News digest 21 September 2010
The day starts with the news that the
Lloyds chief is off, the other main news is Clegg’s speech to
conference where he pleads for his party to hold on, in the world
of business there’s a tripling of Walsh’s bonus, a bit too much
smoke for easyJet and possible acquisitions for Flybe. On the
ground there’s the chance for some green and free bus miles, a film
on the Ford sewing machinists, but not so good for those in the
energy sector as there’s trouble blowing in the wind…
Banker quits – It’s all
change in the banking sector as Lloyds TSB Group chief Eric Daniels
quits. The man who almost saw the bank on the brink, and
responsible for the acquisition of troubled rival HBOS, has
announced that he will retire in a year’s time. As someone who
argued his £1 million salary was ‘reasonably modest’ he is expected
to walk away with a pay off totalling at least £6 million. The
Lloyds Banking Group has shed almost 20,000 jobs since 2008 (all
papers, FT p1).
Lib-Dem conference 1: Clegg’s speech
– All papers cover Clegg’s keynote speech to conference,
the main thrust is that the party faithful need to ‘hold their
nerve’ although many observers think the ground for civil war is
brewing, especially as the leadership was rebuffed in its support
for free schools. With accusations that the Lib-Dems are just the
‘lino’ (or liberal in name only) party, Clegg declares “we will
never lose our soul” so it’s just your principles then (all papers,
Guardian p4-7).
Lib-Dem conference 2: Cuts challenged
– Unite and the TUC are taking the battle to the heart of
the Lib Dem conference with a joint fringe meeting to underline the
massive, coordinated effort the union movement is set to undertake
in the days leading up to the comprehensive spending review. Public
service workers and users will join the meeting to ask why they
must make heavy sacrifices for a recession not of their making
(Unite
press release).
Job for donor’s daughter –
The Mirror (p6) follows up
on weekend reports that culture secretary Jeremy Hunt has
parachuted a Tory donor’s daughter into a plum civil service job
despite the recruitment ban.
No job for Cashcroft – While
there’s an in-depth interview with Tory bankroller Michael Ashcroft
as he argues that the “Tory brand is still stained” and why Cameron
failed to convince, too right (Mail p15).
Green tax expansion – Energy
secretary Chris Huhne signals new fuel and flight taxes which could
add £800 to the average annual bill as he indicates yes to a £22
billion green tax, consumer and airlines aren’t happy (Telegraph p1, Mail p2).
Walsh triples bonus – BA’s
CEO on target to get more than £1 million bonus despite ongoing
dispute (Times p45)
Flybe sees double – Britain’s
biggest domestic airline is on the acquisition trail as it benefits
from a 40 per cent rise in business passengers and looks to double
total sales (most papers, Express p44, FT p20).
easyJet sees smoke – Alarm on
flight from Naples as cabin fills with smoke, all passenger safe
after plane returns to airport (Mirror p29).
No more fares? – Down on the
ground bus companies giving away one million free bus tickets in a
bid to cut congestion, simply go http://www.greenerjourneys.com/
for details of the competition (Mirror p49).
Sparks fly – It’s the Volt
versus the Leaf as the battle of the electric cars goes head to
head in day two of the FT’s
feature on electric vehicles (p26).
Renault makeover – And on the
same page the FT also talks of the
Italian carmaker’s desire to put flair back into its design.
Ford film reviewed – History
of fight for equal pay by Ford sewing machinists makes it to the
silver screen (Guardian
p14).
Upgrade lacks urgency –
Switching to rail, on the London Underground the FT (p4) reports that upgrade costs are
still too high and that contractors have not got on top of the
contracts.
Break up Network Rail – The
Association of Train Operating Companies says track owner should be
split into regional units (Guardian p26) while the FT has a separate supplement on the Rail
Industry saying overall tensions in the industry are rising.
Defence industry danger – and
the FT (p12) also has an outline
of the defence sector saying decisions taken now could cause long
term damage for the UK, well Liam Fox is defence secretary…
BAE buys spies – BAE Systems
takes control of US intelligence firm L-1 Identity Solutions which
recruits from the FBI and CIA (Sun p39, Express p45).
Tough for Tesco – But it’s
hard for Tesco in the US as the FT
(p22) looks at how the company tried to crack the States.
Tough for all – And Nestle is
looking to introduce a new low-cost range targeted at the stressed
economies of Europe, no news of when they’ll be winging their way
to the UK (FT p 25).
Billingsgate battle – And the
fight to save the historic market continues as the fish porters
hand over a 20,000 signature petition demanding that the changes
are halted (Unite
news release).
Turbine trouble – Maker of
wind turbines Clipper Windpower saw shares dive 30 per cent as it
announced its was in rescue talks with its largest shareholder
(Express p44) while the
Indie (p6) re[ports
that the government’s immigration cap threatens the £100 million
wind turbine project industrial giant GE announced last March.
De La Rue mystery widens –
And finally if you have been to Venezuela recently better check
those Bolivarian Fuertes as the banknote fraud inquiry has now
stretched as far as Caracas (Mail p72).
Edited by Mik Sabiers
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