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In the wake of the buyout of Lookers, Neil Shah of Edison Group considers whether the fact that the UK listed market is steadily being depleted is a bad thing or not? He feels that takeovers by trade buyers or private equity provide a possible exit for investors when the stock market might be underpricing companies and that, without it, investors – particularly in the small- and mid-cap areas – might not see value realised.

Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University suggests that, with the trend in Europe towards nationalist populism and harsher immigration policies, opinions in the UK towards the EU from each political wing may switch, as they have done before. With Thames Water in dire staits, why are natural monopolies failures whether run by the state or privately and what can be done? And with the problems of the NHS deepening, is it about to hit the point of no return?

Last Saturday's trail of chaos exposes the challenge facing Russia, absorbed in conflict and with its people living in fear and poverty. Plans are urgently needed to find a way out of this mess. But it has to start with ending the violence in Ukraine. Could there be a role for UN peacekeepers to help while Russia looks for a new way forward? Background music: 'Russian Dance' by Joey Pecoraro

The Bank of England’s bumper 0.5% rate hike this week was the 13th rise in a row. After sitting on their hands for more than a decade, ratesetters have been shaken out of their slumbers by an inflation storm. By historic standards 5% is not high for interest rates, but unfortunately for borrowers we also started from a historic low and have gone from 0.1% to here in just 18 months. The belated headlong rush into raising rates is also the exact opposite of what the Bank of England spent years assuring homeowners would happen: the party line used to be ‘gradual and limited’. The Bank is hiking rates to try to crush inflation but at the same time this affects a much smaller slice of homeowners than it once did and rapid rise in mortgage costs is crushing a generation of homeowners. So, was another rate rise a wise move? How bad is the pain for borrowers? Is this not a patch on the '80s, or just as bad? Has the Bank of England even given its rate rises long enough to take effect? On this rate rise special podcast, Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert tackle all that and more.

Rivian, Ford, and General Motors are all on-board to make cars that can use Tesla’s charging standard. But this collaboration won’t slow down the competition in electric vehicles any time soon. Asit Sharma and Dylan Lewis discuss why Rivian, Ford, and General Motors are signing on to make cars work with Tesla’s North American Charging Standard (NACS), what’s behind Tesla’s 140% jump in shares so far in 2023, Hyuandai’s $28B 10-year commitment to EVs and the Chinese government’s new $72B tax break program (NOTE: In the discussion, we accidentally refer to the combined charging standard as “CSS” instead of “CCS”). The, 12 minutes in, Ricky Mulvey caught up David Johnston, a vice president of asset protection and retail operations for the National Retail Federation to take a look inside retail crime syndicates and what's being done to stop them. Companies discussed: TSLA, F, GM, LOW, TGT, HD, CVS. Host - Dylan Lewis; Guests - Asit Sharma, David Johnston, Ricky Mulvey

For the past century, cities have centered around work. What happens when that’s no longer the case? Deidre Woollard and Matt Argersinger discuss what downtowns might look like when they become more than just “containers for work”, how different REITs are approaching the new commercial real estate landscape, and the promise and problems of “15-minute cities”. Companies and REITs mentioned: CRM, ARE, WE, PEAK, DEA. Host - Deidre Woollard; Guest - Matt Argersinger

'I'm starving', I'm famished', 'I'm hungry': how often do we throw out these comments without thinking? Are they an expression of want (need to have) or desire (nice to have)? Much of Adam Cox's hypnotic work is in the field of helping to lose weight, so in this episode he speaks of what hunger really means for those impacted by war or famine, seeking to help redefine motives in our affluent societies where the real challenges are rather different.

Adam Cox is joined by Simon Blake, Head of Strategic Corporate Finance at Price Bailey, for an insightful discussion surrounding recent data that has come to light through a Freedom of Information Request (FOIA). This data highlights a substantial increase in the number of Employee Ownership Trusts (EOTs) receiving tax clearance. Simon provides an overview of the findings and offers his perspective on the factors that have contributed to this surge of interest in EOTs. They examine the influence of tax incentives on the decision-making process for business owners contemplating the adoption of an EOT and explore the potential future implications of employee ownership trusts in the United Kingdom. https://www.pricebailey.co.uk/

Adam Cox is joined by Michael Voges, Chief Executive of ARCO, to engage in a thought-provoking conversation centred around ARCO's latest research findings. This research sheds light on the remarkable levels of frustration experienced by older individuals in relation to their available housing options. Together, they explore the innovative concept of Integrated Retirement Communities (IRCs) and how they effectively bridge the gap between traditional care homes and in-home care for the elderly. Furthermore, they delve into ARCO's estimation of a substantial £1 billion saving in NHS and social care costs by implementing IRCs. https://www.arcouk.org/

Adam Cox is accompanied by Dr. Alistair Robson, Clinical Director for Digital Pathology at Source LDPath, to delve into the pressing issue of pathologist shortages and explore the potential role of AI in addressing this gap. Dr. Alistair provides insights into the role of digital pathology and outlines the possible involvement of AI within this field. Additionally, they examine the ways in which digital pathology has the potential to benefit patients, opening up new avenues for improved healthcare outcomes. https://sourcebioscience.com