Widow of gambling addict lambasts watchdog’s failure to investigate suicides

Exclusive: Annie Ashton, whose husband killed himself, says more people will die because of Gambling Commission inaction

The widow of a man who took his own life after becoming addicted to gambling says more people will die because the regulator is refusing to investigate suicides linked to the addiction.

Annie Ashton is planning legal action against the Gambling Commission after it said it would not investigate or penalise Betfair over the death of her husband, Luke – despite concerns raised about the company at his inquest.

Continue reading...

Regulator stops customers from being billed for ‘undeserved’ bonuses

Ofwat uses new powers to ensure investors pay at Thames, Yorkshire, and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water

Investors at Thames Water, Yorkshire Water, and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water will be forced to pick up the tab for executive bonuses after the regulator determined that the sector had awarded “undeserved” extra payments, worth £6.8m.

Ofwat said on Thursday it had used new powers to ensure that shareholders and bondholders at the three companies paid for bonuses because they had not “adequately reflected overall company performance issues”.

Continue reading...

Captain Tom’s family personally benefited from charity they founded, report finds

Watchdog’s highly critical inquiry finds Hannah and Colin Ingram-Moore culpable of ‘serious and repeated’ misconduct

The family of the NHS charities fundraiser Captain Sir Tom Moore personally benefited from the charity set up in his name through a series of lucrative deals worth more than £1m, the charities watchdog has ruled in a highly critical report.

A Charity Commission inquiry concluded the late Captain Tom’s daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband, Colin Ingram-Moore, were culpable of “serious and repeated” instances of misconduct, mismanagement and failures of integrity.

Hannah Ingram-Moore “initiated the process to secure her appointment as chief executive” of the charity, suggesting she should be paid a salary of £150,000. The charity proposed paying her £100,000 but this was blocked by the commission and she was eventually hired on £85,000.

Hannah Ingram-Moore received £18,000 from Virgin Media in September 2021 to judge its Local Legends awards when she was chief executive of the foundation. This was unauthorised and a conflict of interest, and there was no evidence it was undertaken, as she claimed, in a personal capacity.

The Ingram-Moores used the charity’s name inappropriately and for their private benefit in a planning application to build a private spa pool in the grounds of their family home. The building was subsequently demolished.

Continue reading...

Captain Tom Foundation inquiry: three key failings

A book deal, personal appearance and plans for a swimming pool were all criticised by the Charity Commission

The Charity Commission’s report on the Captain Tom Foundation is highly critical of the conduct and actions of its founders, Hannah and Colin Ingram-Moore, who it said had directly and inappropriately benefited financially from their links to the foundation.

Here are three examples of how the Ingram-Moores’ failure to manage conflicts of interest – not least between the foundation and their private company – constituted misconduct, mismanagement and what the commission called failures of governance and integrity.

Continue reading...

Reeves tells City regulator to encourage more risk-taking in financial sector

New remit given to FCA by chancellor raises fears of a weakening of rules meant to avert another financial crisis

The financial regulator has been ordered to encourage more risk-taking across the City, raising concerns that the Labour government is in danger of watering down rules meant to avoid another financial crisis.

In an official “remit” letter addressed to Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) boss, Nikhil Rathi, the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said regulations meant to protect consumers should not stand in the way of “sensible risk-taking” by investors and the wider financial sector, which includes banks, asset managers and insurers.

Continue reading...

Southern Water’s debt downgraded to junk status by Moody’s

Company close to technical default on some of its debt, underlining UK industry’s precarious state

Southern Water’s debt has been downgraded to junk status by the credit rating agency Moody’s in a decision that underlines the precarious state of the UK water industry.

Moody’s said Southern’s “history of material operational and financial under-performance” could imperil its plan, announced last month, to borrow £4bn from investors.

Continue reading...

Ireland orders X, TikTok and Instagram to curb terrorist content

Regulator issues online safety ruling after finding weak processes leave networks ‘exposed to terrorist content’

Elon Musk’s X, TikTok and Meta’s Instagram have been ordered by Irish media regulators to take “necessary measures” to prevent terrorist content being platformed in order to comply with sweeping new online safety legislation.

The Irish media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, said it issued the ruling after its investigations determined that the social media networks were “exposed to terrorist content” due to weak processes.

Continue reading...

Lloyds shareholders could take £1bn hit over car finance crisis

Analysts forecast bank will have to halve £2bn buyback plan, as ex-boss of City regulator blames watchdog for crisis

Lloyds Banking Group could give almost £1bn less to shareholders this year as a result of the car finance crisis, analysts have said, as the City regulator’s former boss blamed the watchdog for the chaos.

The estimated size of a multibillion-pound compensation bill for motor lenders has grown after a shock court of appeal ruling last Friday, which said customers could not consent to motor loans that involved “secret commission” payments to brokers and car dealerships.

Continue reading...

UK watchdog formally investigates Carlsberg’s £3.3bn takeover of Britvic

CMA sets 18 December deadline for initial review as it considers whether deal could reduce competition

The UK’s competition watchdog has launched a formal investigation into the £3.3bn takeover of the UK soft drinks maker Britvic by the Danish brewer Carlsberg.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has set a deadline of 18 December for the first phase of its investigation into the deal.

Continue reading...

Regulators urged to examine UK business dealings with Bangladeshi ex-minister

HMRC and FCA asked to look into property deals with Saifuzzaman Chowdhury now under investigation for corruption in Dhaka

British regulators have been urged by MPs to examine the relationship between London estate agents, lawyers and lenders and a former Bangladeshi government minister under investigation for alleged corruption.

Saifuzzaman Chowdhury was the land minister in Bangladesh until earlier this year, when the government of Sheikh Hasina was spectacularly toppled, after her regime’s violent suppression of student protests.

Continue reading...

Psychotherapists in England must be regulated, experts say, after abuse claims rise

Exclusive: Lack of formal oversight means anyone can set up in practice and continue to work after misconduct cases, campaigners say

Ministers face calls for the urgent regulation of psychotherapists and counsellors to protect vulnerable people, as lawyers report a rise in lawsuits by patients for alleged harm done during therapy.

Unlike most other healthcare roles, including doctors, midwives and osteopaths, “psychotherapist” and “counsellor” are not protected titles nor statutorily regulated professions in the UK.

Continue reading...

EU leaders back extra Chinese EV tariffs despite split vote

Decision opposed by five countries including Germany, where car firms say it could be ‘fatal’ blow for industry

EU leaders have given the green light to extra tariffs on electric vehicles from China despite opposition from five countries including Germany, where car manufacturers condemned the decision as a potential “fatal” blow for the auto industry.

The European Commission – which provisionally approved the step in June after an inquiry found that Beijing’s state aid to auto manufacturers was unfair – now has free rein to impose steep tariffs for five years from the end of this month.

Continue reading...

Meta to push on with plan to use UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train AI

Move to use shared posts follows information commissioner concerns and sets collision course with EU over privacy

Mark Zuckberg’s Meta is to go ahead with controversial plans to use millions of UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train its artificial intelligence (AI) technology, in a practice that is effectively outlawed under EU privacy laws.

Meta said it had “engaged positively” with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) over the plan, after it paused similar proposals in June in the UK and EU. The pause came after the ICO warned tech firms to respect the privacy of users when building generative AI.

Continue reading...

Watchdog to investigate Ticketmaster over Oasis ticket sales

Competition and Markets Authority to look at how ‘dynamic pricing’ may have been used to increase prices

The competition watchdog has launched an investigation into the Oasis ticket sales fiasco.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will investigate Ticketmaster’s handling of sales for the band’s forthcoming tour, including how “dynamic pricing” may have been used to adjust the price.

Continue reading...

Banks warned over denying sex workers business accounts

FCA gives detailed guidance to lenders after hearing lack of access could lead to ‘significant harm’ for individuals

The City regulator has warned UK banks over denying accounts for sex workers, after hearing that a lack of access to business banking could lead to “significant harm” for individuals.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that while banks said they were able to provide accounts for the adult entertainment industry in theory, they were often denying or shutting down business accounts in practice.

Continue reading...

European Commission to examine Ticketmaster’s ‘dynamic pricing’

Review follows UK competition watchdog’s announcement of ‘urgent review’ into Oasis concert tickets fiasco

Ticketmaster’s ability to raise the price of concert tickets based on demand is being scrutinised by the European Commission, the Guardian has learned, as the UK’s competition watchdog launches an “urgent review” into the Oasis concerts fiasco.

The US-owned ticketing giant has been told it may have breached laws in the UK and Europe for inflating the price of some Oasis tickets from £135 to £350, leaving many fans devastated.

Continue reading...

Thames Water lobbied Whitehall to press Ofwat on allowing higher bills

Exclusive: Debt-ridden company also warned officials of ‘chilling effect’ of any renationalisation

Thames Water has lobbied the government to intervene with the regulator to allow it to charge far higher bills, the Guardian can reveal.

Advisers and board members of the beleaguered water company are understood to have met Whitehall officials in recent weeks to say that allowing it to be temporarily renationalised would have a “chilling effect” on the entire UK’s appeal to international investors, sources familiar with the discussions told the Guardian.

Continue reading...

UK rivers and beaches have been heaped with pollution for years – when will we talk about restoration?

The penalties reflect the failings of the Environment Agency and Ofwat as much as the water companies

Behind the record fines announced by Ofwat for the routine dumping of sewage into rivers and seas by three water companies, there is a voiceless victim, one that does not sit in boardrooms, or get a chance to count dividends. It is our rivers and coastal waters, subjected to years of continuous pollution under the noses of the regulators, which are suffering.

In all likelihood the £168m penalties for the already struggling Thames Water, Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water will be followed by fines for the remaining eight water and sewerage companies, all of whom Ofwat is investigating over failure to treat sewage according to the law.

Continue reading...

England’s health watchdog ‘not fit for purpose’, says Wes Streeting

Health secretary’s comments follow finding that Care Quality Commission struggling to identify performance issues in hospitals and care homes

Wes Streeting has called England’s healthcare watchdog “not fit for purpose” after an interim report found significant failings were hampering its ability to identify poor performance at hospitals, care homes and GP practices.

The health and social care secretary promised to “grip the crisis” at the Care Quality Commission (CQC) by taking immediate action to increase oversight of the body and giving patients more confidence in their care.

Continue reading...

Southern Water boss handed £183,000 bonus despite huge rise in bills

Award for Lawrence Gosden comes despite criticism over business plan and attempts to increase bills by 73%

The chief executive of Southern Water has received a £183,000 bonus despite submitting a business plan that has been criticised by the industry regulator and attempting to raise bills more than any other English water company.

Lawrence Gosden received the bonus as part of a £764,000 pay package, up from £428,000 a year earlier, according to the company’s annual report.

Continue reading...