FINANCIAL TIMES
BOE BOWS TO PRESSURE FOR PROBES
By Chris Giles, Economics Editor
The Bank of England bowed to outside pressure on Monday, launching three independent reviews to learn lessons from the financial and economic crisis, but it immediately ran into criticism that their scope was too limited and technical. The court of directors’ surprise decision to order the reviews came after sustained criticism of the BoE’s governance, transparency and accountability and as legislation giving it unprecedented new powers makes its way through parliament.
GUARDIAN
GREECE HEADING OUT OF EURO, SAY UK VOTERS
An ICM poll reveals 72% believe Greece will leave single currency. Voters are convinced the euro is heading for the rocks, according to a new Guardian/ICM poll. By a crushing margin of 72% to 20% the British public believes that Greece is on its way out of the single currency and a majority of 52% think other countries will also being forced to leave. Some 26% believe we are set for a total unravelling, with a return to old national currencies like the French franc and the Deutsche mark in the heartland of the EU.
DAILY TELEGRAPH
CONTROVERSIAL BEECROFT REPORT ON EMPLOYMENT REFORM 'DOCTORED' BY NO 10
By Robert Winnett, and Christopher Hope
David Cameron was accused on Monday of suppressing key recommendations from an “independent” report that warned that the Coalition’s family-friendly policies would undermine Britain’s economic recovery. A document leaked to The Daily Telegraph shows that three proposals in the controversial Beecroft report were removed after being submitted to No10 before it was sent to the Business Department. They called for the Government to delay plans to introduce flexible working for parents, to abandon proposals to allow all workers to request flexible working, and to remove regulations surrounding the employment of children.
SCOTSMAN
BARCLAYS HOISTS ‘FOR SALE’ NOTICE OVER £3.8BN BLACKROCK STAKE
By Erikka Askeland
Barclays Bank yesterday put its remaining $6.1 billion (£3.8bn) stake in money manager BlackRock up for sale in an effort to boost profits and capital buffers ahead of a tightening of legislation for lenders. BlackRock, started by former mortgage-bond trader Laurence Fink, agreed to buy back as much as $1bn of shares from Barclays as part of the transaction.
CITY AM
THUMBS DOWN FOR FACEBOOK
By Lauren Davidson
Facebook shares plunged on their second day of trading yesterday as traders rejected the social networking giant’s much-hyped flotation. Facebook shares sank by five per cent in pre-market trading, opening at $36.53 before dipping by as much as 14 per cent to a low of $33. The shares eventually settled at $34.03, a drop of 11 per cent, when markets closed.
THE SUN
HALF-BAKED TAX FEAR FOR BAKERY
Greggs expansion threatened by pasty plan
By Steve Hawkes, Business Editor
Baking giant Greggs is warning that plans for a new £20million site in the South West are being threatened by Chancellor George Osborne’s Pasty Tax. Boss Ken McMeikan said it was just one of “a number of investment decisions” on hold while the Government debates a VAT raid on savouries.
DAILY EXPRESS
MORTGAGES TO SOAR IN EURO CRISIS
By Sarah O’Grad
Homeowners and buyers can expect big rises in their mortgage rates sparked by the eurozone crisis, experts warned last night. The ongoing financial catastrophe that is coming to a head in Greece will mean more expensive mortgage deals as lenders have to pay more for their borrowing.
DAILY MAIL
HALFORDS VOTED THE WORST FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE IN WHICH? HIGH STREET SURVEY
By Jamie Mcginnes
Shoppers have dumped car parts and bicycles retailer Halfords at the bottom of the High Street pile in a customer satisfaction survey. The poll published today by consumer champion Which? ranked Halfords as the UK's worst store. One customer said Halfords had 'unhelpful and rude' staff and 'its products are worse than any I’ve purchased before'.
WWW.BBC.CO.UK
PPI COMPENSATION: OMBUDSMAN GETS 6,000 BOGUS CLAIMS
By Simon Gompertz Personal finance correspondent, BBC News
Nearly 6,000 people put in bogus compensation claims to the Financial Ombudsman last year, saying they had been mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance (PPI), the BBC has learnt. The unjustified complaints make up less than 4% of the explosion in PPI appeals received by the Ombudsman Service.
MSN NEWS
'INVISIBLE' ART TO GO ON DISPLAY
London's Hayward Gallery will gather together 50 "invisible" works by leading figures such as Andy Warhol, Yves Klein and Yoko Ono for its display of works you cannot actually see. The £8 a head exhibition demonstrates how art is about "firing the imagination", rather than simply viewing objects.
