The Capitalist: Colonel Carns hosts delulu dinner for leadership bid
Al Carns thinks he’s still in with a shot, the Chancellor practices her times tables and City PM get sporty; catch up on the latest City gossip in The Capitalist
Everyone in Westminster and Manchester knows it, even anyone living under a rock knows it: Andy Burnham will become the next Prime Minister. Yet Al Carns, the husky former-Special-Ops agent-turned-Labour-Party-army-guru, still reckons he can become Prime Minister. He’s refused to rule out standing for Labour leader when nominations open on 9 July. The Prime Ministerial wannabe has put out a series of AI-drafted tweets and word-salad videos talking about the ‘tests’ the country’s next leader must pass. The Capitalist wonders what he will be telling investors, lobbyists and his fanboys at a dinner tonight. Guests are stumping up £500 for an “exclusive dinner” with Carns and his ally Amanda Martin in an “informal setting”. It’s a sign that he believes he can yet build a warchest to open fire on an unexpected leadership race.
Things were already pretty awkward for the Chancellor. Rachel Reeves turned up to the British Chambers of Commerce’s annual business conference with everyone basically knowing she would be around for much longer. She then attempted to launch her bid to cling on to her job for stability’s sake and because she had “more to do”. Business chiefs were unconvinced. Russell Borthwick, chief executive of Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce, sniped at her calculations. Reeves had said that, since the economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the first quarter of the year, it could grow by 2.4 per cent over the course of the year (0.6 multiplied by four). Borthwick was having none of it: “That’s not how it works, Rachel.”
It’s fair to say City PM kicked things off with a whimper rather than a bang at last year’s inaugural Lord Mayor’s Cup Football Tournament (wins: zero), but Shoreditch Powerleague had another thing coming for them this year. Led by team captain Frank Dalleres, and decked out in a new team kit, City PM stormed to triumph (once), winning their game against GLA Athletic 4-3. We won’t bore you with the details of the other four games. The likes of Revolut, DLA Piper, KPMG, EY, Aon, Rothschild and Pincent Masons were also represented at the five-a-side tournament, played in aid of The Lord Mayor’s Appeal. Congrats to EY who ultimately took home the trophy after a final showdown with Hiscox.
The Capitalist is partial to witnessing an “unrepeatable visual moment”, although when press releases promise that, they are typically touting nonsense. Not so with this morning’s dispatch from the Nao Victoria boat, however, a replica of the first ship to ever circumnavigate the globe, which came through Tower Bridge this week and is currently docked in St Katharine Docks. The quadruple-sailed, Pirates of the Caribbean-coded vessel is available for public viewing until 12 July at St Katharine Dock. Find us swash-buckling from the mast until then, join us by getting tickets at ticket.fundacionnaovictoria.org
The Supreme Court ruling on the tax treatment of LLPs has sent shockwaves through the City and left hedge fund BlueCrest – which is now liable for a £200m income tax and national insurance bill – warning that the UK is “no longer a contender” in the hyper competitive world of global finance.
Another City grandee who fell foul of the court in a similar recent ruling is XTX Markets chief Alexander Gerko – already one of the biggest taxpayers in the land, who was presented with a £22.5m tax bill after the courts found against his firm’s arrangements. Noting that the foreign secretary announced £23m in additional aid to the UN’s relief agency in Gaza on the same day that his ruling came down, Gerko suggested the government was “trolling him”. If ministers think that they will soon be in line for a windfall from LLPs paying additional tax, they may be in for a surprise. The smart money says many such firms will simply leave the UK for less punishing jurisdictions.