 * What's the recipe to make our teenagers fit for work? - When a top chef dismisses his trainees as 'lazy' and Pret a Manger prefers to employ immigrants, we need to find a way to get the UK's youth into jobs - 13th May
 * The Cambridge phenomenon must be harnessed to inspire nation - The difference here is that there is an ecosystem in which ideas get put into practice. Everyone learns from each other - 9th May
 * GOD looks odds-on to take King's mantle - The former head of the civil service has the clout in Whitehall and Threadneedle Street to become the next Bank of England Governor - 6th May
 * If Hollande takes victory he will need to win Merkel over too - Hollande's first visit as president should be to Berlin to persuade Merkel that austerity alone is not enough - 2nd May
 * Did Murdoch give the game away over BSkyB? - The media mogul's evidence to the Leveson inquiry on his move for the TV company showed reform is vital if future takeovers are to get a fair hearing - 29th April
 * Play it again, Cam, and help small businesses to grow - TheSquare Mile: The PM needs to reconsider breaking up the banks to stop other UK firms from running into financial trouble like luxury rainwear maker Aquascutum - 22nd April
 * Cuba: The second revolution? - For the first time since the 1959 coup, Cubans are able to buy and sell property, set up businesses and farm their own land. Could these new liberties signal a move towards a free-market economy? Don't count on it - 15th April
 * Will pay prove to be Barclays' next 'apartheid' row? - Investors mobilise against bank's Diamond deal - 15th April
 * Glaxo's £350m factory is worth cheering not jeering - The drugs giant's unveiling of its investment in Cumbria on the back of the Budget's 'patent box' tax rate is a move that should make the Chancellor proud - 25th March
 * Brompton Bikes boss shows the way to get Britain moving again - George Osborne must encourage the UK's biggest companies to spend the £75bn squirrelled away on their balance sheets - 21st March
 * Goldman has lost power to scare clients into deals - Broadside will hit more than the bank's share price - 18th March
 * More women are appearing on boards, but that's not the end of it - What is so bizarre is the way childcare is always seen as a woman's preserve. Surely men at work are fathers too? - 14th March
 * It's a shame more don't share the vision of Vince - Cable's right to care about planning for industry - 11th March
 * City aims to take the Burberry catwalk to Russia - Can London's regulators tame the Moscow bear? - 26th February
 * Is there a Plan B to give Greece a soft landing? - The markets stay calm as tempers flare up again - 19th February
 * Banks reluctant to lend but new firms are getting out of this jam - If there's a right time to be lending to SMEs, it's now. Ironically, recessions are always a fertile time for enterprises to get going - 15th February
 * Take a leaf out of Birgitte's book on quotas, Mr C - More women on UK boards can only boost profits - 12th February
 * Government cannot ignore this demand to guide British industry - The Coalition has done far more than its predecessors to put manufacturing at the top of the agenda - 8th February
 * The unknighting of Fred Goodwin can only be redeemed by genuine reform - Stripping Goodwin of his honour was contrary to natural justice and the least the coalition can do now is ensure our dysfunctional financial system is fixed - 5th February
 * When are Cameron and Osborne going to get real and devise a proper growth policy? - The coalition needs to stop the gimmicks and the phoney war over bankers' bonuses and create a viable economic strategy - 29th January
 * Straits stand-off could sink fragile growth in Europe - Midweek view: Saudi Arabia and Israel, for different reasons, hate Iran, while the US hawks want regime change in the country - 25th January
 * Stargazer Cox may be the black swan to change life closer to home - The professor, whose TV show transformed our relationship with space in three days, is the inspiration that industry needs to drive more students into science - 22nd January
 * It shouldn't be so taxing to bring in share ownership for the workers - Midweek view: If Nick Clegg is serious about encouraging a John Lewis-style economy and not just after a few cheap headlines, the Deputy Prime Minister needs to do a little more homework. Three telephone calls should do it - 18th January
 * Tesco must decide: price or quality – or both? - Like any sensible shopper in these tough times, I plotted the Christmas food shopping with the zeal and precision of a general going to war – and 12 people feasting over three days is an expensive battle - 15th January



Articles: 2011

 * Death of the high street? No, it's the birth of the i-street - In the US, Amazon has provoked uproar with a new mobile price comparison app, Price Check, allowing customers to scan products in stores but then buy them online with the bookseller instead - 11th December
 * Are we on the brink of a new European era? - All of a sudden, there's a change of mood among Continental leaders, and, maybe, some hope of a solution to the eurozone muddle - 4th December
 * Osborne needs to mix magic with psychology – and a dash of anarchy - UK firms have £75bn locked away, but they're too spooked to spend it. So the Chancellor must give them the confidence to invest, or else ... - 27th November
 * As Branson rocks the high street – bankers beware! - When I caught up with Sir Richard Branson on Thursday – the day Virgin Money scooped up Northern Rock – he had just stepped off a plane on the East Coast, having flown from Los Angeles where he had been partying at a Rock the Casbah charity gig - 20th November
 * Italy needs a Ferrari driver in the hot seat - With talk of reform and ethical duties, Luca Cordero de Montezemolo, the car maker's boss, shows the vision his country needs - 13th November
 * Is narcissism the new capitalism? - Sir Martin Sorrell's pompous defence of his £4.2m pay is almost reason enough to ban share incentives - 30th October
 * St Paul's protesters should convert Cameron and UK's business leaders - Those at the top are naive if they thought that they could turn a blind eye to the aftermath of the crash and still hope to stay in control - 23rd October
 * Why the 'only women in the boardroom' just don't get it - Research shows that, quite apart from 'fairness', having more females on boards boosts productivity. That's why we need fixed quotas – and quickly - 16th October
 * Draghi needs a bazooka to fix the eurozone - Sometimes only a huge shock to the system will do - 9th October
 * An ethical economy? Now, what says Cameron? - Ed Miliband and David Cameron both want a 'big' society. But at the moment, the PM is trying to work out how to get UK plc to spend its £50bn cash pile - 2nd October
 * La recapitalisation? It's time for the French to swallow their pride - Recapitalisation is the same word in French but it's slightly prettier said with a Gallic twist; not in France, though – there it is a dirty word and only uttered with much hissing - 25th September
 * Pity UBS. But it could just as easily be RBS - Governments must look again at a full break-up of the banks - 18th September
 * and Portas are not the answer to our problems'' - Famous talking heads can't fix the economy, we need serious policies - 21st August
 * the stock market give us the answers?'' - Who knows which of our business leaders the Chancellor George Osborne listens to as he looks for fresh thinking to boost growth, but he could do worse than have a chat with Xavier Rolet, the head of the London Stock Exchange - 14th August
 * to save the euro... or not'' - Well, it would help if Europe's leaders jetted back from their holidays to set the markets straight – pronto - 7th August
 * George, he's paralysed all of Middle England'' - Chancellor George Osborne has a real problem on his hands – the middle classes are not just being squeezed but are in a state of petrified paralysis - 30th July
 * Frau Merkel become Madame Oui?'' - Angela Merkel showed nerves of steel at the eurozone summit last week – and earned praise from French and German press alike - 24th July
 * Murdoch cloud that hangs over News Corp'' - In the US they call it the "Murdoch discount". This is the amount by which US analysts reckon shares in News Corporation are depressed because of the controlling stake held by the Murdoch family - 17th July
 * Murdoch empire strikes back...but will it be enough?'' - In killing the 'News of the World', James Murdoch has cut off the head of the serpent, but his ruthless move still leaves News Corp's bid for BSkyB in doubt - 10th July
 * ho! Go on LSE, carve out a new silk route'' - I'm not at all surprised or the least bit disappointed that London Stock Exchange's attempt to buy Canada's TMX stock exchange has fallen through - 3rd July
 * Osborne rushed to back ring fencing'' - So why did George Osborne choose his Mansion House speech to back the "ring- fencing" proposals for reforming the banks which have been recommended by the Independent Commission on Banking in its interim report? - 26th June
 * Sugar off TV and Dyson into our classrooms'' - It's fantastic news that BMW is investing another £500m to build the next generation of Minis, a move that will protect 5,000 jobs for many years - 12th June
 * is smart to say 'nein danke' to nuclear'' - What amazes me most about the reception given to Chancellor Angela Merkel's historic decision to abandon nuclear energy is the way so many commentators have mocked the move as "political" - 5th June
 * racing is saved – no thanks to banks'' - Everyone who is anyone in British motorsport was at the recent opening of the Silverstone Wing - 29th May
 * we care about all these alpha males?'' - What a week it's been for alpha males behaving badly - 22nd May
 * does it feel to be Glencore's $10bn man?'' - The question I just had to ask Ivan Glasenberg, chief executive of Glencore International, when we chatted last week was what it feels like to be worth $10bn – the amount he'll be valued at on paper when the mining giant floats next week - 16th May
 * fish is on the hook, but can he land it?'' - An old Russian proverb says any fish is good if it is on the hook - 8th May
 * steady...the online gold rush is set to go'' - Precious-metals 'shop' expects explosive demand - 24th April
 * news for BP signals a good time to buy'' - BP's latest imbroglio reminds me of a horribly messy divorce in which two head-strong partners fight bitterly over who gets the goods - 17th April
 * is the biggest test yet for the coalition'' - George Osborne's political antennae are working overtime. Via Budapest, where he is attending the Ecofin meeting, the Chancellor has made it clear that he welcomes the Vickers report on British banking even though the rest of the world will not read it until tomorrow morning - 10th April
 * winners should not be able to take all'' - Irene Rosenfeld, chairman and chief executive of Kraft, is being paid a $2.1m (£1.3m) cash award for her work last year. But that's only the icing on the cake: her total pay is a whopping $19.3m - 3rd April
 * good Budget – but is Osborne missing a trick?'' - Everyone seems to agree that while this was a boring Budget, it is one which will turn out to be a bonanza for business - 27th March
 * the nuclear industry dead and buried?'' - Japan's crisis changes the sector for ever - 20th March
 * confidence being damaged by the BBC?'' - Every morning last week, the BBC led news programmes on television and radio with stories of more government cuts - 13th March
 * shoots himself in the UK-armed foot'' - What a surreal week it has been. It began with those pictures of David Cameron striding through Cairo's Tahrir Square flanked by businessmen from his 36-strong caravan with whom he toured the Gulf to promote British trade - 27th February
 * I didn't know women had it so tough'' - When I met Lord Davies of Abersoch at the Department of Business last week to talk about his plans to get more women to the top of UK companies, I asked what had pleased him most about his six-month inquiry - 20th February
 * are the business ethics of revolution 2.0?'' - Google backed an employee's role in Egypt's protests, but mobile firms and ISPs simply obeyed government orders to shut down - 12th February
 * all politicians: Pfizer's closure is an opportunity...'' - The political capital being made out of Pfizer's decision to close its Sandwich plant, with the loss of 2,400 jobs, is shameful - 6th February
 * Smith's investors are right to revolt'' - Whenever I venture into a WH Smith shop, my heart sinks as the assistants are so miserable, their service sloppy and finding even the plainest of envelopes is a chore - 30th January
 * will scare Miliband more than the Tories'' -T he 'light touch' adviser now poses a heavy threat - 23rd January
 * reform is the only way to save banking'' - The last time I met Professor Larry Kotlikoff was over dinner at the London School of Economics nearly a year ago, after he gave his first riveting lecture in Britain explaining why he's so convinced the financial system needs drastic reform - 16th January
 * blaming the weather and get your thermals on'' - The winners and losers on the high street - 9th January
 * time to bring in the quotas; 20 years on, it's still a man's world'' - When Kathleen O'Donovan became the first female finance director of a FTSE 100 company nearly 20 years ago, her new job made the front pages - 2nd January



Articles: 2010

 * is the only way to reform our tax'' - Something is deeply disturbing about a government which steam-rollers controversial changes to higher education funding through yet shows no inclination to reform regulations which allow British companies to avoid millions in tax - 26th December
 * inconvenient truth about bankers'' - If the coalition is to find a way to waltz out of the bonus row, it needs somehow to execute a high kick clothed in a soft shoe - 19th December
 * fat banker and his HK$1m bet'' - Publish and be damned: The Government should make public the FSA's report into the Royal Bank of Scotland collapse - 12th December
 * Blanchflower needs leashing'' - The TV and radio soundbites are too short to give the proper context to Professor David Blanchflower's inflammatory outpourings against Mervyn King, the Governor of the Bank of England - 5th December
 * Mr Cameron, is a new British Rail'' - Privatisation produced complication not competition. It let commuters down - 28th November
 * for women! Why their time has come'' - France's Finance Minister was set against forcing firms to put more females on their boards, but she has changed her mind – and with good reason - 21st November
 * to boost housing? Ask the boy from Bovis'' - David Ritchie, the chief executive of Bovis Homes, is not sure whether to laugh or cry - 31st October
 * Osborne is clever, he'll spread a little sunshine'' - The Chancellor's cuts have been broadly well-received by business, but now he must prove he is more than just a slasher and help regions most in need - 24th October
 * Osborne: You must heed the danger of division'' - A 1920s Steiff Harlequin teddy bear – being sold by a disgraced hedge fund manager – was bought for £46,850 at Christie's last Wednesday while the whole teddy collection fetched more than £1m - 17th October
 * an art to funding science after the cuts'' - And the Rolls-Royce prize points the way - 10th October
 * has its own good reasons for backing 'Red' Ed'' - If City bankers had been voting for the Labour leadership, Ed Miliband would have beaten his brother with a proper grown-up majority rather than the tiny 1.3 percentage points he managed - 3rd October
 * talks like Robespierre – but he's in danger of turning into Mr Prescott'' - When the historians come to write up their accounts of the Great Recession, it may be that the events of last week prove to be the most momentous since the financial crash two years ago - 26th September
 * Stuart's rosy future will smell as sweet'' - You know people are really famous when they are known by their first names only - 19th September
 * Barclays become the Diamond Bank?'' - Thousands of words have been written about the elevation of Bob Diamond to the top job at Barclays last week, ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous – but I'm not sure any of us are any wiser about its real significance, either to the future of the bank or, indeed, the future of the banking industry - 12th September
 * guilt for dinner – served up by the jilted young'' - There's a new and noisy book just out which you must read to discover why the young and the old are shouting at each other over the supper table in a way I've not heard since those great divides over drugs'n'rock'n'roll or even the Iraq invasion - 5th September
 * even think about banning the right to strike'' - Unions and bosses should work together to keep jobs - 8th August
 * wait till Mervyn gets his cricket bat out'' - Governor is livid at banks' 'heart-breaking' behaviour - 1st August
 * for a credit squeeze on big takeover bids'' - Lend to small businesses, not predators on the prowl - 25th July
 * I right about the Ocado listing? I was – and how'' - When is a float not a float? When it's a rights issue by an outfit whose founding investors are fleeing - 18th July
 * our banking system is in rehab – but will it work?'' Reforming our high-street highwaymen is no easy task - 11th July
 * bosses sip champagne with hope in their hearts – but concern in their minds'' - Industrialists turn out in force for The Spectator's annual bash, but beneath the fun there lurks a more sombre mood - 4th July
 * should be like Martini; anytime, anyplace, anywhere'' - Tricky times mean the precious metal is hard to find - 27th June
 * far do we have to drill to find BP's chairman?'' - Carl-Henric Svanberg is conspicuous by his absence as his company faces disaster - 6th June
 * deal: The Pru can pull it off if the price is right'' - If Thiam strikes a bargain, he could yet get green light - 30th May
 * needs a new back-up plan to save the euro'' - Damned if she does, and damned if she doesn't. You can't help but feel sympathy for Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, as she tries to hold together the euro and her voters - 23rd May
 * need Roubini's brains if we want banking reform'' -The Government should listen to Dr Doom - 16th May
 * hung parliament just might be the best thing all round'' - After all, most of the world's triple-A rated countries are ruled by coalitions - 9th May
 * is caught on the horns of a Greek dilemma'' - Chancellor faces an imminent election – and an unpopular bail-out decision - 2nd May
 * need to grow a spine and sort out the banks'' - Banker-bashing has worked and the exodus has begun - 25th April
 * the Tories' NI plans play at the Dog & Whistle'' - Labour's 1 per cent rise is seen as a tax on jobs - 11th April
 * shocks for the world's big carmakers'' - Two big events last week on opposite sides of the world will shake up the car industry forever, but the way we drive is likely to change most dramatically due to a third, quieter upheaval - 4th April
 * encores for this sourpuss in Boots'' - Television sting shows how proud Patricia Hewitt is of her lobbying skills. It's time MPs minded their own business - 28th March
 * rider should be heavier than his horse, Darling'' - Chancellor's Budget must stimulate jobs as well - 21st March
 * John Lewis's Andy is streets ahead'' - The best moment in the first part of BBC's new fly-on-the-wall series, Inside John Lewis, shown last week, was hearing the managing director, Andy Street, explain why he didn't mind not being paid the millions he could earn if he were working elsewhere on the high street - 14th March
 * mutual paid off at Spain's top football clubs'' - It's not just the brilliance of the footballers at Real Madrid and Barcelona that British clubs should be looking to for inspiration but the way the Spanish teams are run. Both are mutual organisations, owned by their supporters who are responsible for electing management - 7th March
 * the politicians for RBS's bonuses'' - If you haven't bumped into any bankers at dinner parties recently it's not because they daren't go out but because they have invented new jobs. Some call themselves analysts, others whisper they are in financial research - 28th February
 * Bang: The unintended consequences'' - Turning super-rich US lending banks loose in the UK led to catastrophic takeovers – let's return to good old Eighties M&As - 21st February
 * the Big Beast about to oust Bullingdon Boy?'' - Latest Westminster rumour gains currency in the City - 14th February
 * markets declare war on the politicians'' - Optimistic investors force governments to act - 7th February
 * than any Stephen King story'' - Our huckster-driven banking systems will plunge us into a horror of a crisis, warns a US professor – but, he says, he can fix it - 31st January
 * dreams of the future deserve support'' - Volcker's ideas just need a little more beef - 24th January
 * it soft-centred to want Cadbury to stay British?'' - The French would pull up the drawbridge in a flash - 17th January



Articles: 2009

 * got it wrong. Blair and Brown did too. Can Cameron get it right?'' - The problem was Britain's plunge into industrial chaos in the 1970s, which then prime minister Thatcher thought was due to bolshy trade unions and rigid work practices - 20th December
 * they stay or should they go?'' - Chancellor Alistair Darling's punitive PBR has provoked a fightback by the Square Mile and could even lead to a new brain drain - 13th December
 * the brand maketh the sportsman?'' - Shareholders are starting to ask if the superstars they fund so lavishly are really good for business - 6th December
 * one should feel sorry for the Dubai speculators'' - The celebrities broke the first principle of investing - 29th November
 * our shareholder democracy all it's cracked up to be?'' - The Kraft-Cadbury takeover battle raises questions - 22nd November
 * been a long haul for BA and Iberia, but now they must avoid a crash landing at the altar'' - Before the Anglo-Spanish wedding, Walsh faces a £3bn-plus pension deficit, hostile unions and a quandary – what will the new airline be like - 15th November
 * at an Aldi discount, Lloyds is still a gamble'' - It's hard to believe our banks were the envy of Europe - 8th November
 * for a banker's wife's frock? Oh, please'' - WAG-chat in a Kensington café shows what's so wrong with banks and bonuses - 25th October
 * the school age to six to boost British literacy'' - Business chiefs are right to whip up schools debate - 18th October
 * money men have already priced in a Tory victory'' - The City's big hitters are happy with the more mature George Osborne, but to win a big majority his party will have to address small business and manufacturing - 11th October
 * need clean exporters: BAE should do a deal'' - Serious Fraud Office is right to pursue arms company - 4th October
 * 'snub' shows Britain is now Continental'' - One thing is clear – Europe needs to hear the UK - 27th September
 * your loins, Dave – or face a real EU car crash'' - Tory leader should brace up and read Booker contender 'Wolf Hall' for a lesson on how not to deal with Europe - 20th September
 * legacy is not just about money, it's also about character'' - It's taken a TV account to show us that, as the world teetered on the edge, it came down to a bare-knuckle fight between egomaniacs - 13th September
 * spin? Ignore it, the real story is in a small Swiss town'' - It's the FSB in Basel that has the clout on bankers' pay - 6th September
 * nationalise or not – that's a tricky question'' - Banks just won't lend, so what's a Chancellor to do? - 23rd August
 * nod to the new global superpower'' - 'Please be nice to us' was the subtext of the President's words as China begins to challenge the West's domination of the world - 2nd August
 * and sexism in the City? Let's hear what the men, as well as the women, have to say'' - Are women wimps? Are men misogynists? The Treasury hearings will decide, or we could just ask Sweaty Betty, Hosepipe and Anne Boleyn - 26th July
 * century on and Macmillan could inspire a route to bridge the capital gap'' - How about this for Groundhog day: "By the end of World War 1 successive merger waves had produced an oligopolistic, tightly cartelized, English banking system - 26th July
 * Sir David ... the only code our boardrooms need is a code of honour'' - Britain's boardrooms will soon have as many codes to break as GCHQ - 19th July
 * Pi man is no square, and he's livid over EU rules'' - 'Parts of UK financial industry could be decimated' - 12th July
 * Bullingdon Man the perfect City reformer?'' - The other day I had lunch (okay, a sandwich) with someone who was close to Gordon Brown and Tony Blair at the beginning of their reign, and she remembers that even then they would discuss their future after politics - 5th July
 * what does BP's choice of chief say about us Brits?'' - Svanberg highlights a sad dearth of home talent - 28th June
 * kicks like Le Tissier, but will he score a goal?'' - In the end – and thank goodness – it is the historians, not the professional commentariat, the lobby-fed hacks, the passing-through politicians, the careerist civil servants or some of the clowns masquerading as experts, who will get to decide the heroes and the villains of the 2009 financial crisis - 21st June
 * brilliant City financiers? They're all tarts at heart'' - One of the City's most blue-blooded stockbrokers once told me there is a simple reason why London has been the hub of global finance for more than 300 years – British financiers are brilliant hustlers - 14th June
 * has Sir Alan been hired as 'enterprise tsar'?'' - My list of business people to advise companies would not include Sugar - 8th June
 * balls, please, at the Treasury'' - With the economy in such a shocking state, Labour's only hope is a sharp U-turn on public spending – but does it dare? - 7th June
 * and broken-up – GM may need more than a loan'' - We have coughed up for the banks, so why not for our auto industry? - 1st June
 * Britain is just as bad as Westminster'' - Executives' bonuses, MPs' expenses – same thing - 31st May
 * votes are the only way to make Europe work for us'' - Politicians need to catch up with cross-border firms - 17th May
 * call for more women at the top is bang-on'' - They're talented and represent half the population. Is there a better reason for putting them on the board? - 10th May
 * don't deserve to be hunted to death'' - Once again, the Brussels bureaucrats have got the wrong enemy with their latest attack on the hedge fund and private equity industries - 3rd May
 * the time for Cameron to set the battle lines'' - Tories need to take on Brown the class warrior - 26th April
 * and friends are why I could not stand as an MP'' - The people I talk to aren’t apathetic about politics – they are apoplectic - 13th April
 * over, Darling - here's your Budget'' - With just 10 days to go, and after intensive discussions with my local newsagent and other top industrialists, please accept my advice - 12th April
 * Thiam: Pru's international man of finance'' - It doesn't matter if he's black or white, the insurer's new – and French-educated – boss joins a cosmopolitan club of FTSE 100 chiefs - 22nd March
 * recession made for Sir Alan Sugar'' - Tougher times bring out the pioneer in people - 18th March
 * to Sants - don't unleash a mad-dog regulator'' - FSA should focus on putting principles into practice - 15th March
 * Office probe is the only way to rebuild confidence'' - We can't rely on anyone else to sort out the banks - 1st March
 * Street must wait for the Messiah to speak'' - Markets look for a miracle from Obama's government - 22nd February
 * Brown: Revenge of the whistleblower'' - A former HBOS executive says he has documents that prove the Prime Minister must take responsibility for the mess in the markets - 15th February (with Jane Merrick)
 * new reality and the nuclear option for banks'' - Dabbling in investment and broking has to stop - 15th February
 * time we must listen to the black swan'' - Nassim Nicholas Taleb is making ripples again. The brilliant author of The Black Swan has set up a petition on his Facebook page calling on the US government to force bankers to give back their bonuses - 8th February
 * is the one to lead us out of this mess'' - British leaders should follow the US President's example - 1st February
 * the IMF the only answer for a bankrupt Britain?'' - Was David Cameron being mischievous when he warned that Britain may have to go to the International Monetary Fund to rescue the economy or is it a real possibility? - 25th January
 * will not allow a modern Greek tragedy'' - The richer EU states will bail out their southern peer - 18th January
 * is not just an excuse - it's an M&S excuse'' - Rose is unlikely to be the only boss to use the recession to hide poor management decisions - 11th January



Articles: 2008

 * super-rich still rule our economy'' - In this season of grand and gloomy forecasts, retail experts are unusually united in predicting carnage on the high street but they are slower to agree about the future of shopping for the super rich - 29th December 2008
 * rollercoaster to helter-skelter'' - Stock markets set to tumble again, sterling braced for a battering, but it's not – quite – all doom and gloom - 28th December 2008
 * age of greed embodied by Madoff's victims'' - 21st December 2008 (Summary of Bernard Madoff news articles here)
 * King Coal deserves a new coronation'' - Arthur Scargill may have been a dinosaur when it came to restructuring his industry but he was a trailblazer in recognising the importance of coal to the economy - 14th December 2008
 * Gordon Brown will eat his wife's hat'' - Essex and HSBC show alternative microcredit ideas - 7th December 2008
 * need equity to become equitable'' - People who buy shares are taxed more than if they go to the dogs - 1st December 2008
 * egos, move over, women are retail's best hope'' - Female chiefs show they're in touch with shoppers - 30th November 2008
 * small firms. Tax cuts won't even be a short-term fix'' - The Government must boost the real economy - 23rd November 2008
 * could come out of this crisis in much better shape'' - 16th November 2008
 * ifs or butts: Obama has to stick to his guns'' - 9th November 2008
 * Bank can do its job. What about the rest of them?'' - We should focus on lending and the national debt - 26th October 2008
 * beef up the Old Lady. The FSA is a lightweight'' - Tory proposals for a renewed Bank of England role in City regulation are a good starting point for change - 19th October 2008
 * bankers don't deserve to keep their jobs'' - 12th October 2008
 * China tip the US 'balance of financial terror'?'' - Ultimately, it is the Chinese and Middle Eastern governments – and their taxpayers, which will decide the fate of the biggest financial rescue plan in history - 5th October 2008
 * hero to zero as Paulson's own stock takes a dive'' - Critics let rip over Treasury Secretary's handling of money meltdown as Congress mulls $700bn rescue - 28th September 2008 (see also Paulson and Bernanke savaged over bailout plan)
 * Sir Victor's deal of a lifetime given the markets a lifeline?'' - Now the Lloyds chairman must make the HBOS takeover work - 21st September 2008
 * last thing our housing market needs is to be propped up'' - Mervyn King should be congratulated for refusing to bail out lenders - 14th September 2008
 * not 'super rich' on £100,000, but the TUC has a point on tax'' - 7th September 2008
 * battering taken by BAA is enough to give any chairman air rage'' - The Competition Commission's report is ill timed and ill conceived, blaming the airports authority for a situation beyond its control - 24th August 2008
 * His holiday's cancelled. But Zapatero has more important things to do'' - Spanish PM hopes tax breaks and housing loans will prevent recession - 17th August 2008
 * If Jobs is a genius, why isn't he talking about Apple's succession? - The group's shares are too vulnerable to fears for the founder's health - 27th July 2008
 * Hank the Hammer - the superhero who saved the US from meltdown - It's Paulson to the rescue again, averting the Freddie and Fannie crisis - 20th July 2008
 * A capital crunch is coming if cash calls aren't speeded up - The Treasury must grasp the nettle if the City is to keep its reputation - 13th July 2008
 * Financial experts are eating humble pie – as well as cheap risotto - 6th July 2008
 * Qatar is the new Venice and London has missed the boat - After losing out on a partnership deal, the LSE could fall prey to the ambitious emirate - 29th June 2008
 * Swap the Deutschmark for the euro and it feels like 1987 all over again - A rate rise in Europe could soon trigger the next Black Monday - 22nd June 2008
 * Yes, it’s a crisis – but liquid gold will also oil the wheels of invention - Whatever the price of a barrel, the car industry is set to change for ever - 15th June 2008
 * The English gentlemen failed at B&B. But can the Texans succeed? - It beggars belief that management didn't realise how bad things were - 8th June 2008
 * Eco-warriors couldn't do it, but the black stuff might consign the car to history - The combustion engine won't be economic if people can't afford petrol - 25th May 2008
 * It's musical chairs on the exchanges and Clara Furse must be the conductor - 18th May 2008
 * Carphone Warehouse's US connections ring all the right bells for Dunstone - Best Buy deal to 'revolutionise' European electronics retailing - 11th May 2008
 * New Beowulf takesa swipe at the City'sover-paid dragons - Mervyn King, the Governor of the Bank of England, is in danger of becoming a hero, a Beowulf for our times - 4th May 2008
 * All that glisters in the deep gloom of the global markets is gold - 27th April 2008
 * Arrogance got Sir Fred into this mess. The herd instinct could get him out - The RBS boss's decision to raise the final dividend to shareholders beggars belief. But he still might be able to salvage his reputation - 20th April 2008
 * The runners in the race for the White House should stop and listen to Soros - The financier's proposals for sorting out the credit crisis and staving off meltdown in the housing market need to be taken seriously - 13th April 2008
 * Besmirched by sub-prime, UBS is in no position to ignore Luqman's letter - As a former chief executive of the Swiss bank, the Olivant financier is well qualified to put together a rescue plan – and his timing is perfect - 6th April 2008
 * Can the Nicky Clarke of Threadneedle Street snip his way out of this credit crisis? - It's gridlock in the lending market and Mervyn King wants to get things moving. One option is for the Bank of England to do some 'haircutting' - 30th March 2008
 * A long weekend off is just what the markets need - 23rd March 2008
 * Like an angst-filled arthouse movie. But the banks could give us a happy ending - Maybe shocks to the system are needed to get confidence going again - 16th March 2008
 * Let them eat scallops - the Tories find they're guests of honour in the City - Square Mile warms to Conservatives as Darling courts cold shoulder - 9th March 2008
 * Would Gordon Brown have taxed Einstein too? - 24th February 2008
 * There's no gain, just pain – you can bank on it - 3rd Febuary 2008
 * Savage for SocGen and a slap in the Fed's face - 27th January 2008
 * For Labour's sake, it must try to sell the Rock - 20th January 2008
 * Osborne's chance to scrap our Soviet rules - 13th January 2008



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