Let's not neglect India

With the UK economy teetering on the brink of recession again, one can detect in some quarters a reaction, almost bordering on delight, that the so-called "Indian economic miracle" has suffered a few setbacks during the past few months.

It is true that the recent economic news from India has been disappointing.

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What do investors look for in a start up?

When it comes to investing in start-ups there are two theories that guide me. First, the notion that most business plans will change once assumptions "meet the market". Second, the notion that an early-stage start-up is a hypothesis with many assumptions.

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Country conundrums

Entering 2012 it is obvious that the problems of the Eurozone are not going to be sorted out quickly or in a neat and tidy way.

There continues to be no sign of countries working together and managing the situation, and the "Merkozy" alliance does not fill one with confidence. Announcements on the fate of Hungary and whether countries are going to get a ratings downgrade does not help either.

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Could this be a second crisis of state socialism?

In 2011, an important centenary passed pretty much unremarked. On December 16 1911, the National Insurance Act received royal assent. It was the well-intentioned Act that destroyed the friendly societies and entrenched state welfare.

At the time, British government spending was under 15 per cent of GDP.

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It's a data dilemma

The increasing volume of electronically stored information means that deciding how to store and where to locate data is a key issue for any business. Storage of vast amounts of electronic data can be expensive and inconvenient.

The advent of "cloud computing" is an example of the creative ways in which documents may now be stored.

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Why care needs care

I would like to highlight an issue that is likely to affect us all, directly or indirectly. As more and more of us are living longer, how will we pay for the care of frail, elderly family members?

Many might never have never considered this, or think that the government will cover the cost. That is not usually the case. Anyone with assets or income over £23,250 has to fund themselves.

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Unemployment is the big enemy

One of the most worrying consequences of the current economic malaise is the inexorable rise in unemployment in the UK.

In November, Government figures showed 2.62 million people without jobs. That is 8.3 per cent of the work-force, the highest over the past 15 years.

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If only it were 1940

Winston Churchill and the decision that the War Cabinet had to make about doing a deal with Hitler, and effectively ending England's participation in the War.

The French Prime Minister, who was preparing to capitulate, slipped into the UK unnoticed and quietly had a meeting with Churchill to discuss the agonising decision. Imagine that.

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Now Israel sucked into Euro mess

The news has been overflowing with negative stories about the world's economy for what seems like an eternity.

Since 2008, when the bubble well and truly burst, we have seen one long and depressing succession of negative data as the Western economies have stumbled from one crisis to the next. Inevitably, this has had a huge impact on the value of currencies around the world.

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It's a good time to be a start up company

What an exciting time for entrepreneurs and venture capitalists (VCs). Two elements transform entrepreneurship and the VC landscape: cost and time.

Cost: the cost of building an online company today is considerably lower than the cost of building a similar business five years ago. With Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) there is no longer a need to build client-server architecture.

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Our aviation policy, it's really up in the air

Following last month's Cabinet reshuffle, one of the urgent priorities for the new Transport Secretary, Justine Greening, will be to complete the ongoing government review of aviation policy and set out a coherent and credible strategy.

This will be no easy task, especially given that prior to the last general election, the Conservatives ruled out the building of a third runway at Heathrow.

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It's time to say 'freeze'

The European Commission has proposed the introduction of a Europe-wide bank account freezing order, known as a European Account Preservation Order (EAPO).

The EAPO will provide creditors with a quick and easy process to obtain a court order that can freeze bank accounts belonging to a debtor in any country in the European Union (EU).

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Long past the time for women on board

In February, Lord Davies of Abersoch, the former Trade Minister, published his report Women on Boards. In it, he gave the chairmen of FTSE 350 companies until this month to set out the percentage of women they aim to have on their boards by 2013 and then 2015.

Lord Davies was responding to an invitation from the government to promote gender equality on the boards of listed companies.

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Annuities are critical

Falling stock markets, low interest rates and high inflation are a huge headache for anyone approaching retirement.

Many people have seen a 15 per cent fall in their forecast retirement income in recent weeks. A major cause of this pension shortfall is the rising cost of buying annuities - which is the most common way of taking a pension income from your pension fund.

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The pound problem

If you just landed on earth in the past few weeks, having come from outer-space, you could be forgiven for thinking that you had arrived at a time when the world was in a state of collapse.

The streets have been burning and so have the markets, with falling stock prices, banks reporting huge losses, investors running for cover and the whole world seemingly pitched head-long into meltdown.

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Wave goodbye to cheap energy rates

With the news continuing to be dominated by allegations over phone hacking and our minds turning to thoughts of sun-drenched beaches and fun-filled family holidays, we could be forgiven for having overlooked the recent decision by British Gas to increase the cost of gas by 18 per cent and electricity by 16 per cent.

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It's savers who suffer

The Bank of England still shows no sign of raising interest rates, despite dreadful inflation figures.

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Shekel shows power

Whilst the UK's economy has stuttered and stumbled its way out of recession, Israel has enjoyed an entirely different experience.

The Israeli economy is buoyant, with a GDP forecast of 5.2 per cent for this year and unemployment at a record low. Exports are also looking robust despite the strength of the shekel.

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Injustice to banking

One of the least understood and most damaging aspects of the financial crisis is the way International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) mislead UK and Irish banks and their stakeholders about their true financial positions.

These accounting standards have contributed enormously to the severity of the financial crisis in both countries, and, until they are reformed, pose a lethal threat to a

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