EDITION 738
5 NOVEMBER 2018
As another week slips by, here are 10 things which caught my attention and may have escaped yours. This newsletter is sent to 50,000+ subscribers each Monday. Please share on social media and forward to your colleagues and friends so they can subscribe, learn and engage. I'd be very grateful if you did.
How to handle negative feedback. When criticism arrives unexpectedly, remembering how you should react to it is tricky. Getting caught up in the heat of the moment can overwhelm our best intentions. Think through the reaction you want to have now, so that you'll be ready when the time comes: [READ
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Has Theresa May agreed a secret Brexit deal? Theresa May has secured private concessions from the EU that will allow her to keep the whole of Britain in a customs union, avoiding a hard border in Northern Ireland, The report claims the PM is also set to agree a political deal with the European Union that could allow a free trade deal resembling that enjoyed by Canada. The Sunday Times
One line from the budget. The personal allowance – how much you can earn before income tax is levied – will rise from £11,850 to £12,500 next April. Similarly, the threshold for higher-rate income tax will rise to £50,000. The government says this should amount to a tax cut for 32 million people, including “£130 in the pocket of a typical basic-rate taxpayer”. After next April, both thresholds will rise in line with inflation. BBC
Slough named best place to work. The town has achieved the distinction of being judged the best town in Britain to work in – for the second year running. Belying its undeserved reputation for dreariness (it was where the sitcom, The Office, was set) it came top in a survey of 25 towns that, among other things, measured overall job satisfaction and ease of getting a job. The Evening Standard
Mark Carney says he could speed up rates rises. Mark Carney has indicated there could be an acceleration of interest rate increases if the UK manages a smooth exit from the European Union. The Bank of England kept rates unchanged at 0.75% this month, but its latest forecasts suggest that rates could rise to 1.5% over the next three years. The BBC says the clear message was that the nature of the Brexit deal will determine the next move in interest rates. The Guardian
Extreme weather and heat increasing in UK. Britain has experienced more weather extremes in the past ten years compared with previous decades, according to the Met Office. The average hottest day in each year of the past ten was 0.8C warmer than in those from 1961 to 1990, while the coldest days and nights were 1.7C warmer. The figures are consistent with warming trends globally. The Independent
Theresa May could cut tuition fees to £6,500. University tuition fees could be cut to £6,500 under proposals from Theresa May’s commission to recommend higher education reforms. The move would cost the government coffers £3bn a year and could lead to a cap on student numbers or drastically cut university income. University vice-chancellors warn that it could threaten social mobility and force struggling institutions to close. The Times
Britons spending ever more on Halloween. Britons spent an estimated £419m celebrating Halloween this year as the popularity of the annual event continues to grow, new figures show. Market research firm Mintel says Britons are forking out 5% more than they did last year on chocolates, sweets, decorations and fancy dress for Halloween, which until just a few decades ago was a smaller event in the UK than Guy Fawkes Night. Sky News
NHS spends £3m getting things out of noses. The annual cost to the NHS in England of removing items stuck up people’s noses or in their ears is almost £3m, a study has found. Most of the patients involved are children. According to a research paper titled Will Children Ever Learn?, the average number of removals carried out each year between 2010 and 2016 was 3,697. Daily Mail
The bottom line. 51% of UK adults sleep for six hours or fewer a night. A mere 17% get the recommended eight hours. The Times
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