Sir Vince Cable condemns ‘shocking’ link between Treasury targets and RBS bosses’ pay January 31, 2019 Former business secretary Sir Vince Cable has hit out at “shocking” evidence that appears to suggest the pay of RBS’s top brass within its controversial global restructuring unit (GRG) was linked to Treasury targets. Fresh questions are being asked about the extent of the Treasury’s involvement in RBS’s GRG unit following allegations that emerged in [...]
Barclays fraud allegations implicate Qatar, says trial judge January 31, 2019 The jury in the trial of four former Barclays executives charged with conspiracy to commit fraud have been told that Qatari entities would be implicated if the prosecution’s case proves correct. Justice Robert Jay warned of the potential repercussions of the case, in which the ex-bank bosses stand accused of making secret payments to Qatar [...]
Outgoing BT boss Gavin Patterson regrets delayed start to turnaround plan January 31, 2019 Outgoing BT boss Gavin Patterson today said he regretted not starting the company’s radical turnaround plan earlier as his turbulent time at the helm came to an end. The embattled chief executive said the company would be in a better position if it had been quicker to kick off its aggressive cost-cutting plan, which included thousands [...]
Npower to dismiss nearly 15 per cent of its UK workforce as energy market bites January 31, 2019 British energy provider Npower has said it will cut almost 15 per cent of its UK workforce, as part of an initiative to reduce its operating costs. The company said the reductions would affect around 900 roles out of its 6,300 employees over the course of this year. It added that most of this number [...]
Britain’s trade bodies must confront challenges of their own January 31, 2019 What does the future hold for Britain's trade bodies? We hear a great deal about the disruption that poses huge challenges to their members but what of the disruption facing membership groups themselves? Many are struggling with declining membership rates, or the competing interests of the members who do remain. Take the British Retail Consortium [...]
Banks suffer hundreds of high street closures during 2018 January 31, 2019 Walk-in banks suffered more net closures than any other type of retailer last year, as fast-growing digital rivals lured shoppers away from traditional high street heavyweights. While beleaguered department stores have been stealing the doom-and-gloom headlines for the retail sector in recent months, Britain’s bricks-and-mortar banks saw the greatest retrenchment last year, with some 716 [...]
Rough sleeping in the Square Mile nearly doubled last autumn January 31, 2019 The number of rough sleepers in the Square Mile rose to 67 during autumn last year, up 86 per cent on the year before. A new government report found the City of London to have the ninth-highest number of people sleeping in the open air of any local authority in England. Local councillor Tijs Broeke [...]
Snow to hit London tonight as Southeastern warns of busier peak trains January 31, 2019 The Met Office has issued an amber “danger to life” warning for parts of the UK as icy roads and heavy snow up to 10cm deep is expected to settle a day after the cold snap led to disruption for airports and schools. Hours of snowfall tonight could lead to between 3cm and 7cm of snow accumulating [...]
Broadcast TV advertising ‘at the tipping point’ as viewers switch to streaming, report finds January 31, 2019 Traditional TV advertising is approaching a tipping point as sliding viewing figures cast doubt on the cost-efficiency of TV campaigns, a new report has found. A report by media consultancy Ebiquity has forecast a decline in TV ad viewing among adults of 15 to 20 per cent by 2022. These figures increase to 30 per [...]
Deutsche Bank shares slump on reports of possible merger with rival Commerzbank January 31, 2019 Deutsche Bank shares have tumbled on reports the crisis-stricken German lender could be set for a merger with rival Commerzbank by the middle of this year. The deal is being brokered by the German government and would only go ahead if the bank’s restructuring fails to meet targets, Bloomberg first reported. The bank is set to [...]