LDP Business - 14th December 2011

www.ldpbusiness.co.uk

LDPIn association with

www.investecwin.co.uk

ONE of Liverpool’s most famous retailnames has returned to the city after agap of nearly six years.

It will be the first time theWade-Smith family has had its nameon a shop front since their MathewStreet designer fashion store closed inJanuary, 2006.

Their new shop, Wade Smith Outlet,has opened in India Buildings’

swanky Holt’s Arcade. Its high-endstock is integrated with their newly-launched online clothing range.

India Buildings’ owner, Green Prop-erty, agreed to reopen Holt’s Arcade onSaturdays for shoppers after closing itfor weekends a year ago.

The new Wade Smith shop arose outof a setback a year ago when theirHope Street studio was burgled andstock for the online launch was stolen.

After hearing a few months ago thatthree adjacent Holt’s Arcade unitswere available, Robert Wade-Smith,

who has been in retailing for 29 years,decided that this was an ideal showcaseand shop front for the new business.

A real family affair, it is co-ownedby husband and wife team, Robert andAngie Wade-Smith, and involves theirdaughter Helen, 23, and son George, 21.

All four family members havedesigned and commissioned differentlines of clothing under their own namebrands for sale in the shop and online.

Although the shop is in the heart ofLiverpool’s business district, theyhope it will attract anybody wanting

high-quality fashionwear. Practicallyevery item is sourced from the UK andis made in North West England.

“We’re very pleased to have foundtop quality manufacturers from Cum-bria to Cheshire and we’re proud tosupport them,” said AngieWade-Smith.

Their new business has taken about2½ years and “substantial investment”to set up, she said. “The location in thecentral business district and the aes-

Wade-Smithreturnstoretailaftersixyears

HIGHER oil stocks anda brief respite in theeurozone debt crisishelped markets pushhigher yesterday.

Despite a slowstart, the FTSE 100Index finished 62.3points higher at5490.1 after the euro-zone bail-out fundreceived a reassuringlevel of demand as ittapped the moneymarkets for short-term funding for thefirst time.

MARKET REPORT:PAGE 15

FTSE-1005490.1

62.3▲

inside

BUSINESS EDITOR:BILL GLEESON0151 472 2319

DEPUTY BUSINESS EDITOR:TONY McDONOUGH0151 330 4918

BUSINESS REPORTER:PETER ELSON0151 472 2502

BUSINESS REPORTER:ALISTAIR HOUGHTON0151 472 2449

BUSINESS REPORTER:NEIL HODGSON0151 472 2451

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Angie Wade-Smith at the family’s newLiverpool city centre shop, in India Buildings

Picture: JASON ROBERTS/ jr121211wadesmith-1

[email protected]

Firms backingLiverpool’scapital missionMORE organisationspledge to sponsor the“Liverpool in London”mission to help pro-mote the region.

PAGE 2

More capacityRAIL operators areadding thousands ofextra seats to LimeStreet services.

PAGE 4

Revenues upTHE company behindthe BT ConventionCentre and EchoArena has seen asharp rise in turnover.

PAGE 5

For enquiries contact:

MERETO LET

RENTS FROM£8PSFPLUS RENT FREEOR A CASH BACKEQUIVALENT(T&CS APPLY)

SELF-CONTAINEDOFFICES2,500 - 10,100 SQ FT

DESIGN & BUILDOPPORTUNITIES

PLANNING PERMISSIONFOR UP TO 300,000 SQ FT

To find out more about Mere Grange visit

www.meregrange.co.uk

Offices from350 sq ft

A570 ST HELENS LINKWAY,OFF J7 M62, ST HELENS

2 Wednesday, December 14, 2011

www.ldpcreative.co.uk

The latest fromthe creative anddigital industries

LDP CREATIVE LATEST NEWS

blogs.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/ businessbeat/

TONY McDONOUGH’S BUSINESS BEAT

‘I thought of John Travoltawhen I interviewed DeputyPrime Minister, Nick Clegg’

Log on to www.ldpbusiness.co.uk

1 High-speed rail decision delay2 Jobs at risk at Swan Inn3 New chairman for Mouchel4 Unilever staff continue strike5 Easyjet sees growthldpbusiness.co.uk

Updatesthroughoutthe day

‘Supersix’pledgesupportforLiverpoolinLondon

Shop toshow offonlineclothing

thetic look of Holt’sArcade is perfect forus. It’s a different sortof shop to what’saround here, but we’vehad a lot of interest.”

The clothing style ismodern wardrobe clas-sic staples, said MrsWade-Smith.

Prices for womenrange from £75 for asilk cashmere top to a£995 bespoke tailoredcoat, or men’s ties at£30 and currently dis-counted bespoke suitsat £495.

Michael Tapp, direc-tor of Green Property,said: “We’re verypleased indeed to wel-come Wade Smith toHolt’s Arcade. It’s goodto see the Wade Smithname back on the highstreet and especiallybringing a breath offresh air into IndiaBuildings.

“Most of our unitshave been convenienceshops, but an up-market clothes shoplike Wade Smith makesHolt’s Arcade reminis-cent of London – likethe Burlington Arcadeof the North.”■ THE new WadeSmith outlet is open forbusiness Mon - Fri,10.30am - 5.30pm; Sat,10.30am - 4.30pm.

ContractorsrallyforCastlestoreLIVERPOOL’S St John’s shop-ping centre management teamunited four of its contractorsto ensure the successfullaunch of the new Roy CastleLung Cancer Foundation shopwithin the city centre site.

The Land Securities-owned

centre provided the retail unitfor free for the next 18months, and appealed to itscontractors to provide theirservices for free to help refur-bish the shop ready for open-ing.

NG Bailey, OCS, Heritage

Building Solutions andAndron Facilities Manage-ment all responded to the call,and centre director Ian Wardsaid: “This is the first timeLand Securities has united itscontractors to enable a char-ity to get off the ground.”

Fibreextended

newsLDPbusiness .co.uk

MORE than 105,000 Merseyside homes andbusinesses will benefit from super-fast broad-band as part of BT’s roll-out plans.

Aintree, Bootle, Churchtown, Great Crosby,Huyton, St Helens and Widnes are among thelatest communities to be included in the com-pany’s £2.5bn roll-out of fibre broadband. Thelatest upgrades will be completed during 2012.

SIX more organisations have pledgedtheir support to the “Liverpool in Lon-don” mission.

Merseytravel, industrial servicesprovider NSG UK, graphic design com-pany USP Creative and the Arena andConvention Centre Liverpool are tosponsor the city’s London office for thefirst time.

Meanwhile, UK property developerBenmore and Knowsley constructioncost management firm Ian Robinson &Associates have renewed their supportuntil September, 2012. They join theTender Management Consultancy,based in The Plaza, Old Hall Street,which signed up in September.

Liverpool’s London office, formerlyknown as the “Embassy”, is now in itssecond phase and is based at theformer home of the Royal Mint atRoyal Mint Court, Tower Hill.

Chris Heyes, who heads up the Lon-don office for regeneration agency Liv-erpool Vision, said: “It’s especiallyimportant during the current climateto be selling the city proactively toinvestors and others.

“But it’s equally important to giveLiverpool organisations a base in Lon-don from where they can more easilyaccess the largest market in the UKand sell their services.

“These organisations clearly recog-nise the unique benefits of havingsuch a base in the capital and we arevery pleased they are willing to investalongside us in activity to continue thecity’s regeneration.

“It’s particularly pleasing that Ben-more and Ian Robinson have exper-ienced benefits from using Liverpool’sLondon office during the first phase.

“Neither company is based in Liv-erpool, but both are expressing greatconfidence in our plans and in the cityitself.”

Ian Robinson said: “I was keen tocontinue my support because of theopportunities it has given me.

“I have made a number of strongcontacts through having a base in Lon-don and I have met with developersand other potential clients, which isvitally important to me if I am going tosustain and grow my business.”

Sponsorship of Liverpool’s Londonoffice gives an organisation a Londonoffice address from where they canwork, use the meeting facilities andmore easily work on expansion plansin the South East.

The office is supported full-time bystaff who act as a point of contact andensure meetings run smoothly. Staffcan also provide business connectionsand invitations to relevant events.

Liverpool council leader Cllr JoeAnderson said: “I would like to thankthese ‘super six’ for backing our Lon-don mission. Without doubt, being inthe capital is enabling us to sell Liv-erpool in a more co-ordinated andcompelling way, and what has been

particularly encouraging is the con-tinuing high level of collaborationwith our business sector in promotingour offer.

“It is a continuing process. The goodwork must go on. In the current econ-omic climate we find ourselves in, it isall the more important that both thepublic and private sectors continue topush the wide-ranging Liverpool offerand the many opportunities for inwardinvestment that exist here.”

TOP FIVE

The former Royal Mint, which is now host to the second phase of the city’s Liverpool in London drive

[email protected]

INASSOCIATION

WITH

LIVERPOOL’SINVESTMENTSPECIALISTS

CONTINUED FROMPAGE 1

FOR News,Sport andBusiness onyour phone

LDP

Text LDPto 67800

MOBILE

3Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Mee, will be to recruit a town centremanager to liaise with retailers andsmall firms on ways to make the areastill more welcoming to visitors.

As we drive along Stanney Lane,Mee pointed out the University ofChester Church of England Academybuildings, which will soon bereplaced by a new Academy in town.

The site is set to make way for an£11m sporting complex, including anarena for the Cheshire Jets basket-ball team.

Mee said: “It will be good forEllesmere Port to be able to say ‘thisis the home of the Cheshire Jets’.”

At the junction of Stanney Laneand Whitby Road, the toweringrotunda of the newly-built WestCheshire College campus has alreadybecome a landmark.

“The college is certainly iconic for

We got back in the car and stoppedbriefly on South Pier Road, lookingout onto a patch of unused land.

Mee hopes to see it converted intoa “major leisure site”, possibly focus-ing on watersports.

He pointed out that, while manyother towns have already developedtheir waterfronts, his town stilloffers opportunities for cannydevelopers looking for river views.

Next, we headed to New BridgeRoad. Areas around the motorwayjunctions in Ellesmere Port are lib-erally dotted with industrial andoffice units of all sizes.

“Wherever you look, there’s busi-nesses,” said Mee. “It’s amazing.”

Mee has ambitious hopes ofattracting more such firms.

Vauxhall, for example, says itwould like to see more componentsmanufacturers based around itsEllesmere Port site.

Mee said: “One of our big ambit-ions is to get an automotive accessor-ies and supplies park.”

Back on our car journey, we sawswathes of potential developmentland on New Bridge and SouthRoads. Mee said: “The land from hereis in local authority ownership,which we see hopefully as a futuretechnology park or an energy park.”

We continued down New BridgeRoad past the former Cabot Carbonsite, which is currently being decon-taminated. Mee said: “We think thesite has the potential for a businessor technical park.”

As Mee drove, we discussed therole of the Development Board, whichwas launched in August last year.

Its board includes representativesfrom Peel, Vauxhall, and CWAC, aswell as college principal Sara Mogeland the town’s MP, Andrew Miller.

For Mee, the board’s public-privatemix is crucial.

He said: “One of the successes ofthe board so far has been acting as aprivate-focused body between theauthorities and the companies look-ing to move to the area.

“Certainly with things likeRegatta, things have moved veryquickly. We were able to meet withthem straight away.

“Hopefully, showing a united frontwill help us to attract businesses. Wego the extra mile.”

On the other side of Junction 10,we headed to Cheshire Oaks wherethe under-construction M&S storecame into view.

“That store really is quite a size,”smiled Mee, as we drove intoCheshire Oaks.

Mee sees Cheshire Oaks, theregion’s biggest value shopping des-tination, as a symbol of the town.

He said: “It fits with the benefits ofEllesmere Port. The commercial andindustrial message is that it’s valuefor money. The land is value formoney. The retail and office offeringsare really good value for money.”

Next, we headed past M&S andback along Stanney Lane to the towncentre – where developments includea £3m extension at the Port Arcadesshopping centre.

One of the board’s next tasks, said

profile

Spreadingthegoodnewsaboutregion’shiddenbusinessgemTHE best way to understandEllesmere Port’s regeneration is tosee it for yourself. And you couldn’tfind a better tour guide than theenthusiastic Robert Mee, a proudambassador for a town on the up.

Mee, a former banker, becamechairman of Ellesmere Port Devel-opment Board last year.

The body, set up by Cheshire Westand Chester Council (CWAC), ischarged with promoting the town asa great place in which to live, workand invest. For Mee, its message isclear – Ellesmere Port, often over-shadowed by its larger neighbours, isa hidden success story.

Recent successes include thedecision by outdoor clothing special-ist Regatta to site a distributioncentre in the town, creating 200 jobs,while engineering firm Hertel is alsoexpanding its presence there.

Cheshire Oaks remains one of theregion’s most popular visitor destin-ations – and it will grow still furthernext year with the opening of thelargest Marks & Spencer store out-side London.

Essar Energy, the new owner of theStanlow oil refinery, has pledgedmore investment in the site, whilethe Vauxhall plant goes fromstrength to strength, thanks to thesuccess of the new Astra.

And the board wants to turn thetown’s overlooked waterfront into amagnet for visitors and residents.

To demonstrate Ellesmere Port’ssuccess, Mee decided he would driveme around the town, rather thansimply meeting me in an office.

And, as we drove away fromEllesmere Port station, Mee said hewanted to get the message out to theregion that the town was thriving.

“Our role is economic develop-ment,” he said. “But the real focus isimproving perceptions of the town.”

We headed towards the waterfrontNational Waterways Museum, acrossthe M53.

“This is one of our issues – gettingfrom the main part of town to thewaterfront,” said Mee. “We have themotorway dissecting the town, andthat will always be the case. We’vegot the transport people at the coun-cil looking at what they can do.”

We stepped out of the car, in a briefhiatus in the hail, to look out overthe waterfront and an Easyjet planelanding across the Mersey.

And Mee pointed out the land tothe north west along the Ship Canal,where developer Peel Land and Prop-erty plans to convert a chunk of thedockside into a “residential, leisureand tourist destination” through itsEllesmere Quays project.

The museum is the main attrac-tion on the waterfront – but, becauseit is fenced off, people cannot walkfrom the town or from nearby apart-ments to the water itself.

The situation frustrates Mee, buthe hopes it is close to a resolution.

He is in discussions with themuseum and Peel over ways to makethe museum free to enter. That couldinclude opening up vacant water-front units to provide the museumwith a new source of income.

AlistairHoughtongoesforadrivewithROBERTMEE,chairmanofEllesmerePortDevelopmentBoard

LDPbusiness .co.uk

Robert Mee, in New Bridge Road,Ellesmere Port – an areaearmarked for development

Picture: STUART BOGG

q&a

INASSOCIATION

WITH


the town,” said Mee, as we drove intoits car park. “You can see this cross-roads is a significant part of ourframework.

“We have the new academy goingup, the civic buildings at the side,and Whitby Road with the shopsgoing down to the station.”

We jumped from the car andheaded into the college’s rotunda.Sitting at a table near the coffee bar,watching college students in festiveoutfits running a Christmas fair, Meesaid the new college and its focus onvocational education would inspire anew generation of workers.

He said: “I bring visitors anddevelopers here so they can see theaspirations we have for the town.They can see we’re serious.”

And finally we moved on to Meehimself. Nottingham-born Mee spent

his career in financial services –though, given the current climate, hejokes: “I tell people I used to be anestate agent”.

He spent 30 years with the Bank ofScotland group, moving to Chester in1981 to work for its Capital Bankarm. He rose to become managingdirector of Capital before heading toEdinburgh to become chief executiveof Bank of Scotland’s retail division.

He left in 2002, following its mer-ger with Halifax, and spent time asnon-executive director of other fin-ancial services companies, includingCheshire Building Society.

Mee, who lives in Mollington, tookup his unpaid role in Ellesmere Portin August.

“It’s taking up three days a weekso far,” he said, “and some weeks it’severy day. But it’s different and I’mreally enjoying it.”

We toured the college, seeing itskitchens for catering students, itsprofessional hair and beauty salon,and even a fully fitted-out airplanecabin where students train to beflight attendants.

And we looked out over EllesmerePort from the top of the rotunda,before descending along the spiralramp that runs around the inside ofthe building.

The college overlooks an often-overlooked town. But, if Mee has hisway, Ellesmere Port is about to strideinto the spotlight.

Highest educational qualificat-ion: Fellow of the Chartered Inst-itute of Bankers in ScotlandBest advice received: Treat allpeople in your business the same,whether the junior in the postroom or the senior teamBiggest achievement/ biggestregret: When I was appointed aschief executive of the retail divisionof Bank of Scotland, that was a

proud moment. But the biggest dis-appointment was that the mergerwith HBOS came 18 months laterand it wasn’t for me. I left at thatpointStill to achieve: It would be ter-rific if, in a few years’ time, theyoung people at school inEllesmere Port had a fantasticvariety of jobs available to themwhen they leave education


Liverpoolrailservicesgetthousandsofextraseats

On the right lines with seating, from left: Merseytravel chief executive and director general NeilScales; chairman Mark Dowd; and Northern Rail regional director Lee Wasnidge; with driver AdamOwen-Smith in the background

ReciproCityschemeaimstocutwasteandhelpcommunities

PKFinmedicalawardhonour

A NEW recycling venturewhich could be rolled outacross the UK has launched onthe Wirral.

ReciproCity Wirral sells sur-plus construction materials tocharities and community pro-jects for less than half the retailprice.

Working with the web-basedbusiness Recipro, launched byLes Owens in 2008, the new ser-vice on Bromborough’s Green-fields Technology Park allowsgood causes, such as schools,charities, scout groups or youthclubs, to register their projectalong with a “wish list” ofmaterials.

Construction companies canpay for the service to take their

waste or surplus materialswhich reduces landfill costsand is detailed in comprehens-ive carbon and waste reductionreports.

Some firms are also usingthe service as an outlet for end-of-line, slow moving orreturned stock, such asnational merchant, Travis Per-kins, which has donated 150litres of paint through its DIYretail business, Wickes.

John Leader, Travis Perkinsgroup environment manager,said: “There are clear environ-mental, social and financialbenefits for all parties involved,which fits perfectly with ourstrategy of creating a sustain-able competitive advantage for

the whole Travis PerkinsGroup”

Les Owens said: “With abackground of 35 years in theconstruction industry, I under-stand the necessity of what weare doing as Recipro.

“As the largest producer ofwaste in the country, the con-struction industry needs towork together at all levels toensure it is working towardsreducing carbon and waste, andRecipro provides a unique ser-vice to allow companies to dothis.

“By bringing in the com-munity aspect as we have, wecan also help businesses withtheir corporate responsibilityobligations.”

RAIL operators are adding thousandsof extra seats to Lime Street servicesto boost passenger capacity.

Northern Rail, which links the citywith the North East and is run bySerco and Abellio, who also run theMerseyrail franchise, has introduced50 additional carriages across its net-work through a Department for Trans-port rolling stock programme.

It will add seating capacity to 20% ofNorthern’s major urban centrepeak-time trains.

Northern Rail regional director LeeWasnidge said: “Overcrowding hasbeen one of the biggest challenges wehave faced, and one of the biggestcauses of complaint for passengers.

“Thanks to the additional carriages,we will be providing 84,000 extra seatsper year for Merseyside during thepeak hours.

“We know that these extra carriageswill not eradicate overcrowding, butwill certainly provide significantlyimproved journeys for our customersfrom their introduction.”

The new services were waved off atLime Street by transport authoritychief executive and director generalNeil Scales and chairman, Cllr MarkDowd, who said: “Any additionalcapacity on the route is good news,and we continue to work hard with allour partners to secure better servicesinto and out of this area.”

Northern re-opened the Allerton raildepot earlier this month, creatingalmost 50 new jobs, to maintain theextra rolling stock.

As part of the increase in capacityby the Government, East MidlandsTrains has added an extra 1,500 seats aday on its services between Liverpool,Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester.

It means an additional 10 trainsevery weekday on the busy Notting-ham-Sheffield-Liverpool route will be

strengthened to provide double theseating capacity.

Next year, Virgin Trains, which hasbroken the 30m passenger milestoneon its West Coast Main Line linkwhich serves the Liverpool to Londonroute, will add an extra four Pendolinotrains and 31 carriages – which will

mean an extra 150 standard class seatson each of its trains.

Rail minister Theresa Villiers said:“The Government is determined totackle overcrowding and provide bet-ter, more comfortable journeys, whichis why we are funding this extra capac-ity.

“We are now embarked on one of thebiggest programmes of rail capacityexpansion since the Victorian era.

“In total, we plan to introduce 2,700new rail carriages on to the networkby May, 2019. These vital improve-ments will support economic growthand make life better for passengers.”


ACCOUNTANTS and business advisers PKFhave been named Accountants of the Year atthe General Practice Awards 2011.

The awards showcase the achievements ofindividuals such as practice managers andGPs, as well as the work of private sector busi-nesses in the primary healthcare sector.

Hilary Sharpe, a partner and member ofPKF’s healthcare team, said: “This award isone of the highlights of what has been a verybusy and successful past 12 months.

“I am delighted that PKF’s expertise andadvice to GP practices and other primary careorganisations has been recognised.”

Brian Ricketts, medical partner at PKF’s Liv-erpool office, added: “We hope to build on thissuccess in 2012 and look forward to continuingto assist our clients across the North West andthe rest of the country in developing their prac-tices and new commissioning and providerbusinesses in the future.”

LIVERPOOL’S oldestmanufacturing firm,RS Clare, has won itsfifth award of the year.

The Toxteth lubric-ants manufacturer wastriumphant in thechemical/ pharmaceut-ical category of theInsider InternationalAwards, held at theLowry Hotel, inManchester, last week.

Chairman Ian Mead-ows said the company’slatest awards successwas a fitting end to arecord year: “Sales areup 25%, as are exportsand the number ofpeople employed.”

RS Clare inawards joy

[email protected]

INASSOCIATION

WITH


C&C wins£3.5m ofkitchencontractsA CHESTER cateringequipment firm haswon contracts worth£3.5m over the pastthree months.

C&C Catering Equip-ment has won deals fornew build and refur-bishment kitchen andservice facility con-tracts with some of theUK’s leading organisa-tions.

Projects include therecent award for cater-ing service areas andkitchens at Google’snew HQ building inLondon, a projectwhich is valued at morethan £900,000.

Work is also underway on the major refur-bishment of the CafeRoyal, in Regent Street,London, which is beingconverted into a160-room luxury hotel.

C&C is also workingon a large scheme forkitchens, servery andcoldrooms at OxfordBrookes University, and,closer to its home basein Chester, it is alsoworking on its secondscheme for the ChesterGrosvenor Hotel,owned by the Duke ofWestminster.

C&C managing dir-ector, Peter Kitchin,said: “There’s a greatdeal of doom and gloomaround in the economy,but we’re doing ourbest to fight this des-pondency.

“There is businessout there and manycompanies are invest-ing in new equipmentand facilities.

“Alongside thesemajor blue-chipschemes, we’re alsoseeing activity on smal-ler projects.”


New NWchiefnamed atRedrow■ SCOTSMAN SandyMcBride has beenappointed to head uphousebuilder Redrow’sNorth West division asmanaging director.

Previously Redrow’smanaging director inScotland, he has trans-ferred to the company’sUK headquarters at

Ewloe, Flintshire. Hesaid: “Redrow is anaward-winningdeveloper and a marketleader, and I amdelighted with theopportunity to take upa new challenge withinthe business.”

■ LIVERPOOL healthand social care charityPSS has appointed twonew trustees.

Angela Jones wasmost recently chair ofthe Alder Hey Chil-dren’s NHS Foundation

Trust, while HilaryBerg is a brand andcommunications spe-cialist who has workedon nationally knownbrands in both the cor-porate and not-for-profit sectors.

■ ANDREW BUTCHERis the new chief oper-ating officer of privatewealth group RathboneBrothers.

He joins the execut-ive team from CharlesStanley, where he wasalso COO, and will takeover from PaulChavasse who becomesRathbones’ head ofinvestment manage-ment early next year.

Maintenancefirms‘couldbenefitfromUKGreenDeal’ENVIRONMENTAL organisat-ion Groundwork Merseysidehas given its backing to a Gov-ernment plan to help peopleinsulate their homes.

The “green deal”,announced last month byenergy secretary ChrisHuhne, aims to help insulatemillions of homes in the UK,reducing the country’s carbon

emissions while helping fam-ilies save on their energybills.

Families insulating theirhomes under the Green Dealcould earn a £150 grant, whilethe Government also hopesthe scheme will boost buildingand maintenance firms thathave been hit hard by therecession.

Tony Seasman, marketingand communications managerat Groundwork Merseyside,said: “We welcome thisannouncement because themeasures are practical,simple and give an opportun-ity to educate people to under-stand just how much energyand money they are wasting.

“Also, bringing energy effic-

iency to 14m homes will givestruggling maintenance con-tractors a welcome boost,create jobs and benefit theeconomy and community. Wesupport initiatives thatachieve economic, environ-mental and social benefit.

“Our hope with this init-iative is that it must reachthose who need it most.

“Fuel poverty is a hugeproblem where a number offactors can contribute tohouseholds spending morethan 10% of their householdincome on fuel. Those factorsare household income, cost ofenergy and thirdly the energyefficiency of the property –which the Green Deal canaddress.”

Business intheCommunitycall VATdeadline

City’sACCvenueshailsharpriseinrevenue


HM REVENUE and Customs has warned thatVAT rule-breakers have until December 31 tocomplete the VAT registration process under atime-limited campaign.

HMRC launched a VAT initiative in July inwhich rule-breakers were offered a special planto put right their tax affairs. Those who accep-ted must now register before December 31.

BUSINESS in the Communityhas called on firms across theregion to enter its annualAwards for Excellence thatrecognise responsible busi-nesses.

Last year, eight North Westcompanies were recognised in

the national awards, includingWarrington-based water com-pany United Utilities andNewton-le-Willows plant hirefirm Speedy.

Raksha Pattni, regional dir-ector of Business in the Com-munity, said: “As friction

between communities andbusiness continues to domin-ate the headlines, it’s time toshowcase that business can bea force for good.”■ APPLY via www.bitc.org.uk/NWawards beforeMonday, March 5, 2012.

on themove

Hilary Berg

Board meeting: Mike Scott, left, business partner at Yorkshire Bank inLiverpool, and Mersey Timber managing director Terry Stephens

Timberfirmsettogrow

KIRKBY-BASED kit-chen and bedroom chip-board supplier, MerseyTimber, is launching anew e-commerce busi-ness after a £500,000finance package fromYorkshire Bank.

The family-run firmhas developed four newwebsite stores to sell itsrange of melamine-faced chipboard shelvesand doors, and the fin-ance package will be

invested in new stock.Mersey Timberemploys 32 staff sellingto the trade and publicand has trebledturnover to £3.2m inthe past decade.

Managing directorTerry Stephens, whoruns the business withhis wife, Kathleen,said: “The industry hasreally changed in thepast 10 years. Gone arethe days of simply

offering a choice ofoak, beech and pinewoods. People are nowlooking for a greaterrange, and that’s whywe have opened ouronline stores.”

Andrew James, man-aging partner at York-shire Bank, in Liver-pool, said: “This is aperfect example of abusiness spotting aquality growth oppor-tunity.”

INASSOCIATION

WITH


THE company that runs Liver-pool’s BT Convention Centre andEcho Arena has announced asharp rise in turnover for its lastfinancial year.

The figures reflect a busy yearof events, including high-profilepolitical party conferences.

The Kings Dock venues recor-ded a turnover of £14.5m for theyear to March, compared to justover £13m for the previous 12-month period.

ACC Liverpool also reported anet profit of just under £250,000.

Bob Prattey, ACC Liverpoolchief executive, said: “To exper-ience an increase in turnover inthe current climate is extremelyencouraging, not only for ACCLiverpool but for the entire cityregion which benefits from ourvisitors and the events, which westage to the tune of £100m eachyear.

“Since opening in 2008, ACCLiverpool has established itself asa leading UK venue, with high-profile events including Septem-ber’s Labour Party Conferenceand December’s up-coming PaulMcCartney homecoming concertproving that 2011 has beenanother fantastic year.

“The development of our Exhib-

ition Centre in 2014 will allow usto target new regional, nationaland international markets to fur-ther aid our growth as a businessand increase our economicstrength and profile as a world-class city.”

During the last financial year,ACC Liverpool welcomed 655,032people through its doors. Otherhigh-profile events included theLiberal Democrat party confer-ence, the National Union of Teach-ers annual congress, the BritishDental Association and the NHSConfederation.

The Echo Arena hosted singersRod Stewart and Rihanna,comedian John Bishop, a 22-dayrun of the hit musical MammaMia!, the 15th Anniversary MoboAwards and Channel 4’s Famousand Fearless.

ACC Liverpool also yesterdayannounced that it has beefed upits marketing team with theappointment of former journalistNicky Hunter, as it takes the rolein-house for the first time since itopened its doors for business in2008.

Mrs Hunter, 34, was previouslysenior account manager at NorthWest public relations agencyPaver Smith.

She also has more than eightyears’ experience as a journalistat regional and national titles,including the Liverpool Echo andSport Newspapers.

Sandy McBride

[email protected]




Musicfirmlooksoverseasafterbankfundingboost

Sentric has worked with artists including Liverpool’s Sound of Guns, above

AUGHTON-BASEDrenewable energy heat-ing specialist Dalliamhas appointed StephenGurney to the board.

His background is inthe sustainable build-ing sector and he joinsfellow directors BillTyrer and Chris Sharpat the firm, whereturnover has almostquadrupled this year.

Mr Sharp said:“Everyone’s been talk-ing about solar PVrecently with thechanges in funding anda rush to cash in, butwe’ve seen much moresteady and sustainablegrowth in our special-ist areas – solar waterheating and air sourceand ground source heatpumps.”

Dalliam is seeing par-ticular growth in sup-plying air source heatpump heating systemsto the social housingsector and recent pro-jects have includedBeechwood Court, atSkelmersdale, andBeech Properties, inManchester.

Sunnyfuture forDalliam

INASSOCIATION

WITH


MUSIC royalties specialistSentric Music has secured fund-ing to support its growth in theUK and overseas.

Sentric, based in Liverpool’sSeymour Street, helps bands andmusicians to collect royaltiesfrom concerts and airplay.

The firm already represents18,000 artists and has a cat-alogue of 50,000 tracks.

It has now received a £130,000loan from Royal Bank of Scot-land (RBS), through the Govern-ment’s Enterprise FinanceGuarantee scheme, and will usethat cash to recruit staff anddevelop its software.

Sentric was founded six yearsago by Chris Meehan and PhilCooper, both graduates of theLiverpool Institute for Perform-ing Arts.

It has developed its own soft-ware so artists can register theirsongs and gigs online. Sentricthen ensures they receive any

royalties due for their work. Italso provides synchronisationservices, where it places itsartists’ music on television or invideo games.

Sentric has started workingwith artists in France and Ger-many, and is looking to offer itsservices to other countries.

Mr Meehan said: “We’re con-tinuing to experience significantgrowth and have already signedup more than 10,000 new artiststhis year. We’re confident ofattracting more artists in theUK and also see good opportun-ities to expand in severalEuropean countries.

“We have made this invest-ment to ensure that our infra-structure keeps pace with thegrowth of the business.”

Steve Taylor, senior relation-ship manager at RBS, said:“Sentric’s directors have taken aproactive approach to grow thebusiness by investing in newstaff and technology.

“We are very happy to sup-port their plans and welcomethem as a new client of thebank.”

byAlistairHoughtonLDPBUSINESSSTAFFalistair.houghton@liverpool.com

Advertising Feature Independent financial advice

Time to concentrate on thethings you can influenceGLYN JONES, of Vale FinancialServices, recalls that when aclever man wrote the following acouple of weeks ago – “Ignoreevents over which you have nocontrol” – he was referring towhat might happen to the euro orWall Street, and advised us to con-centrate on our own business andlife.

“In other words, concentrate onthings you can influence,” saysGlyn.

He says perhaps not manyworry about the so-called “bigevents”, but they certainly tend todominate the news headlines andhe does remember he may havementioned this before!

Glyn says he believes that somepeople do take responsibility fortheir own finances, while otherscan be put off by the constantdoom and gloom about the “stateof the economy”.

And, as Richard Jones wrote inlast month’s IFA page, he feels it isimportant to seek advice whendealing with your pensions atmaturity or equity release and itis equally important, earlier on, tomake sure families are protectedin the event of the death of abreadwinner, and that moneyinvested for retirement is workingfor you.

Glyn says, if you have accum-

ulated several pension plans overthe years, you should check to seeif the charges are competitive, assome older plans are still based onold-style charging structures andcould benefit from a review.

He reports that, when he was in

Chester recently, there was littlesign of “austerity”.

Says Glyn: “Perhaps the wordhas lost its meaning since the daysof rationing! Not that I rememberthem, but it strikes me that beingtold how much food you can buy

must have been harder to copewith than whether you can afforda plasma television!”

He stresses that, if you haveinsurances against loss of incomedue to accident or illness, try tomaintain them; it’s often thecornerstone underpinning yourfinancial well-being that is easiestto cancel.

And he goes on: “If you need orwant to save income tax and cansee yourself on the big screen, howabout investing in an EnterpriseInvestment Scheme which couldcreate films. They are risky invest-ments but, in addition to the taxrelief, you can visit the set andpossibly be used as an extra.

“There’s no rule which says youcan’t combine investment withsome fun. Somewhere betweenthese examples lies the possiblyboring but essential path to a com-fortable retirement, that is, reg-ular saving for the longer term.”

He adds: “I wish you all a veryMerry Christmas and a HappyNew Year.

“Here’s a resolution for you –contact one of us for a review ofyour finances and start the NewYear with a clear head!”■ VALE Financial Services is atrading style of pi Financial Serv-ices, which is authorised by theFinancial Services Authority.

There’s norule whichsays youcan’tcombineinvestmentwith somefun – GlynJones, ofValeFinancialServices,Denbigh

IndependentFinancial Advisersin your area

Anglesey

Security Financial ServicesTy Llwyd, Llanfaelog,Ty Croes, Anglesey LL63 5TY

Contact: Richard JonesEmail [email protected]

Phone: 01407 811268Mobile: 07710 468970

Denbighshire

Vale Financial [email protected]

Studio One,Town Hall, Crown Lane, Denbigh LL16 3TBTel: 01745 814962 Fax: 01745 814446

Contact: Glyn B. [email protected]

Liverpool

Investec Wealth& Investment

The Plaza, 100 Old Hall Street, Liverpool L3 9AB.Tel: 0151 227 2030. Fax: 0151 227 2444Email: [email protected]

Website: www.investecwin.co.ukContact: Paul Brokenshar

Why choose an independent financial adviserBecause it pays to take an unbiased view

Those listed above are either an appointed representative of a networkor national which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services

Authority or are directly authorised and regulated


LEDlightingfirmwinsbackingforUKmove

Mistaketo leavefinancialeducation inthehandsofourteachers

A WIRRAL maker and installer ofLED lighting systems has securedpublic funding as it looks to movemanufacturing back to the UKfrom China.

UKLED is to spend £80,000 on itsWirral facility with Invest Wirralcontributing £20,000 to the project.

The preparation work willinvolve investment in newmachinery and adapting existing

premises to suit the new product.The move to manufacture in theUK is part of £300,000 investmentprogramme by UKLED to establishthe company as a leading supplier.

UKLED focuses on the so-called“re-lamping” market and workswith public and private sectororganisations across the UK.

Re-lamping is the re-modellingof an existing commercial lightingsystem by replacing existing bulbsand tubes with an LED equivalent.

The firm claims the process is“significantly” less expensive thanreplacing light fittings that will

still be serviceable for many yearsto come.

It has been contracting out theproduction of the tubes to China-based factories, but LDP Businessreported in October that produc-tion would return to the UK. Thiswill mean an increase in jobs atWirral LED from four to 12, withproduction starting next month.

Director Mike Parker said: “Wehave had fantastic support fromthe Invest Wirral team and thereceipt of grant funding is testi-mony to their belief in ourproduct.”

Cllr Phil Davies, Wirral Coun-cil’s cabinet member for regener-ation and planning strategy, said:“I was extremely pleased and inter-ested to visit the UKLED manu-facturing facility in Bromborough,and to meet managing directorMike Parker and his team to dis-cuss how the council’s BusinessInvestment Grant has made a pos-itive difference to the company.

“It is using the knowledge andexperience that they’ve gainedfrom working with the Chinese tocreate jobs and investment here inWirral.”



TOMORROW afternoon, MPs willdebate the issue of financial educ-ation in schools after a petitionreached the magic 100,000 signat-ures, which triggers a Parliamentarydebate.

The petition called on the Govern-ment to “make financial education acompulsory part of the school cur-riculum”, a measure which has alsobeen recommended this week in areport by the All-Party Parliament-ary Group on Financial Educationfor Young People.

As well as the anticipated benefitsto individuals, and society, of a fin-ancially-literate generation, theauthors believe such lessons will“help equip the workforce with thenecessary skills to succeed in busi-ness and drive economic growth”.

Although my company works inschools around the UK delivering fin-ancial education through a hands-on

classroom simulation, I am not oneof the 107,000 people who have signedthe petition.

Being on the curriculum is not theend in itself, it is merelyone possible way of creat-ing a financially-literategeneration.

A planned programme offinancial education wouldcreate consumers whoappreciate the benefits andrisks of the transactionsand agreements they enterinto, would add subtlety totheir understanding of differenttypes of debt (like radiation, not alldebt is bad), and would give them the

tools to manage their finances. Butthere is no reason why teachers,untrained in the subject, should bethe people to deliver these life les-

sons. In my experience,their understanding of theproblems, issues and, moreimportantly, solutions areas weak and incoherent asthe rest of the population.

The other issue is whatwould be taught. Knowingwhat ATM stands for orbeing able to recite a defin-ition of what a fixed rate

mortgage is may have its uses, butthey are fairly limited.

Of greater value is to grasp the

simple, but profound, idea that youmust find a way to fund whateveraspirations you have for yourself.

It doesn’t matter whether that les-son comes from teachers, parents,sermons, or scouts and guides – as asociety, it is in our best interests forit to be taught. But putting financialeducation on the curriculum willhave the same impact as making awish to be a millionaire and tossinga coin into the Trevi Fountain. Therewill be a few ripples to begin with,but it’s not a reliable way to get rich.

‘Beingoncurriculumisnotanendinitself’

InsurancebrokerinrecruitmentdriveascompanygrowsLIVERPOOL insurancebroker Butterworth Spen-gler is reporting 28% growthfor the year ending October,2011.

The firm has alsoannounced a series of pro-motions and a major recruit-ment drive for 2012 – and isplanning a move shortly tolarger premises.

Earlier this year, the firmwas awarded an exclusivedeal to reduce LiverpoolChamber members’ businessinsurance costs.

Butterworth Spengler hasbeen trading in Liverpoolsince1924, and has enjoyedsteady growth even throughthe recent recession.

Director Gary Spenglersaid: “The Liverpool Cham-ber of Commerce deal hasworked well for everyoneconcerned.

“Through our businessdevelopment pipeline fur-ther afield, we’ve also man-aged to boost our portfolio,especially in the region, bycutting Merseyside businessinsurance costs by up to 40%in many instances.”

Mr Spengler also revealedthat four new associate dir-ectors had been created fol-lowing the sustained periodof growth.

From left: The Liverpool Butterworth Spengler team – James Jaycock, Alan Tune, Andy Thomson, MarkRobinson and Peter Gee

byTonyMcDonoughLDPDEPUTYBUSINESSEDITORtony.mcdonough@liverpool.com

■ ALEX TURNER is the general man-ager of financial training firmAmbitious Minds

INASSOCIATION

WITH


AlexTurner

MP toursRetailAcademyKNOWSLEY MPGeorge Howarth hasvisited KnowsleyTraining Academy,which aims to help1,500 people gain jobsin the retail sectorthrough its RetailAcademy.

Mr Howarth touredthe 10,500 sq ft “shop-ping mall” at theKnowsley BusinessPark facility providinghands-on training,from customer serviceto stock control, cashhandling and healthand safety at work.

Since opening inSeptember, nearly 200people have taken uptraining and from thefirst 45 to complete thecourse, 38 secured jobinterviews with 23 tak-ing up full-time or part-time employment.

Mr Howarth said:“The Academy is a wel-come addition to train-ing provision in theborough, and I hope itwill be a real success.”

The Leading Provider ofVoice and Internet Services

Call: 0800 952 9595or visit www.idsi.co.uk

*Terms and conditions apply

Replace your oldtelephone systemfor a new oneInstall the 5000HX systemfrom iDS before the end of April 2012and benefit from a suite ofsoftware featuresand one year’smaintenance,worth £2,500included free*.


Whyis theEastdoingbetterthantheWest?

Fears for futurTheaviation industryhasvowedtocontinueits fightagainstairpassengerduty.NeilHodgson reports

LDPbusiness .co.ukLDPbusiness .co.uk

AIRLINES and airport operators will con-tinue to lobby the coalition Governmentfor changes to air passenger duty (APD),even though they are “banging our headsagainst a wall” according to the owner ofLiverpool John Lennon Airport (JLA).

Craig Richmond, chief executive ofJLA parent Peel Airports, fears a con-tinued decline of the aviation industry inthe face of the coalition and Treasury’sintransigence on APD, introduced in 1994for flights originating in the UK.

Chancellor George Osborne confirmedin his Autumn Statement last month thatthe proposed 8% increase in APD nextApril will be implemented, despiteintense lobbying by airport operators andthe “big four” airlines of Ryanair,Easyjet, Virgin and the former BritishAirways (BA), now International AirlinesGroup after its merger with Spanish car-rier Iberia.

Under the new rates, from April nextyear, passengers in economy class flyingno farther than 2,000 miles from the UKwill see their APD rise from £12 to £13.

In the next band up – covering flightsfrom 2,001 to 4,000 miles – economy pas-senger APD will rise from £60 to £65,while those flying economy on tripsbetween 4,001 and 6,000 miles will seetheir tax rise from £75 to £81.

APD for economy passengers on flightsof more than 6,000 miles (such as trips toAustralia) will find their APD rising from£85 to £92 in April, 2012.

APD for passengers in business classand first class will range from £26 on theshortest trips to as much as £184 on thelongest ones from April.

Last week, the Treasury issued itsresponse to consultations on the reviledAPD, claiming: “The Government hasbeen consistent that the aviation sectormust play its part in reducing the deficitand restoring the public finances.”

This ignited a furious response fromairlines and airport operators who inter-preted it as a clear indication that pre-vious claims by the Government thatAPD was an “environmental” tax to com-bat the effects of aircraft CO² emissionswere a charade, particularly as APD willnow create a double whammy for trav-ellers after the introduction next monthof the European Union’s (EU) emissionstrading scheme that will almost certainlybe passed on via higher ticket prices.

Canadian-born Mr Richmondsays he despairs at the coalitionGovernment’s attitude to APD.“It’s crazy to say ‘fewer peopleare flying, let’s tax them moreanyway’,” he said.

And Mr Richmond said theUK’s stance on air tax was con-trary to most other countriesthat have either refused to intro-duce it, or axed or reduced exist-ing taxes.

He said: “Most countries treasure theiraviation industry because it is such animportant part of business and tourism,and I just don’t get that feeling here.”

Mr Richmond also highlighted theapparent unfairness of taxes fromaviation being used to pay for other formsof transport, such as the proposed HighSpeed Rail 2 project, and other railschemes.

He said: “We pay a lot of tax besides,and saying it is our duty to pay APD isfine, but money goes out of our industryand into other industries, ie, rail.

“Why doesn’t rail pay its fair share?“I wonder what people would feel if

they got on a train at Lime Street andtheir ticket said ‘£10 of this goes to theairport’? It goes in subsidies to other

transport.”There is also a feeling that

aviation is the Treasury’s newcash cow, and Mr Richmondadded: “There is no love lostbetween Ryanair, Easyjet, BAand Virgin in the businessworld, but they’re all sayingthis is a big mistake.

“Our tax is eight times theworld average.

“Everyone knows we’re heading into avery difficult time. If we avoid a secondrecession we will be pretty lucky, andthere will be effects from that, but Iwould point out that in countries thatdon’t have this (tax) they have seengrowth (in air travel and tourism).”

Ryanair chief executive MichaelO’Leary estimates that APD has led to30m fewer overseas visitors to the UKover the past five years.

Mr Richmond also warned that pun-itive taxes could cause passenger num-bers to fall, leading to airlines concen-trating on countries without APD. Hesaid: “Ryanair has taken 20% of its capac-ity out of the UK, and even BA will baseaircraft in Madrid through their ties withIberia. We talk about businesses withmobile assets – these are the most mobileassets in the world, and I would be ter-rified if I was an MP.”

In the meantime, he said the airportwill continue to try and persuade theChancellor to reconsider. He added: “Iworry that the decline of the air industrywill continue. It is going to be a gradualdecline that hurts everybody.

“We’re going to continue lobbying. Wewill just keep on trying to show the worthof the aviation industry.

“But will the Government listen? Idon’t know. Clearly not yet. We’rebanging our heads against a wall.”

Easyjet, the biggest operator by pas-senger numbers at Liverpool JLA,insisted it, too, will continue to press thecase against APD.

Corporate affairs manager AndrewMcConnell said: “We are going to con-tinue our campaign to encourage theGovernment to produce an independent

IF YOU look at the sea-sonal bustle aroundChurch Street and Liver-pool One, and all thequeues of traffic formingat city centre car parks,you could be forgivenfor doubting the validityof all the economicdoom and gloom thatthe official statistics por-tray.

Yet the fact is the retailsector has been verybadly affected by the cur-rent economic slowdown.Consumers are holdingback on their Christmasspending as they seek tocarefully conserve theirresources due to theuncertain jobs market.

The outlook for thejobs market in the UKformed the subject of anintriguing report com-piled by recruitmentagency Manpower. Theagency’s quarterly sur-vey found that employersin the North West werethe most pessimisticabout their recruitmentintentions next year.

Indeed, the surveyfound an unexpectedEast-West split affectingEngland, and Manpowersaid that a line could bedrawn down the centre ofthe country from theScottish border to theSouth coast. Employersto the west of the linewere pessimistic, whilethose to the east wereoptimistic.

Manpower was unableto provide any insightinto why this should beso. Clearly, we wouldexpect the most optim-istic region to be theSouth East, but whyshould the North East bemore optimistic than theNorth West?

Another East-Westsplit emerged last week,this time on a globalscale. The economists atStandard Chartered Bankpredict that the eurozonecrisis will subdue globaleconomic growth duringthe first half of 2012.However, they believeChina and Asia generallywill pick up strongly inthe second half of 2012,causing the rest of theworld, including the USand Europe, to showsome fresh signs of life.Fingers crossed the

bank’s economists areright about this.

I WASN’T altogether sur-prised to hear aboutMerseytravel chief exec-utive Neil Scales’sdecision to emigrate toBrisbane, where he willtake up a top job at thecity’s transport authority.

Such a move makesgood sense, and not justbecause the weather ismuch better and the paymuch higher.

Brisbane, Queenslandand many other places“Down Under” have notsuffered from the sameeconomic woes as Europeand America. The city’sproximity to boomingAsian markets – and thewealth of Australia’s min-eral resources that fuelthat boom – has contrib-uted to continuous econ-omic growth.

Brisbane’s optimism issuch that, in contrast tothe Manpower surveyalluded to above, employ-ers there expect to con-tinue recruiting, so muchso there is, in fact, asevere skills shortage.Australia’s doors remainopen to anybody withskills who would like tomove there.

Mr Scales said yester-day that the offer fromBrisbane was too good toturn down. Undoubtedlythis was true. It will havebeen a good offer. But Ialso wonder whetherpsychology played a role.

Western Europe is anextremely gloomy placeat the moment, making itall the easier to jump shipif a good offer comesalong from “Down Under”.

I can’t really commentabout Brisbane’s localpolitics, because I don’tknow the first thingabout it. What I do knowis that many people seeMerseyside as a frustrat-ing place, with lots ofnarrow interests gettingin the way of the biggerpicture.

Mr Scales experiencedthis frustration first-hand when he tried tobuild a tram network inLiverpool. There again,after 15 years in the job,perhaps he just felt it wastime to have some fun inthe sunshine.

BillGleeson

‘Ourtax iseighttimestheworldaverage’


Fears for future of UK aviation

Emissions trading schemepoised for January take-off

Craig Richmond, chief executiveof Liverpool John LennonAirport’s parent company PeelAirports Picture: GARETH JONES

Ryanair says APD is ‘disastrous’ for the UK economy

the big feature

study on the true economic value of APD.We still believe it is having a detrimentaleffect on the economy.”

And he urged the Treasury to followother European states and acknowledgethe damage the tax inflicts on aviation,saying: “It was having a detrimentaleffect in the Netherlands and wasscrapped, Germany is going to scrap it,Ireland is going to reduce it andNorthern Ireland is consideringscrapping it in its entirety. Thisis why we will continue ourchallenge to the Government topublish an independent report.”

But Mr McConnell warnedAPD will eventually have det-rimental consequences for UKtravellers and the economy, say-ing: “Airlines have alreadypulled routes and capacity.

“We don’t need to do that yet, but weare watching the situation very closely.”

Ryanair, the second-biggest operator atLiverpool JLA, was, as ever, pugnaciousin its reaction to April’s APD rise.

A spokesman said: “Like other UK air-lines, we are deeply concerned at theGovernment’s decision to furtherincrease APD – a tax on travel and fam-ilies – which will undoubtedly lead to

further flight, route, job and visitor cutsin the UK next year.

“It is about time the Treasury stoppedlying that this is an environmental meas-ure, when it is simply highway robbery.The Treasury’s line that ‘other Europeancountries apply similar travel taxes’ isuntrue, when Spain, Greece, Belgium andHolland have already scrapped these

taxes and Ireland has reducedits travel tax from 10 euros to 3euros per passenger.

“Like many other airlines, webelieve that the Treasury – ifthey had any intelligenceand/or felt the need to tax tour-ism – should apply this tax tohotels, B&Bs and restaurants,rather than flights, whichwould at least mean that tour-

ists would still visit the UK first, beforethey are taxed, rather than using thisdisastrous APD tax which is sending mil-lions of potential UK visitors to Spain,Italy, France and Portugal, where theydon’t pay these stupid travel taxes, andwhere they are frankly laughing at thestupidity of the UK Government’s failedtax and tourism policy.”

THE emissions trading scheme(ETS) comes into force acrossthe European Union (EU) nextmonth.

It rewards, or penalises, air-lines based on the amount ofcarbon emissions (CO²), orso-called “greenhouse gases”they are allowed.

It is proposed as an environ-mentally-friendly levy and themore fuel-efficient airlines, orthose operating newer fleets,should pay less.

The levy has applied to var-ious industries and sectorssince 2005, but from next yearit will now include the aviationindustry.

At the end of each year, oper-ators are required to accountfor their emissions from thepast year and to surrender thematching number of allow-ances to the competent author-ity, which is proposed to be thecountry that granted the oper-ating licence.

Depending on their actualemissions and their free alloc-ation of allowances, operatorshave the flexibility to buyadditional, or sell surplus,allowances.

Operators emitting morethan their allocated amount ofCO² will need to reduce emis-sions or – more likely – procureextra allowances.

The scheme will apply to allairlines, either passenger, cargoor private, flying to and fromthe EU.

It is estimated that ETS couldcost the aviation industry about£3bn a year.

Easyjet said it expects to payout about £14m under thescheme next year.

Airlines, while widely sup-portive of ETS, are, however,expected to pass the cost dir-ectly on to passengers throughticket price increases.

But this has been challengedin some quarters, with industryexperts arguing that, while APDis a tax targeted at passengers,ETS is not an excise duty, but alevy that aims to reward orpenalise airlines for exceedingor failing to meet carbon emis-sion standards.

Therefore, some argue, itshould not be “passable” topassengers because the penal-ties are meant for the airline,and not the passenger.

‘It isabouttimetheTreasurystoppedlying’

privatebusiness

KNOWSLEY firm Con-tract Chemicals hasintroduced newproducts to the marketas it bids to make upfor sales lost duringthe downturn.

The chemicals man-ufacturer says it made“solid progress” in theyear ending March 31,as it continued toinvest for growth des-pite a slowdown insales.

Accounts recentlyfiled at CompaniesHouse show turnoverfor the year stood at£19.3m – down from£20.4m the previousyear.

Pre-tax profits fellfrom £323,000 in 2010to £45,000 this year.

Ingredients made atContract Chemicals’Knowsley BusinessPark base are used inproducts from antibiot-ics to photographicpaper and salt and vin-egar potato crisps.

The group, whichwas founded in 1997and employs 81 people,generates more than60% of its turnoverfrom exports.

The directors’ reportsaid: “The group con-tinued with solid pro-gress in the year.

“Demand from theagrochemical sector,which has been buoy-ant in recent years,weakened markedlymid-way through theyear. Nevertheless, atotal of seven newproducts were success-fully introduced, help-ing to replace some ofthe lost demand andopen up new sectors forthe future.

“The single largestnew product introduc-tion is secured on afour-year supply con-tract and has aturnover in excess of£1m per annum.”

The report said thegroup’s product devel-opment arm was “at itsmost buoyant for sev-eral years”.

It added: “This canoften be the case fol-lowing sector or globalrecessionary timeswhere customer com-panies are inclined tooutsource much moreactively as a cautiousapproach is takenregarding internal cap-ital investments.”

ALISTAIR HOUGHTON

Chemicalsfirm staysbuoyant indownturn

INASSOCIATION

WITH


■ TRADING Gossip: Page 16


33rd year ofgrowth forDominoPRINTING tech-nologies firm Domino,whose services areused by the food,beverage and per-sonal care sectors,improved profits by10% to £57.4m in theyear to October 31,after a 33rd consecut-ive year of salesgrowth – up 5% to£314.1m.

Trading in emergingmarkets, the UK andGermany was posit-ive, offset by weakertrading in North Amer-ica, the Cambridge-based firm said.

Bunzl predictssales bonanzaGROCERY and retailand packaging firmBunzl, which has oper-ations in 23 countries,said revenues for 2011were expected to bemore than 6% higherthis year, with morethan half of this com-ing from organicgrowth.

It invested £185min 10 acquisitions overthe year.

Profits pledgeOIL and gas facilitiesservice provider Petro-fac has said it expectsto deliver like-for-likeprofits growth of atleast 20% in 2011,helped by a goodoperational perform-ance over the year.

The companyemploys 14,500people and is listed inthe FTSE 100 Index.

Nuclear jobsPOWER supplier EDFEnergy hasannounced £200m ofsupply chain contractsfor its new nucleardevelopments in theUK, including theselection of the Kierand Bam joint venturefor site preparationworks at Hinkley PointC, Somerset, creatingabout 350 UK jobs.

briefing



INASSOCIATION

WITH


ChamberchiefcallsformoreQEafter inflationfallsSUPERMARKET price warsand the falling cost of petrollast month helped push inflat-ion down further from itspeak, official figures revealed.

The Consumer Prices Index(CPI) rate of inflation fell to4.8% in November, the Officefor National Statistics said,compared with 5% the pre-vious month.

A Treasury spokesperson

said: “Price inflation camedown in November, and that isgood news for family budgets.

“The Bank of England andother forecasters expectinflation to keep falling overthe coming year, which willprovide additional relief.”

Liverpool Chamber of Com-merce chief executive JackStopforth said the fall willreinforce the case for more

Quantitative Easing (QE) bythe Bank of England.

He said: “The fall in inflat-ion was as expected and willaccelerate in the early monthsof 2012.

“The latest British Cham-bers of Commerce forecastpredicts inflation will fallfrom an average of 4.5% in2011, to 3.3% in 2012 and 2.0%in 2013. The fall in inflation

strengthens the case for anincrease in QE. The latest fig-ure should reassure the Mon-etary Policy Committee that itis correct to persevere withexpansionary measures.

“While an increase in QE isnecessary, it is not on its ownsufficient enough to supportgrowth in the economy.

“The Government mustsupplement any additional

QE with other measuresincluding the rapid imp-lementation of its credit eas-ing plans.

“In addition, moves toreduce regulation, and cutbusiness rate increases nextyear, which are currentlypegged to last September’speak inflation figure of 5.6%,would help businesses growand create jobs.”

Highstreetsatheartofcommunity,saysPortasA THIRD of high streets are “degen-erating or failing”, according to newGovernment research.

And, by 2014, less than 40% of retailspending will be on the high street,according to the study, which alsofound that, over the past decade,out-of- town retail floorspace hasincreased by almost a third, while intowns it has shrunk by 14%.

The findings were revealed along-side a Government-commissionedreport aimed at revitalising highstreets and shopping centres strug-gling to attract customers.

TV retail expert Mary Portas pro-posed a national market day and relax-ation of rules to stem shop closures.

She proposed new “town teams” toimprove the management of highstreets, more affordable car parkingand removal of red tape.

She said: “Our high streets are areally important part of pulling peopletogether in a way that a supermarketor shopping mall, however convenient,entertaining and slick, can’t.”

Prime Minister David Cameron saidthe Government will review thereport, which contains 28 recommend-ations, and respond next spring.

Ms Portas said: “Our high streetscan be lively, dynamic, exciting andsocial places that give a sense ofbelonging and trust to a community.

“Something which, as the recentriots clearly demonstrated, has beeneroded and in some instances erad-icated.

“I fundamentally believe that oncewe invest in and create social capitalin the heart of our communities, theeconomic capital will follow.

“Those who see high streets purelyin commercial terms need a realitycheck, because, without the engage-ment and collaboration of local people,many high streets will die and retail-ers, landlords and local authoritiesalike will see their investmentwasted.”

She said high streets had been “dis-placed” by out-of-town shoppingcentres, so people no longer felt theybelonged to towns.

She complained that many areashad been “clone towns” and said therecession was giving an opportunityto create something new.

The report revealed that the num-ber of town centre stores fell by anestimated 25,000 in the past 11 years,with almost one in six shops standingempty.

British Retail Consortium directorgeneral Stephen Robertson said:“We’re delighted that Mary Portasrecognises that town centres need toevolve as quickly as customerdemands change if they’re to remainrelevant.”

Dr Gary Warnaby, reader in mar-keting at the University of LiverpoolManagement School, said: “Thereview is to be welcomed – town and

city centres are, indeed, multi-func-tional spaces.

“However, the recommendation of‘town teams’ to create plans for thefuture development of individual highstreets seems to me to be very similarto the concept of town centre man-agement (TCM) which has beenaround since the early 1990s, and howsuch ‘town teams’ would dovetail withexisting urban management initiat-ives such as TCM and businessimprovement districts remains to beseen.”

Maresa Molloy, Liverpool Chamberof Commerce head of policy, said ofmore immediate concern was theplanned 5.6% increase in rates due to

take place next April, adding: “Wesupport Mary Portas’s call for coun-cils to use discretion when applyingbusiness rates, particularly forstart-up companies.

“If the Government wants to seebusinesses flourish and create much-needed economic growth, it must gofurther and reduce the punishing,anti-growth rate rise facing all busi-nesses in 2012.”

And Federation of Small Businessesregional development manager, NeilDutton, said: “This review needs to begiven a proper chance to influencedecision-makers and show high streetretailers and services that there islight at the end of the tunnel.”

Mary Portas – says high streets give a sense of belonging and trustPicture: IAN WEST

ConcernathotelbookingsfiguresSIGNS of weaker demand forhotel bookings knocked Whit-bread’s shares, despite a trad-ing revival at its Beefeater andBrewers Fayre chains.

Whitbread’s Premier Innarm, which has 590 hotels and43,000 rooms in the UK and Ire-

land, saw like-for-like salesgrow 2.6% in the 13 weeks toDecember 1, against 4.3% forthe first 39 weeks.

However, shares fell by asmuch as 5% after the updatefuelled concerns about theimpact of economic turb-

ulence, and chief executiveAndy Harrison admitted trad-ing on a month-by-month basisremained variable.

Coffee chain Costa also sawweaker like-for-like growth,although store openings keptthe brand’s sales at 25.2%.

SpendingtollTHE country’s largest floor-coveringretailer Carpetright slid to a first-halfloss yesterday as the consumer spendingsqueeze took its toll.

The retailer, which operates 503 storesin the UK, recorded a bottom-line loss of£800,000 in the 26 weeks to October 29,compared with profits of £9.8m last year.

[email protected]

Building Trade

FRAMELINECOMPOSITE DOORSTRADE, UPVC WINDOWS

DOORS, CONSERVATORIES.

5 Day Turnaround

Tel: 0151 546 5577Fax: 0151 546 5588Accredited with BS7412 & BS7950

BUSINESSto BUSINESS


Investment Opportunity The Armstrong PortfolioA rare opportunity to acquire five high yielding multi let business space investments, subject to contract.The estates are available to purchase as individual lots, multiple lots, or as an entire portfolio.

For further information please contact:

Bruce Poizer+44 (0)161 455 [email protected]

Simon Lowe+44 (0)161 455 [email protected]

Farriers Way, Netherton Industrial Estate, Bootle, L30 4XL• Situated on the established Netherton Industrial Estate just to 2 miles south of the intersectionof the M57 and M58 motorways

• Multi let industrial estate totalling 35,925 sq ft• 34 units with an average size of just over 1,000 sq ft• Virtual freehold tenure with a site area of 2.52 acres, reflecting a low density of 33%• Net passing rent of £168,214 per annum• Reversion to £210,131 per annum• Asset management opportunities• Seeking offers in excess of £1,485,000 (onemillion four hundred and eight five thousand pounds)• A purchase at this level reflects an attractive net initial yield of 10.71% net yield of 10.82% basedon contractual uplifts and reversionary yield of 13.37%.

Randles Road, Knowsley Business Park, Knowsley L34 9HZ• Situated on Knowsley Business Park at the intersection of the A580 East Lancashire Road andJunction 4 of the M57

• 12 unit multi let industrial estate totalling 33,079 sq ft• Freehold with a site area of 2.44 acres, reflecting a low density of 31%• Current passing rent of £113,658 per annum• Reversion to £132,316 per annum• Asset management opportunities• Seeking offers in excess of £1,039,000 (one million and thirty nine thousand pounds)• A purchase at this level reflects an attractive net initial yield of 10.34%, net yield of 10.49%based on contractual uplifts and reversionary yield of 12.04%.

Wavertree Boulevard South, Wavertree Business Park, Liverpool L7 9PF• Gateway business park situated off the A5047 Edge Lane, the main thoroughfare from the start/end of the M62(Junction4) and Liverpool City Centre

• Multi let estate totalling 31,915 sq ft with 156 car spaces (1:205 sq ft)• High specification units ranging from 437 to 4,041 sq ft• Freehold with a site area of 4.11 acres, reflecting a low density of 18%• Current passing rent of £308,310 per annum• Asset management opportunities• Seeking offers in excess of £2,546,000 (two million, five hundred and forty six thousandpounds)

• A purchase at this level reflects an attractive net initial yield of 11.45%.

Thursby Road, Croft Business Park, Bromborough CH6 23PW• Highly prominent, situated on the established Croft Business Park off the A41 arterial routewhich serves the east coast of the Wirral Peninsula

• Multi let estate totalling 18,565 sq ft with 84 car spaces (1:220sqft)• High specification units ranging from 792 to 1,929 sq ft• Freehold with a site area of 3.04 acres, reflecting a low density of 14%• Current passing rent of £128,000 per annum• Reversion of £151,940 per annum• Asset management opportunities• Seeking offers in excess of £1,036,000 (one million and thirty six thousand pounds) A purchaseat this level reflects an attractive net initial yield of 11.68%, net yield based on contractual upliftsof 11.85% and reversionary yield of 13.86%.

Westwood Court, Clayhill Industrial Estate, Neston CH643UJ• Located in affluent Neston approximately 8 miles south west of Liverpool City Centre• Situated on the established Clayhill Industrial Estate off the main A540 arterial route for WestWirral

• Multi let industrial estate totalling 32,545 sq ft• Nine units ranging from 2,451 to 6,105 sq ft• Freehold with a site area of 2.64 acres, reflecting a low density of 28%• Current passing rent of £122,368 per annum• Reversion to £143,571 per annum• Asset management opportunities• Seeking offers in excess of £1,207,000 (one million two hundred and seven thousand pounds)• A purchase at this level reflects an attractive net initial yield of 9.58% and a reversionary yield of

11.24%.


by David King, rating specialistat Edward Symmons, Liverpool

LDPbusiness .co.uklocation

viewpoint

INASSOCIATION

WITH


Governmentmustact toeasetheratesburdenonbusinesses

RECENT announcements andchanges to the business rates paidby occupiers of local propertieshave, for the most part, brought

little seasonal cheer. However, thereare some brighter points.

The September RPI inflation rateof 5.6% will result in most businessesreceiving rates bills that are up by atleast this amount next April. Thenew charges will be based on 45.7p inthe pound, rather than the current43.3p.

There was an opportunity for theChancellor to announce a lowerincrease in the Autumn Statement,but instead only a business ratesdeferral scheme is proposed. Thiswill merely allow occupiers to delaypayment of 60% of the 2012/13increase (3.2% of the total rate bill)for two years. This will be of little

benefit. The Government’s own fig-ures indicate that they expecttake-up to be very low.

It was also announced inthe Autumn Statement thatbusinesses with assess-ments below a rateablevalue (RV) of £6,000 will seean extension of the currenttwo-year rates holiday for afurther six months. Thescheme will now continueuntil April, 2013.

The relief applies on asliding scale to RV £12,000.In addition, the change will benefitbusinesses that have any number ofsmall assessments, not just those

with one or two properties. One pos-itive point in the Localism Act is thatbusinesses setting up in Enterprise

Zones, such as LiverpoolWaters and Wirral Waters,will qualify for rates sav-ings of up to £275,000 over afive-year period, from Aprilnext year.

From next year, councilswill be able to keep anyincrease in rates revenuefrom higher total rateablevalues in their area. Unfor-tunately, the completion of

developments in Liverpool that couldincrease the city’s rateable values iscurrently several years away.

Business rates continue to be amajor burden on both occupying andholding property. Concerns at theway rates are currently charged onempty properties continue to be wellvented and are fully justified. It isclear these charges are inhibitingnew development.

The appeal process is currentlytaking far too long, with a largebacklog of appeals at the ValuationOffice Agency.

Businesses need help now, ratherthan proposals that may give resultsin two or three years. We, therefore,need to lobby for the Budget toinclude measures that will addressthese points.

Smith&Sonssaleraisesalmost£1m

Christie’sbighopesforLittleChefsites

‘Appealprocess iscurrentlytakingfartoo long’

SchoolofTropicalMedicinesprucedupCHESTER building survey-ing firm, Cassidy & Ashton,has overseen the restorationof the Liverpool School ofTropical Medicine’s OldSchool building entrance, inPembroke Street.

The world-famous schoolwas the first institutionprimarily devoted to tropicalhealth and opened in 1898.

Cassidy & Ashton carriedout a condition survey andcontracted specialist stone-mason Mays and contractorJohn Turner & Sons to carryout the work.

The refurbishment wascarried out over 12 weeksand included structuralrepairs to the stone work,re-pointing and the install-ation of new timber win-dows designed to replicatethe original style.

The front was also cleanedusing sympathetic methodsto wash away more than 80years of soot deposits.

Cassidy & Ashton directorDave Owen said: “The pro-ject was a challenge as wewere working with histor-ical stonework that was in apoor condition, and we wereaware we were preserving apiece of the city’s architec-tural heritage.”The refurbished front entrance of Liverpool’s School of Tropical Medicine

SMITH & SONS has held itsfinal Wirral property auc-tion of 2011, selling morethan two thirds of proper-ties available and raisingjust under £1m.

The sale offered 15 prop-erties and, despite a smallernumber of lots than usual,several properties attractedlively bidding and in oneinstance fetched more thantwice the guide price.

Houses in need of refur-bishment were the star lots,confirming there is stilldemand from investors andbuilders for houses suitablefor refurbishment and

thereafter letting or onwardsale.

A terraced house inGlover Street, Birkenhead,in need of substantial worksold for £62,000 against aguide of £30,000 and therewas strong demand for asandstone cottage in MillStreet, Neston, as well as asemi-detached house inGreat Sutton.

Several lots have soldpost-auction with furthersales expected.

Smith & Sons’ next auc-tion is to be held on Feb-ruary 22, with a January 16closing date for entries.

THE North West office of Christie &Co is marketing a number of sites onbehalf of the roadside restaurantchain, Little Chef.

Little Chef is currently conducting areview of its estate and has identified19 properties it is seeking to let.

Those available for let include eightclosed Little Chefs and 11 former Bur-ger King restaurants on Little Chefsites, which continue to trade.

One of the sites for sale is a former

Burger King outlet in Parkgate Road,Saughall, some six miles to the northwest of Chester.

Christie associate director MartinThompson said: “Little Chef is syn-onymous with convenient roadside loc-ations and, while these sites have beenidentified as surplus to the estate andearmarked for letting by the company,that core advantage remains for anyprospective tenants.

“The site at Saughall is in a par-ticularly unique location, being justoff the new section of the A55 dualcarriageway that joins North Walesand Cheshire.

“As a result, the site benefits from alarge amount of passing traffic eachday, which increases in the summerbecause of the many tourist attrac-tions and holiday destinations in thearea.

“Moreover, the sites have tremend-ous potential for a variety of food andbeverage uses as well as alternativeuse such as retail, leisure and officeaccommodation.

“As such, we are anticipating a greatdeal of interest in this instruction.”

Christie is also marketing sites inlocations from Edinburgh to Hayle, inCornwall.


Liverpool Meat & Fish MarketPrescot Road, Liverpool

COMMERCIAL UNITSTO LET

Shops/Warehouse unitsOffices/Cold Storage/Open Storage land

Contact0161 980 1912

[email protected]

FOR SALE / MAY LETFreestandingChester City CentreOffice Building

14,000 sq ft with car parkingPotential for Re-Development

Further information please contact Neil Dryburgh or Euan Ross at

INDUSTRIAL UNITS To Let.South L’pool 500 to 4000 sqft,monthly tenancy, competitiverents. From £50pw Tel: 0151427 5051

TO LET/FOR SALE Ind Units,Lpool City Ctr 0151 227 9191

Commercial Premises

BUSINESS to BUSINESS

T J THOMAS0151 708 6544

ERSKINE ST close to City centreBusiness units, 850sqftWith int Office Space

£550pcmwww.tjthomas.co.uk

UNITS TO LET 5,000−15,000sqft. Initial Rent free period.0151 486 0004

To advertise call:0151 227 2000





INASSOCIATION

WITH


AgencylaunchesfinanceventureLIVERPOOL commerc-ial agency, KeppieMassie, has launched aproperty financebrokerage and con-sultancy service.

It will be headed byMartin Murphy, whohas worked in propertyfinance for nearly 20years with financialheavyweights includingBarclays, Nationwide,NM Rothschild andAnglo Irish, as well asworking as an inde-pendent broker andconsultant.

He will work closelywith Keppie Massie’sclients to help themsecure bespoke fundingsolutions for their pro-jects.

He said: “It is import-ant that we match theclient with the rightlender. With access toprime and non-primesources of funding,including senior debt,junior debt, mezzaninefinance and equity, wecan increase our cli-ents’ funding options.”

BruntwoodgetsCreativewithnewcityofficelettingBRUNTWOOD has secured twolettings at its Queen InsuranceBuilding, in Liverpool citycentre.

PH Creative and AdditionsAccountants have agreed totake a total of 4,422 sq ft ofoffice space at the Grade II-lis-ted building off Castle Street.

Internet marketing agencyPH Creative has agreed to takea 3,350 sq ft suite on the firstfloor on a 10-year lease, andAdditions Accountants hasexpanded into 1,072 sq ft ofoffice space on the groundfloor, on a five-year lease.

Colin Forshaw, head of salesat Bruntwood, said: “Thesenew lettings mark Bruntwood’scontinued success as weapproach the New Year.

“The number of creative andmedia-based companies in Liv-erpool has boomed recently,and as such we have seen agrowth in the interest in ourcity centre offices.

“The space we offer is ideal,as we can accommodate anysize of business and offer flex-ible leases. We’re confidentthat this will see us securemore substantial new lettingsin 2012.”

Bryan Adams, managing dir-ector at PH Creative, added:“When we were searching forour new premises, a centrallocation in high-quality officespace was top of our list.

“Queen Insurance Buildingis perfectly situated in theheart of Liverpool’s businessdistrict and close to our clientbase.”

Liverpool City Council saysthe building, designed by arch-itect Samuel Rowland, was“one of the earliest develop-ments in Liverpool to includethe provision of separate spec-ulative offices for letting”.

The building faces ontoCastle Street and Dale Street,with a central covered passage-way leading to the shops andoffices of Queen’s Avenue.Retail tenants include MooseCoffee shop. The entrance to the Queen Insurance Building, in Dale Street, Liverpool city centre

Deadline for unconditionaloffers Noon on Friday,3 February 2012

Ref: JGW

FOR SALEBY INFORMAL TENDER Cheshire West and Chester Council,

Facilities and Asset ManagementDepartment, Whitby Hall Lodge,Whitby Park, Stanney Lane,Ellesmere Port, CH65 6QY

For details please call 0151 356 6454or contact:

Cheshire West & Chester Council

Freehold Development/Refurbishment Opportunity(Subject to Planning)

Former Parochial Hall, King Street, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, CH65 4AZ

[email protected]

NICE OFFICESRENTFREE...HASSLE FREE*SUBJECT TO TERMS AND CONDITIONS


LondonStockMarketatClose

Last night, the pound was worth: $1.5526 (down 0.0069) ...........1.1863 euros (up 0.0037) ...........115.47 yen (up 0.58) ...........Its trade weighted index was 80.90 (up 0.10)Metals in $ per troy ounce: Gold 1672.50 (up 13)............................Silver 31.34 (up 0.12) ............................Platinum 1492 (up 7) ........................... UK base lending rate 0.5%

Keep track of all the major share moves of the day with our live FTSE ticker at www.ldpbusiness.co.ukLDPbusiness .co.ukLDPbusiness .co.uk

96 6434 Adv Medical 94 +4 +814

614 18 AEA Technology 12

28712 23112 Albany Inv Tst 24612

1251 74012 AMEC 91412 xd +17 -3912

92 30 Anglesey Mining 30 -358

35714 21458 Balfour Beatty 24518 xd +12 -714

3712 2414 Beale 2412

612 51212 Compass Gp 58612 +212 -1

132212 1063 Dee Valley 1305 xd -10 -1712

474 301 easyJet 37438 -158 -5

1030 631 JD Sports Fashion 631 xd -19 -69

54 612 JJB Sports 612 -18 -114

36 2512 Johnson Serv 2714 +34

579 410 Nichols 505 -19 -23

14912 108 NWF 12512 -12 -1

5512 31 Park Gp 4914 -218 -2

1257 977 Rathbone 999 -60 -91

139 10312 Redrow 110 -3

14312 10214 RSA Insurance 10318 +14 -414

34 1812 Speedy Hire 19 -1 -2

4634 3412 Sportech 4018 +38 -12

4712 3378 Telme Gp 4712 +1

5514 2912 UK Coal 3012 +1 +12

2 78 Ultima 1

2137 1793 Unilever 2116 xd -8

637 54312 Utd Utils 600 +1 -2

UNIT TRUSTS

DAILY POST REGIONAL INDEX 1139.14 down 10.70 ▼ 0.93%

In order to give a greater range of Unit Trustinformation, covering a larger number of trusts, thelist of funds changes each day as follows:UNIT TRUST MANAGERS DAYS PUBLISHEDA to Com ................................................... TuesdayF to Inv....................................................WednesdayJP to Pru...................................................ThursdayRoy to T.........................................................Friday

FUNDS

Consols

£1001132 £761132 Cons 4%............... £93516

£6712 £50 Cons 212% ................ £64

Conversions

£9312 £69 Cnv 312%................... £86

Treasury

£7012 £50916 Tr 212%....................£6614

£113532 £10434 Tr 9% 12.............. £105532

£105332 £101116 Tr 5% 12.............. £101116

£11838 £1131732 Tr 8% 13.............. £113916 -132

£11278 £109532 Tr 5% 14................£11238 -116

£10712 £100332 Tr 734% 12-15...... £101532 +1116

£34234 £310532 Tr 212% IL 16 ...... £3402132 -316

£14112 £1322132 Tr 834% 17........... £141732 -14

£152332 £1332732 Tr 8% 21............. £1511116 -1332

War

£991532 £601532 War Ln 312%............£9614 +71132

High Low Price Var 5Day High Low Price Var 5Day High Low Price Var 5Day Country Currency Tourist Buy Sell

FTSE 100 INDEX

SPOTLIGHT

KEYs............ dealing suspendedxd.............price ex-dividendxs........ price ex-scrip issuexr ........ price ex-rights issuexc ..... ex-capital distributionxa................................ ex-all£......price value in £ sterling

Those securities which haveincreased in value since the previ-ous close are shown in bold type.

To assist in the analysis of themarket two figures are given foreach sector. Firstly an index (setat 100 on January 1 1992) togive a comparison in the perfor-mance of various market sectors.Secondly an indication of the per-centage change in the price of allthe securities within a sector sincethe previous close.

£ ABROAD

Australia dollars 1.46 1.536 1.541

Canada dollars 1.52 1.597 1.599

Denmark krone 8.36 8.816 8.826

European Union euro 1.13 1.186 1.187

Japan yen 115.47 120.920 120.930

New Zealand dollars 1.90 2.031 2.036

Norway krone 8.68 9.176 9.177

Poland zlotys 4.71 5.396 5.404

Sweden krona 10.23 10.782 10.792

Switzerland francs 1.39 1.462 1.464

Turkey new lira 2.72 2.906 2.917

United States dollars 1.49 1.552 1.553

Cancel Bid Offer Yield

Fund Terms Price Price Gross

FIDELITY INVESTMENT SERVS

Amer Spec Sits - 582.10 -

American - 1729.00 0.32

Japan - 213.70 0.54

Jpan Spec Sits - 128.90 0.10

MoneyBuilder Dividend- 197.40 4.41

Spec Sits - 1669.00 0.01

Sth East Asia - 619.40 0.01

GARTMORE FUND MANAGERS

Euro Sel Opps - 758.56 1.26

Pratical Inv - 160.40 -

GUARDIAN

Index-Linked Acc -559.53 588.98 -

International Acc -915.41 963.59 -

Pacific Acc -234.34 246.68 -

Property Bonds -2047.14 2132.44 -

HSBC INVESTMENT FUNDS (UK)

Balanced - 96.11 1.23

British -240.20 240.20 2.86

Gilt & FI - 70.16 2.80

Gilt & Fixed -249.40 249.40 5.70

Monthly Inc - 124.60 4.14

HENDERSON HORIZON FUND

European Smllr Cos A - 756.40 0.12

Sterling Bd Unit Tst - 54.40 56.83 3.83

UK Equity Inc A - 395.10 3.73

HILL SAMUEL UNIT TST MGRS

Capital -278.70 289.90 1.20

European - 639.80 0.70

Inc & Gwth - 180.60 3.40

International - 376.80 0.40

North Amer Acc - 467.10 0.10

INVESCO FUND MANAGERS

Sing ASEAN - 182.66 0.63

High Low Funds Price Var

Closing Indices

FT-SE 100 INDEX 5490.15up 62.29 ▲ 1.15%

20 DAY MOVINGAVERAGE 5398.40down 1.36 ▼ 0.03%

FT ALL-SHARE 2816.23up 29.43 ▲ 1.06%

Aerospace & Defence

Index 3260.18 ▲ 19.40

325 19712 Avon Rbbr 303 +7

36118 24818 BAE Systems 27512 +14

73612 36834 Chemring 38718 +938

23612 16578 Cobham 17434 +158

39758 305 Meggitt 347 -114

738 55712 Rolls-Royce 72512xd +612

19058 13258 Senior 16512 +214

Automobiles & Parts

Index 4175.79 ▼ 2.33

245 157 GKN 17858 -18

Banks

Index 3336.08 ▲ 1.87

33312 13878 Barclays 17858xd -278

785 43914 Bco Santander 47614 -1318

73078 46312 HSBC 49212xd +334

3334 578 Ireland 718 -18

6958 2178 Lloyds Banking 2434 +14

49 1738 Ryl Scotland 2038 -18

1769 116912Stan Chart 1406 -1312

Beverages

Index 10208.35 ▲ 134.00

1395 1031 Barr (AG) 1160 -36

48818 28978 Britvic 31538xd +414

1390 1112 Diageo 1390 +16

2354121979 SABMiller 2216xd +3512

Chemicals

Index 6548.39 ▲ 34.40

2081 1456 Croda 1757 -4

18738 10712 Elementis 13714 +414

2119 1523 Johnsn Mat 1816xd +3

Construction & Materials

Index 3179.16 ▼ 6.78

35714 21458 Balfour Beatty 24518xd +12

265 180 Costain 19812 +214

1226 1012 CRH 1154 +28

1458 1097 Kier Group 1322 -20

7634 4234 Low Bonar 44 +1

12412 8314 Marshalls 8714 -14

Electricity

Index 8078.37 ▲ 46.45

58112 35914 Drax Gp 55512 +9

44858 27938 Intl Power 32614 +178

1423 1159 SSE 1265 +5

Electronic & Electrical

Index 2597.73 ▲ 75.61

705 43414 Domino Ptg 50412 +68

207 12778 Laird 14534 +34

35718 224 Morgn Cru 25914xd +714

1010 60012 Oxford Inst 990 -3

377 241 Volex 266 -2

Equity Inv Instruments

Index 5325.64 ▲ 8.49

39234 31014 Alliance 33634xd +134

14012 109 Br Assets 11634xd +234

680 421 Candover Inv 470 -1312

15734 120 Dunedin Sml 120 -114

228 19412 DunedinIncGth 20712 +412

49214 41478 Edin Invst 46614 +414

66034 546 EdinUSTrkrTst 615 +214

32778 26112 Forgn & C 28414 +2

32334 242 HendSmllrCos 247 +1

385 321 Law Debenture 34118 -2

252 203 Scot Am 211 xd +2

533 40112 Witan 43358 +258

Fixed Line Telecoms

Index 2202.14 ▲ 20.72

20418 161 BT Gp 19158 +2

5278 3114 Cble&WComm 3778 xd +12

7678 1414 Cble&WWwide 1718 xd -18

84 55 KCOM 6912

Food & Drug Retailers

Index 4557.00 ▼ 6.00

32278 26234 Morrison W 31618 +2

39112 26312 Sainsbury 29414xd +112

439 35614 Tesco 38912xd -2

10034 36 Thorntons 3734

Food Producers

Index 5528.77 ▲ 14.95

1182 940 AB Foods 1097xd +12

875 626 Carrs Mill 765 -1712

882 58812 Cranswick 750 xd +2

42478 31834 Dairy Crest 32712 +434

3518 314 Premier Foods 578

68912 511 Tate Lyle 683 xd +712

2137 1793 Unilever 2116xd

Forestry & Paper

Index 4782.48 ▲ 21.54

664 41312 Mondi 444 +2

General Financial

Index 4441.88 ▲ 24.72

340 17678 3i 18114xd +78

88812 59712 Close Bros 606 +812

57012 31158 ICAP 33078 +138

1076 769 London Stk Ex 769 xd -11

1124 842 Provident 94712 -112

1257 977 Rathbone 999 -60

1922 1183 Schroders 1321 +19

General Industrials

Index 2621.31 ▲ 25.86

72412 39534 Cooksn Gp 480 +934

6 18 Cosalt 18

400 29934 Rexam 34834 +6

26614 16438 Smith DS 192 +158

1429 86912 Smiths Gp 90512 +112

General Retailers

Index 1491.56 ▲ 2.64

2514 16 Ashley L 1834 -14

31114 23458 Brown (N) Gp 23612xd +178

7434 5114 Debenhams 5814 xd +38

2512 938 Dixons Retail 1034

45934 26912 Halfords 30878 -218

235 7212 Home Retail 8714 xd -18

42538 26858 Inchcape 29478 +178

1030 631 JD Sports 631 xd -19

28718 217 Kingfisher 24534 -214

40214 30134 M & S 31514xd +278

62612 12714 Mothercare 16614 -134

2810 1868 Next 2590xd -10

2986 1936 Signet Jwlrs 2779 -25

558 43334 WH Smith 513 +8

Health Care Equip & Serv

Index 3368.50 ▲ 42.97

742 521 Smith Nph 595 +812

Household Goods

Index 6269.90 ▼ 3.91

138 6212 Aga Rngmstr 69 -12

119 6712 Barratt Dev 9238 -38

77612 54012 Bellway 72612 -812

19014 114 McBride 11814 +414

3648 3015 Reckitt Benck 3200 -4

139 10312 Redrow 110

4314 2738 Taylor Wimpey 36 -18

Industrial Engineering

Index 6879.27 ▲ 113.85

39734 22558 Bodycote 25578 +258

952 53812 Charter 93812 +7

42212 280 Fenner 38558 +658

1119 63612 IMI 737 +1212

116 6212 Molins 91

31212 165 MS Intl 27212

4412 25 Renold 2614 -114

2063 1649 Spirax Srco 1792 +5

2218 1375 Weir Gp 1958 +65

Industrial Transportation

Index 2173.38 ▲ 19.04

24034 156 BBA Aviation 17678 +1

Life Insurance

Index 3682.72 ▼ 1.46

47778 27514 Aviva 30118 +18

12334 8934 Lgl & Gen 10214 -38

777 509 Prudential 619 -5

31618 22912 Resolution 25178 +438

24434 172 Standard Life 19734 +114

Media

Index 3905.38 ▲ 46.87

850 61812 BSkyB 73812xd +10

59412 34338 D Mail Tst 39114xd -12

9312 5158 ITV 63 +138

1207 983 Pearson 1151 +23

59012 46114 Reed Elsevier 50912 -12

168 8512 STV Group 8512

93 3712 Trinity Mirror 50 -1

725 416 Utd Business 47714 +738

150 9712 UTV 9712 -3

84612 578 WPP 65512 +512

Mining

Index 19729.08 ▲ 212.97

3437 213812Anglo Amer 236712 +2012

1634 90012 Antofagasta 1178 +22

2631121667 BHP Billiton 190112 +412

2150 1296 Fresnillo 1681 +27

53118 348 Glencore Intl 39258 +518

1671 730 Kazakhmys 895 +15

1983 963 Lonmin 98512 +1012

7555 4425 Randgold Res 6770 +115

4712 271212Rio Tinto 3185 +66

5514 2912 UK Coal 3012 +1

Mobile Telecoms

Index 4091.28 ▲ 92.11

71912 38914 Inmarsat 40314 +214

18234 155 Vodafone Gp 17714xd +4

Nonlife Insurance

Index 1289.54 ▼ 5.51

1754 80012 Admiral Grp 828 +312

204718165558Marsh McL 198538 +1618

14312 10214 RSA Insurance 10318 +14

Oil & Gas Producers

Index 8472.75 ▲ 189.69

1564121144 BG 1367 +4212

509 36314 BP 45214xd +734

46934 26138 Cairn Energy 27578 +114

535 310 Premier Oil 37718 +578

2388 189012Ryl D Shell B 2388xd +63

1493 94512 Tullow Oil 1369 +41

Oil Equipment & Services

Index 22262.01 ▲ 614.90

1251 74012 AMEC 91412xd +17

Personal Goods

Index 18863.34 ▼ 312.46

1600 1030 Burberry Gp 1190 -27

404 30834 PZ Cussons 32512 +714

Pharma & Biotechnology

Index 9939.77 ▲ 146.00

3194 254312AstraZeneca 2958 +3712

1453 112712GlaxoSmthKln 1453xd +2412

50 1834 Vernalis 1912

Real Estate

Index 1958.11

35214 218 Big Yellow Gp 256 xd -4

62912 452 Brit Land 45734 +138

2954 2282 Daejan Hldgs 2726

445 31738 Gt Portland 32518xd -34

885 616 Land Secs 637 xd +8

33114 20434 SEGRO 20712 -12

Software & Comp Servs

Index 729.50 ▲ 6.33

6312 4014 Emblaze 50 -138

36414 18078 Invensys 20034xd +178

108 64 Kewill 7814 xd +114

14714 6758 Logica 74 +12

302 23134 Sage 28914 +412

Support Services

Index 4103.22 ▲ 49.07

614 18 AEA Tech 12

2034 1389 Aggreko 1850 +38

21134 9938 Ashtead Gp 20438 +438

568 40234 Berendsen 425 +13

855 67612 Bunzl 855 xd +15

78612 61412 Capita 61912 +112

936 667 De La Rue 875 xd +7

29478 18214 Electrocmps 19434xd +212

844 665 Experian 82712 +1812

291 21978 G4S 25338 +378

452 305 Hyder Cons 370

34114 207 Interserve 320 +434

550 425 Menzies J 530 +6

34634 205 Northgate 205 -1134

30834 14412 Prem Farnell 17778 +178

10478 61 Rentokil 6134 +38

12012 79 Smiths News 8012 +14

34 1812 Speedy Hire 19 -1

1127 715 Travis & P 800 -1412

2261 1404 Wolseley 1960 +45

Tech Hardware & Equip

Index 705.91 ▲ 14.60

651 38958 ARM Hldgs 56912 +412

2712 13 BATM 1312 +12

10234 4912 Psion 4912 -12

160 10912 Spirent Cms 112 -12

Tobacco

Index 34768.39 ▲ 226.98

3021 228212Br Am Tob 3021 +21

2376 1784 Imperial Tob 2376 +13

Travel & Leisure

Index 4119.82 ▲ 14.94

3153 1742 Carnival 2218xd +43

612 51212 Compass Gp 58612 +212

474 301 easyJet 37438 -158

12134 27 Enterprise Inns 3412 -214

41258 30134 FirstGroup 32278 +212

1598 1190 Go-Ahead Gp 1329 +97

518 410 Greene King 46812 +3

1435 955 Intercontl Htls 1098 -7

285 132 Intl Cons Airlns 148 +114

15514 114 Ladbrokes 12478 -18

11412 8458 Marston’s 9258 +14

361 21558 Mitchells&Btlrs 22714 +458

7912 918 Punch Taverns 1012

15334 10912 Rank Gp 141 -6

335 25478 Restaurant Gp 292 -38

27238 200 Stagecoach 25738 +314

20434 1014 Thomas Cook 1478 -12

27178 13634 TUI Travel 15212 +14

1887 1409 Whitbread 1514xd -62

Utilities

Index 4527.07 ▲ 12.56

34534 28258 Centrica 28512 +38

1322121063 Dee Valley 1305xd -10

64912 530 National Grid 60612xd +2

73712 58412 Pennon Gp 676 -12

1600 1368 Severn 1480xd +7

637 54312 Utd Utils 600 +1

AIM

Index 694.40 ▲ 1.88

4958 1512 API Gp 4514 -14

934 178 Armour Gp 338 +18

158 118 Crimson Tide 114

214 118 Dawson Intl 138

1114 658 Eckoh 11 -18

54 612 JJB Sports 612 -18

36 2512 Johnson Serv 2714

5912 32 Man Brnze 32

12 738 Metalrax 778 -18

550 41212 Portmeirion P 415

17312 55 Redhall Gp 76

6214 3234 Scapa Gp 49

137 99 Swallowfield 11812

712 565 Young A 683 xd

Nov 21 - Nov 25 Nov 28 - Dec 2 Dec 5 - Dec 9 M T W T F5100

5230

5360

5490

5620

FTSE-100

20-Day Moving Average

Jun 13, 2011 Dec 13, 2011

WHITBREAD

Share price (pence)1200

1345

1490

1635

1780

FTSE-Rebased


businessdiary

LDPbusiness .co.ukmarket comment

LDPbusiness .co.uk

For all the latest local and national business news online, log on to www.ldpbusiness.co.uk

INASSOCIATION

WITH


Monday, December 19KNOWSLEY com-munity interest com-pany KPAC is staging aone-day trainingcourse in setting up asocial enterprise. Thecourse contents includeissues such as “what isa social enterprise?”,the difference between

social enterprises andother businesses, con-siderations when set-ting up a social enter-prise, managementstructures in a socialenterprise and the“triple bottom line ofprofit, people andplanet”. The course,with lunch and refresh-

ments, costs £49. Con-tact KPAC on 0151 4810047.

Tuesday, December 20A PRE-START work-shop in book-keepingand VAT is being heldby St Helens Chamberof Commerce aimed atfledgling businesses.The seminar is freeand takes place at theChamber between9.30am to 4.15pm.Places are limited to 18

people, so booking isessential. Call ElsieJones on 01744 742019or Jak Devlin on 01744742096.

Friday, January 6A SEVEN-MODULEonline ECDL beginnerscourse in computerskills starts at Liver-pool Chamber of Com-merce explaining keyconcepts in IT, organ-ising files and folders,word processing,

spreadsheet and data-base applications, pro-ducing and delivering aprofessional present-ation and using theinternet and email.The course fee is £150,but Chamber membersreceive a 10% discount.Call the Chamber forfurther details on 0151227 1234.

Thursday, January 12SEFTON Chamber ofCommerce is staging

its latest monthly net-working event, suppor-ted by Kinetics Per-sonal Training, from 12noon to 2pm. Thevenue is still to be con-firmed – contact 01704531710 for more.

Friday, January 13A “60 REALLY UsefulMinutes” session onimproving the value ofyour business is beingstaged at LiverpoolChamber of Commerce,

hosted by BrianMcCann, from Van-guard Corporate Fin-ance, who believes thevalue of a businessdepends very much onwho the valuation isbeing prepared for andwill highlight somepractical tips. The9-10am seminar is freeto members and £10 tonon-members. Bookonline at www.liver-pool chamber.org.uk

AnotherdangerousyearaheadforEurope’sinvestorsTHE investment outlook in 2012depends very largely upon Europe. Ifthe euro fragments, there wouldalmost certainly be a depression inEurope and recession in the widerworld. If a practical way forward isagreed that convinces bond investorsthat they can safely lend to Europeangovernments in euros, there is thepotential for a sharp rise in the priceof risk assets, which would be drivenpartly by the deployment of invest-ment funds currently frozen by uncer-tainty.

The plan outlined by the EU Summitlast week ticks some important boxes.It proposes innovative routesto increase capital buffers(using the International Mon-etary Fund) and commits toapply penalties for fiscal mis-behaviour in a new intergov-ernmental agreement betweenmost of the members of theEU. However, details are con-spicuous by their absence,including an understanding ofthe European Central Bank’s(ECB’s) role as lender of lastresort.

The net result is that,although steps forward havebeen taken, we are still someway from diffusing the tension cur-rently paralysing the European bank-ing sector and investors. ChancellorMerkel has recently done a good job inemphasising that there is no magicsolution (the ECB buying everyone outof their difficulties), signalling thatstabilisation will take time.

Looking at the situation throughGerman eyes, it is logical to retain the

“big stick” of an implied threat toleave an intransigent debtor nation tothe mercy of the markets while theyhave yet to fully implement a moresustainable budgetary direction.

For us as investors,however, we must recognisethat a decision has been takenthat it is worth paying theprice for a structural re-engin-eering of the euro after aTeutonic model, namely a pro-longed recession caused byfiscal austerity compoundedby accelerated deleveraging ofthe European banking system.

As a result, we must facethe fact that Europe will be agreater drag on global growthin 2012 than had previouslybeen expected. Although theUS and emerging marketsmay partly compensate, this is

by no means certain – making for achallenging outlook for global corpor-ate earnings.

Adding to the uncertainty is thehuge changing of the political guardscheduled for 2012. Elections or lead-ership transitions will occur in USA,China, Russia, France, Italy, Germanyand Taiwan, to name only some of themore important areas. Furthermore,

Whatdoyouthink?Email us withyour views [email protected],or write to usPO Box 48, OldHall Street,LiverpoolL69 3EB

the situation in the Middle East is farfrom stable (Iran and Syria) and sur-prises from there are unlikely to bepositive – any spike in energy priceswould add to burdens.

The combination of factors willmake for another year of living dan-gerously. However, one must alsorecognise that the problems are wellappreciated by investors. There is little“naive” money taking inappropriaterisks, little pressure on profitable cor-porations to cut back sharply, andvaluations are not at levels that areconsistent with the start of prolonged

(or profound) bear markets. Indeed,should Europe continue to take stepsin the right direction, it may quicklybe perceived that the Sword ofDamocles has been lowered, even if notfully sheathed, providing room for con-siderable relief. Our best guess forstocks and shares is for a broadly flatbut turbulent first half, followed by amore settled second half to the year –but there are few greater fools thanmarket forecasters!

John Haynes,Head of Research,

Investec

Chancellor Angela Merkel, of Germany, had to warn Europe thatthere is no magic solution to the current crisis

LondonmarketHIGHER oil stocks and abrief respite in the euro-zone debt crisis helpedmarkets on both sides ofthe Atlantic push higheryesterday.

Despite a slow start,the FTSE 100 Index fin-ished 62.3 points higherat 5490.1 after the euro-zone bail-out fundreceived a reassuringlevel of demand as ittapped the money mar-kets for short-term fund-ing for the first time.

A successful Spanishbond auction and a ZEWsurvey in Germany thatshowed investor sent-iment improved for thefirst time since the startof the year also boostedconfidence.

Oil industry firms werehigher after Citigroupraised its forecast forBrent crude next year toas much as $120 a barrel,up from its previousestimate of $86 a barrel,amid supply disruptions.

Royal Dutch Shellwas up nearly 3% or 63pto 2388p and BP lifted7.7p to 452.25p, while oiland gas facilities firmPetrofac topped theFTSE 100 Index risersboard with a gain of 70p,to 1443p, after it also saidit expects to deliver like-for-like profits growth ofat least 20% in 2011.

Premier Inn and Costaowner Whitbread wasthe biggest FTSE 100Index faller after report-ing slower quarterly rev-enues growth. It saidunderlying revenuesgrowth in the regionalhotel market had “virt-ually disappeared”

The biggest FTSE 100risers were Petrofac, up70p at 1443p, Weir, ahead65p at 1958p, VedantaResources, up 36p at1101p and BG Group,ahead 42.5p, at 1367p.

The biggest fallerswere Whitbread, down62p at 1514p, Burberry,off 27p at 1190p, Barc-lays, down 2.85p at 178.6p,and Standard Chart-ered, off 13.5p, at 1406p.


Workinlicensedandleisureworldisajoy

Lisa Dixon – spends her busy days co-ordinating her team . . . and mulling over vintage chic

■ RYANAIR’S shy andretiring chief exec-

utive Michael O’Leary,below, was one of the key-note speakers at lastweek’s European Com-mission Innovation Con-vention in Brussels.

And the boss of Liver-pool’s second-biggest air-line by passenger num-bers was invited to send aCV for the event’s web-site.

However, as theTweeters at InnovationDublin (@innovation-Dub) were keen to pointout, O’Leary hadn’t takenit entirely seriously.

It read: “Born in astable in 1961, he was aboy genius, who excelledboth academically and atsports. Having represen-ted Ireland internation-ally at bog snorkellingand flower arranging, hegraduated from TrinityCollege in Dublin as soonas they could get rid of

him. He then becameanother boring KPMGaccountant until divineinspiration sentencedhim to a life of penal ser-vitude in the airline busi-ness.”

And, after a plug forRyanair’s fares, it ends:“It is widely known thatwomen find him irresist-ible.”

■ BREAKING downinternational trade

barriers and fosteringglobal business links is atthe heart of the LiverpoolChinese Business Net-work’s gatherings in thecity’s Chinatown.

Chinese and non-Chinese firms meet overa vino and a buffet to, asthe network’s motto goes,“first become friends,then do business”.

But the most recentsoiree in Berry Street’sChina Palace managed toextend global relationseven further, albeit a bitcloser to home.

Attendees includedRod Jones, of website ser-vices provider Catalyst;Vanessa Lloyd, from fin-ancial services firmTravelex; and JohnTakacs, of property groupPlaza Lettings, who, afterpicking up a tinge of anaccent, realised they areall fluent Welsh speakers– which will make for aninteresting next meeting.

LDPbusiness .co.ukthe back page

tradinggossip

workingday

7am: I get up, having been on “8-6”shifts for the last few days, handlinglots of corporate business – especiallyat our Crying Tree venue, in GrangeLane, Gateacre, which is also ourheadquarters.

I look at the world via the web to seewhat’s happening and view our Face-book site before grabbing some break-fast. I thoroughly enjoy what I do.

8am: I need to get to the office by8.30am, as I’m meeting a large law firmwhich has come to view our newlyrefurbished venue in Grange Lane.

As a business, we’ve invested asix-figure sum in both our Gateacreand Aughton sites that opened inAugust, 2011.

8.30am: I’ve landed at the premisesand it’s straight into a series of meet-ings with suppliers, our team and ameeting with the law firm.

10.30am: We’ve got a media visit andit’s been a busy, positive morning withthe law firm booked in for a privatefunction and, separately, a businessconference.

Their feedback was that they apprec-iated the quality and peace away fromLiverpool city centre, and described itas a “haven of Victorian grandeur”.

12pm: The doors have been open for awhile, and, while we attract a broadspectrum of guests daily, there’s asteady flow of business guests wearingtheir finest for Christmas lunch.

I keep the team co-ordinated with somuch going on.

2.30pm: There’s a bit of a lull in myday, or, rather, I’ve made one so I caneat something . . . another great thingabout working for a licensed and leis-ure business – there’s always greatfood on the premises.

3pm: I’m going to spend some valuabletime on admin.

I slip into the office away from thecrowd. We have some great charactersthat come in, so I can’t possibly do anywork “on the shop floor”, so to speak.

3.30pm: Time for a stock take follow-ing a delivery, then I have a meetingwith a TV production company look-ing at using our Gateacre venue for a

new show to be broadcast in spring.They want to look at our two new func-tion suites.

4.30pm: More admin but very enjoy-able, checking on the large number ofChristmas parties we have booked in.

It seems we’ve been able to get ourmessage out there about the highstandards we offer.

I’m meeting a trade magazineshortly to discuss the same thing.

6pm: I’m leaving for the day, but willbe on the phone to one of our directorsthis evening to talk about the day andthe week so far.

They are keen to hear about pro-gress, having made a major investmentin Halewood Inns in the past sixmonths.

7pm: Catch up on some reading time,with To My Best Friends, by SamBaker, while enjoying a quiet dinner.

Thinking about a visit to Flannelstomorrow for a party outfit, so long asit’s vintage chic.

9.30pm: It’s been a good day all round,and, because it’s that time of year, Isettle down for the night with a festivemovie. I’ve got a morning of meetingstomorrow with companies interestedin completing their corporate hospit-ality arrangement for 2012, so, asalways, I need to be alert.

LisaDixonisgeneralmanagerattheHalewoodInnsgroup.She ismainlybasedatthecompany’sGateacreheadquarters.This isherworkingday . . .

INASSOCIATION

WITH


Documents

LDP Business - 14th December 2011