Press Round-Up Short (Premium)
Sunday newspaper round-up: Three, Royal Mail, Google...
Telecoms giant Three has paid out a record £2 billion dividend to the Hong Kong-listed conglomerate of billionaire Li Ka-shing, as it cashes in on the sale of mobile phone masts across Europe. Hutchison 3G, which trades as Three and has ten million customers and more than 4,500 employees in the UK, paid out the money months before increasing some of its contract prices by 14 per cent. The British company is owned by 95-year-old Li’s CK Hutchison Holdings, which has drawn scrutiny in the past for dividends taken from its other UK assets.
Friday newspaper round-up: Whitehall pay squeeze, rail delays, Donald Trump, short sellers, NI cuts
Civil servants are being overpromoted to get round a Whitehall pay squeeze, analysis suggests. “Grade inflation” in Whitehall is costing £1. 5 billion a year and resulting in less-qualified staff doing senior jobs, the Institute for Government has warned. At the same time, permanent secretaries and other top officials who cannot be promoted are experiencing much bigger pay cuts that are driving talented people to the private sector, the think tank warns. - The Times.
Thursday newspaper round-up: Nursery places, Storm Gerrit, recycling, OpenAI, vinyls
The Labour Party is drawing up plans to create thousands of new nursery places for the under fives as part of a signature offer to working parents before the next election. Under proposals expected to be in its manifesto, the party is looking to fund new nurseries in primary schools across the country to provide continuity of education for younger children. The centres would be integrated into existing schools as part of what Labour claims will be a “modernised childcare system” available from the end of parental leave to the end of primary school.
Wednesday newspaper round-up: First-time buyers, inheritance tax, Man U, Anglo American
The Conservatives will promise to cut the up-front cost of a home for first-time buyers as a pre-election giveaway to win over younger voters. In what is expected to be a central element of the party’s campaign, Michael Gove told The Times that it would “definitely” have a new offer in place before polling day. - The Times.
Sunday newspaper round-up: Israel tanker, John Lewis, OakNorth...
An Israel-affiliated chemical tanker was hit by a drone allegedly launched from Iran in the Indian Ocean on Saturday, the US Department of Defence said. The Liberia-flagged Chem Pluto was struck at around 10am (local time) in the Indian Ocean, nearly 200 nautical miles from India's western coast of Veraval in Gujarat, the Pentagon claimed. It added that the one-way attack drone was launched from Iran. – The Independent.
Friday newspaper round-up: Property sales, Royal Mail, Revolut
Property sales and demand across the UK were almost a fifth higher in the final weeks of 2023 than a year earlier as sentiment improved, according to a survey. The property website Zoopla said new sales agreed were 17% higher in December than this time last year, when higher mortgage rates hit market activity. Demand is up 19%, measured by would-be buyers contacting agents to inquire about and arrange viewings for a specific property listed on Zoopla. An increase in the number of homes for sale is increasing choice and supporting sales, it said.
Thursday newspaper round-up: Greensill, BT, Dazn
The Premier League’s pledge to scrap betting adverts on football shirts will not protect children from a “bombardment” of gambling advertising, according to a report by MPs that also raises concerns about the pace of reform to the industry. MPs on the select committee for culture, media and sport criticised the government for failing to take a more “precautionary approach” to gambling promotion, setting out their concerns in a 76-page report published on Thursday.
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Avanti West Coast, British exporters, SoftBank
Northern political and transport leaders have called on the UK government to urgently review Avanti West Coast’s operations amid a renewed surge in intercity rail cancellations and delays. The intervention came as it emerged that morale at the train operating company has plummeted to the point where only 3% of staff say they feel valued, according to an internal Avanti survey seen by the Guardian. – Guardian.
Tuesday newspaper round-up: Sellafield, Google, Audi
The GMB trade union has called on the government and nuclear authorities to take “urgent action” to address concerns over safety at Sellafield. The union has written to the energy minister, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) and Sellafield’s chief executive to demand greater investment into keeping the 11,000 employees at the vast nuclear rubbish dump in Cumbria safe. – Guardian.
Monday newspaper round-up: Retailers, John Lewis, Rolls-Royce
Retailers are facing a tough new year as weak consumer demand is expected to combine with a barrage of increased costs, including the higher minimum wage. Shoppers are likely to keep their spending on pause during the first months of 2024, according to forecasts published today by the Retail Think Tank, a group of industry experts who analyse the health of the sector, as mounting mortgage and rental costs weigh on consumer confidence. – Guardian.
Sunday newspaper round-up: Gaza, Ryanair, Pearson...
Lord Cameron has joined forces with his German counterpart to call for a “sustainable ceasefire” in the Middle East and warn that “too many civilians have been killed” in the Hamas-Israel conflict. In a marked change of tone by the government which piles pressure on the Israeli government to end the bloodshed, the foreign secretary has united with Annalena Baerbock, the German foreign minister, to demand “a sustainable ceasefire, leading to a sustainable peace”.
Friday newspaper round-up: Coal, Walt Disney, auditors
Almost 200 homes in London have been sold for £10m in the past year as the super-rich’s pandemic-inspired desire for a place in the country wanes compared to their wish for swish bolt-holes in the capital. A total of 175 homes were sold for £10m-plus in the 12 months to November 2023, the highest number for eight-years, according to research by the estate agent Knight Frank. – Guardian.
Thursday newspaper round-up: Etsy, gas boilers, BP, Axel Springer
Tighter rules are needed to ensure that the imported “used” cooking oil that airlines hope will power cleaner flights is not in fact virgin palm oil, campaigners have warned. About 80% of waste oil is imported to create biofuels that are mostly still used in cars, vans and lorries despite growing demand from aviation. About 60% of those imports come from China. – Guardian.
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Sainsbury's, Boots, IDS, Purplebricks
Regulators should take action to curb a sharp rise in the price of infant formula, pregnancy campaigners have said, after a UK survey found more than half of women felt anxious about the cost of feeding their babies, with the number who expressed concerned rising by a quarter in two years. The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) found 65% of mothers were worried about the price of feeding their babies, and the same number said it had a negative impact on their family’s finances.
Tuesday newspaper round-up: Epic Games, Adobe, BAT
Bank of England concerns over the high level of pay awards are likely to be eased in the coming months as wage settlements fall in response to a tumbling annual inflation rate, a thinktank has said. The Resolution Foundation said recent strong growth in earnings was primarily caused by a sharp increase in the cost of living, with workers trying to prevent their living standards being eroded. – Guardian.
Monday newspaper round-up: US multinationals, London listings, interest rates
US multinationals underpaid £5. 6bn in tax in the UK last year, HM Revenue & Customs believes, according to a national accountancy firm. The suspected deficit is 14% higher than the figure from the previous year, and would mean US companies now make up nearly half of underpaid tax into British coffers from foreign companies. – Guardian.
Sunday newspaper round-up: Indian stocks, Flutter Entertainment, Rishi Sunak
India’s stock market is poised to take Hong Kong’s spot among the world’s largest trading venues, in a rise analysts say attests to investors’ optimism about the economic prospects of the world’s most populous country. The total market capitalisation of companies listed on the National Stock Exchange of India was $3. 7tn as of the end of October, according to the World Federation of Exchanges, a trade association of publicly regulated stock markets, compared with the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong’s $3.
Friday newspaper round-up: Anti-strike laws, recruiters, crypto kiosks
Rishi Sunak’s “spiteful” new anti-strike laws have created a “galvanising moment” for the UK’s trade union movement, the TUC general secretary has said. Speaking before a special congress of union leaders on Saturday about how to respond to the Strikes Act, Paul Nowak promised the TUC would throw its weight behind any worker hit by the new law. – Guardian.
Thursday newspaper round-up: Corporate profiteering, Nationwide, THG
Profiteering has played a significant role in boosting inflation during 2022, according to a report that calls for a global corporation tax to curb excess profits. Analysis of the financial accounts of many of the UK’s biggest businesses found that profits far outpaced increases in costs, helping to push up inflation last year to levels not seen since the early 1980s. – Guardian.
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Local authorities, German car makers, Masdar
FBI agents tasked with investigating sanctions-busting have been dispatched to Cyprus as the global crackdown against Russian oligarchs, and the web of enablers who have helped hide their wealth, intensifies. The 24-strong team was expected to start “assisting Cypriot police” with immediate effect after arriving on the eastern Mediterranean island late Sunday. – Guardian.