News digest 23 March 2011
It’s budget day with all focus on whether
there’s a strategy for growth or the coalition continue to be
defined by cuts, Burton’s workers are on the march while the CBI
wants people to feel pain. The Forth Port goes private and the BBC
may see the return of the test card, Somerdale’s for sale, while
Vodafone buys Dutch, JCB expands, Rolls-Royce gets a new deal and
Ryanair pays out for once…
Budget time – After
yesterday’s inflation figures show RPI at a 20 year high, and Unite
calls for the budget to kick start the manufacturing sector
(Unite
release) as well as support charities (Unite
release) Osborne will rise after PMQs today to outline the
budget. The Mirror (p15)
trails what it calls a £45 budget bribe while the Sun (p1/11) says there will be a
£205 tax cut as well as a freeze in fuel duty. The Express (p1) also trails potential
tax cuts, but asks for more to deal with the squeeze. The Mail (p1/4) also highlights the
tax cut, but asks where is the money coming from? It looks like the
squeezed middle will be squeezed harder. The Times (p1/4-5) also notes that
Osborne’s options are narrowed by rising inflation and general
economic gloom and the Indie (p12-13) also stress the
pressure on the ‘squeezed middle’. The Guardian (p1/12-13) says the
budget will boost drivers and homebuyers, the Telegraph (p1) says the middle
classes won’t be squeezed, the FT
(p1) also stresses tax breaks while the Morning Star (p3) says
the rich should be taxed more. The real question is will it be a
budget for growth? I think we know the answer…
Burton’s workers bite back –
The Guardian (p32) has a
piece on the fight back at Burton’s Foods factory highlighting how
the public sector axe is harming real communities, and in
particular how the move to an imbalanced and unequal economy is
actually bad for society as a whole. Three days to go…
March for the Alternative –
More coverage in the press with the Morning Star (p3) saying
Saturday could be the biggest protest for a generation, the
Guardian (p15) reports on
plans for a 24-hour occupation of Trafalgar Square by anti-cuts
protestors, while the FT (p4) has
a police warning for troublemakers to stay away although the day is
actually being hailed as a family friendly day, the weather
forecast is good, and the message is clear, there is an
alternative…
Make public sector feel pain
– However some don’t listen, the new - and supposedly more cautious
– head of the CBI John Cridland says “the public sector must feel
the private sector’s pain”, well that’s one interpretation of we’re
all in this together, how about making those on excess pay,
monopoly profits and extreme bonuses suffer a little more (Indie p37).
GPs’ pension threat – Changes
to the NHS pensions scheme could lead to a skills shortage as 1 in
3 GPs are considering early retirement rather than working longer
according to a survey by Pulse magazine (Mail p19).
Forth Port goes private –
Potential for more job insecurity as the last independent port in
the country is to be sold after management recommended a £754
million bid from its largest shareholder, private equity investment
fund Arcus (Mail p75,
Times p41, Indie p38, Telegraph b2, FT p22).
Time for the test card – Is
the test card clown coming out of retirement? Cuts at the BBC could
see shows taken off the air and even a return to the overnight
switch off (Express p16,
Mail p21, Times p7, Indie p22, Guardian p10, Telegraph p14).
Dunmakin – Kraft says
Somerdale factory is now up for sale after the last Curly Wurly
rolled off the production line in January. 64 acres of the 224 acre
site are expected to be snapped up for housing (Sun p46).
Duneatin – Nestle boss says
production of biofuels is leading to starvation as crops are
diverted to power cars rather than people (Indie p32).
Dundrinkin – 2,600 pubs up
for sale as Punch Taverns group focuses on shrinking the business
as best means to cut the company’s debt mountain (Mirror p40, Sun p46, Express p66, Mail p74, Times p37, Indie p33, Guardian p28, FT p21).
New bonds please – But back
to the bond market for Northern Rock which plans a return to secure
funds on its mortgage assets (Guardian p27).
Lloyds snags another – Lloyds
chief Antonio Horta-Osorio adds another Santander executive to his
board, this time Alison Brittain will leave Santander to head up
the retail banking division which means that the board of Lloyds
has now reunited four former Santander executives (Mail p73, Indie p39, Telegraph b1, FT p20).
Vodafone speaking Dutch -
€120 million deal to buy Dutch phone group BelCompany agreed
(Express p63).
Sheffield
Forgemasters on the acquisition trail – Steel
company that was denied government loan argues business is looking
up as international markets recover (FT p22).
JCB expands – Company to up
production of earthmoving equipment and excavators in Brazil and
China as revenues rise some 50 per cent to £2 billion (FT p22).
Japan – Time to grieve as
mass burials begin while power has been partially restored to the
damaged reactor as efforts to get the cooling system working
continue (Mirror p21,
Sun p19, Express p19, Mail p30, Times p28-29, Indie p26, Guardian p3, Telegraph p15, FT p, Morning Star p7).
Libya – In the other major
foreign news story Gaddafi comes out of hiding to give another
address saying he will stay until the end as a US plane crashes,
attacks continue overnight with concerns still raised about who is
really leading the charge and critically an exit strategy, or lack
of one, as papers think the war could go on for years (Mirror p1/3-7, Sun p6-7, Express p4-5, Mail p6-9, Times p8-11, Indie p1-9, Guardian p1, Telegraph p1-4, FT p1/8, Morning Star p5).
Turkish Airlines deal – Still
in the air, another boost for Rolls-Royce as company wins $200
million deal to provide jet engines for Airbus A330s for Turkey’s
flag carrier (Express
p66).
Ryanair pay out – And some
final aviation news is that a former Ryanair pilot that was sacked
for handing out a union leaflet has accepted a £40,000 payout as
the company declined to contest a constructive dismissal case
(Sun p2).
Edited by Mik Sabiers
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