Thursday newspaper round-up: Brexit, cars, broadcasters, PatVal

Theresa May is preparing to entice Labour MPs to support her Brexit deal with a cash injection into deprived areas that supported Leave, including former mining communities. The prime minister’s allies believe that she needs the backing of about 20 Labour MPs for a modified agreement to offset the number of Tory rebels, even if she wins the support of the DUP. - The Times

Theresa May has been told by Donald Tusk that it is her job to find a solution to the Brexit impasse during what sources have described as an “open and frank” 45-minute phone call in the wake of her demands for a renegotiation. The European council president warned the prime minister that a precondition for any further talks was a concrete plan from Downing Street that could clearly command the support of parliament. - Guardian

The Prime Minister's chief Brexit negotiator warned against backing a Tory plan to go back to Brussels and reopen negotiations in a series of emails to senior officials. Oliver Robbins raised concerns about an amendment tabled by a senior Tory MP requiring the Prime Minister to secure changes to the Northern Ireland backstop, sources said. - Telegraph

Britain will be giving up €7.6 billion when it leaves the European Union by abandoning any claim to the accumulated profits of the European Investment Bank, according to a House of Lords investigation. The sum, equivalent to £6.6 billion in forgone profits and dividends, would pay a sixth of the UK’s £39 billion financial settlement with the EU but the government waived any right to the money under the withdrawal agreement. - The Times

Theresa May has appointed three senior cabinet ministers to take charge of the new Brexit negotiations to try to broker an agreement between Brussels and her warring party. David Lidington, the prime minister’s de facto deputy, is expected to lead the talks on her behalf. A former Europe minister who is widely respected in Brussels, he will be supported by Stephen Barclay, the Brexit secretary, and Geoffrey Cox, the attorney-general. - The Times

The depth of the crisis facing Britain's car industry has been laid bare by vehicle production numbers that show the number of cars rolling out of UK plants plunging to a five-year low. The number of cars built in the UK last year declined by 9.1pc to 1.52m - the second consecutive fall and biggest annual decline since the industry was ravaged by the financial crisis a decade ago. - Telegraph

Broadcasters are facing a tipping point in the next five years where a faster decline in traditional viewing will make TV campaigns too expensive to be cost-effective for advertisers. A new report is forecasting an “inflection point” for UK TV where the decline in viewing already well-established among 16- to 34-year-olds will spread to other key demographics ultimately threatening TVs greatest selling point of mass-market reach for advertisers. - Guardian

Aplan to boost mobile coverage on the Trans Pennine rail route has been scrapped by the Government after the expected bill from Network Rail more than doubled, in the latest blow to efforts to improve infrastructure in the North. The project was at the centre of efforts to improve connectivity for rail passengers in time for the arrival of new 5G mobile network technology. - Telegraph

One of Britain’s fastest-growing new energy companies has revealed a £5m loss despite a surge of customers. Octopus Energy admitted that it was still “several years away” from turning a profit despite increasing its customer base to about half a million in under three years. - Telegraph

The long-term auditors of collapsed chain Patisserie Valerie have been castigated for claiming they are “not set up” to spot fraud. Grant Thornton chief executive David Dunckley told an influential committee of MPs that “audit fundamentally gives a reasonable opinion on historic information, and doesn't look for fraud”. - Telegraph

...The auditor of Patisserie Valerie’s owner has been accused of having “fingerprints all over the crime scene” after it failed to identify a £40 million fraud. Peter Kyle, a member of the parliamentary business committee, told the boss of Grant Thornton at a hearing yesterday it was “extraordinary” that the accountancy firm did not notice that Patisserie bank accounts were artificially inflated by bounced cheques worth millions of pounds, which may have allowed it to hide its true position. - The Times