WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
SMALL AND MID-CAP BROKERS SHINE IN ANNUAL RANKINGS
Small and mid-cap brokers have outshone their larger competitors in stockpicking, according to the latest FT/StarMine rankings. Of the top 10 stock-pickers in the UK and Ireland – led by Richard Slape, energy analyst at Canaccord Genuity with his call on Rockhopper Exploration – seven are from small and mid-cap brokers. This could indicate that rating stocks plays to the strengths of the smaller outfits.
BBC GOES TO HOLLYWOOD
The BBC’s commercial division is stepping up its efforts to become a big player in Hollywood after selling more than 20 scripted drama projects to US broadcasters and cable networks. BBC Worldwide Productions, a division of BBC Worldwide, declined to comment on the value of the deals.
SUPERGROUP SEEKS TO RALLY SUPPORT FOR SHARES
SuperGroup will on Monday attempt to revive support for its shares at an analyst and investor event staged at the fashion chain’s Cheltenham headquarters. Since the owner of the SuperDry and Cult brands floated at £5 a share in March 2010, raising £120m, its shares have gone in and out of fashion.
SOUTHERN CROSS LANDLORDS IN CONTROL
Before Southern Cross’s restructuring agreement with its landlords last Wednesday, the public spent weeks waiting for news of its fight against insolvency. Public statements by Britain’s biggest care home operator were light on detail and did little to allay concern about its 31,000 residents. However, a report written on 27 May by Southern Cross’s adviser KPMG, called Project Baseball, set out a detailed plan for a “potential” six-month insolvency process.
THE TIMES
BRITAIN NOT OPEN FOR BUSINESS, SAY VOTERS
Britain has a worse tax regime than France, India and China, according to a Populus poll for The Times that reveals the scale of the challenge facing the government on growth. The UK has been ranked bottom of six key competitors on personal and business taxation in a poll of voters that suggests they do not yet regard Britain as being “open for business”.
A TESTAMENT TO MAN’S WILLINGNESS TO CON HIS FELLOW MAN
It’s a service many wrongly assume to be highly regulated and carefully policed. But the will-writing industry has been entirely unregulated and anyone can set themselves up as a will-writer – until now. The Legal Services Board, which regulates lawyers in England and Wales, is stepping up a probe into the sector.
The Daily Telegraph
GEORGE OSBORNE PLOTS £7BN PENSIONS “RAID” ON BETTER OFF
Discussions have begun at the Treasury over the move which would see the axing of tax relief currently paid out on pension contributions by people who pay income tax at the higher rates of 40 per cent and 50 per cent. The money saved could go towards cutting the budget deficit or – in what would be a more politically popular decision – be used to provide a significant increase to the value of the basic state pension.
NATO ADMITS CIVILIAN DEATHS
The fragile alliance targeting Col Muammar Gaddafi is under strain after Nato yesterday admitted that its bombers had missed a military target to kill a number of civilians in Tripoli. The Gaddafi regime has seized on the casualties, said to be nine people, including at least two young children.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
EUROPE
HELICOPTERS’ NEED FOR SPEED
Rivals Eurocopter, US-based Sikorsky and other companies are testing fast helicopter prototypes. Eurocopter’s X3 is set to make its public debut today at the Paris Air Show. The companies hope that increasing range and boosting maximum speed to as fast as 280 miles per hour from about 175 mph will spark increased use as emergency vehicles and as transportation for executives and workers in remote locations.
BERLUSCONI ALLY ISSUES DEMANDS FOR CONTINUED SUPPORT
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s key political ally demanded that Italy’s beleaguered leader make key policy changes, including cutting taxes and pulling Italian forces from the war Libya, but indicated he would keep the country’s conservative government afloat — for now.