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James MillsJames Mills is a web developer in the North East of England and founder of Refresh Teesside »

Mike HughesMike Hughes is the Head of Business for the Evening Gazette. He will be blogging on all matters of importance to Teesside businesses - and some that are just worth knowing »

Jez DavisonJez Davison, business writer at the Evening Gazette, is a regular blogger on all things business - particularly finance, entrepreneurship and the state of the Teesside economy »

Karen McLauchlanKaren McLauchlan is the Evening Gazette's deputy business and features editor - with special interest in all things industry, property and arts related »

Jeremy MiddletonJeremy Middleton is a venture capitalist and the co-founder of FTSE-200 company HomeServe »

DeloitteDeloitte, which has 23 offices across the UK including Newcastle, is among the country's leading professional services firms »

ClimateNEClimateNE & Climate Change Schools Project support the move to a low-carbon, resilient economy and help businesses avoid risk and realise commercial opportunities. Posts by Jen Atkinson, Krista McKinzey and Harriet Thew »

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December 2008 Archives


Cut that will still leave scars...

Posted by on December 1, 2008 9:26 AM

REMEMBER, remember, the seventh of November? That was the date on which the Bank of England announced a 1.5% interest rate cut designed to put a rocket up a burnt-out economy.

The unexpected move brought the base rate to 3% - the lowest for 50 years - but whether it puts the sparkle back into business depends on banks' willingness to lend more to homeowners and businesses at cheaper rates.

Continue reading "Cut that will still leave scars... " »

Festive buyers rule the markets

Posted by on December 1, 2008 9:26 AM

Credit crunch lunches for £3.95, buyers naming their price for unwanted properties, crazy cashback deals on mobile phones and cars, and an interest rate which could drop to as low as zero.


In this post-apocalyptic era of the great crash of 2008, the consumer is king.

Continue reading "Festive buyers rule the markets " »

RBS move puts pressure on Rock

Posted by on December 1, 2008 10:29 AM

Last night's surprise move by RBS to give a six-month grace period to homeowners falling in to arrears on their mortgage repayments puts pressure on other lenders to follow suit.

Continue reading "RBS move puts pressure on Rock" »

Is VAT cut just a pricey policy?

Posted by on December 5, 2008 3:28 PM

Profligacy has become the new prudence. Labour's radical spend and tax policy, outlined in the pre-Budget report, is an expensive gamble to stimulate the economy and get families and businesses through the most turbulent economic period in recent history.

Continue reading "Is VAT cut just a pricey policy?" »

Festivities and Fitness: combining the impossible!

Posted by on December 8, 2008 4:28 PM

Well it has to be said that the start of the festive period is not the best time to throw yourself into a fitness regime - but thanks to my fundraising efforts for Shared Interest Foundation it has to be done, so I have settled for combining the two!

I started with a Saturday Christmas shopping expedition, which by lunchtime left me thinking it must be loads harder than climbing Kilimanjaro!

Continue reading "Festivities and Fitness: combining the impossible!" »

Concern surrounds speed of Nissan move

Posted by on December 9, 2008 7:08 PM

The biggest surprise about Nissan's announcement tonight that it is cutting production at its Sunderland plant in the run up to Christmas is the timing.

Continue reading "Concern surrounds speed of Nissan move" »

Blood, Sweat and Tears (Well definitely the second two!)

Posted by on December 10, 2008 3:54 PM

Well I have certainly upped the stakes - every muscle in my body aches after a double gym and circuit training session last night.

I thought after being a little lax at the weekend I should try a little harder with my fitness regime and what better way than to join a circuit training class and be shouted at for an hour?

I got to the gym a little early and instead of waiting around I thought I should use my time effectively so decided to jump on the cross trainer. Big mistake....

Continue reading "Blood, Sweat and Tears (Well definitely the second two!)" »

Kilimanjaro: The New Angel of the South?

Posted by on December 11, 2008 2:51 PM

Well after the hell that was circuit training I very much enjoyed the variation on my training regime last night, which involved a 10 mile walk to the Angel of the North and back.

So today I am feeling refreshed rather than achy and ready for a productive day at work followed by a session at the gym tonight.

At the moment, anything about Kilimanjaro immediately catches my attention, so I was intrigued by an article in Fairtrade Foundation's Fair Comment e-zine today. It made me think about all the huge personal achievements that have been realised on the slopes of Kilimanjaro and how some stories are not even connected to climbing.

This particular piece was a truly moving story about a week-long celebration of the oldest Cooperative in all of Africa. KNCU (Kilimanjaro Native Cooperative Union) was officially incorporated in 1933, and to celebrate 75 years of empowerment, a host of organisations and individuals held a series of events to mark the occasion.

As I read further I discovered that members of KNCU voluntarily contribute to an education fund that is used to build and operate schools for farmers' children for whom they also provide scholarships.

Mathew Matoli, Member, KNCU Member is quoted as saying on the Coffee Club Network: "Without our cooperative and selling to the fair trade market, our lives would have been very terrible. Our cooperative and the fair trade buyers give us hope and courage, for we are able to earn a higher wage and better provide for our families."

In climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, Neil and I will be raising thousands of pounds to help fair trade producers in Swaziland benefit in the same way: to work their way out of poverty. It seems that the mountain has become a keystone in the fair trade movement, overlooking the farmers and craft makers clustered amongst the foothills and helping to promote and raise money for their cause.

Could this be the new Angel of the South?

Local banks for local needs

Posted by on December 11, 2008 4:49 PM

WILL we ever see the day when the Bank of Tees Valley flies to the rescue of local businesses?

Perhaps we will, if local authorities follow the pioneering lead of Essex County Council to create its own bank.

Continue reading "Local banks for local needs" »

Ian Brown

Water, water ,everywhere, Nor any drop to drink

Posted by Ian Brown on December 13, 2008 4:34 PM

Bottled water is an icon of the modern world. On a wet December day in Northumberland the idea that water is a precious resource is perhaps a hard sell but believe me pure water will be depleted all around the world and become an even more precious resource. At a personal level I'm lucky, at Lee Moor we have a spring supply, a borehole which produces Natural Mineral Water to EU standards and mains fresh from Northumbrian Water.
The sale of Abbey Well to Coca-Cola has me thinking that maybe I should implement my first ever non-farming business idea some 16 ago!!

Continue reading "Water, water ,everywhere, Nor any drop to drink" »

Transport infrastructure upgrade needed now

Posted by on December 15, 2008 10:48 AM

It would attract inward investment, create jobs and generate millions of pounds for the local economy. It would fast-track the growth of indigenous businesses and provide vital support for Teesport and Durham Tees Valley Airport. And it's the talk of the town on Teesside.

Continue reading "Transport infrastructure upgrade needed now" »

Andrew Mernin

Happy Christmas from HSBC

Posted by Andrew Mernin on December 17, 2008 6:05 PM

THE award for the biggest corporate scrooge on the high street goes to HSBC.

Continue reading "Happy Christmas from HSBC" »

Andrew Mernin

Escaping the crunch

Posted by Andrew Mernin on December 18, 2008 10:16 AM

IF SOMEONE asked me to describe 2008 in two words, I'd say "credit crunch".

And hopefully that would be the last time I'd have to use that awful phrase for a while at least.

Continue reading "Escaping the crunch" »

A sad, but predictable, end to the year

Posted by on December 23, 2008 3:07 PM

The apparent fire-sale of the stores belonging to The Officers Club represents a sad end to 2008 for North East business.

Continue reading "A sad, but predictable, end to the year" »

2009: Fightback or Failure?

Posted by on December 29, 2008 10:10 AM

House prices will fall by a further 15%, unemployment will spiral to more than two million, the FTSE will plunge below 3,500 and business failures will reach record levels.

Or... shares will rally sharply, banks and commercial property will spark a sustained economic fightback and cheap bargains will send consumers flooding back to the high street.

Continue reading "2009: Fightback or Failure? " »