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In the Papers - Virgin Media, Dyson, Jigsaw, McLaren

Published: 08:52 03 Jul 2017 BST

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Newspaper Summary

The Times

Pascal Soriot ‘threatened’ protégé over joining rival Glaxosmithkline: The Chief Executive of Astrazeneca sought to threaten and punish a key lieutenant by enforcing a 12-month notice period when his protégé tried to defect to its rival Glaxosmithkline, according to court documents obtained by The Times.

France opens latest addition to national high-speed rail lines: Britons could soon be traveling non-stop to Bordeaux by train after the opening of a 200-mile high-speed rail link from Tours this weekend. The initiative breaks new ground in France because it is the first high-speed line to be privately operated.

From the stump of recession, the City reaches for the skies: If the recession hadn’t happened, Sir Stuart Lipton wouldn’t be here, standing on the 14th floor of what eventually will be the tallest building in the City of London. Another giant, the Pinnacle, would be in its place and would have been built five years ago.

Bond markets beckon for Greece after years of isolation: Greece is considering tapping into international bond markets after years of financial isolation.

Wimbledon faces sharp rise in business rates: As Andy Murray prepares to open the defence of his Wimbledon men’s singles title this afternoon, the All England Club will be hoping it sells enough extra £2.50 helpings of strawberries and cream to cover its soaring business rates bill.

Health and safety fines reach £54 million: The amount that companies were fined for health and safety breaches has risen by 43% in a year. The total rose to £54 million in 2016-17, from £37 million in 2015-16, under tougher guidelines from the Sentencing Council. Fines of up to £2 million were imposed for health and safety breaches, including those leading to serious and sometimes fatal accidents.

The Independent

Nearly 60% of Leave voters would now pay to retain EU citizenship: As many as 58% of people who voted to leave the EU are now willing to pay to keep their European citizenship, a poll has found.

Scrap extra fees for international students and use foreign aid budget to bring them to U.K., professor urges: International aid money set aside to help impoverished and war-torn countries should be used to bring overseas students to the U.K. post-Brexit, a university academic has suggested.

U.K. withdraws from 53-year-old common fisheries agreement ahead of Brexit: The government is withdrawing the U.K. from an arrangement that allows foreign countries to fish in British waters, it has announced.

The Daily Telegraph

Virgin Media struggles to keep up with £3 billion network expansion Project Lighting: Virgin Media’s £3 billion network expansion plan is running badly behind schedule, threatening the growth targets of its parent company, the pan-European cable giant Liberty Global.

Government faces ‘painful choices’ as L&G warns raising retirement age to 75 will not plug black hole: The U.K.’s ageing population will force the Government to raise taxes, borrow more or cut back on healthcare spending even if Britons are forced to work until they are 75, according to Legal & General.

Innocent gets a health kick as smoothie sales top Tropicana: Innocent’s offices look quite ordinary from the outside, perched above a railway bridge in Ladbroke Grove, west London. Yet inside is exactly the kind of quirky set-up you might expect from the knowingly kooky smoothie maker.

Skills gap hitting U.K. plc to tune of £2.2 billion, says Open University: A severe skills gap is costing U.K. businesses more than £2 billion a year as companies struggle to find workers with the right attributes, according to inaugural research by The Open University.

Pizza Express losses reached £17 million before departure of Chief Executive: Losses at Pizza Express reached £17 million in the period before the departure of Chief Executive Richard Hodgson, new documents reveal.

Formula E electric motor racing series skids to losses of £29 million: Electric motor racing series Formula E burned up a net loss of £29.8 million last year as start-up costs accelerated.

U.K. insurers warn Ogden hit will cost more than decade of floods: Insurers face a bigger blow from planned changes to the rules on personal injury damages than from flooding in the North of England, the head of an industry lobby group has claimed.

Businesses return to London IPO market after Brexit ‘state of shock’: London has fought off some of the Brexit jitters that saw businesses abandon their flotation plans last year, with £6.2 billion raised in the first half pointing to a return to faith after a hiatus of activity.

The Guardian

Co-op energy Chief predicts more small suppliers could go bust: More small energy firms could go bust this winter because of increasing price volatility driven by green energy growth and the closure of Britain’s largest gas storage plant, one of the challenger suppliers has warned.

Channel 4’s Bake Off set ‘will be product-placement-free’: The Great British Bake Off will not offer advertisers the chance to pay for product placement in the show, from butter and flour to utensils and whiteware – a decision taken to maintain the “integrity” of the series for the judges, bakers and viewers.

Consumer confidence is lowest since Brexit vote aftermath, survey finds: Worries about the economic outlook and a squeeze on household budgets dented consumer confidence this month, according to a closely watched survey.

Nisa denies staff annual bonuses despite hitting performance targets: Nisa, the convenience chain that is in takeover talks with Sainsbury’s, has angered several hundred head office staff by denying them annual bonuses despite hitting performance targets.

Barclays former CEO and three bankers in court to face fraud charges: John Varley, the former Chief Executive of Barclays, will be among three former bankers to appear at Westminster magistrates court on Monday to face charges of fraud for events that took place at the height of the financial crisis.

MPs and charities urge car leasers to publish sub-prime loan figures: MPs and debt charities have called on the car leasing industry to reveal the number of people in arrears and defaulting on loans, amid fears that consumer lending is returning to levels seen before the 2008 financial crash.

Daily Mail

French banks surged ahead of British rivals last year thanks to turbulent markets and interest rate cut: City lenders made profits of £13.1 billion in 2016, according to research by The Banker magazine, down 32% on the previous 12 months. By contrast, France’s financiers pocketed £30.1 billion – more than double what was earned by their U.K. rivals.

British vacuum giant Dyson opening store in one of New York’s most prestigious shopping districts as foreign buyers clamour for its wares: The firm is leasing the Fifth Avenue shop to show off its U.K.-engineered products, from the bagless cleaners which made it famous to hair dryers and fans. Its outlet – previously a pop-up cafe run by coffee business Nespresso – is due to open in early autumn.

Internet takeaway firm Deliveroo on brink of becoming Britain’s latest tech unicorn in deal valuing it at more than £1 billion: Deliveroo is seeking to raise around £211 million as it battles rivals and seeks to expand across the country. The firm is said to be in talks with a technology fund set up by Japanese firm Softbank, which bought U.K. microchip maker ARM Holdings for £24.3 billion last year.

Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s could sign £2 billion deal to supply newsagent chain McColl’s as grocers continue fighting to secure their futures: The pair are said to be discussing a deal which would see Sainsbury’s flog its products to McColl’s 1,400 stores. Sources hinted an even wider proposal might be on the table, and McColl’s has previously been discussed in City circles as a possible takeover target.

Fashion chain Jigsaw doles out £493,000 to staff as part of company stock plan: Fashion chain Jigsaw has doled out £493,000 to staff as part of a company stock plan. About 600 employees who had been with the firm for more than a year were handed at least one share each under the loyalty scheme. And just before Christmas, these paid out a dividend of £400 each.

Thames Water Chairman Peter Mason to announce he is leaving after controversy over tax payments, leaks and pollution: Peter Mason, the Chairman of Thames Water, will announce he is leaving this week after controversy over tax payments, leaks and pollution. Sources at the firm insisted his decision was not connected to pressure from regulators.

Daily Express

Oil and gas shares suffer June drop due to slump in oil prices: Slumping oil prices saw shares across the oil & gas sector crumple in June.

Sainsbury’s to report recovery thanks to Argos gains and inflation: Sainsbury’s is expected to report a sales recovery when it announces first quarter results this week, helped by rising shop price inflation and a continued strong performance at Argos.

Five minute guide to high-charging investment funds: High-charging fund managers have been picking savers’ pockets for years, so there were good reasons to celebrate when the Financial Conduct Authority announced yet another crackdown last year.

The Scottish Herald

All eyes on the Bank of England and the great interest rate debate: It is many a year since economists, bankers and the markets pondered seriously every month, in advance of meetings of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee, whether a change in interest rates was justified and/or likely. Now those days have returned.

Murphy Wealth on course for £1 million turnover after Glasgow move: A Glasgow wealth management business that has completely overhauled its focus since relocating from Ayr four years ago is on target to deliver revenues of £1 million in the current financial year.

Scots marine publisher helps Australians navigate Barrier Reef: After a think tank, highlighted Scotland’s poor export performance last week, we hear from an entrepreneur who has shown what a relatively small firm can achieve in global markets with the right vision and commitment.

Springfield sets out affordable homes target: Elgin-based Springfield Properties has declared its ambition to build 1,500 affordable homes across Scotland by 2020, doubling the number of houses it has built for the sector to date.

The Scotsman

Jack Vettriano puts Edinburgh home on market for £1.6 million: The luxury home of Scottish artist Jack Vettriano has gone on the market for offers over £1.6 million.

Three frigates worth £3.7 billion secure shipyard jobs for decades: The next generation of shipbuilding jobs in Scotland has been secured with the announcement of a £3.7 billion contract with BAE Systems to build three Type 26 frigates on the Clyde.

City A.M.

U.K. aerospace industry is flying high after aircraft deliveries in May near last year’s record: The U.K. aerospace sector has enjoyed a windfall of £10.5 billion so far this year after the industry globally delivered 524 aircraft to its customers.

Influx of new partners at PwC indicates long-term investment in the U.K.: A raft of summer hires and promotions begin their new jobs, as PwC U.K. adds 52 new partners to its ranks.

European Commission antitrust watchdog Margrethe Vestager encourages firms to sue Google for anti-competitive practices: Brussels’ crackdown on Google is set to intensify after the EU’s top watchdog urged companies to sue the U.S. tech giant in light of its mega-fine for anti-competitive practices.

McLaren turns to bond issue to finance buyout of former CEO’s shares and restructuring: Carmaker McLaren plans to raise £500 million in a bond issue to finance the buyout of former Chief Executive Ron Dennis’s shares and the restructuring of the business.

Veteran venture capitalist Jon Moulton is set to power a new £400 million energy infrastructure fund: A sustainable energy and infrastructure investments firm backed by veteran venture capitalist Jon Moulton is set to launch a new £400 million fund.

Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP) is gearing up for a £6 billion bid for mobile mast giant Arqiva: Bidders are lining up to snap up Arqiva, the company that owns more than 8,000 infrastructure and transmission towers in Britain, in the run up to a deadline this month.

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