Wednesday newspaper round-up: UK car industry, Inter Ikea, Persimmon

The British car industry has delivered a bleak warning over the danger of a no-deal Brexit, saying it would devastate UK motor manufacturing at a cost of more than £40bn in lost production by 2024. About 1.5m fewer cars would be produced by British factories in the next five years, manufacturers warned, should the industry fall back on World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules – whether in a direct no-deal Brexit or at the end of the transition period in Boris Johnson’s withdrawal deal. – Guardian

Ikea’s parent company is to invest an additional €200m (£171m) in green energy and forest planting as part of a plan by the world’s largest furniture retailer to become carbon neutral by 2030. The investment is being made by Inter Ikea Group, the owner of the Ikea brand which is operated by a string of franchise businesses, the largest of which is Ingka Group. – Guardian

Politicians and campaigners have urged Jeff Fairburn to reveal whether he has donated a portion of his controversial £75m bonus, as it appears no charity has been set up in the former Persimmon boss's name. A year after Mr Fairburn was forced to step down from his role, the Charity Commission says it does not have any record of a trust bearing Mr Fairburn's name. Neither does it appear that the ex-housebuilding chief executive is a trustee of any charity in England or Wales. – Telegraph

A former senior executive at Barclays has told a court he was surprised by the level of fees demanded by Qatar in return for providing crucial financial support to the British bank in 2008. Roger Jenkins, former chairman of investment banking in the Middle East and north Africa, said he had been “a little taken aback” at the price requested by the senior Qatari negotiator. – The Times

The chief executive of Australia’s second biggest bank has resigned over a money-laundering scandal linked to apparent child exploitation. Brian Hartzer, the New Yorker who has led Westpac Bank for four years, announced his departure in an email to 40,000 staff, saying that he wanted to lead the response to the scandal but accepted the judgment of the board that new leadership was essential. – The Times