Civil service pay-offs capped July 6, 2010 THE government escalated its stand-off with the public sector unions yesterday, announcing plans to bring forward legislation that will slash the amount of compensation civil servants receive when they are laid off. A new bill will cap all compulsory redundancy payments at 12 months’ salary and all voluntary payments at 15 months – a far [...]
DfT delays high-speed train update July 6, 2010 PUBLIC sector pensions are twice as valuable as previously thought and a lack of transparency over their true costs has delayed reform, according to a new report published by the Public Sector Pensions Commission. The Commission found that the use of artificially high discount rates to report unfunded liabilities and calculate contribution rates appeared to [...]
Public sector pensions worth 40pc of salary July 6, 2010 PUBLIC sector pensions are twice as valuable as previously thought and a lack of transparency over their true costs has delayed reform, according to a new report published by the Public Sector Pensions Commission. The Commission found that the use of artificially high discount rates to report unfunded liabilities and calculate contribution rates appeared to [...]
US in bid for control of BP July 6, 2010 BP last night denied reports that it has agreed to give the US government final say in its business as pressure from the Obama administration continues to heat up. The deadline for BP?to respond to an aggressive letter by the assistant attorney-general, Tony West, demanding that the oil major provide 30 days notice before “any [...]
Unite to ballot BA crew on a fresh offer to avert strikes July 6, 2010 BRITISH AIRWAYS (BA) cabin crew are to be balloted by trade union Unite on a recent offer from the airline that could put an end to the lengthy dispute. The union handed out a ballot yesterday to the crew it represents on the latest package proposed by BA management, which includes two years of guaranteed [...]
Rio and Xstrata start Australian expansion after mining tax deal July 6, 2010 MINING giants have resumed expansion plans in Australia following a deal with the government over a new profits tax. Xstrata resumed A$186m (£104m) of exploratory work in Queensland yesterday, lifting a spending ban that stood during negotiations over the levy, which will now charge miners 30 per cent on some operations. The head of Rio [...]
CVC looks for €7bn for joint Abertis bid July 6, 2010 SPANISH infrastructure group Abertis’ core owners and private equity firm CVC are set to secure up to €7bn (£5.8bn) to fund their buyout of the firm, a source close to the operation said yesterday. Spanish builder ACS, savings bank La Caixa’s unit Criteria and Luxembourg-based CVC Capital Partners have persuaded a total of 14 banks [...]
Shop prices seen stabilising July 6, 2010 SHOP prices are expected to be less volatile for the rest of the year but January’s VAT hike to 20 per cent will put upward pressure on inflation in 2011, the British Retail Consortium will say today as it reveals that overall shop price inflation slowed to 1.5 per cent in June from 1.8 per [...]
US service sector growth continues to slow in June July 6, 2010 THE US service sector expanded in June for a sixth straight month but growth was at the slowest pace since February, the latest evidence that the economic recovery is cooling. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its service sector index fell to 53.8 in June from 55.4 in May. A reading above 50 shows [...]
Defence firm Qinetiq plans 391 job cuts July 6, 2010 DEFENCE firm Qinetiq has announced plans to cut 391 jobs across the country, blaming the current “challenging business environment”. The firm, which has around 6,500 UK staff, said it would cut about 130 jobs in Farnborough, Hampshire, and a further 230 may be axed in Malvern, Worcestershire. The remaining 30 cuts would be spread across [...]
