Be part of London’s booming economy — predicted to grow by $80billion by 2012 [1]

Below is a snapshot of facts about business in London. 

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• No.1 European city for business: London was voted the top city for the 18th year running in 2007, ranking first for easy access to markets, qualified staff, external and internal transport links, telecommunications, availability of office space and languages spoken [2].  More info
• Booming economy: London’s economy is expected to grow at a faster rate than New York, Paris or any other established global city and will become the fourth largest city economy in the world by 2020 [3]. 
• Springboard to Europe: London is the gateway to the European Union’s 27 member states, the biggest single market in the world, with a population of nearly 500 million.
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• Olympic city: London will host the Olympic Games in 2012. Procurement started in 2007. Contracts will be available for firms of all sizes and the total budget will run into billions. More info.  
• Unrivalled choice of premises: ranging from flexible office space to some of the world’s most sought-after multi-storey addresses.
• Excellent transport links: there are direct flights to 530 destinations worldwide from London’s five international airports [4] and high-speed rail services to Paris and Brussels. Heathrow is Europe’s largest air hub. London boasts one of the world’s largest overground/underground rail networks and is the hub for the UK’s domestic transport networks. The 80-terminal port of London is one of Europe’s largest sea freight centres.
• Easy to set up and expand: there are fewer restrictions concerning international ownership and doing business in the UK than in any other major European country [5].  Transparent corporate governance regulations contribute to low-risk regulatory environment. UK company law allows for faster start-up.
• Favourable tax regime: currently the highest rate of corporate tax is 30% but from 2008 it will be cut to 28%. The highest rate of income tax is 40%. VAT is 17.5%.
• Top talent: London is home to Europe’s largest regional workforce — more than 9.8 million, with one in three holding a university degree [6].  It’s also a magnet for highly-experienced senior managers.
• Flexible labour: the UK is one of the most flexible labour markets in Europe. Hiring and firing practices mean businesses can scale up and down quickly as required [7]. 
• Europe’s leading financial centre: every leading financial institution on the planet is represented in London. London is one of the world’s leading financial centres.
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• Hub for global brands: a third of the world’s largest companies are headquartered in London.
• Magnet for foreign investment: a quarter of London businesses are foreign-owned — 13,510 overseas-owned companies from 92 countries. London attracts more inward investment than any other European country (more than 7% of all foreign direct investment into Europe in 2006) [8].
• Wealthiest area in Europe: The average disposable household income in London is $1,455 per week the highest regional figure in Europe [9].  More than 40 billionaires live here — more than in any other city in the world.
• Continued growth and investment: London continues to develop and invest in itself: London’s Thames Gateway development is the largest urban regeneration project in Europe. $190 billion worth of major development projects, including the Olympic Park in Stratford,  will transform London over the next five to ten years [10].  More info.
• International political and diplomatic hub: 175 of the UN’s 191 member countries have embassies in London.
• World media centre: London is home to the Financial Times, the BBC, News International, CNN, CNBC, Reuters, Associated Press, Trinity Mirror, Bloomberg Europe, the Economist.
• Thriving world city: London is a microcosm of the planet: more than 300 languages are spoken here and more than one in four Londoners was born outside the UK [11].  
• Sustainability and innovation: London is working to become a world leader in environmental and climate change issues. In addition to the Congestion Charge scheme to address traffic congestion, the Mayor of London is committed to a range of initiatives to promote renewables and energy efficiency in the capital. More info. 

[1] City of London/Oxford Economics 2007
[2] European Cities Monitor, 2006
[3] PWC Economic – Global City Forecasts, 2007
[4] OAG Flight Disk – April 2007
[5] World Bank – Ease of Doing Business Index 2007
[6] Annual Population Survey (Nomisweb.co.uk)
[7] World Bank – Ease of Doing Business Index 2007
[8] Ernst & Young European Investment Monitor 2006
[9] Office of National Statistics, 2003/4 – 2005/6
[10] http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,,1535544,00.html
[11] Baker, Philip and Eversley, John, ed. (2000) Multilingual capital: the languages of London's schoolchildren and their relevance to economic, socal and educational policies. Battlebridge, London, UK. ISBN 190329200X