Equitable Life victims win court battle October 15, 2009 Hundreds of thousands more Equitable Life policyholders are now likely to receive compensation after the High Court yesterday found against the Treasury in a decade-long battle over payouts. Two High Court judges condemned the government’s decision to ignore findings made by the Parliamentary Obmudsman last year that there had been regulatory failures and “injustice and [...]
Office of Fair Trading to launch probe into how the web uses customer data October 15, 2009 The Office of Fair Trading said yesterday it had launched a probe into strategies used by online retailers, including those designed to track users’ online behaviours. The watchdog said it was targeting “behavioural advertising and customised pricing, where prices are individually tailored using information collected about a consumer’s internet use”. It said the first study [...]
ROYAL MAIL STRIKES October 15, 2009 OVER 100,000 postal workers will stage two 24-hour strikes next week on 22 and 23 October, in a dispute over pay, jobs and modernisation at the Royal Mail. The Royal Mail – led by chief executive Adam Crozier – said the decision was an “appalling and unjustified attack on customers”.
Boris to hike prices for TfL and C-charge October 15, 2009 LONDON Mayor Boris Johnson yesterday blamed the recession and the “mistakes of the past” as he unveiled sweeping hikes to Transport for London’s (TfL) fare package. Johnson said tube fares would rise 3.9 per cent overall next year, while bus prices will jump by 12.7 per cent. The changes come alongside a proposed increase to [...]
Multi-million sign-on bonuses entirely normal, argues BGC October 15, 2009 BGC PARTNERS will next week claim that offering over £40m to brokers at rival Tullett Prebon was “entirely normal and not unlawful” recruiting practice, as the two firms resume battle in the High Court. The case was adjourned for the day yesterday after a defence barrister for BGC was taken ill on just the second [...]
CITY VIEWS: IS BORIS RIGHT TO HIKE THE FARES IN A LOW-INFLATION ECONOMY? October 15, 2009 STEVE REYNOLDS RSA INSURANCE“Most people feel that anything that is not in-line with inflation is unjust. In this case, you have got to find another way to resolve the deficit. The fares already seem over-the-top – I’ve just come back from the US and services like transport are far cheaper there.” RUPERT THOMAS THE SYNERGY [...]
Xstrata pulls out of bid for its rival Anglo October 15, 2009 MINER Xstrata pulled out of its bid to create a “mining super-major” with rival Anglo American yesterday, in a climbdown for its chief executive Mick Davis. The group decided not to make a formal offer for Anglo after the Takeover Panel issued a “put up or shut up” ruling. It proposed a nil-premium “merger of [...]
Sainsbury’s rises on bid talk October 15, 2009 J SAINSBURY shares jumped 10 per cent yesterday on market talk that Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund was planning a renewed offer for the supermarket chain after dropping a bid in 2007. Sainsbury’s, Britain’s third-biggest supermarket group, the 26 per cent shareholder Qatari Investment Authority (QIA) and the Sainsbury family, which own around 17 per cent, [...]
US economy on the mend but deflation still a risk October 15, 2009 There was further proof yesterday that the US economy is starting to recover from recession as data showed that US consumer prices rose modestly in September. The US Labour Department said the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.2 per cent in September on the previous month, taking the annual inflation rate to -1.3 per cent [...]
FSA under fire over its hiring rules October 15, 2009 CRITICISM continued to mount yesterday over plans by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to vet senior appointments in the Square Mile, with one law firm calling it “a considerable expansion of its powers”. Reynolds Porter Chamberlain (RPC) said the FSA made the proposals without any consultation. A letter to 5,000 institutions, sent out earlier this [...]