News digest 1 September 2011
The digest starts with an effective U-turn
on bank reform before British manufacturing is under the
microscope, there’s more on the challenge to the Bombardier
decision and on blacklisting in the construction sector, there’s a
double blow to construction workers and BP gets raided, while there
are big worries for pensioners while people are boozing at home and
as travellers are evicted it could be goodbye to the countryside
and the NHS and hello to ‘expensive’ free schools and after his
memoirs are leaked Gordon Brown definitely won’t be calling
Alistair darling…
Bank shake up kicked into
touch – The restructuring of banks was put on hold for at
least four years as chancellor George Osborne won the tussle with
business secretary Vince Cable. Cable was slapped down by prime
minister David Cameron arguing that any change could hit growth.
The full report is due to be published in mid September, but it
looks like those that caused the mess will be able to get away with
the rewards, while over 100,000 ordinary banking workers have lost
their jobs. Unite national officer David Fleming is quoted in the
Mirror (p6-7) saying:
“Since the start of the financial crisis thousands of
workers and their families have paid the price for the greed of top
banks, yet it appears business as usual for the
bosses.” (Sun
p2, Express p51, Mail p2, Times p10-11, Indie p37, Guardian p26, Telegraph p2/b1, FT p1, Morning Star p5)
Buy British? – The Telegraph (b4) continues its
series on British manufacturing asking if the UK could become the
workshop of the world again? Highlighting success stories like
Rolls-Royce it looks at key target markets China, India and the US
and stresses the UK is losing its capability to make complete
products and instead is ever more component focused.
Build fit and proper trains –
Loophole in EU law could be used to review the Thameslink deal
arguing the ‘fit and proper’ clause could be applied to allegations
of corruption at German firm Siemens; government is unlikely to
follow that line for fear of opening a can of worms on business
deals (Mirror p23).
Blacklisting under the
spotlight – The Mirror (p24) also reports on
engineer Dave Smith whose career collapsed after being put on a
blacklist. He took his battle for compensation to a central London
tribunal. Construction giant Carillion wanted the case thrown out
but yesterday Mr Smith won the right for his case to go ahead.
Blow to Teesside steelworkers
– The FT (p2) reports Geoff
Waterfield, chair of the multi union group at Teesside Cast
products has died unexpectedly just months before the relighting of
the Redcar blast furnace for which he campaigned tirelessly.
Backing out of national
agreements – The Mirror (p24) highlights the campaign
to stop engineering firms from walking away from national
agreements. National officer Bernard McAulay said:
“These employers are trying to use the current economic
climate to push through their long held ambition of introducing
semi-skilled operatives on much lower rates of
pay.”
Boost for Mini – The Mirror (p8) reports better news in
the car industry as the two millionth Mini rolled off the
production line at the Cowley plant in Oxford.
Big makeover for Defender –
The Mirror (p53) and
Indie (p22) report that
Land Rover has unveiled the first complete makeover of its iconic
Defender, the two millionth vehicle is expected to roll off the
production line early next year.
Buyers ditch new for old –
However on the day the new 61 registration is launched the head of
the SMMT Paul Everitt warns new car sales may never fully recover
as buyers ditch new for old (Mirror p53).
Big dip for Aer Lingus – From
road to the skies and Irish airline posts operating loss of €27.8
million for the first six months of the year with passenger numbers
also falling by 1 per cent as the airline faced tough conditions
although it expects an improvement and is forecasting full year
profits of over £18 million, ahead of initial forecasts (Express p51, Mail p66, Times p40, FT p16).
BP raided – And in foreign
climes a raid ordered by a Siberian court on BP’s Moscow office saw
bailiffs and armed special forces troopers search the company’s
offices after BP ignored an earlier order to release documents
(Sun p43, Express p51, Mail p65, Times p41, Indie p37, Guardian p26, Telegraph b1, FT p1).
Big chop for paper maker –
Finnish paper maker UPM–Kymmene to close several mills and lay off
1,170 workers in three countries (FT p19, Morning Star p6).
Big rise in EU jobless – The
FT (p4) reports that EU
unemployment has now hit 15.7 million.
Bye bye Japan – Tesco says
sayonara to its Japanese operations putting its 129 stores up for
sale (Mirror p53, Sun p3, Express p54, Mail p65, Indie p38, Guardian p27, Telegraph b3, FT p17).
Bills for Libya – A plane
loaded with cash was winging its way to Libya as the government
continues to release funds to the transtional government which
continues to search for Gadaffi (Mirror p4, Sun p8, Express p15, Mail p6, Times p1/6-7, Indie p26-27, Guardian p22-23, Telegraph b3, FT p6, Morning Star p7).
Back to the sack – As trailed
yesterday the MoD unveils who will be cut with Gurkhas and the RAF
top of the list for the chop (Sun p7, Guardian p1, Telegraph p10, Morning Star p3).
Back to the front – Writing
in the FT (p11) Labour leader Ed
Miliband calls on a ‘complacent’ Cameron to deal with the worsening
economic climate as the recovery that was talking hold a year ago
comes to a shuddering halt.
BCC scales back forecasts –
Business lobby group now expects UK economy to grow just 1.1 per
cent this year, down from previous estimate of 1.3 per cent in June
(Mail p67, Guardian p29).
Bank to hold rates – The
Express (p1) leads with
news that interest rates may have to be cut again as the economy
bounces along the bottom, no rises are expected until October 2012
according to a Reuters survey.
Big worries for pensioners –
The Express (p31) reports
fears of poverty in old age and the poor state of UK pensions is
driving four out of five people to work past 65 while the Mail (p9) and Telegraph (p1) trail the changes
to pension rules which come into effect next year which could end
up with firms offering worse schemes to existing pension
holders.
Benefit cuts prompt poverty
fears – The Mirror
(p20) and Morning
Star (p4) says changes to the disability living allowance will
see disabled people forced into poverty as cuts leave them without
enough money for food and transport.
Boozing at home – The
Sun (p20) reports pubs are
facing greater pressures as the recession sees a 19 per cent drop
in people going out for a pint.
Bid for Foster’s to be
formalised – The Times (p43) SABMiller will make
a formal bid for rival brewer Foster’s, but it is not expected to
up the offer price.
Big pay off – The Mirror (p6) and Mail (p4) report on the cost of
closing quangos which has seen three workers at the National Audit
Office given a redundancy payout of £1.8 million.
Big pay off given back – And
a few of the papers report that the ex head of Southern Cross, the
housing group which collapsed, has had the decency to turn down his
£500,000 pay off, although perhaps if they had not paid directors
so much in the first place the group may have survived (Mirror p53, Sun p43, Mail p645, Times p37, Indie p38, Telegraph b3).
Bailiffs to move in -
Talking of homes the move to evict a host of travellers from their
Basildon base is featured in many papers. It will cost some £18
million to bulldoze the site while the country cries out for homes,
not sure how making more people homeless will help but the council
cites planning rules (Mirror
p2, Sun p9, Express p2, Mail p1, Times p13, Guardian p15, Telegraph p2, Morning Star p1).
Bye bye countryside – And the
Telegraph (p1) castigates
the coalition’s plans to sweep away planning rules across the
country after former presidents of the Royal Town Planning
Institute write to the government saying the plans are being rushed
through with potentially damaging haste.
Bye bye NHS – And that could
also be applied to the NHS bill which comes back to the Commons
next week, although one piece of news is that the plan to attach
restrictions to advice on abortion by backbench Tory MP Nadine
Dorries will not get government support after another government
switch (Guardian p1,
Telegraph p1).
Big bill for free schools? –
The Indie (p46) and
Guardian (p10) look at the
future of the education system in English schools, both
highlighting the advent of 24 new free schools set to open next
week, and more importantly the high cost to the taxpayer.
Book tells all – And
finally as conference season approaches former chancellor Alistair
Darling has decided to dish the dirt on Gordon Brown in his new
memoir Back from the Brink: 1,000 days at No 11. Most people will
know the score of the attempts to push Darling out of the treasury,
but there’s some interesting asides on the governor of the Bank of
England as well as the head of the FSA (Sun p2, Express p4, Mail p19, Indie p2, Guardian p11, Telegraph p8, FT p1).
Edited by Mik Sabiers
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