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Opinion

What are the economic realities of recovery?

The last week has been peculiar in the variety of messages being presented as to where we are in the economic cycle.

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Eleven-plus coaching is not helping children develop

Eleven-plus coaching limits and narrows the lives of boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 11. They must have better things to do - like playing football or dancing, or even reading a book.

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Champions League deal a statement of intent by BT Sport

BT Sport will have exclusive rights to the competition – as well as the Europa League – starting the season after next.

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Weigh up your options with BPR qualifying investments

The Government’s decision to freeze the inheritance tax nil rate band until 2015 will create new liabilities for a number of families.

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Zero-hours contracts must be reviewed

A zero-hours contract may be used for casual work, where the employer can choose from a pool of available workers as and when they are required.

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Why the Unite ‘bogeyman’ may be just a mirage

And its function in our political life? An instrument of self-aggrandisement for Len McCluskey and a convenient bogeyman for the Tories.

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Keep our interest rates low and the Governor’s dream could come true

Start saying it above a whisper – the fortunes of the West Midlands seem to be taking an upward turn.

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Once upon a time in the Lickey Hills tea-room

If you slowed down the credits on Peaky Blinders – as I did regularly with a flush of self-indulgent pride – you could find my name, about three feet below Cillian Murphy.

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Low survival rates is an emergency that needs action

If you’re going to have a heart attack, don’t wait until the weekend.

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How short-termism led the city council to the financial abyss

Birmingham is paying a very heavy price for short-termism, with news that the council’s total equal pay bill, built up over more than a decade, stands at £1.1 billion.

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Public and industry at the mercy of energy firms

Our continental competitors do not have to cope with such high prices, and British industries will therefore suffer in a highly competitive market.

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The many trials and tribulations of a football fan

And so the Brimingham City FC ‘sale’ saga goes on.. and on.. and off.. and on.. and off.. and on-off.. Well, you get the drift.

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Professor Feiger on economic fallacies, villains and heroes

Professor Feiger of Aston University outlined the straightforward matter of, 'understanding systems dynamics in economics: the villains and the heroes'.

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Are we too eager to forget that brutal really can be quite beautiful?

Applied to architecture, the use of the term Brutalism dates from the 1950s, although there is some dispute about its origins.

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Political Poker - and the stakes are high

In a time of rising power bills and genuine affordability concerns, we should be doing everything we can to help households reduce consumption and improve energy efficiency.

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'Abenonomics' boosts Toyota's profits

Auto giant Toyota last week raised its annual profit forecast for 2013-14, bringing it close to pre-crash records, with the firm's figures boosted by a weaker Yen and healthy sales in a resurgent US market.

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Designing neo industrial growth - case studies

Where design is used later in the new product and service development process then it would have a lower economic or financial impact on the business.

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Business reputation - designing consumer trust

WBS is using design thinking as a way of bringing a more creative dimension into the business management curriculum.

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Manufacturing and exports - the reality below the good news

Before we get too carried away, let’s not forget that we are still a long way from the point we were at prior to the calamitous decline

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HS2: Saving lives versus creating jobs

Whenever a project as large as HS2 is planned, there are always going to be a number of sacrifices that unfortunately have to be made.

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Christopher Bucktin: Justin Bieber’s become a train wreck of a role model

Despite his obvious singing talent on stage, his actions off it have left young fans’ parents holding their heads in their hands...

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BT making a good job of shooting for the Sky with sport

The battle for viewers may prove costly for club and terrestrial TV fans.

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An alternative way of building a pension pot

Most pension savers will build up their retirement fund using individual contributions and some will be fortunate enough to receive employer payments too.

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Councils should collect their thoughts – and all that is owed

Among the many reasons for mistrusting the Chancellor of the Exchequer is his inability to grasp percentages.

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