Wednesday newspaper round-up: Carillion, Cambridge Analytica, Aviva

Partners from PricewaterhouseCoopers will be questioned by the work and pensions committee on Wednesday about the accounting firm’s role in the collapse of Carillion, with PwC accused of attempting to “milk the Carillion cow dry”. The committee said the correspondence between the Pensions Regulator and Carillion exposed the regulator’s weak position and the key role played by PwC. Most of the regulator’s negotiations were conducted via PwC, which advised Carillion’s directors on managing their pensions liabilities from 2012 to 2017. – Guardian

Cities in the north and the Midlands have been transformed by a period of rapid regeneration that has seen population and jobs growth far exceed that of London since the turn of the century, according to a new report. The Centre for Cities thinktank said urban renaissance in Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham and Liverpool had been so marked that problems of urban decay had been replaced by a need to find room for further expansion. – Guardian

Google has become the latest technology giant to offer an olive branch to media publishers, unveiling a $300m (£215m) three-year plan to revive an industry critics say it played a role in stifling. Under the Google News Initiative, the company said it would be rolling out new features to help boost publishers' subscription numbers and provide them with better tools to analyse and understand their readership. – The Telegraph

Cambridge Analytica's boss, Alexander Nix, has been suspended with immediate effect after Channel 4 broadcast footage of the chief executive boasting of using bribes and women to swing elections, amid mounting pressure over data revelations.

Cambridge Analytica said Mr Nix would be suspended pending a "full, independent investigation" into the comments and allegations. Its chief data officer, Alexander Tayler, will take on an acting chief executive role while the investigation into Mr Nix takes place. – The Telegraph

Some of the City’s largest investors have clashed with Aviva over its controversial plan to cancel £450 million of preference shares, many of which are owned by pensioners and charities. A group made up of M&G Prudential, Invesco, GAM, Blackrock, Legal & General and Eden Tree met Sir Adrian Montague, Aviva’s chairman, yesterday to demand the insurer back down from its proposal to cancel three issues of preference shares which pay an average of 8.5 per cent annually. – The Times

President Trump fired another shot in an escalating trade dispute with Britain last night as his administration imposed punitive customs duties on imports of British steel products. The US Department of Commerce said that it would impose anti-dumping duties of nearly 150 per cent on imports of carbon and alloy steel wire rod from Britain, which are worth $20.5 million a year. – The Times