BP oil spill costs soar further in second quarter July 30, 2013 OIL GIANT BP yesterday said it had set aside a further $1.4bn (£900m) for claims relating to the Gulf of Mexico disaster, bringing the firm close to draining the $20bn fund it has set aside for compensation costs. BP is appealing the claim payouts, arguing that terms of the compensation framework are being misinterpreted, resulting [...]
Majority of UK businesses want referendum on EU membership July 30, 2013 THE VAST majority of British businesses want an in/out vote on the UK’s membership of the EU, according to research released today. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) surveyed 4,000 firms and found 77 per cent are in favour of holding a vote on a new deal with Brussels. Most businesses said they ultimately want to remain within [...]
Bedroom tax legal challenge fails July 30, 2013 Campaigners yesterday failed in their attempt to have the government’s so-called bedroom tax ruled illegal, in a major victory for the coalition’s welfare reforms. The policy, which financially penalises social housing tenants with spare rooms, is designed to encourage people on benefits to downsize. But campaigners unsuccessfully argued that it breached the human rights of [...]
Calls for tighter whiplash rules July 30, 2013 The government should consider introducing a time limit on road accident claims in a bid to reduce the number of spurious whiplash claimants, according to a report out today from the transport select committee. Committee chair Louise Ellman also says claimants should “provide proof that they have either been seen by a doctor or attended [...]
MPs to grill Twitter execs on abuse July 30, 2013 The House of Commons culture committee is keen to summon executives from social network Twitter to talk about the number of threats towards female users of the site. Committee chairman John Whittingdale said “we would wish to explore with internet companies” what steps are being taken to identify those responsible for harassment. Two men have [...]
Santander’s profits soar despite weakness in Brazilian operation July 30, 2013 EARNINGS from Santander’s flagship Latin American businesses fell in the first half of the year as lending income from Brazil faltered, taking the shine off a turnaround in group profits. Santander’s Brazil operation posted a 17.5 per cent fall in net interest income – a measure of interest earned on loans minus what is paid [...]
Legal bills drag down Deutsche Bank’s earnings July 30, 2013 GERMAN lender Deutsche Bank saw profits plunge on soaring litigation fees in the second quarter, the institution announced yesterday, while it had to announce further cuts to operations to hit new regulatory capital targets. Net income fell 50 per cent to €335m (£291.5m), despite net revenues rising two per cent to €8.2bn. Corporate banking and securities [...]
UBS draws line under 2008 state bailout with toxic fund buyback July 30, 2013 UBS SAID yesterday it will buy back a fund set up to purge the Swiss bank of toxic assets, drawing a line under a humiliating state bailout in 2008 and raising the prospect of an early increase in dividends. Switzerland’s largest bank by assets has overhauled itself following the financial crisis and a series of [...]
Report finds British banks are not racist July 30, 2013 A REPORT commissioned by Deputy Prime Minister has found that British banks are not guilty of discriminating against black and ethnic minority people. Nick Clegg had previously suggested discriminatory lending policies were preventing minorities from starting their own businesses. But the research found this was not the case.
Britain getting more confident about growth July 30, 2013 THE BRITISH economy was the most upbeat of any major European country in July, shooting upward in the past month, official EU statistics show. And GfK’s consumer confidence barometer for the UK also recorded a strong upswing, rising to minus 16, its highest level since April 2010. Though the measure is still negative, it has [...]