PZ Cussons remains cautious over full year outlook due to challenges in Nigeria December 13, 2018 Consumer goods manufacturer PZ Cussons reported good performance in Europe and Asia in its half-year results, but warned of challenging trading conditions in Africa. PZ Cussons, which owns brands such as Imperial Leather and Original Source, said new products and increased distribution had driven its strong trading in the six months to the end of [...]
Hamleys pulls slime toy as kids craze gets hit by EU safety warnings December 13, 2018 Hamleys has pulled a toy slime product off its shelves, after a wider test by consumer group Which found several products had failed safety tests for containing high levels of boron. Frootiputti slime, made by Goobands and sold by Hamleys, contained more than four times the EU limit for boron levels. The group said exposure to [...]
Commuters face day of disruption due to train fault between Stratford and St Pancras International December 13, 2018 A damaged track between Stratford and Eurostar hub St Pancras has triggered widespread delays and disruption for commuters this afternoon. Southeastern said disruption to its high speed services would continue through the rest of the day. A limited service is will run between Stratford and St Pancras until about 10pm this evening, and there will be [...]
Theresa May warns not to expect a quick Brexit breakthrough as she arrives in Brussels December 13, 2018 Theresa May played down the chances of a Brexit breakthrough as she arrived in Brussels for the latest EU summit. Speaking the day after surviving a vote of no confidence from disgruntled Tory MPs, the Prime Minister said she heard “loud and clear” why the 117 who voted against her are unhappy with her leadership. [...]
Trump denies asking former lawyer Michael Cohen to break the law December 13, 2018 Donald Trump has denied directing his former lawyer Michael Cohen to break the law following Cohen’s sentencing for making hush-money payments to aid Trump’s election campaign. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison yesterday after pleading guilty to the violation of campaign law and lying to Congress about a proposed Trump Tower project in [...]
Mike Ashley slams Debenhams for rejecting his £40m loan December 13, 2018 Retail tycoon Mike Ashley has launched a scathing attack on Debenhams today, claiming that the beleaguered department store giant has rejected a £40m interest-free emergency loan. In a letter addressed to Debenhams boss Sergio Bucher, the billionaire Sports Direct owner suggests that without the money the company "has zero chance of survival". Ashley, who controls [...]
Euro drops as ECB lowers growth forecast and confirms end to €2.6tn stimulus despite growth concerns December 13, 2018 The European Central Bank has confirmed plans to bring its €2.6tn eurozone stimulus programme to an end later this month despite concerns over growth. The bank’s bond purchasing programme, which began in 2015, will wind down at the end of the year as planned, it said today. But the ECB said it would continue to [...]
BBC’s Eastenders set revamp goes £27m over budget December 13, 2018 The BBC’s project to rebuild and enlarge the Eastenders set will be £27m over budget and take an extra two-and-a-half years to complete. The cost estimate for the construction project has soared 45 per cent from £59.7m to £86.7m, the National Audit Office (NAO) said today. The expected completion date of the project, known as E20, [...]
Passengers ditch season tickets in favour of single journeys as disruption takes its toll December 13, 2018 Passengers are continuing to ditch season tickets, suggesting a loss of confidence caused by disruption on Britain’s railways. The number of season ticket journeys for the second quarter this year was 143m – the lowest level since the second quarter of 2010-11. By contrast, the number of journeys using one-time advance, anytime and off-peak tickets increased [...]
Supreme Court rules against Scottish replacement for Westminster Brexit bill December 13, 2018 The Supreme Court has decided parts of a Scottish law passed to take control over areas such as farming and fishing after Brexit are “outside of the legislative competence” of the Scottish parliament. Holyrood passed its own Brexit legislation in March after disagreeing with Westminster’s own Brexit bill. Most of the Holyrood bill was within [...]