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Bill Midgley

Bill Midgley

Bill Midgley column

One of the criticisms many junior managers make is that they are subject to "micro- management"; an increasing level of control over minor issues where managers should really be empowered to make their own decisions, and subsequently to be held accountable for such decisions.Read

Bill Midgley column

Perhaps one of the less onerous duties I have as president of British Chambers of Commerce is the opportunity to visit other countries, and particularly to meet government ministers and leaders of their industries.Read

Bill Midgley column

Debates in Europe, either in the Parliament or the Commission, tend to induce an outbreak of apathy, glazed eyes and a process of ignoring how our future lives are being shaped.Read

Bill Midgley column

It was pleasing to read the report in The Journal of Saturday last on the seminar headed up by the Learning and Skills Council on the 14 - 19 Education Agenda.Read

Bill Midgley column

One of the current Government initiatives is that of Corporate Social Responsibility, in other words encouraging business to take a wider involvement in the community as a whole.Read

Society encourages cash irresponsibility

I think it was Mark Twain who first claimed that he started each day by looking at the obituaries to see if his name was there, and if not, then get on with the affairs of the day. Perhaps an apocryphal story and one which has been attributed to many others since.Read

Bill Midgley column

Having now completed attendance at all four of the Autumn Conferences - that is the three main political parties and the TUC - it is perhaps inevitable a comparison is made of how they all operate, and the conclusions that may be drawn.Read

Bill Midgley column

It's autumn, and the political conference season is upon us, with one down and three to go.Read

Bill Midgley column

It is not all that long ago I was writing that bankruptcy was often seen as a bar on young entrepreneurs who when having made a single mistake often found that they had lost their businesses and indeed were "blacked" so far as developing their future skills were concerned.Read

Bill Midgley column

Perhaps we haven't quite yet got to the stage where the private car driver is viewed in the same anti-social class as the tobacco smoker, but I think the majority of us who still drive cars could be forgiven for thinking that way.Read

Bill Midgley

I find it rather unsettling when going into a department store in London to be immediately "grabbed" by an assistant to ask what I want, and who then follows me around within no more than a yard, directing my attention to the latest line of products.Read

Bill Midgley column

Seated in the depths of the headquarters of one of our Government agencies recently, and as ever with my mind wandering from the rather turgid debate around the table, I was impressed with the high quality of staff employed by the agency itself.Read

Bill Midgley column

One of the most interesting and challenging roles as president of the British Chambers of Commerce is the regular meetings held with Government ministers. And the past month has been no exception, including two meetings with the Chancellor, one with the Prime Minister and one with the Secretary of State at the Department of Trade and Industry, Patricia Hewitt.Read

Bill Midgley column

One of the guests at a recent business gathering surprised many by saying he represented a company that was involved in spark plugs.Read

Bill Midgley column

We are going to hear a lot about Europe over the next 18 months, even if the Government do what they can to separate European issues from the General Election.Read

Bill Midgley column

Last week I was asked to give a presentation to a conference of professional fundraisers in the North-East.Read

Bill Midgley column

Amidst the understandable anger about the loss of almost 1,000 jobs in our call centre industry in the North-East, one point seems to have been overlooked.Read

They say it's our railway - so are we to blame too?

I have been greatly intrigued recently by those full page advertisements in the press to the effect that "it is your railway."Read

Let's just tell it as it is

At last it's official, or so one report says, and men all over the world will be able to heave a great sigh of relief.Read

Efficient transport systems a must

By any yardstick the Great North Run weekend was a tremendous advertisement for the region, highlighting yet again the delights of the North-East.Read

Author Profile

Bill Midgley is a Cumbrian-born businessman, who spent most of the first 30 years of his life in Yorkshire, has long been a high-profile figure in the North East business community. His career in financial services began as a 16-year-old with the Midland Bank in Huddersfield and eventually led to him spending two decades with the Newcastle Building Society where he was chief executive and latterly executive vice chairman, before retiring in 1998. He has continued to expand his business and charity interests both regionally and nationally and is a high-profile media commentator.

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