WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
MYNERS TO BOOST PROTECTION OF BANK CLIENTS
PLANS to increase protection for clients and counterparties of failing investment banks will be unveiled by the Treasury today in an effort to prevent a repeat of the legal wrangling around the collapsed Lehman Brothers. The move is aimed at ensuring an orderly wind-down of investment banks, particularly cross-border institutions sometimes deemed too big to fail.
MOD MAKES CUTS TO PLUG BUDGET HOLE
The Ministry of Defence laid bare the human and military cost of living beyond its means yesterday as ministers unveiled 10,000 job cuts, an air force base closure and a big reduction in the fighter jet fleet. Bob Ainsworth, defence secretary, said the “hard decisions” would fill part of the hole in the defence budget ahead of the strategic defence review next year and provide room for £900m of additional spending on kit for Afghanistan.
SAMSUNG SHAKE-UP CEMENTS LEE FOOTHOLD
Lee Jae-yong, the son of Samsung Group’s disgraced former chairman, on Tuesday finally emerged from the shadows to take a heavyweight job at Asia’s biggest technology company.
In a big shake-up, Mr Lee, 41, became chief operating officer at Samsung Electronics.
JAL BUOYED BY VOTE ON PENSION PAYOUT
Japan Airlines looked set to clear a major hurdle in its efforts to restructure after retirees indicated that they would accept steep cuts to their pensions. Seventy-five per cent of respondents in a company survey said they would vote in favour of reducing benefits by 30 per cent.
THE TIMES
REVENUE MOVES TO STOP WEALTHY ABUSING CHARITY RELIEF
The taxman took another swipe at City bankers yesterday, closing a scheme that allowed wealthy individuals to cut their tax bills by claiming tax relief on charitable donations.
The move comes days after Alistair Darling caused uproar in the City by introducing a one-off 50 per cent tax levy on bankers’ bonuses. It will be seen by many as a shot across the bows for wealthy workers tempted to avoid paying the higher tax rate.
EMAP UNDER PRESSURE TO SORT OUT DEBT
Emap, the troubled publisher owned by Guardian Media Group (GMG) and Apax partners, the private equity company, has accepted that a failure to renegotiate its loan covenants would throw its survival prospects into “significant doubt”.
The Daily Telegraph
SKY PULLS OUT OF YOUTUBE TALKS WITH GOOGLE
BSkyB has pulled out of talks with Google about making the broadcaster’s hit shows available for free on YouTube, the US search giant’s video-sharing site. It comes as Sky’s biggest shareholder, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, has accused Google of “stealing” content and threatened to prevent the internet company from linking to its content .
GULF PETRO-POWERS TO LAUNCH CURRENCY IN LATEST THREAT TO DOLLAR
The Arab states of the Gulf region have agreed to launch a single currency modelled on the euro, hoping to blaze a trail towards a pan-Arab monetary union swelling to the ancient borders of the Ummayad Caliphate. “The Gulf monetary union pact has come into effect,” said Kuwait’s finance minister, Mustafa al-Shamali.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
UK RULING SPELLS OUT LEHMAN ASSET PROTECTIONS
A UK High Court judge issued a ruling yesterday spelling out how client money held in the main European arm of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. should be handled, benefiting some hedge funds while also serving a blow to others.
The ruling relates to one aspect of the complex task of returning cash and other assets to clients after the bank tumbled into bankruptcy in September 2008.
FIRST DREAMLINER FLIGHT SETS UP NEW HURDLES FOR BOEING
Boeing Co.’s 787 Dreamliner made its first flight yesterday, marking a success for the company after two years of delays but setting up an equally challenging drive to churn out large numbers of the cutting-edge aircraft.