Category Archives: Business

Exclusive: UK water giants recruit top staff from regulator Ofwat

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Demands for an end to the ‘revolving door’ as ex-Ofwat directors are hired by key firms

Two-thirds of England’s biggest water companies employ key executives who had previously worked at the watchdog tasked with regulating them, the Observer can reveal.

Cathryn Ross, the new interim joint chief executive of Thames Water and a former head of watchdog Ofwat, is one of several ex-employees working for water companies in senior roles such as strategy, regulation and infrastructure.

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Direct Line ordered to review five years of car claims after underpayments

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Insurer told to reassess vehicle write-offs to identify any unfair settlements

Britain’s second-biggest car insurer, Direct Line, has been ordered to go back through five years of claims after admitting it had underpaid some customers who had their cars and vans written off.

After an investigation into the car insurance market that began in December 2022, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), this week ordered Direct Line to conduct a review of claims where vehicles had been written off “to identify any policyholders who received unfair settlements and provide them with appropriate redress”.

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Councils in England hit by ‘unsustainable’ £450m bill for free bus passes

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LGA says services being put at risk by huge cost and calls way Whitehall funds scheme not fit for purpose

Councils in England are being hit by a “completely unsustainable” annual bill of more than £450m to prop up the free bus pass scheme, according to an analysis.

The Local Government Association (LGA), which calculated the figure, said the enormous cost was putting services at risk.

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Many high-street frappés contain more sugar than a Mars bar

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Which? finds some Starbucks, Costa Coffee and Caffè Nero coffees contain more sugar than recommended daily allowance

An iced coffee is a cool pick-me-up on a hot day, but it might not be the caffeine boosting your mood as many of the blends sold by well-known high street coffee chains contain more sugar than a Mars bar or can of Coke.

The consumer group Which? looked at the sugar load in frappés and Frappuccinos being served up this summer by three of the biggest coffee chains, Starbucks, Costa Coffee and Caffè Nero, and found many “regular” size drinks contained more than an adult’s recommended daily allowance.

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Influencer Dylan Mulvaney condemns Bud Light’s response to transphobia

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Trans social media star says company largely abandoned her amid bullying responses to beer promotion

Dylan Mulvaney has spoken out against Bud Light, criticizing the brand for not supporting her amid transphobic backlash to an advertisement featuring the influencer.

In a TikTok video captioned “Trans people like beer, too”, Mulvaney, who is trans, called out Bud Light for largely abandoning her after she was bullied for posting a sponsored video to Instagram with the beer brand.

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Thames Water could delay accounts as turmoil in water industry grows

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Firm refuses to say when it will publish annual report; pressure builds on regulator Ofwat

Thames Water has refused to say when it will publish its annual report and accounts, which had been expected by investors next week, as concerns mount over the company’s financial viability.

The risk of delay will add to the turmoil engulfing England’s 11 privatised water companies, after a day in which board directors, ministers and regulators scrambled to restore calm as discussions continued over a potential temporary nationalisation of Thames Water.

The Environment Agency (EA) announced it was sending specialist investigators into water companies across England to secure evidence in the biggest criminal investigation into illegal sewage dumping since privatisation.

The experienced City troubleshooter Sir Adrian Montague was parachuted in to take over as chairman of Thames, a role he will take up on 10 July.

The prime minister’s spokesperson said it was for Ofwat “in the first instance” to monitor the financial resilience of water companies, adding to pressure on the regulator.

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Guards at Del Monte pineapple farm in Kenya accused of killings

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An investigation by the Guardian and the Bureau of Investigative journalism has uncovered claims from villagers in Kenya of violence and even killings linked to guards on a Del Monte pineapple farm. Emily Dugan reports


Emily Dugan, a senior reporter with the Guardian who has been working on a story with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism for the past few months, tells Michael Safi how they uncovered claims from villagers living near Thika, in Kenya, of guards assaulting and killing people suspected of trespassing on one of the country’s biggest pineapple farms, owned by Del Monte.

The guards are typically armed with wooden clubs called rungus. Their use in security is legal and common in Kenya because of the risk of violent theft, including from young men who regularly go in organised groups to steal pineapples, but the claims suggest the guards’ use of violence has been excessive.

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Crown estate enjoys huge rise in profits thanks to offshore wind

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Fees for accessing UK seabeds help boost profits to £443m while King Charles says some of surplus will go towards public good

The crown estate has generated record profits of almost half a billion pounds from Britain’s offshore windfarms, as talks continue over how much of the windfall should be shared with King Charles.

The royal property manager made £443m in profits in its last financial year, up by almost £130m from the year before, in large part thanks to payments made by renewable energy companies for the right to access the seabed.

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Ofcom investigating BT after disruption to 999 emergency call service

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Telecoms firm, which manages 999 phone system, says it will publish findings of own inquiry on Thursday

The communications watchdog has launched an investigation into BT after technical faults hit the 999 emergency call service on Sunday.

Ofcom said it would look into the incident to find out whether the telecoms company failed to comply with its regulatory duties. Police forces, ambulance services and fire and rescue services across the UK asked people not to phone 999 on Sunday morning due to a “technical fault”.

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Water firms push for bills in England to rise by up to 40%, say reports

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Plans drawn up to pay for cost of dealing with sewage crisis and climate emergency

Water companies are reportedly pushing for bills in England to rise by up to 40% under plans being drawn up to pay for the cost of dealing with the sewage crisis and the climate emergency.

The increases are due to be announced next year and could drive annual bills up from an average of £450 to £680 in parts of the country by the end of the decade, according to a Times report citing consultation documents.

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Bank of England’s quantitative easing scheme let ‘inflation take root’

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UK economy became reliant on cheap money due to the Bank’s actions, warns former permanent secretary to the Treasury

The Bank of England’s quantitative easing money-printing programme enabled high inflation to take root in Britain, while creating “windfall gains” for the rich, a former Treasury mandarin has warned.

Nick Macpherson, who was permanent secretary to the Treasury under the last Labour government and during David Cameron’s premiership, said the central bank’s £895bn bond-buying stimulus programme had gone “too far” and made the inflation shock hitting Britain worse.

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Shop price inflation easing, say top UK retailers before key meeting with MPs

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British Retail Consortium says figure eased to 8.4% in June from 9% in May

Britain’s biggest retailers have said shop price inflation is easing ahead of a crunch meeting with MPs on Tuesday over the soaring cost of groceries, but warned food prices were continuing to rise at near record rates.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said annual inflation in overall shop prices eased to 8.4% in June, down from 9% in May, as retailers cut the price of many staples including milk, cheese and eggs. Clothing and electrical goods prices also fell ahead of the summer holidays.

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UK aid should not fund private hospitals in developing countries, says Oxfam

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Development charity says patients denied treatment or held hostage until fees paid in private facilities in India and Kenya

Private hospitals in India and Kenya accused of refusing people on low incomes vital healthcare, or holding them hostage until bills have been paid, benefit from UK government investment funds, according to a report by Oxfam.

Investments worth hundreds of millions of pounds by government-backed agencies are used to facilitate the “impoverishment and even the imprisonment of the very people [the private hospitals] are supposed to be helping”, said the development charity.

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Aston Martin agrees deal to make electric vehicles with US firm Lucid

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British carmaker to use components from Lucid to produce luxury high-performance battery electric models

Aston Martin has struck a deal with the US firm Lucid to start making “ultra-luxury high-performance electric vehicles” from 2025.

The British luxury carmaker, whose losses more than doubled last year to almost £500m, has struck a cash and shares deal valued at £182m in which Lucid will take a 3.7% stake in London-listed Aston Martin.

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PwC to publicly name all staff involved in tax scandal, inquiry told

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CEO Kristin Stubbins says once internal investigation is complete there will be ‘appropriate accountability’ for those found to have acted inappropriately

The consultancy firm PwC will name all staff involved in the tax scandal shortly after it completes an internal investigation.

“This is a comprehensive, detailed investigation and as you can appreciate, we need to get it right,” acting PwC chief executive, Kristin Stubbins, told a parliamentary inquiry on Monday.

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Primark owner upgrades profit outlook as inflation fuels jump in sales revenue

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Associated British Foods says group sales rose by 16% with Primark saying rises supported by steeper prices

The owner of Primark and food brands including Twinings has upgraded its profit forecast for this year as sales revenue jumped thanks to inflation-fuelled price increases and as shoppers bought summer clothes.

Associated British Foods, which also owns brands including Ovaltine as well as a sugar business, said that group sales rose by 16% to £4.7bn in the three months to 27 May. Sales at Primark were up by 13% to nearly £2bn.

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Shipping emissions could be halved without damaging trade, research finds

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Findings come as nations gather in London to discuss new carbon levy

Greenhouse gas emissions from shipping could be halved by 2030 without damaging trade, new research has found, as countries prepare to meet to discuss a potential new tax on carbon produced by ships.

Emissions from maritime transportation amount to about 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and there are few alternatives to the cheap, heavy and dirty diesel oil used by ships.

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Firm owned by Britishvolt buyer raided by Australian authorities

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Future of UK battery making thrown further into doubt after company founded by David Collard was visited by federal police

A company owned by the buyer of Britishvolt has been raided by the Australian authorities, throwing the future of UK battery-making further into doubt.

Britishvolt, based in Blyth, Northumberland, and which the UK government lauded for its potential role in British battery production and UK-built electric vehicles before it fell into administration, was bought by the Australian entrepreneur David Collard earlier this year.

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The pandemic pie peak has passed but we’re far from the demise of an Australian classic

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Consumption of meat pies has fallen back to pre-Covid levels, reflecting a return to normal patterns rather than a long-term crisis, experts say

One of Australia’s favourite foods, the meat pie, was reported to be an endangered species this past week, with headlines warning the “iconic” food was “dying out”, and reports citing falling sales. But reports of its death may be somewhat exaggerated.

While meat pie sales have dipped to their lowest levels since 2019, it could be a case of the nation recalibrating its pie-eating habits after Covid-19 lockdowns sent demand for frozen pies into overdrive.

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Solar powers ahead with hopes of a renewables record for solstice month

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As the industry gathers in London this week, there are signs of a new dawn after the damage done by Tory subsidy cuts

Britain’s solar industry delivered record levels of renewable electricity to the power grid earlier this year, but as daylight hours stretch longer around the summer solstice, it could be on track to reach another record.

Solar power generation in June is on track to come within a hair’s breadth of the record set during an unusually sunny May in 2020 at about 20 gigawatt hours, according to Alastair Buckley, the professor of organic electronics at the University of Sheffield.

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