Christopher Colford, World Bank: Competitive Cities Can Meet the Challenge of Job Creation

Focusing policies on competitive industries can provide jobs for the impoverished, hungry, restive urban millions As magnets for talent and crucibles of creativity, dynamic cities are the pacesetters for innovation in this era of relentless global competition. Vibrant metropolitan regions

Read More

Looking for a Fig Leaf: US & UK Mull Punitive Action against Syria

Here we go again. The US and Britain are whipping themselves once more into a frenzy over the actions of an evil strongman in the Middle East. This time around the recipient of American and British ire is Syrian president

Read More

Assaulting Freedom to Protect Freedom: UK Government Gets Tough on Press

Legislation aimed at preventing acts of terrorism is now being misused to intimidate reporters and the media they work for. In the UK, police authorities invoked Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000 to question for nine hours David Miranda,

Read More

Elusive Democracy: While Voters Fume, Brussels Fixes the Caravan

The European Union has weighed in on the grave issues concerning caravan safety. EU authorities are currently in the final stages of assembling a comprehensive set of regulations aimed at standardizing technical inspection procedures. The European Parliament will debate this

Read More

Alison Cooper Calls for Realistic and Intelligent Targets

Alison Cooper is the CEO of Imperial Tobacco and her track record since taking up this office in 2010 has clearly demonstrated her leadership skills. She is carefully manoeuvring the company through the challenges the tobacco industry faces while maximising

Read More

As Spain and Argentina Team Up, Royal Navy Sets Sail for Gibraltar

A significant chunk of the Royal Navy has set sail for the Mediterranean and the Gulf region on what is billed a “routine deployment”. The British fleet now underway is to engage in a long series of exercises – collectively

Read More

Political Game Changer in Turkey: The Decline and Fall of the Deep State

It has taken a court in Turkey almost five years to wrap up the trial of 531 suspected members of Ergenekon, an ultra-nationalist organization bent on overthrowing the government. On Monday the court handed down its last verdicts: 19 life

Read More

Reef of Contention: Spain Talks Tough on Gibraltar

The Spanish government is taking a cue from Argentina: Whenever beset by apparently insurmountable problems and tanking approval ratings, find some external issue in order to rally the nation around the flag. In times of domestic troubles, successive Argentine governments

Read More

Doomsayers Enjoying a Field Day with Deutsche Bank

A tiny but apparently growing number of pundits is pretty sure the Deutsche Bank will shortly tumble and fall. As a systemic – if not essential – bank, the DB will not descend into insolvency on its own. Those in

Read More

Maxima – Busy at Work

The people of The Netherlands quickly came to adore the young, attractive Argentinian economist Maxima Zorreguieta who married their Crown Prince Prince Wilem-Alexander in 2002. Trained as a private banker with a good understanding of emerging markets, she is the

Read More