Raab: China and Russia ‘took advantage’ of Covid to break international law October 6, 2020 China and Russia have used the Covid pandemic to carry out cyber attacks and clamp down on human rights, according to foreign secretary Dominic Raab. Raab said today that the “usual suspects” of Iran, Russia and China have tried to “take advantage of the crisis”, with Beijing’s Hong Kong clamp down used as an example. [...]
Mike Ashley faces shareholder showdown over re-election as Frasers boss October 6, 2020 Mike Ashley is facing a shareholders revolt at the Frasers Group annual general meeting tomorrow, following claims that employees were forced to work while furloughed during the coronavirus lockdown. Shareholder advisory service Pirc has recommended that investors oppose Ashley’s re-election as chief executive of the retail group, which was formerly known as Sports Direct. The [...]
City urges government to rip up ‘fundamentally unfair’ immigration system October 6, 2020 The City of London Corporation has urged the government to shake up its “fundamentally unfair” immigration system to boost the UK economy’s post-pandemic recovery ahead of the Brexit transition period deadline. In a report released today in collaboration with EY, the City body called on the Home Office to “rip up the red tape” and [...]
MPs probe fast fashion industry after Boohoo’s Leicester factory scandal October 6, 2020 The fast fashion industry will be scrutinised by a committee of MPs in the wake of Boohoo’s Leicester clothing factory scandal, after the government dismissed most of the recommendations of an initial inquiry in 2018. The Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) has today launched a follow-up inquiry into sustainability and working conditions within the fashion industry [...]
FCA amps up crackdown on coronavirus-related fraud October 6, 2020 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has ramped up efforts to crack down on coronavirus-related fraud during the pandemic through the rollout of two new sandbox services. Sandboxes allow companies to innovate new products without being subject to usual regulation, allowing them to test financial services before developing them globally. The FCA’s two new sandboxes, launched [...]
Software firm SAP urges businesses to spend more with social enterprises diversify suppliers October 6, 2020 Software firm SAP has called on businesses to spend more with social enterprises and “purposeful” suppliers in a bid to promote greater social inclusion. SAP has today launched its “5 & 5 by 25” initiative which targets five per cent of addressable spend with social enterprises and diverse businesses by 2025. Social enterprises are businesses [...]
JP Morgan to offer lucrative investment banking jobs to school leavers October 6, 2020 Investment bank J.P. Morgan will soon offer school leavers a fast-track route to a lucrative investment banking job, namely via one of its UK apprenticeships. The bank’s so-called four-year Level 6 Financial Services Apprenticeship programme will enable individuals to ‘earn as they learn’, provided they complete a degree in Applied Finance at the University of [...]
Refinitiv buys the Red Flag Group as it expands due diligence offering October 5, 2020 Data provider Refinitiv is set to expand its due diligence offering as it announces its acquisition of risk firm the Red Flag Group. Refinitiv said it was “expanding its suite of due diligence offerings” with the acquisition of what it described as a “leading provider of workflow, data, due diligence and ratings solutions”. The Red [...]
Major Boohoo shareholders fail to denounce CEO over Leicester factory conditions October 5, 2020 Boohoo’s major shareholders today failed to denounce the fast fashion firm’s bosses following a report into poor working practices at Leicester clothing factories. Leicester West MP Liz Kendall called on investment firms Jupiter, Baillie Gifford and Invesco to remove chief executive John Lyttle and executive chairman Mahmud Kamani following an independent review into working conditions. [...]
Leading business figures call on Sunak to slash taxes to return to 90s growth October 5, 2020 Leading business figures have backed calls from the Institute for Economic Affairs (IEA) for the government to implement similar policies to those that contributed to the best period of economic growth in recent history. These include slashing and streamlining taxes in order to build a “bright future”. Wetherspoons founder Tim Martin, JP Morgan VP Laurence [...]