What the other papers say this morning – 31 March 2014 March 31, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES SocGen accused over Libya deals The Libyan Investment Authority has accused Société Générale of helping to funnel bribes worth tens of millions of dollars to close associates of Saif al-Islam, the son of former Libyan leader Muammer Gaddafi. The claim was made in a $1.5bn lawsuit filed against the French bank in London’s [...]
Banks may win reprieve from market probe March 31, 2014 THE BANKING industry is changing so dramatically that the new competition regulator may choose not launch an investigation into the market, City A.M. understands. The move comes despite calls from Labour’s Ed Miliband to shake up the sector. The opposition leader wants to create two new banks – possibly carving them out of Lloyds and [...]
Davey defends investment in UK energy amid blackout warnings March 31, 2014 ED DAVEY yesterday defended the investment climate for the UK energy sector, amid industry warnings that a competition probe into the market will delay projects and increase the risk of blackouts. “We have huge amounts of companies wanting to invest,” the energy secretary said on the BBC’s Sunday Politics. “If you look at independent analysis, [...]
Letters to the Editor – 31/03 – Energy market, Best of Twitter March 30, 2014 Energy market City AM’s suggestion that Ofgem has given in to politicians by proposing that the energy market is referred to the Competition and Markets Authority for investigation is completely untrue. The competition assessment was carried out by three independent regulators, Ofgem, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the Competition Markets Authority. Ofgem’s decision [...]
Energy wars spark UK blackout fears March 28, 2014 OFGEM’S decision to refer the UK’s energy market for a full-scale investigation will put the UK at a higher risk of blackouts, the industry warned yesterday. The regulator has asked the new Competition and Markets Authority to probe competition in the retail energy market, following months of heightening political pressure to bring down customers’ bills. [...]
Energy wars spark UK blackout fears March 28, 2014 OFGEM’S decision to refer the UK’s energy market for a full-scale investigation will put the UK at a higher risk of blackouts, the industry warned yesterday. The regulator has asked the new Competition and Markets Authority to probe competition in the retail energy market, following months of heightening political pressure to bring down customers’ bills. [...]
Why both sides of the debate must up their game on Europe March 28, 2014 FACTS are often scarce in the great European debate. It is possible for fair-minded people to come down on either side of the question. But it is incumbent on everybody to be as precise as possible – and not to exaggerate too much – when debating the pros and cons of the EU. On the [...]
Bottom Line: Ofgem probe is for all the wrong reasons March 28, 2014 THE UK’S regulatory authorities are supposed to be independent. Ofcom, Ofwat, Ofgem – all were set up to oversee our utilities markets and protect the interests of consumers. After yesterday’s referral of the energy market to the new Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for a full-scale investigation, many will no longer see Ofgem as objective, [...]
Don’t just blame energy giants: Government is blunting competition March 27, 2014 IT IS not entirely unwelcome that the energy industry has been referred to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) by Ofgem. It may lance a festering boil; it may do some good. However, this will only be the case if the investigation is handled correctly. Too often, competition inquiries have created huge uncertainty and disruption. [...]
Scottish independence could impact results says Centrica March 27, 2014 Energy giant Centrica has warned of the consequences of a yes vote in Scotland's independence referendum as well as political interference in the energy market. The company made the comments in its annual financial report for the year to 20 February 2014. In the event that Scotland became independent parts of Centrica's upstream assets would [...]