John McDonnell accused of a ‘wilful misunderstanding of business’ after radical conference speech September 24, 2018 One of the UK's biggest business groups pleaded with Labour not to see enterprise as "the enemy" after shadow chancellor John McDonnell delivered a radical speech at his party's conference. The Institute of Directors, which represents companies across the UK, urged McDonnell to abandon "sweeping measures and angry rhetoric" as he used a [...]
Former BHS owner Dominic Chappell loses conviction appeal with Pensions Regulator September 21, 2018 Former BHS owner Dominic Chappell has lost an appeal against his conviction for failing to provide information to the Pensions Regulator (TPR) following the demise of the department store chain. Chappell was ordered to pay £87,000 in January. Today a judge ruled his conviction would not be overturned because he gave "entirely unbelievable" evidence. In 2015, [...]
Frank Field questions Pensions Regulator as Kodak scheme heads to lifeboat September 19, 2018 Leading Labour MP and chair of the Work and Pension Select Committee Frank Field has demanded answers from the Pensions Regulator (TPR) over its handling of Kodak's struggling KPP2 pension scheme. Yesterday, trustees of the scheme said it was highly likely it would fall into the Pension Protection Fund (PPF), as the business is not performing [...]
Former BHS boss Dominic Chappell claims he went ‘above and beyond’ to help Pensions Regulator September 19, 2018 The man who bought failing department store BHS for £1 in 2015 said he went "above and beyond" to assist the pensions watchdog in its enquires after the business collapsed. After Dominic Chappell's Retail Acquisitions bought BHS from Philip Green in March 2015, the business collapsed a year later, leaving an enormous pensions black hole of [...]
A summer to forget: KPMG reputation dealt another blow after admitting to compliance report misconduct September 19, 2018 Scandal-hit KPMG has admitted to misconduct over compliance reports made for a unit of the Bank of New York (BNY) Mellon Group in another fresh embarrassment for one of the Big Four accountancy firms. The UK’s accountancy watchdog said today that KPMG and one of its partners Richard Hinton accepted they had fallen short of standards [...]
Not what the doctor ordered: Spire suffers profit hit amid drop in NHS referrals September 18, 2018 UK private healthcare provider Spire was diagnosed with falling profits in the first six months of 2018, as a drop in referrals from the NHS ate away at the company’s projected core earnings. Spire Healthcare Group’s share price tumbled more than six per cent in early morning trading, after the firm predicted full-year expected earnings [...]
Former BHS boss Chappell begins pensions conviction appeal September 17, 2018 Former BHS owner Dominic Chappell was today accused of trying to “muddy the waters” in his appeal against a conviction for failing to provide information to the UK’s pensions watchdog about a hole in BHS’s pensions scheme. Prosecutors told the court that Chappell’s appeal was a “cynical attempt to rewrite history”, the Financial Times reported. [...]
Social care funding crisis could be solved by new pensions-style payments, says health secretary September 17, 2018 A social care insurance scheme is being considered by the Conservatives to help tackle the crisis in elderly health provision. The scheme, first revealed by City A.M. in July, would see workers paying in to a dedicated national care fund to help cover the growing cost of social care. Read more: The government has a [...]
Former Pension Protection Fund chair Lawrence Churchill joins newly formed Clara Pensions September 17, 2018 Former chairman of the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) Lawrence Churchill was today appointed as the inaugural chairman of emerging consolidator firm Clara Pensions. The industry figure will bring 40 years experience to the role at the company, which consolidates company's historic defined benefit (DB) pension schemes. Clara says it acts as a "bridge" for members [...]
UK pensions deficits: FTSE 100 firms fear pension pain as workers retire September 6, 2015 Pension schemes represent a “material risk” for many of the largest companies in the FTSE 100, new research shows. Six firms, including BAE Systems, British Airways-owner International Airlines Group, RSA and Royal Bank of Scotland, all have total disclosed pension liabilities almost double their equity market value, so says JLT Employee Benefits’ quarterly report [...]