Friday newspaper round-up: EY, HS2, Arrival

Deloitte’s chief executive has launched a thinly veiled criticism of rival EY after its controversial plans to split the business into two were thrown into turmoil. EY initially announced plans for a radical breakup of its global operations last year, that would separate its audit and advisory businesses. – Guardian

HS2 will be delayed by another two years and major roadbuilding schemes will be mothballed, ministers have confirmed, after soaring inflation added billions to the cost of transport infrastructure projects. Ministers insisted they remained committed to Britain’s high-speed rail network scheme, but the budget constraints have cast further doubt over prospects for the rail project’s full implementation. - Guardian

With spring approaching, Bill Quan is preparing to plant this year’s crop of potatoes and peas at his Herefordshire farm. Yet there is a key difference on the field this year. Between the last harvest and the beginnings of the next one, Quan has kept the soil healthy using a mixed-species cover crop. Not only does this add nitrogen and allow the earth to hold more water, it also sucks up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and sequesters it in organic matter. – Telegraph

A struggling electric vehicle start-up founded in Britain has said it is in line to strike a deal that will bolster its finances, despite making losses of up to $1 billion last year. Losses at Arrival widened to at least $587.6 million in the last quarter of 2022 alone, from $66.6 million the previous year, as it grappled with impairment charges and write-offs tied to decisions to close its British operation, switch to the United States and halt development in Russia. – The Times

Britain is set to become a “significantly worse place to do business” as corporation tax rises and investment incentives expire, new research suggests. The combination of corporate profits being taxed at 25 per cent and the end of the so-called super-deduction tax break will push the UK from tenth place to 33rd out of 38 leading economies in terms of the competitiveness of its business tax regime, the Centre for Policy Studies has warned. – The Times