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THEM’S THE BREAKS

BORIS JOHNSON FORCED TO RESIGN SPARKING FRESH LEADERSHIP CONTEST STEFAN BOSCIA AFTER refusing to go as the government collapsed around him on Wednesday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson finally fell on his sword yesterday and announced his resignation.

“It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister,” he said in a speech outside Downing Street yesterday afternoon.

“To you the British people — I know there will be many people who are relieved but perhaps quite a few who will also be disappointed. And I want you to know how sad I am to be giving up the best job in the world. But them’s

the breaks.”

Johnson — who just last month survived a vote a of no confidence — was brought down by a series of scandals involving his personal integrity, with the revelation that he had awarded several ministerial jobs to an alleged serial sex pest being the last straw for many MPs. His departure marks Britain’s third prime ministerial exit in the space of six years.

Johnson blamed his resignation on Wesminster’s “herd” mentality and did not acknowledge any of his own failings in office — a move a Number 10 source described as “typically Boris until the end”.

“In the last few days, I have tried to persuade my colleagues that it would be

eccentric to change governments when we are delivering so much and when we have such a vast mandate,” he said.

“But as we’ve seen at Westminster, the herd instinct is powerful and when the herd moves it moves,” he said.

Johnson added that “in politics, no one is remotely indispensable” and that “our brilliant and Darwinian system will produce another leader”.

Johnson has vowed to stay on in Number 10 as caretaker prime minister until a new Conservative leader is found, which is likely to be in early September.

But ex-Prime Minister John Major and a wave of Tory MPs are pushing for him to leave immediately.

Major said in a letter to the chair of the

1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers that Johnson should leave Number 10 “for the overall wellbeing of the country”.

One London Tory MP told City A.M. that there should be a “big push” to get Johnson to leave Downing Street immediately and install Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab as an interim prime minister.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said Johnson “inflicted lies, fraud and chaos in the country”, and that he will call a parliamentary vote of no-confidence in the government if he does not leave immediately.

The 1922 Committee will now set out the timetable for the leadership contest on Monday and it is understood the first

votes to pick the main candidates will likely happen next week.

Potential Tory leadership candidates were yesterday canvassing support among their fellow MPs, with a long list of candidates set to stand.

Expected candidates include Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss, Ben Wallace, Penny Mordaunt, Sajid Javid, Steve Baker and Tom Tugendhat.

There will be a series of votes among Tory MPs, with the last placed candidate eliminated in each round until two contenders remain.

The last two contenders will then campaign over five or six weeks to win the votes of the 200,000 Tory party members who will then effectively choose the next prime minister.

INSIDE ECONOMIC FORECAST P4 SAINSBURY’S LIVING WAGE ROW P8 BA STRIKES CALLED OFF P9 ENERGY P10 MARKETS P13 OPINION P14 CULTURE P16 SPORTS P19

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FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

STANDING UP FOR THE CITY

Johnson’s successor must realign Britain’s ailing economy

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ORIS Johnson finally read the room, or at least, the empty government he found himself in this week. To not acquiesce to his party’s demand’s in the name of stability was a farce from a man who has wrought drama and drama.

His legacy must be the 80 seat majority which he brought the Conservatives back in 2019. The imbalances of the UK economy could not withstand the turmoil

THE CITY VIEW of a general election. Labour, for all their glee, is hardly in a better position to steady the ship.

And a steady ship is what we need, a leader who can stand between the splintering divides of the Conservative party nurtured under Johnson. Sajid Javid and

Rishi Sunak both claim to have a fealty to fiscal responsibility, but the latter has failed to demonstrate that and the former never got the chance. They must stake their claim and take it forward. Liz Truss, for all her Thatcherite fantasies, needs to prove her allegiance to Conservative economic politics.

The country already has the highest inflation rate in the G7. It is expected to peak at over 11 per cent. The Office for Budget

Responsibility told us yesterday: A recession is coming.

Tory MPs vying for the party’s crown will want to offer red meat in the form of tax cuts. But whoever emerges needs to square the circle of reversing what is projected to be the heaviest tax burden since the 1940s while, at the same time, adding more pressure to the public finances through borrowing.

The answer will be to cut spending. But, for all of Johnson’s

faults, his levelling up agenda threw the yawning gaps in living standards across the capital and the country into stark relief.

It may be hard to retain those first-time Tory voters at the next election if the next leader rolls back on promised increased government spending.

But one thing’s for sure: botch their economic strategy, and the next leader will eventually feel the knives in their back or in the ballot box.

VACANCY Madame Tussauds London helps Downing Street’s hiring drive as it looks for a new prime minister

MADAME Tussauds London yesterday updated their 10 Downing Street display with a new sign following Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s resignation after a flood of ministerial resignations. The wax statue attraction also confirmed that Boris Johnson’s figure will be removed from Madame Tussauds London at the point he is officially no longer Prime Minister.

Boris Johnson’s star has come crashing down to earth T

O SUM UP Boris Johnson’s political career you need only listen to Sir Nicholas Soames, the grandson of the outgoing Prime Minister’s hero Winston Churchill.

“Boris is a chancer, he is a chancer… but that doesn’t alter the fact he’s extremely agreeable to have dinner with,” Soames once told BBC great Michael Cockerell.

This quote neatly encapsulates why he was such a magnificent vote winner and why he also ended his premiership in abject failure.

COMMENT Stefan Boscia In his prime, Johnson had extraordinary qualities of political stardom and was able to connect with people across the country in a way few others can.

He was seen as someone who was simultaneously erudite and clownish, eloquent and crassly funny.

With these qualities, and perhaps because of them, also came his worst flaws — the intrinsic dishonesty, the lack of any clear ideological beliefs, the inability to make tough decisions and the penchant for self-sabotage.

Put simply — the bloke is a bit of a chancer.

It is because of these immutable flaws that he was never going to be forced out thanks to an unpopular policy à la

Magaret Thatcher or through the orderly transition of power at the ballot box. It was always going to be through the similar types of scandals that have plagued his entire adult life.

In just a year he was embroiled in scandals about not disclosing donations, ignoring sexual assault claims against an ally for political gain, breaking his own Covid-19 rules and trying to rig the parliamentary disciplinary process to get off one of his own MPs. Johnson’s place in history is sealed thanks to Brexit, but he leaves the political

stage as someone who never lived up to his potential. What a shame that someone so mercurial and politically adroit squandered an 80-seat majority and burnt out in just three years.

But, perhaps, it could never be any other way. It is very tempting to sit back and say the whole mess was completely avoidable and that he should have been able to plod along for years after his 2019 landslide election win. However, this would have made him a different person with a different set of qualities that got him to Number 10 in the first place.

CITYAM.COM

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

NEWS

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Who wants to be the next prime minister?

STEFAN BOSCIA THE RACE to be the next prime minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland began yesterday as MPs scrambled to organise their Tory leadership campaigns.

There is no obvious successor to Boris Johnson, with a wide field of candidates from all wings of the party expected to stand.

Defence secretary Ben Wallace is the favourite with bookmaker William Hill, after his handling of the UK’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

He was also chosen as the preferred

candidate for Tory members in a recent Conservative Home poll. However, question marks have been raised about his lack of economic experience or whether he has broad support among MPs. Tory MPs will choose the final two candidates after a series of votes, before the Conservative party’s 200,000 members choose the next leader.

Former chancellor Rishi Sunak is the second favourite and is by far the most recognisable candidate to the wider public, after his suite of emergency Covid measures.

The Mirror reports that he has set up

a leadership office in a Westminster hotel.

He was long seen as the heir apparent to Johnson, however his personal popularity ratings took a hit after he was pilloried for his slow response to the cost of living crisis and for a series of stories about his wife’s former nondom tax status.

His standing was also dented after receiving a Covid fine for attending Boris Johnson’s Number 10 birthday lunch party in 2020.

Penny Mordaunt, a trade minister, has been discussed as an early favourite and may pick up votes from

the Brexiteer wing of the party, after campaigning for Leave in 2016.

It has been widely suggested that she has been steadying herself for a leadership bid for some time and has built up quite a large collection of supporters among the Tory backbenches.

Another MP who has had her eye on the leadership for some time is Liz Truss, who last year began holding “fizz for Liz” events with backbench MPs to drum up support for a future campaign.

She is popular with the Tory party membership, but does not have many backers in the parliamentary party.

The votes of the One Nation group of Conservatives, a group of around 50 moderate MPs, will be a big prize and will likely fall between former foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt and Foreign Affairs Committee chair Tom Tugendhat.

Damian Green and Stephen Hammond, two senior members of the One Nation caucus, said yesterday that they would back Tugendhat in the race.

A Conservative MP told City A.M. that it was Tugendhat, along with Mordaunt and Sunak, who had made the strongest start out of the blocks.

THE FRONTRUNNERS TO REPLACE JOHNSON AS TORY LEADER AND PM

BEN WALLACE 5-2 The defence secretary has won admirers in Westminster for his straight-talking and straightforward approach, particularly among Tory MPs who pressed for the UK to increase its defence spending, although cuts to the size of the army remain a cause for concern.

Wallace remains a key voice in the UK’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and this increased exposure could assist any leadership bid.

LIZ TRUSS 8-1 The foreign secretary has made little secret of her leadership ambitions, with a series of high-profile interventions and photo opportunities in which she appeared to be channelling late PM Margaret Thatcher.

Her hard line on Ukraine, insisting Russian forces must be driven from the country, and threats to tear up the Northern Ireland Protocol with the EU, play well with sections of the party.

RISHI SUNAK 4-1 The former Chancellor’s rise from relative obscurity to household name came as he turned on the spending taps to protect jobs through the furlough scheme when the coronavirus pandemic struck. His calm and measured delivery during televised Covid briefings, and his viral declaration of love for a popular soft drink, will have endeared him to those perhaps not always plugged in to the political goings-on.

PENNY MORDAUNT 4-1 Another frontrunner with the bookies, Mordaunt made waves in 2019 as the UK’s first female defence secretary before being fired by Johnson shortly after becoming PM. Mordaunt has many strings to her bow – she is a Royal Navy reservist, the current trade minister and a former reality television contestant. She played a prominent role in the Leave campaign in the 2016 Brexit referendum.

SAJID JAVID 8-1 Like Sunak, Javid’s resignation on Tuesday caused chaos in Number 10, as the health secretary from famously humble beginnings left the government. Javid made it to the final four in the contest to replace Theresa May as Tory leader in 2019, but dropped out and subsequently endorsed Johnson. He told reporters on Tuesday he was looking forward to spending time with his family – but for how long?

Odds according to William Hill at the time of writing

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FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

Natwest follows other banks and hands out cost of living pay bump

JACK BARNETT BRITAIN is on “an unsustainable path” to high indebtedness unless the government cuts spending or raises taxes, the country’s fiscal watchdog warned yesterday.

A combination of higher health spending to deal with an ageing society, the loss of motoring taxes due to the transition to net zero and higher defence expenditure amid greater geo-political tensions could swell the UK’s debt burden to over 400 per cent of the size of the economy in 50 years, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said.

In a worse case scenario, in which “geopolitical tensions continue to rise, with threats to both security and economic integration crystallising, the fiscal outlook could be materially weaker,” the OBR said in its first combined fiscal risks and sustainability report.

The projection illustrates the scale of the economic challenge facing whoever leads the Treasury in the long-term.

Not only is the UK’s indebtedness set to balloon over the coming decades, the economy will tip into recession next year due to higher energy prices triggering a spending slowdown and

a sharp fall in living standards, the OBR said.

Inflation is projected to top 11 per cent later this year, taking it to the highest level since 1981.

The debt burden will fall in the medium term, but then soar as the fraction of elderly people in the UK population increases.

Under its most likely scenario, the OBR said the debt-to-GDP ratio will swell to around 270 per cent in 50 years.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday bowed to days of pressure and resigned, sparking a Conservative leadership election.

Although Nadhim Zahawi was appointed as Chancellor earlier this week, after his predecessor Rishi Sunak quit on Tuesday, it is unclear how long he will stay in the job, especially if he runs in the coming leadership contest.

The incoming leader will be under pressure to cut taxes to appease Tory MPs disgruntled with Johnson and Sunak’s economic strategy and ease the cost of living burden on households. Andy King, OBR board member, said any tax giveaways that are not financed by spending cuts elsewhere will put “more pressure” on the finances through extra borrowing.

HOME SLOWDOWN Persimmon’s house building rate stalls amid labour shortages PERSIMMON CEO Dean Finch said in a trading update that a decline in new homes built by the firm was due to factors including labour shortages, supply chain issues and delays in planning.

Full-time UK Natwest staff on £32,000 or less will receive a £1,000 pay rise on average

DEBT-TO-GDP RATIO PROJECTIONS 450

EFO Forecast

FRS projection Geopolitical stress test Higher energy prices: Temporary Higher energy prices: Persistent

Baseline with historical shocks Baseline

% OF GDP

300

Source: OBR, ONS

New Tory leader faces unenviable economic task

climbing 9.1 per cent over the last year, the quickest acceleration in forty years.

Natwest employees outside Britain will also receive a pay rise. Alison Rose, chief executive of Natwest, told Reuters: “We are taking targeted action and awarding a permanent increase to base pay for our lowest paid colleagues across the globe.”

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CPI INFLATION 14

Scenario March 2022 Forecast

12 % change on a year earlier

NOW MAJORITY privately owned British high street lender Natwest has joined competitors in handing out a pay bump to staff to help cushion the blow from the cost of living crisis, according to documents obtained by the Reuters news agency.

The bank, which is still state-

backed, will give 22,000 workers on lower salaries a £1,000 pay rise on average, an internal memo revealed.

UK full-time staff earning £32,000 or less will receive the pay bump, which equates to a four per cent increase, from September.

The move follows Barclays and Lloyds in bumping staff pay to help ease the pressure of living costs

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THE BOTTOM LINE

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HE UK, like most of the world’s developed countries, will undergo big changes in its economic structure over the coming decades.

An ageing population, compounded by ditching carbon-intensive goods, services and production processes, will shift the country’s economic and demographic fabric.

The old-age dependency ratio — a measure of the burden working people have to carry to fund elederly care — is set to increase 18 percentage points over the next five decades, according to the UN. That rise will swell spending on healthcare to around 15 per cent of GDP in 50 years. Defence spending in response to greater geopolitical instability and higher education expenditure will also add to the pressure on the public finances.

Now, these projections are far, far into the future and are sure to be ripped up when more economic shocks hit.

In the near-to-medium term, tax rises help repair the public finances by bringing down the deficit and debt-to-GDP ratio.

All told, though, the state is set to play a much bigger role in people’s lives, according to the OBR. How the next prime minister squares that off with Tory MPs when Johnson was booted in part for his economic strategy will surely determine their fate.

JACK BARNETT

House prices hit record high in the largest monthly increase since 2004 MILLIE TURNER HOUSE PRICES surged in June in the largest monthly increase since 2004, hitting an average of £294,845 after months of declining growth.

Climbing ever closer to the £300,000 mark, house prices jumped 1.8 per cent in June, after climbing one per cent in May, when the average cost of a

home was £289,099, according to the Halifax House Price Index.

“House prices have now risen every month over the last year,” Halifax managing director, Russell Galley, said.

Onlookers are torn as to how the cost of living crisis, alongside the war in Ukraine and rising interest rates, will impact the market.

Imogen Sporle, head of term finance

at London-based broker Finanze, said: “Despite this extraordinary data, it’s not a case of if house prices crash but when. Whether the full crash happens this year or next, it’s coming,” she said.

However, boss of estate agency Chestertons, Richard Davies, argued that London’s property market will keep its appeal, but that a lack of stock will stoke competition.

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THE BORIS YEARS:

Boris Johnson, the London Mayor who hung on a zipwire at the London Olympics, was a champion of Brexit and a hero of the Conservative Party after the 2019 election. But his successes – the vaccine rollout and strong line on Russian aggression – were marred by scandal after scandal until it was too much for the government to bear. The charisma which bore him to victory, also brought his undoing.

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1. JULY 23, 2019

Boris Johnson beats Jeremy Hunt to be the next leader of the Conservative Party, following Theresa May’s resignation.

SEPTEMBER 2, 2019

Johnson faces revolt as 21 Conservative MPs vote with the opposition to take control of the House of Commons and force him to request a delay to Brexit.

2. DECEMBER 12, 2019

Boris Johnson storms to victory with the Conservatives winning 365 seats.

JANUARY 31, 2020

The UK finally leaves the European Union, with a 12 month transition period.

Johnson tells the country: “This is the moment when a new dawn breaks.”

FEBRUARY 13, 2019

With Dominic Cummings at the helm of Johnson’s No10 administration, his Chancellor Sajid Javid resigns after a power grab from the PM’s office. Rishi Sunak is installed into No11.

MARCH 23, 2020

Britain is put into a national lockdown.

3. MARCH 27, 2020

Johnson is infected with Covid-19. He is then hospitalised in the ICU. Later, he admits: “it could have gone either way”.

He is discharged on April 12, with his then-Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab in office in his stead.

4. MAY 22, 2020

Dominic Cummings is accused by the Guardian and the Daily Mirror of breaking lockdown rules. He won’t resign until November 2020 over internal politics within Downing Street and fights with the Prime Minister’s wife.

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NOVEMBER 29, 2020

Boris Johnson sends Lord Brownlow, a Conservative donor, a message asking for money to set up a trust to fund the refurbishment of the Downing Street flat. He will later tell his ethics adviser Lord Geidt he did not know until February 2021.

DECEMBER 2, 2020

The Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine is approved by the UK medical regulator. A little over a week later, the homegrown Astrazeneca vaccine is approved.

DECEMBER 24, 2020

Boris Johnson signs a Brexit deal with the European Union.

DECEMBER 26, 2020

England enters its third national lockdown, after the ‘circuit breaker’ shutdown through November fails to curb the virus sufficiently.

AUGUST 15, 2021

The Afghan capital city of Kabul is taken by the Taliban after the withdrawal of western troops. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is on holiday in Crete.

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

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NEWS

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FROM HERO TO ZERO 3

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SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

Boris Johnson reshuffles his Cabinet.

Dominic Raab is sacked from the Foreign Office and installed as Deputy Prime Minister.

OCTOBER 26, 2021

5. DECEMBER 8, 2021

Allegra Stratton resigns after a video shows her joking about parties with other No10 aides. Johnson tells Parliament “all rules were followed” and launches the Sue Gray report.

DECEMBER 9, 2021

Owen Paterson faces a 30 day suspension for breaching lobbying rules. Johnson attempts to prevent it. Paterson eventually resigns on November 4.

The Electoral Commission suggests the Prime Minister lied over the refurbishment of his flat.

NOVEMBER 30, 2021

6. JANUARY 10, 2022

First allegations of partygoing in Downing street during the lockdowns are published by the Daily Mirror.

Fresh revelations of the ‘bring your own booze’ party trigger another two weeks of allegations of parties in No10, including the PM’s birthday bash.

7. FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Vladimir Putin invades Ukraine.

MAY 25, 2022

Sue Gray publishes a report finding rulebreaking at the heart of No10.

8. JUNE 6, 2022

Boris Johnson survives a no-confidence vote with the support of 211 MPs, but 41 per cent of his party vote against him.

JUNE 15, 2022

Johnson’s ethics advisor Lord Geidt quits following a row over steel tariffs. He is the second man in the post to quit, after Alex Allen resigned in 2020.

JUNE 23, 2022

The Conservatives lose two by-elections in Tiverton & Honiton to the Liberal Democrats and Wakefield to Labour.

9. JUNE 30, 2022

Deputy chief whip Chris Pincher is accused by The Sun of groping two young men while drunk. Johnson is later revealed to have known of allegations against him when he made the appointment.

JULY 5, 2022

Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak quit after the Prime Minister apologises for appointing Chris Pincher, despite being aware of allegations against him.

10. JULY 7, 2022

In a 24 hour period, Boris Johnson loses more than 50 members of his government. Remaining ministers tell him to resign.

JULY 8, 2021

Boris Johnson agrees to resign and says he will stay on as caretaker Prime Minister during a leadership race.

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FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

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Soaring shares: Currys commits to price freeze as full year profits jump CHARLIE CONCHIE ELECTRICAL retailer Currys committed to a price freeze on dozens of products yesterday as it posted a jump in full-year profits to £126m.

In its full-year results posted yesterday, the firm said it had seen a surge in sales in store across the group post-Covid and reported pre-tax profits of £126m, up from £33m, as it boosted its margins to 2.7 per cent.

Investors welcomed the robust results with shares soaring by almost

nine per cent yesterday, boosting the firm to the top of the FTSE 250.

But boss Alex Baldock warned of the coming impact of a rising cost of living crisis and said the retailer would commit to keeping costs down to minimise the impact on consumers as he announced the firm would be freezing the price of dozens or products in its ‘2021 price lock’.

“A stronger business allows us to help customers through the cost of living crisis,” he said.

Baldock said the firm was also

adding a “12 month Pay Delay” on every purchase over £99 to help customers manage the cost of living crunch.

Group sales at the retailer were flat year on year across the group, as growth in Currys international business was offset by the decline in UK and Ireland.

Currys said sales growth had been tempered by a “very strong” 2020/21.

Analysts at City Index said the firm may now look to use its scale to snap up a bigger share of the market.

Robust sales gave Currys shares a nine per cent boost yesterday

Sainsbury’s faces resistance over living wage row EMILY HAWKINS SAINSBURY’s saw a minority of shareholders revolt over staff pay at its AGM yesterday morning, with nearly 17 per cent backing a resolution for the supermarket to gain Living Wage accreditation.

Some 16.7 per cent of shareholders supported a resolution that urged the supermarket to become a Living Wage accredited employer.

The resolution required 75 per cent of votes to pass.

CEO Simon Roberts told attendees in Holborn, central London that the grocer prided itself on being “industry leaders on colleague pay”.

The supermarket said its staff had seen a 25 per cent increase in pay over the past five years and it had made changes such as removing age-related pay and moving forward the timing of an annual increase.

Share Action, which organised the resolution, argued that Sainsbury’s must commit to ensuring pay “will continue to increase in line with the cost of living in future years”.

Accreditation by the Living Wage Foundation would “remove this uncertainty,” the body said.

However, Sainsbury’s said it wants to “have the flexibility to pay the right rate of pay and benefits to our colleagues” considering the “specific circumstances” of a particular time.

Speaking yesterday, chair Martin Scicluna said while the supermarket would consider paying the living wage each year, it fundamentally believed it must “preserve the right to make independent business decisions”.

Share Action also wants to see the supermarket commit to pay increases for third-party staff, including cleaners and security guards, and for wages in outer London to match the real Living Wage for the area.

The supermarket announced new wages for directly employed workers earlier this year, with a basic hourly pay of at least £10 per hour.

The new pay increase matched the real Living Wage for staff in inner London and those working outside it.

Regarding the response to the cost of living crisis, Roberts said there had been “signs of customer behaviour changing, with some switching to economy and own label products”.

However, sales of premium products remained “resilient”, as shoppers were keen to “treat themselves” still.

Lawyers said the move would not open the floodgates as it was still difficult to obtain a trade mark for exact colours

Green light for Cadbury on purple trademark EMILY HAWKINS CADBURY’s has been allowed to register a trademark for the particular purple colour used on its chocolate bar wrappers following a High Court ruling this week.

Lawyers representing Cadbury from Charles Russell Speechlys said the chocolate maker would now be able to register the colour (Pantone 2685C).

The confectionery giant has been attempting to register the colour in its own right, without reference to how it will be used, for several years.

In the past, it has locked heads with Nestlé, with the UK intellectual property office (UK IPO) invalidating two of Cadbury’s trademarks for the purple colour in 2019.

However, this week, Justice Meade said that “if Cadbury’s circumstances are not right, I do not see how any other applicant would do better” with regards to registering the colour.

The decision means that brands are capable of registering a colour as an abstract thing, as it can be a ‘sign’ as required by the UK Trade Marks Act. “There is now clear guidance for the UK IPO that these marks are

registerable in principle and can be registered if the applicant is able to meet the ‘acquired distinctiveness’ test,” Mary Bagnall, Charles Russell Speechlys partner, said.

The decision is the latest in a protracted battle to secure rights over the colour.

In 2019, Cadbury’s lost an appeal that would have protected a trademark secured in 1995.

“This decision will be well received by those brand owners who regard colour as a key element of their brand identity,” Kate Swaine, partner at law firm Gowling WLG, said.

Visits to shops on the up but sales growth lags as Brits tighten belts EMILY HAWKINS

Brits are pulling back spending amid a 40-year high inflation rate

WHILE visits to shops have increased as shoppers hunt for the cheapest prices, sales growth continues to stall amid the cost of living crisis, according to new data.

UK footfall increased by two percentage points in June versus the prior month, according to data from

the British Retail Consortium (BRC), as shoppers hunted for the best deals amid a 40-year high inflation.

However, BRC boss Helen Dickinson said sales volumes were “down significantly in recent months” with footfall uplifts not translating into instore and online sales.

Data from BDO has also revealed today that retailers saw the lowest

like-for-like sales growth in 16 months last month.

Sales increased only 8.4 per cent compared to June 2021, with homeware sales dropping 8.8 per cent as shoppers put off buying bigticket items.

“There are few signs of encouragement for retailers,” BDO’s Sophie Michael warned.

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITYAM.COM

BA workers call off strike after new pay offer ILARIA GRASSO MACOLA UNION members working as British Airways (BA) check-in staff yesterday suspended a planned strike action at Heathrow following a salary increase.

Unite said that, after extensive negotiations, BA made a “vastly improved pay offer”. The proposal was submitted to workers who are expected to vote on whether to accept it.

“We welcome that BA has finally listened to the voice of its check-in staff,” said the union’s general secretary Sharon Graham.

“Unite has repeatedly warned that pay disputes at BA were inevitable unless the company took our members’ legitimate grievances seriously.”

The industrial action was announced on 23 June after the unions Unite and GMB demanded to reinstate a 10 per cent wage cut taken by ground staff during the pandemic.

While no date was announced, it was understood the Unite and GMB would target the third or fourth weekend of July, to maximise disruption amid the summer break.

Commenting on the decision, the airline said: “We are very pleased that, following collaboration with the unions, they have decided not to issue dates for industrial action. This is great news for our customers and our people.”

The news comes at a delicate time for BA, with the airline announcing on Wednesday that it was axing another 10,300 flights for the August to October period to guarantee smoother operations amid the ongoing travel chaos.

The carrier said it was taking advantage of the “amnesty” period granted by the UK government over airport slots. Now involving 13 per cent of flights, the cuts are expected to leave long-haul services unaffected.

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Which? reports Easyjet to CAA for travel chaos ILARIA GRASSO MACOLA

Black cab drivers argue an 1869 law bans private hire cabs from responding to hails

Black cabs challenge Free Now taxis over ‘illegal’ road cruising LOUIS GOSS A BLACK cab drivers trade body has filed a legal challenge against taxi firm Free Now over claims the ridehailing app’s business model is illegal.

The body is seeking to argue that ride-hailing apps that let private hire taxis cruise the streets and respond to hails are acting illegally.

The United Trade Action Group (UTAG) is set to argue that ride-hailing apps like Uber, Bolt and Free Now allow private hire taxis privileges only granted to hackney carriages.

UTAG are calling for a judicial review of Transport for London’s (TfL’s) decision to license the apps.

The cab drivers say an 1869 law bans private hire cabs from the act of cruising the streets for business.

CONSUMER champion Which? yesterday reported Easyjet to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for allegedly mistreating passengers over the last weeks of travel chaos.

Which? accused the low-cost airline of keeping travellers in the dark about their right to either be booked on another company’s flight or claim compensation.

“A major overhaul is desperately needed, so the government must give the CAA stronger powers so it can hit operators with heavy fines when necessary,” said Which?’s travel editor Rory Boland.

The decision comes a week after the consumer champion accused the likes of Ryanair, British Airways and TUI of breaking consumer law by either “blacklisting” passengers or adopting misleading language on refund policies.

Easyjet said: “We clearly inform customers that if there are no Easyjet alternative flights within 24 hours, they can book flights via an alternative carrier and we’ll reimburse them in full or they can choose a full refund.”

PARTNER CONTENT

ICAS Chief Executive Bruce Cartwright CA, calls on accountants to help save the planet

T

he discussion on sustainability and climate change is one of urgency and unparalleled importance. As communities across the globe continue to experience the effects of the fluctuations of the planet’s climate through droughts, fires and flooding on a worrying scale, the task of combating the negative impact that humans have on the planet has never been more vital.

There are dramatic implications for failing to tackle climate change.

But what does this have to do with accountants?

The accounting profession has a key role in raising awareness and changing behaviour to tackle the issue of climate change, both at a corporate level and individually.

Chartered accountants and finance professionals can – and should – make a meaningful difference to the protection and restoration of nature. From working with their organisations and clients on strong corporate governance and risk management, to championing sustainable decision making, we have a crucial role to play in reversing the process of nature loss as our planet continues to face the effects of climate change. ICAS has continued to play its part in highlighting sustainability related risks and opportunities to our members and the wider public. We do this

ACCOUNTANTS CAN SAVE THE WORLD Bruce Cartwight ICAS CEO through the ICAS Sustainability Panel, which informs and educates our members of the importance of embedding sustainable behaviour throughout their personal and working lives.

At a corporate level, the Task Force for the Climate-related Financial

Disclosures (TCFD) encourages the finance profession to voluntarily include the risks, and opportunities that climate change presents to their organisations through their reporting mechanisms. In 2017, ICAS pledged its support for the recommendations of the TCFD and premium listed companies are now required to report under this framework and other large companies will be required to do so

next year. This is just the beginning though as developments in the arena of sustainability reporting have recently been moving at pace.

First out of the starting blocks was the recently established International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) which published its first two exposure drafts covering general sustainability disclosure requirements and those specific to

climate change. These consultations are open until 29 July. The ISSB has also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Global Reporting Initiative whose sustainability reporting standards are widely used by corporates around the globe. This collaboration is to be welcomed and commits the two organisations to seeking to coordinate work programmes and standard-setting activities.

Not far behind and certainly much more comprehensive in their scope at this stage than those of the ISSB, came the suite of proposed reporting standards issued by the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) to support the disclosure requirements to be established in the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). These proposed standards are out for comment until 8 August. The CSRD was recently provisionally agreed by the Council and European Parliament.

The importance of having the right sustainability disclosure standards cannot be underestimated as we seek to restrict global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

We are already witnessing signs of the increase in extreme environmental events both in the UK and globally from flooding in coastal towns to the recent wildfires in California and Australia. These events devastate lives and have significant financial implications.

If each one of us acts now, maybe we can fulfil the vision that accountants really can help save the world.

FOR MORE INSIGHTS VISIT WWW.ICAS.COM

10

NEWS

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITYAM.COM

Happy as a clam: Shell hikes value of fossil fuel assets as refining soars NICHOLAS EARL SHELL announced yesterday it will reverse up to $4.5bn (£3.7bn) a in write-downs taken on the value of its oil and gas assets after raising its energy prices outlook following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and subsequent disruption to fossil fuel trading across the world.

In an update ahead of its second quarter results on July 28, the energy giant revealed its refining margins almost tripled over the three-month

period. Margins had risen to $28.04 a barrel from $10.23 in the first three months of the year, and $4.17 a year earlier.

This would hike earnings by between $800m and $1.2bn, the oil major said.

Shell has been boosted this year by recovering global demand from the pandemic, a lack of refining capacity and lower fuel exports from Russia.

Meanwhile, earnings from oil and refined products trading were expected to be strong this quarter but

lower than the first quarter of 2022.

Earlier this year, Shell posted a record quarterly profit of over $9bn in the first quarter, with energy giants revelling in rising oil and gas prices.

This prompted the UK government to bring in a 25 per cent further tax on North Sea oil and gas operators, with the aim of raising £5bn to partially fund a £15bn support package for households.

Shell shares were up three per cent yesterday at close of play on the London Stock Exchange.

Shell raised the value of oil and gas assets amid a spike in refining margins

Industry toasts record auction for renewables NICHOLAS EARL RECORD levels of clean energy have been secured through the government’s largest ever funding round for its renewables auction scheme, attracting £17.8bn in investment.

The fourth allocation round for the Contracts For Difference (CfD) scheme delivered almost 11 gigawatts of renewables yesterday, almost double the capacity achieved in the previous round — enough to power 12m UK homes.

This includes seven gigawatts of capacity from new offshore wind projects, which will increase the country’s overall capacity built and under construction by around 35 per cent.

Earlier this year, Downing Street unveiled its plan for supply security, pledging a significant ramp-up in offshore wind, solar, tidal stream and hydrogen power.

Supply security has become an increasingly important factor after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, amid concerns of gas shortages this winter if the Kremlin halts flows into Europe.

CfDs aim to give certainty to project developers to invest in new renewable energy infrastructure by protecting them from volatile wholesale prices.

A unique benefit of the CfD scheme is that when wholesale electricity prices are high, like they have been in recent months, generators pay money back into the scheme to reduce the net costs of the scheme to consumers.

The competitive nature of the scheme has continued to place downward pressure on prices — the per unit (MWh) price of offshore wind secured in this round is almost 70 per cent less than that secured in the first allocation round, in 2015.

RenewableUK’s deputy chief executive Melanie Onn said: “The recordbreaking auction results show that there is a way to replace unaffordable gas with low-cost clean power generated by a wide range of renewable technologies led by wind, both offshore and onshore.”

Following the latest funding round, the price of new offshore wind power fell to new record lows of £37.35 per megawatt hour of electricity yesterday, the latest government auction for renewable contracts shows.

The offshore wind prices are set for contracted projects, which will begin generating in financial year 2026/27 — reflecting attractive market conditions for the sector.

Local suppliers key to boosting UK efficiency EXCLUSIVE

NICHOLAS EARL

The watchdog launched the inquiry last week at the request of Kwasi Kwarteng

CMA to release fuel market report amid forecourt profiteering claims ILARIA GRASSO MACOLA THE COMPETITION and Markets Authority (CMA) will publish its much anticipated review on the fuel market today at 9am.

Launched on 11 June at the request of business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, the inquiry is set to decide whether the 5p fuel duty cut announced in March by former Chancellor Rishi Sunak has been being passed on to consumers.

Over the last few weeks, motoring groups such as the RAC and the AA

have accused forecourt retailers of profiteering, as pump prices continued climbing in June despite a slump in wholesale costs. Distributors hit back at detractors, arguing they were currently operating at a loss because of the volatile oil markets.

Figures from the RAC Fuel Watch revealed that the average cost of a litre of petrol jumped by 16.6p in a month, smashing previous records.

Against the backdrop of a cost of living crisis, the surge in fuel prices led to nation-wide protests earlier this week.

THE GOVERNMENT should promote the development of local energy suppliers and generation sites to boost the efficiency of the country’s energy network and ensure consumption demands can be met over the coming years, the boss of one of the UK’s leading energy funds has argued.

Jonathan Maxwell, chief executive and co-founding member of Sustainable Development Capital LLP (SDCL), has described the UK’s centralised energy system as “pretty inefficient”.

He told City A.M. reducing transmission distances was a key part of enhancing efficiency, with around 10 per cent of energy wasted during the distribution process.

Maxwell called for on-site local suppliers to be “much higher up the agenda” with the government’s energy policy.

He said: “One of the things they can do is promote decentralised energy. This means generating energy much closer to where it’s needed. If you’re generating using thermal generation or even using natural gas, then it’s a much more efficient way of supplying energy.”

SDCL is the investment manager and oversees the SDCL Energy Efficiency Income Trust (SEEIT) – valued at £913m — which invests in energy efficiency opportunities.

Gas prices surge as West races to top up supplies ahead of winter months NICHOLAS EARL

Gas prices have spiked amid continued concerns over supply shortages

GAS PRICES spiked yesterday amid continued concerns over supply shortages, as the West scrambles to secure energy supplies ahead of the winter.

UK natural gas prices soared 13 per cent yesterday afternoon, while the Dutch TTF Futures benchmark was

up five per cent.

Russia has retaliated to Western sanctions on its energy supplies in recent weeks, following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

It has already cut off gas flows into multiple European countries which refused to comply with demands for contracts to be paid in roubles, which were signed into law by Russian

President Vladimir Putin.

While the country has committed to serving global markets, there are concerns it could cut off flows beyond the scheduled maintenance for the Nord Stream 1 pipeline between 11-21 July.

There were recordings of sixty per cent reductions in flows on the pipeline last month.

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITYAM.COM

UK investors call for creation of crypto taskforce CHARLIE CONCHIE

“At the heart of the vision for Investment Fund 3.0 will likely be the increasing adoption of tokenisation, which will ultimately reduce costs for consumers and improve efficiency in the delivery of funds, through quicker settlement and improved transparency of transactions,” the IA said in a statement.

“Tokenisation may also broaden the assets held within a fund by increasing access to private markets and illiquid assets.”

The report has also proposed the creation of regulated routes for cryptocurrencies and digital asset exposure for investment managers, and an assessment of the eligibility of cryptoassets among some portfolios.

IA boss Chris Cummings said modernisation was essential, and the industry, regulator and policy makers needed to “drive forward innovation without delay”.

THE UK’s top investment body yesterday called on government and regulators to harness the benefit of cryptocurrencies and decentralised finance as it claimed the industry was on the cusp of a “major technological transformation”.

In a new “Investing for the Future” report, the Investment Association (IA) outlined a vision for “Investment Fund 3.0” which it said would be built on “technological innovation” and a “forward-looking regulatory framework”.

The IA is now pushing ministers and the Financial Conduct Authority to create a taskforce to harness the benefits of decentralised finance — a financial ecosystem based on blockchain technology — and to establish regulation for tokenised funds to operate in the UK.

NEWS

L&G reports ‘double digit’ cash growth CHARLIE CONCHIE

Stuart Kirk was put on paid leave by HSBC in May after a controversial speech

HSBC responsible investment chief resigns over climate furore CHARLIE CONCHIE

speech, attacked the “group-think” and “sloppy logic” of sustainable finance in a Linkedin post yesterday, and said HSBC’s behaviour towards him had made his position “unsustainable”.

Kirk said he would continue to “prod with a sharp stick” the “mainstream bubble” of sustainable finance and planned to launch a “new asset class”.

THE GLOBAL head of responsible investing at HSBC Asset Management revealed he had resigned yesterday after sparking a furore in May with a speech that played down the risk of climate change and slammed “shrill, partisan” climate warnings.

Stuart Kirk, who was put on paid leave by HSBC in May after the

MORTGAGE and pension giant Legal & General said yesterday it has seen “double digit” growth in cash and capital generation for the first half of the year after a strong performance across its divisions.

The FTSE-100 firm doubled down on its guidance for the full year and said it was on track to post £1.8bn of capital generation for the year.

Group chief Sir Nigel Wilson said in a statement it had been a strong year so far.

“Our year-to-date operating performance is in line with expectations, with cash and capital generation running slightly ahead of our five-year ambition and ROE at circa 20 per cent,” he said.

“This reflects the strong execution of our stated strategy – which is closely aligned to long-term structural growth drivers such as ageing demographics, investing in the real economy, and addressing climate change – both in the UK and, more recently, in the US.” Wilson said the group’s exposure to inflation was “minimal” and its balance sheet remained “strong”.

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– WHERE TO ISAS UNWRAPPEDTHIS TAX YEAR PUT YOUR MONEY Money languishing in savings accounts can be put to better use this ISA season, as Suzie Neuwirth reports

CITYAM.COM

SIX NATIONS

PER

NEWSPA BUSINESS LONDON’S

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IES RIVALRON LLY HEERE X NATI LLSOUT IT’S FINA AS TH SI PU ED W GE NE PA RE FOR 2022 8RETURNS

THURSDAY 3 FEBRUARY

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at a 30ITH UK inflation surging year high due to supply energy costs and for inchain issues, the casesaving, vesting, rather than been greater. your money has never are still hovering Interest rates low, meaning that around an all-timesavings account or a money held in eroded in cash ISA will be significantly real terms.

ISA season, people As we head into their tax-free aluse to still looking to 5 April will need lowance before of inflation eroding weigh up the risk the risk of investtheir savings versusasset classes such as ing their money in peer-to-peer loans. or stocks and shares tax year, the For the current 2021/22 ISA can save in an inmaximum you not pay tax on any is £20,000. You do gains accrued within terest or capital an ISA wrapper. are exempt from payThis means you in on tax, which kicks ing capital gains than £12,300 from any profit of more an investment. into an ISA by You must put moneyfor it to count toyear the end of the tax allowance. Any unwards this year’s not roll over into used allowance doesuse it or lose it! so the next tax year, of opportunities on With a plethora can be overwhelmoffer, the ISA market the best places ing, so we have analysedmoney. to put your hard-earned

PLUS: YOUR GUIDE TO THE FIXTURES AND LOOKING BACK ON LAST YEAR’S THRILLER

‘ENGLAND CAN DO THE GRAND SLAM’

of the fund as the “You should think in April, investment and indiwill hit six per cent main course of your plates – slightly more better, inflation that investors should be looking fence waiting for vidual shares as side more to sitting on the be the time to lock in meaning above six per cent to avoid risky, but you may consider them The Bank of England of 0.1 per cent to Society, according might for returns low Historic stock mar- fun and interesting to follow.

Coventry Building from Moneyfacts. but now from an historic a rate.” eroding their savings.

December, and raised sure you first have that this can be data as of 25 Januarymost average rates that best 0.25 per cent last “You should make this year to 0.5 ket performance suggests is riskand then buy “Last year, we saw across the savings it again on 3 February although no investment EQUITIES core plate of investmentsthe edge.” around go to record lowsout of the ISA wrap- EYEING UP losing savers money in achieved, per cent. individual shares ISAs or in comparison to that you’ll usually people in a free. example, if you invested in an back With cash However, this pales 30-year high of 5.4 market, within It’s worth noting slowly climbing fi- real terms, it is advisable for “For fees with a the perper, but they are position to coninflation, which hit fund that tracks to pay a few different 2021 and is presays Rachel Springall, comfortable financial ISAs, which give index tracker stock market, on a his- have s ISAs. Th per cent in Decemberthan six per cent up again,” at Moneyfacts. the in- formance of sider stocks and shares nance expert dicted to rise to more2022. steady process them a good chance of outperforming of “It is a slow and rise in during the course left languishing though. There was a base rate in Therefore, any money decrease in value in cash ISAs will

KING CASH IS NO LONGER lifted the base rate

UNBEATABLE LINE-UP OF STAR COLUMNISTS: GAVIN HASTINGS ROB HENDERSON MIKE PHILLIPS BENJAMIN KAYSER MARCO BORTOLAMI

WEDNESDAY 9 FEBRUARY 2022

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THE HAWKASRGE ARE IN CH

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MAKO VUNIPOLA EXCLUSIVE:

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ISSUE 3,67

first a calendar marking the four times in borrowing costs– that’s the consensus since 2004 economists. this year England will since year st of City A.M.’s poll of r rate setter THE BANK of fastest rate hike cycle in foreca nce, a forme on the Andrew Senta adviser to Cambridge embark on to tame rampant inflati ts “three 2004 in a bid g at its meeting of rate and now senior s, said he expecafter today’s exclusive City the UK – startin Econometric this year” – reveals an rises today rate s r per cent by setter furthe rates to 1.25 top economists. hike in 18 A.M. poll of meeting, taking o-back rate and will year.

The first back-t the end of theanalysts agree with certainty today Capital Several top years is a near s intent to rapidly shift an Sachs andfour rate g in signal the Bank’ rting the British Sentance. Goldm suppo are both pricin to policy from Economics hout 2022. the pandemic h throug throug economy inflation. set to hikes stamping out, Threadneedle Street is After today

LOUIS GOSS

pay more be forced to in KPMG could damages for its rolegiant in n than £1bn sed constructio auditing collap ed a Carillion. firm has receiv ver The Big Four the Official Recei from legal claim

t officer governmen ion’s (OR) – a UK for managing Carill pays responsible – requesting the firm News’ liquidation excess of £1bn, Sky damages inman reported late last Mark Klein night. driven by the being is The claim duty to Carillion’s tory OR’s statu

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Climate noise blocking out real solutions

Households face hike in energy bills

nsible for been respo KPMG had ion’s accounts for ng itself auditing Carill decades, earni almost two for its audit work. sions £29m in fees increased the provi of the KPMG has to respond to all up it has saved ntly faces, from £92m curre it s rstands. claim City A.M. unde to £144m,

ZOOM? P8

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yout claim billion-pound pa ound KPMG with ar s ng ha e ps lla Carillion co

LONDON’S

THROUGH THE DRINKING GLASS THE LATEST FROM OUR WINE GURU P22 GOING GREEN

MICHIEL WILLEMS

EARL NICHOLAS its latest announce OFGEM will consumer price the ns of update to with millio cap today, bracing for a s household hike in energ y painful price g. bills this sprin sts at Cornwall Energ y analy ed the cap, warn Insight have what suppliers can s, could which limits default tariff charge for st £2,000 per year. y rise to almo Brearley, the energ ously Jonathan chief, previ watchdog’s mechanism the suggested t soaring should reflec . costs wholesale St is expected to Downing scheme loan £6bn a £200 roll out a providing ehold to this week, every hous rising rebate for blow from soften the prices. ve taxpayers This will involrwriting loans unde effectively liers. supp to for Economic The InstituteMayer told City Affairs’ Andy plans will only A.M. that the al relief for provide partiand will come “at four per cent s at or above household of higher bills for will “remain end of 2022,” around se five years the expen Institute of through to the s inflation target. be three to , p, from the will Bank’ what may is repaid.”

Julian Jesso , is betting the Bank double the pricing in a rate rise today Policy . In as the loan unclear whether t out before s Markets are Economic Affairs y at one Monetary been caugh and histor the It is also ng this year defy recent but they have Bank defied expectation s will fall in (MPC) meeti the energ y price with the energ y Committee points, .

November, unchanged, triggering s to e, be percentage near futur warning the cap lift rates 0.5 abrupt hawkish tilt will comparison and left rates markets and trade body The Bank’s dampening my in October. volatility in nor Mark Carney’s prioritising rise again suppliers to end.’

Gover r could boyfri driven by it rises across the econo forme for an ‘unreliable to The inability rampant price nding to the pandemic. reputation as st rate and inflation Rishi esale costs whol has respo A.M. on intere of r ellor d cap, City pass by A highe instea e Chanc , due to the mists polled t may agitat ates a one customers s going bust.

Most econo will peak at between 6.5 is environmen on and Treasury estimin both would led to dozen think inflati seven per cent in April Sunak. The se es. point increa per cent and anytime soon. percentage blow to the public financ unlikely to cool, developed markets deal a £23bn James Smith said the cost of living ING, at economist

of the recovery to maximise creditors, any losses. Court put the OR in ion in The High ating Carill collapse the charge of liquid following building nd January 2018, -billion-pou go of the multiwhich saw the firm , contractor worth £7bn. with debt bankrupt

THE ULTIMATE SAVINGS GUIDE ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR ISA P19-21

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ED BY ISTS POLLAS ECONOMAR – AT LE T E TODAY AS SET TO HIK RE TO COME THIS YE S ER TT SE BANK RATE. PREDICT THREE MO in 2022, CITY A.M r three times raised lift rates a furthe time the Bank has

ETT JACK BARN

LONDON’S BUSINESS NEWSPAPER

ISSUE 3,677

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d to will be force The auditorclaim today, at which the will be recognise ls of the case the court point the detai c through made publi firm system. rstands the the OR’s st City A.M. unde d itself again comment. defen to to ed plans firm declin claim. The

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PREV P22 OLYMPICS 21 LIFESTYLE OPINION P20-

ARM WRESTLE

BRIT CHIP FIRM TO COME UNDER POLITICAL PRESSURE TO LIST IN LONDON NOT NEW YORK AFTER REGULATORY HURDLES END NVIDIA TAKEOVER PLAN CHARLIE CONCHIE BRITISH chipmaker Arm is set to be the subject of a charm offensive to encourage it to list in London rather than New York.

Arm’s Japanese owner Softbank said yesterday it was making preparations to float the Cambridge-based chipmaker after a $40bn (£29.5bn) takeover bid from US giant Nvidia collapsed amid regulatory pressures.

Softbank said it was eyeing up New

York as the favoured destination, but political insiders have indicated the government is keen to see the firm go public in London.

A Whitehall source said “it shouldn't be a surprise that ministers would like a British success story like Arm to float in London”, while a Treasury spokesperson said it would push ahead with reforms to listing rules to make the capital more attractive to major firms.

Arm’s local MP said it was “vital” the

firm listed in the capital. Politicians are reportedly also wooing other soon-tofloat global firms.

News of the float came after a bumper takeover bid from US giant Nvidia was finally kiboshed, with a combination of competition watchdog interest and national security concerns too much of a hurdle to overcome.

Softbank pushed through a management shakeup at Arm yesterday, with president of the firm’s IP products

division Rene Haas taking over as chief executive from Arm-veteran Simon Segar.

Softbank boss Masayoshi Son said: “Rene is the right leader to accelerate Arm’s growth as the company starts making preparations to re-enter the public markets.”

Son added that Softbank was aiming to take Arm public before the end of the financial year in March 2023.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

INSIDE

North Sea gas impact.

The Labour Party have been pushing for a one-off levy on energy firms amid spiking household costs.

But Looney said “the UK needs more gas, not less gas, right now. That’s going to require more investment, not less investment.”

Calls for a tax raid have increased in

BP reported a £9.5bn profit yesterday, its best annual result since 2013

2022

ISSUE 3,67

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A PROMINENT former Greenpeace activist and now Stanford University fellow has said “panic” over climate change is blocking debate over the move to a greener future.

Danish campaigner Bjorn Lomborg writes in City A.M. today that “fifty years of panic clearly haven’t solved climate change” and that a smarter approach which “focuses on realistic solutions such as adaptation and innovation” is needed.

Lomborg’s warning comes the week after McKinsey calculated the cost of moving to net zero by 2050 across the world at a cool $9 trillion a year.

The head of the Copenhagen Consensus think-tank called for solutions that emphasise JACK BARN ETT the funding of green energy projects rather than to the gover ECONOMIC politicians “showering growth is the end of nment’s spending spending vital if is bill by the decad subsidies over expensive vanity e. able” levels not to reach “uns state O’Connell The repor ustainprojects.” , experts warn said state scale ing pledg t comes as a raft of A report from ed today. es spend- was envisioned by spending at the The City has become a hub the think budgets haveset out at the last tion Foun the tank Resol datio of green finance in recent two the “unsustainable” and new report vealed a persi n published today u- the state on already put the economy said growing size of years. A global ranking by and the enormstently higher NHS re- level since course to reach its Pursuing was crucial. largest the analysts at Z/Yen put the bill ous cost of tained econa strategy of achieving ing to net The plann 1970s. trans capital at the top of the global omic grow ed 1.25 perce susenue the Britis zero will swell the ition- national hike, th to ntage for the h size tree for the first time in 2021.

Treasury raise revtions in the state to historic prop of and dividend on top of corpo point desirable than is more ration nanc The UK government is coming years tax balan orhikes cing the publi ing of incom The cost of and increasingly under fire for c caring for . e tax thres the freez- perts es through further raise the ing population tax hikes, fiBritain’s agesaid. holds, will tax failing to lay out the costs of burd exwill primarily en to the level since ramping up “Avoiding heaviest drive the the transition to ‘net zero’ and relative a period of weak grow to the tune in government spend a John O’Co 1950s. amid ongoing rows about the of nnell, chief economic th cial,” of this decad £76bn a year by the ing the Taxpayers decli price of energy and the rollout state e, taking the end that ’ Alliance, executive of addinthe Resolution Foun ne is crutold “ministers dation said, g that a to the size of electric vehicle facilities. protracted must refus City A.M. sluggishne before the same level as Germof the argument e the perio ss Covid-19 crisis that spen any’s reine ding cann tired has wiped after the financial d of Ramping . d in. £200bn LOMBORG: PAGE 12 ot be ernm crisis zero targe up funding to reach “Instead, they ent’s spend a year off the govts will add should go ing war chest £14bn each net by backing Dan Toml for grow . inson year taxes business and cutti th Foundation said of the Resolution .” ng insur the coming natio ance nal compared increase was “sma to tax hikes ll to come. fry”

They lost billions in 2020, when the pandemic caused prices to plunge.

They regained some of this in 2021-22, CHARLIE CONC when economic activity restarted.”

HIE Michael Hewson, chief market TECH leade analyst at CMC Markets, described the governme rs have called on the nt calls for a tax as “predictable”. listings rulesto shake up UK British chipmafter the owner RESULTS AND ANALYSIS: PAGE 5 of aker Arm eyeing up said it was for one of a New York floatation Brita in’s most companies exciting .

GOCARDLESS GOES UNICORN P3 GREGGS LAUNCHES FASHION RANGE P7 RENTS REACH RECORD HIGHS P8 BRITS FLOCK BACK TO THE OFFICE P10 WINTER OLYMPICS P27

ECONOMISTS and BP’s boss rejected calls yesterday for a windfall tax on energy firms after the energy giant announced healthy profits.

The British firm’s chief Bernard Looney said it would be misguided to limit its ability to invest and reduce

BUSINESS NE

WSPAPER COOL RUN GEAR FONRINGS ALL THE AN OVERDU MOUNTAIN BREAK P2 E 0

STATE SET TO BLOAT BY £76BN THURSDAY 10 FEBRUARY

Windfall tax plans rubbished by economists after oil giant’s losses last year Lo ndon must NICHOLAS EARL

11

the week since Shell also revealed chunky profits.

BP lost £4.2bn in 2020 amidst a collapse in global demand for oil, similarly to most oil majors.

Speaking to City A.M., Andy Mayer from the Institute of Economic Affairs said: “Fossil fuel energy companies have not enjoyed ‘windfall’ profits.

INSIDE LV= AND ROYA

FREE SCRUM DO enjoy sizab WN New Zealand se t to le private eq uity boost

MATT HARD Y result in a stake PRIVATE equity smaller than firm Silver 15 per cent to acquire a the antici stake of aroun Lake is set Lake and NZR pated when Silver cent in intern ational rugbyd five per of last year. held talks in January All Blacks which outfit could see the the The initial deal commercial was said to arm of the rugby been valued valued at £1.5b have team at around £1.5b time and came n at the The deal with n. a year New after acqui Zeala Silver Lake (NZR) would red a stake in City Footb give the Amernd Rugby Group – who minority share all ican firm champions own Premier League be a new commholding in what woulda Manc ercial holdin The deal was hester City. company. g originally the of a player rebell subje According to ion, but if finalis ct would repre Kleinman, the Sky News’ Mark ed sent transaction biggest – privat the latest – and would rugby union e equity move into .

become tech flo at capital as Arm plans to

Arm’s Japan said on Tues ese owner Softb ank day it was take the chipm looking Nasdaq exch aker public on to bid by Ame ange after a takeothe collapsed rican rival Nvidia ver .

Russ Shaw London Advo, founder of Tech cates, told the move showed “ther City A.M. e is a lot

L LONDON MAR

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S P3 CO-OP

more work to be done that needs tech firm ” to tempt s in the capitinto listing al.

“If we could get Arm to list that woul in the UK d significan be a very t said. “But win,” he this is

BOSS TAKES

ic e o during therise o more an six per Therefore,course of 20 cen any money in cash left ISAs will decrease languishing in value in

WEDNESDAY

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12

NEWS

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITYAM.COM

Talon Outdoor bags cash injection from Equistone for dealmaking push CHARLIE CONCHIE OUT-OF-HOME advertising agency Talon Outdoor yesterday revealed it has secured backing from private equity outfit Equistone as it prepared to accelerate its investment into technology and kick off a dealmaking push.

London-based Talon, which offers technology-led advertising to firms, said the cash injection from Equistone would be channelled into further M&A and investment in new

territories.

The firms declined to disclose the value of the deal but it is understood to be north of €200m (£169m), with Equistone snapping up the stake from previous backer Mayfair Equity Partners which has now exited.

Talon boss Barry Cupples said the firm was now poised for growth with the fresh capital.

“We are particularly excited for the opportunities the new Equistone partnership will create for Talon’s clients across the globe,” he added.

The deal extends Equistone’s track record of investing in marketing services firms, having previously backed global marketing agency Adm Group last October and selling its majority stake in global marketing technology and services provider Inspired Thinking Group to Bridgepoint in March.

Paul Harper, partner at Equistone, said the firm had been “hugely impressed” by Talon and would help spur its growth as the market evolves in the years ahead.

Talon offers technology-led advertising to its clients

EU’s grand push for digital laws puts UK behind LEAH MONTEBELLO THE EUROPEAN Parliament gave the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Digital Markets Act (DMA) the final green light this week, setting out key obligations on Big Tech.

The two pieces of regulation received an overwhelming majority during the plenary vote in the European Parliament (EP) this week, marking a strong consensus towards bringing higher digital standards in the bloc.

The tsunami of changes will enforce competition rules and greater accountability on tech giants via the DMA, while the DSA will focus on consumer protection and transparency, imposing governance rules about illegal goods, services and content online. These rules will apply to both big and small firms.

In a statement, the EP said: “The DMA sets obligations for large online platforms acting as ‘gatekeepers’ (platforms whose dominant online position make them hard for consumers to avoid) on the digital market to ensure a fairer business environment and more services for consumers.”

Commenting on the DMA in particu-

lar, counsel at Linklaters William Leslie said that the rules about providing third parties with access to specified elements of gatekeepers’ hardware and software were some of the “most far reaching obligations” pushed forward by Brussels.

Although he said the UK’s proposed powers for its own Digital Markets Unit were intended to be “inherently more flexible” than the European equivalent, Leslie told City A.M. that the UK’s regime was still in gestation, but was likely to impose similar obligations on the largest digital platforms, like Google and Meta.

As it stands, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority have only established the Digital Markets Unit on a non-statutory basis, with some calling for a greater focus to be given to the dedicated unit.

Paul Stone, senior counsel at Charles Russell Speechlys, told City A.M. that as a result of this slow action, the EU had “stolen a march on the UK” with the legislative push.

“Although the UK was originally ahead with its own proposals for regulating big tech, delays to the UK’s Digital Markets Bill mean that the UK will now be playing catch up,” he said.

Online betting slows for Entain after lockdowns LEAH MONTEBELLO

MP Chris Philp suggested the focus of the review would be online betting

No 10 turmoil spells even more delays for gambling white paper LEAH MONTEBELLO THE UPCOMING gambling white paper appears to be put on hold once again, as Boris Johnson’s resignation dominates the political agenda and DCMS minister for tech and digital minister Chris Philp steps down.

In Philp’s resignation letter yesterday, he said that the Gambling Review is currently “with No 10 at the moment for final approval”, adding that it currently contains “strong measures to protect people from the ravages of gambling addiction”.

He called on the government to deliver the proposed changes “in full and undiluted”.

Nonetheless, DCMS under-secretary Nigel Huddleston pushed back against suggestions of delays and said that the review of the Gambling Act 2005 would still drop “in the coming weeks”.

The white paper was initially expected in the spring, but has been delayed on multiple occasions.

Reform could lead to affordability checks on players, as well as price limits on bets.

SHARES in Ladbrokes owner Entain dipped by almost four per cent yesterday after the gambling titan revealed it had struggled to recapture lockdown momentum.

Online net gaming revenue dipped seven per cent in the first half of the year as a weaker macroeconomic environment reduced customers’ rate of spend and fell short of previous expectations.

The closure of the Netherlands ahead of licensing further sliced into Entain’s results and the prospect of tighter affordability measures in the UK continues to cause anxiety in the betting and gambling sphere.

However, group net gaming revenue was up 18 per cent in the first half of the year, with retail figures ahead of expectations for Entain, which also owns the likes of Coral and Foxy Bingo.

Commenting on the results, Jette Nygaard-Andersen, Entain’s CEO, said: “The macro-economic outlook is uncertain, however the underlying performance of our business remains strong.”

Entain is set to complete its acquisition of Betcity in the second half of the year, while its stateside venture BetMGM has established a number two operator position in the US, nabbing a 24 per cent market share, just behind its rival Flutter’s Fanduel.

UK hiring boom slows as economic outlook scuppers recruitment plans LOUIS GOSS

KPMG said employers were facing a lack of candidates and economic uncertainty

THE UK’s hiring boom is showing signs of coming to an end, according to new research from KPMG, which shows the number of new hires grew at its slowest rate in 16 months in June, due to a lack of candidates and wider economic uncertainty.

The fast-paced growth in the

number of new hires has dropped off significantly over the past three months, plummeting to its lowest levels since March 2021.

The drop-off comes as companies have taken a more cautious approach to hiring in the face of the current economic climate, the survey of 400 UK recruitment firms showed.

UK employers also struggled to find

the right candidates to fill positions, as economic uncertainty saw potential new hires more reluctant to switch positions.

In turn, the lack of available candidates, compounded by a drop in foreign workers, saw pay continue to rise, as employers were forced to offer markedly higher salaries in order to attract new employees.

CITYAM.COM

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITY DASHBOARD LONDON REPORT

London traders ignore Johnson exit as banks send FTSE 100 higher

L

ONDON markets yesterday shrugged off Prime Minister Boris Johnson bowing to days of pressure and ministerial resignations and quitting office.

The capital’s premier index jumped 1.14 per cent to 7,189.08 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, climbed 1.51 per cent to 18,875.53 points.

Investors have been muted to the upheaval at Westminster over the past few days, with the City’s main indexes registering gains over the last two days.

The pound was boosted by Johnson’s exit, strengthening around 0.6 per cent to buy $1.2003.

Sterling has been on a downward spiral in the past few months, mainly caused by investors fretting over the UK tipping into recession and the US Federal Reserve rapidly hiking interest rates.

Yields on UK government debt bumped higher as investors mulled how a new Conservative leader will shape Britain’s economic policy. Yields and prices move inversely.

Financials led the FTSE 100 higher, with lenders leading the way as investors bet on the Bank of England having to hike interest rates quickly in response to the new Tory administration cutting taxes.

Natwest and Britain’s biggest lender HSBC both climbed more than 3.2 per cent.

Analysts have cautioned that lowering taxes may fuel inflation by bumping household spending, forcing the Bank to accelerate its rate hike cycle, which has boosted sentiment to banks.

FTSE 250-led energy firm Drax Group was among the biggest risers on the index yesterday, gaining over seven per cent.

MARKETS

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CENTAMIN P

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4 July

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Peel Hunt cut their target price for British floor coverings firm Headlam from 670p to 500p yesterday to reflect the lower comps and outlook for consumer spend. Despite this, brokers said the stock continues to look highly attractive thanks to its strategy delivery and £130m inventory. Shares offer a 6.3 per cent yield and Peel Hunt gave the company a Buy recommendation to investors.

HEADLAM 302 300 298 296 294 292 290 288 286

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Mining firm Centamin got a gold star buy rating from Peel Hunt brokers yesterday after it wooed the bank with its progress with the Sukari underground programme.

The new exploration programme could further increase optionality for the mill feel in the short-to-long term and Peel Hunt deemed this as a significant point of progress. Shares were up over five per cent and it nabbed a target price of 130p.

SHARES NOT JUST FOR CHRISTMAS

Shares should be treated as a (very) long-term investment and the role of short-term politics should not be overemphasised, as very few Prime Ministers have lasted for much more than one full term of office, at least since the inception of the FTSE AllShare in 1964.

RUSS MOULD, AJ BELL

CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS AMERICAN EXPRESS

American Express has appointed a new country manager and senior vice president to oversee international card services in the UK. Hannah Lewis, who was previously vice president and head of UK consumer products, marketing and brand, will lead an almost 6,000 strong workforce.

The American Express veteran, having been with the

payments giant for the past 14 years, succeeds Charlotte Duerden, who will join the newly created roles of executive vice president and chief international customer officer, after four years in the former position.

“Hannah has an exceptional track record at American Express, and will be instrumental in strengthening our current partnerships, expanding our horizons and leveraging the momentum that we’re currently experiencing,” said Duerden.

DOMINVS GROUP

London-based real estate investor and developer

Dominvs Group has poached the former chairman and CEO of CBRE’S advisory business for its board.

Martin Samworth joins the board as a non-executive director, as the group looks to expand its £2.4bn pipeline across residential, retail and hotels sectors with acquisitions, development and asset management.

Samworth is set to advise the group on strategy, operational efficiency and governance.

“Martin’s wealth of experience in the global investment and development market and his knowledge across a range of asset classes will be invaluable,” principal Preet Ahluwalia said.

DELOITTE LEGAL

Deloitte Legal has hired an ex-HSBC financial services specialist into its finserv team, who will focus on regulatory technology law.

Clare Jenkinson is set to bring over 15 years’ worth of banking and financial services experience to the position at Deloitte Legal, having previously held roles with both Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Travers Smith.

“Clare brings with her extensive law firm and in-house experience and a deep knowledge of digital developments,” partner and head of financial regulation, Jake Ghanty, said.

To appear in CITYMOVES please email your career updates and pictures to citymoves@cityam.com

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14

OPINION

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITYAM.COM

OPINION EDITED BY SASCHA O’SULLIVAN

The next Tory leader must either open his Red Box or win over the Red Wall Steve Hawkes

S

IX YEARS AGO on the eve of the Brexit Referendum vote, I was given the job of following Boris Johnson around the Yorkshire town of Selby.

He landed at a former WWII airfield joking that the helicopter pilot should have put on “Ride of the Valkyries” – (think Apocalypse Now) - as he came into land.

Striding towards the town centre on a whirlwind day of campaigning, he was mobbed. People of all ages rushed out to meet him, take a photo or simply be seen near him. “Where are these Remain voters the polls keep telling us about?” he boomed.

Just a week later, Dominic Raab would call it the “Heineken Effect”.

The Vote Leave champion could reach parts of the country other Tories couldn’t get anywhere near, he wrote, explaining why Boris should be PM after David Cameron quit.

Unfortunately, the piece was published just hours after Raab had, overnight, switched sides to back Michael Gove. Bitter Tory infighting is far from new. Despite Boris Johnson’s many and obvious flaws, the point about his reach still stands. And it’s one that the Conservative Party needs to think about as it embarks – yet again – on a search for a new leader.

In this social media age our society

Boris Johnson, back in 2016, was able to inspire an almost celebrity-style fanbase has created, who is going to be able to galvanise voters in every corner of the country in a way that Boris Johnson once could? And if not, who will come anywhere close?

In the absence of a “populist”, Tory MPs and grassroots members alike need to work out if they opt for a “Better Manager” – someone who actually reads documents in their ministerial Red Box and remembers if they’ve thrown a party – or instead go for someone who comes closest to Boris in appealing to both the Red Wall and the Home Counties.

The problem is having to do so in the teeth of the worst economic crisis since the 1970s, as well as having to

deal with the aftershocks of the very Brexit vote Boris was in Selby to promote in 2016.

In his valedictory resignation speech, the PM once more boasted he had got

The Tories need decide if they want a Better Manager or an appeal to the Red Wall

“Brexit done”, but it’s hardly begun. Indeed, the government is now trying to delete the Northern Ireland Protocol it signed up to and Leave voters would be hard pressed to think of any tangible benefits. Crown Stamps on pint glasses ain’t gonna cut it.

More confusing for Tory leadership contenders are the polls, which have begun to suggest Leave voters are becoming frustrated with the Conservative Party they backed to lead Britain to its “independent future”.

A recent YouGov poll suggested that just 49 per cent of Leave voters would have backed Johnson as PM. While they’re unlikely to switch to Labour en masse, they could sit in

In memoriam: Gove started to crack open a housing crisis paralysed by indecision

A

MID the utter chaos of the last 72 hours - from the torrent of ministerial resignations to Boris Johnson’s own painful almost-exit - there was someone who was ushered out of Cabinet Michael Gove.

A long-time frenemy of the prime minister, Gove had been appointed Secretary of State for Housing - soon after renamed the Levelling up Department - last September. Known to be one of the most effective and competent people in policy, he was handed the key to what, we were told, was the government’s number one priority: levelling up the country.

As we now know, this meant everything and nothing. The White Paper supposed to flesh out its aims was packed full of classical references, a reverence for Renaissance Florence and little else. But at the top of his in-tray was a national housing crisis. On the list, appalling social housing conditions, coupled with a shortfall of affordable housing stock and an unfaltering

Elena Siniscalco

cladding crisis. It wasn’t an easy job.

Yet, in a rare spectacle of political ability, he fared well. On social housing, he made progress by listening to those who were affected by leaks, mould and insects in what should have been safe and warm affordable homes. Although this sounds like the simple nitty-gritty, even just admitting something had to change meant improvement compared to his predecessors.

Gove was committed to getting more funding for social housing, changing current regulations with the aim of improving standards of living, and ensuring housing associations took re-

sponsibility for their services.

Social housing activist Kwajo Tweneboa, who has been a prominent voice exposing the conditions of some housing providers, said the sacking of Gove from that role was “another blow to the housing crisis”.

Gove also managed to find some headway, albeit not enough, in the cladding crisis which has paralysed the industry since a fire ripped through Grenfell Tower in 2017. He fought a tireless battle with developers to make them share the burden of replacing cladding on their buildings, when before the financial pain was thrust on leaseholders. The deal struck is unlikely to cover all the cladding remediations for the buildings affected which could be more than 10,000. Fixing them all is expected to cost more than the £2bn agreed. But it is still a momentous win for leaseholders.

In the last few decades, we’ve had a spattering of housing secretaries, with few lasting more than a year.

Gove, at nine months, won plaudits

from industry voices not normally enamoured with Westminster.

“Arguably Gove has made more progress than all of them put together”, said Mary Anne Bowring, group managing director at property consultant Ringley Group.

Cladding campaigners have been head-to-head with Gove, asking for more detailed policies or more sweeping reforms. But even they, at the news of his exit from Cabinet, were left in despair. Campaign group End our Cladding Scandal called for Gove to be reappointed, recognising his solution to the cladding crisis was “by no means ideal” but praising his “determination to materially improve what was on the table”. When the people whose entire aim is to hold you to account want you back, it probably means as a politician you’re doing a decent job.

Ultimately, Gove’s departure from government is yet another loss for those who should be at the heart of politics - the people.

their hands in a General Election – allowing Labour a much better chance of recreating the type of result we saw at the Wakefield by-election.

Fortunately for the Tories, Labour is having kittens about its own leader – who could still, remember, be forced to resign in a matter of days if Durham Constabulary fines him for his now infamous beer and curry night.

Sir Keir Starmer really should have Labour 20 points ahead of a Tory party drowning in historic levels of sleaze and incompetence. But no one really knows what he stands for.

On top of that, “Kingmaker” Peter Mandelson has notably shifted in recent weeks – panning Sir Keir’s lack of ideas and deciding, by all accounts, that Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting is a better choice as the next big thing.

Then you have the ever-present Andy Burnham. The Greater Manchester Mayor chose this of all weeks to opine about future Labour policy in the Guardian. Stella Creasy has been at it too – courting the pro-EU vote.

Labour has had its very own celebrity leader in the past - Tony Blair. Looking back at the 1997 Election his broad appeal saw ‘New Labour’ take Tory citadels across the nation, from Romford and Finchley to Swindon and, er, Tamworth.

Would Sir Keir be able to do this?

Would he have the townspeople of Selby rushing out to greet him? One Labour source yesterday joked: “They’d probably run the other way.”

It’s all to play for. £ Steve Hawkes is head of strategic media at BCW and former business and deputy political editor at The Sun

NOT A SINGLE BRAVER MAN Suella Braverman, still Attorney General, announced on live radio her plan to run as the next Tory leader and PM. Boris Johnson had yet to agree to resign and Suella stays on as AG. Within hours, there was a @SuellaforPM Twitter and Desmond Swayne had backed her

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITYAM.COM

WE WANT TO HEAR YOUR VIEWS

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Facing up to the problem of AI [Re: UK should forbid facial recognition tech, report says, June 30] As a business that deploys biometrics to support remote identity verification, we are in full support of Matthew Ryder and the Ada Lovelace Institute’s independent review but with a caveat.

Clear legal frameworks offer certainty and consistency for industry and citizens, particularly where security, privacy and user trust are essential.

But when considering how to regulate technologies we must take account of the level of risk associated with different use cases. Live facial recognition by the

public sector is just one of many use cases. Such technology can also help us unlock our smartphones or enable us to open a digital bank account remotely.

The regulatory approach needs to be risk-based, proportionate, and not duplicate existing legislation. If we overlook different use cases, it can cause distrust in technology even where it is used for the public good - like in age verification or anti-money laundering checks.

We want to help ensure that the industry is engaging with any further work as a result of the Ryder Review, and to that end, we look forward to working with the Institute and contributing our deep expertise in biometrics on the next planned phase of work in this space.

Matthew Peake

WAY 2 GO Airports have been ‘woefully unprepared’ says budget carrier Jet 2

The blame game continued as the airline pointed the finger at airports for failing to prepare for the number of travellers who would make a dash out of the country. Executive chair Philip Meeson said it was ‘inexcusable’

EXPLAINER-IN-BRIEF: BEHIND THE SCENES OF A TORY LEADERSHIP RACE The Conservative party elections take place when a leader resigns or loses a vote of no confidence.

They work in two stages: in the first one, two main contenders are put forward; in the second one, party members vote and decide who’s going to be the new leader.

The rules - including how an MP gets nominated - are decided by the 1922 Committee, the parliamentary group of Conservative backbenchers.

They’re not publicly available; they’re announced right before the race starts.

St Magnus House, 3 Lower Thames Street, London, EC3R 6HD Tel: 020 3201 8900 Email: news@cityam.com

Nominations for the contest are sent to the committee chair, and the specifics of the process can be changed depending on the number of contestants and on time pressures.

It’s often the case that it's initially unclear who the two frontrunners will be, so MPs get to vote in several ballots. In 2019, there were 10 candidates after Theresa May’s resignation, including Michael Gove, Sajid Javid and Dominic Raab. Six rounds of balloting had to be held before Johnson’s victory against last contender Jeremy Hunt.

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OPINION

15

› E: opinion@cityam.com COMMENT AT: cityam.com/opinion

The cost of living crisis won’t wait - we need a caretaker PM who can deliver stability Lewis Iwu

S

O THE farce is over. The term has rarely been more apt after the Education Secretary, one of three in that post this week, resigned in protest of the prime minister who had appointed her a little over 36 hours prior.

Indeed, the resignations were happening at such a swift pace, you would be hard pressed to find a sport where you could push the counter up so quickly.

Drama, then, aside, we must turn to the grave consequences of a poor transition at such a critical time for the country. The importance of the next few months makes Boris Johnson wholly unsuitable for an interim role.

We need someone to stabilise the country and set the next prime minister up for success. This is not a question of party politics, but one of economic imperative.

First, there needs to be an immediate tonal shift. One of Boris' failings was his lack of an alternative gear. Pugilis-

Boris’ reluctance to leave gracefully brought us perilously close to a constitutional crisis tic by nature, his style of communication and governance was entertaining for some, but it also raised the temperature on important national conversations. This trait seeped into his cabinet and their approach on big national conversations such as race, the role of the police, speech on university campuses, the future of our public broadcasters and school curriculums. The tone struck by the soon-to-be-former prime minister contributed to the venom injected into our public discourse. Any interim prime minister must use their platform to take the heat of the big policy debates, allowing the space for solutions to be discussed maturely and respectfully.

Second, an interim leader in this moment of transition must publicly reaf-

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Boris Johnson has vowed to stay on as caretaker prime minister firm the values that underpin public service. Ideally, a caretaker prime minister would have no future leadership ambitions. Tory leadership contests are hardly known to be the most civil of affairs. Boris' reluctance to leave office gracefully brought the UK perilously close to yet another constitutional crisis, taking the country into uncharted territory. The very mention of Lascelles principles, those rules which guide when Buckingham Palace can refuse an election, put many a hair on end.

He has form. The prorogation of parliament and the disregard for truth or transparency has knocked some of the shine off our democracy. Yesterday, the woman stabbed in the back by Boris Johnson, Theresa May delivered this point eloquently: “Playing by the rules means doing so not because you have to, but because you want to.”

Working off of those two principles, the caretaker prime minister needs to use their pulpit-for-now to signal the Conservatives’ intention to deliver a plan for our people, business and planet. The cost-of-living crisis will not

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wait for a permanent leader. Not even six weeks. The interim should use this moment to bring the best and brightest from across party lines and civil society to build a more comprehensive plan than the last one. The interim government can act quickly to address the labour shortages that are having an impact on so many businesses, especially in sectors like hospitality. A signal of purpose. A signal of intent. A signal that the country can still solve multiple challenges amid political upheaval. A signal that will help shore up much of the wavering support in Britain our politics disintegrated into wanton bloodletting.

It may only last a few months, but an interim prime minister could have a sizable impact on the direction of the country by finding opportunities in turmoil. In fact, this unique situation might allow such an individual to be bolder than their predecessor or successor. £ Lewis Iwu is founding partner of Purpose Union

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16

LIFE&STYLE

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

CITYAM.COM

GOING OUT EDITED BY STEVE DINNEEN @steve_dinneen

Mad House: a smart but misanthropic family psychodrama RECOMMENDED MAD HOUSE AMBASSADORS THEATRE

I

BY STEVE DINNEEN

can’t quite decide if Mad House is a kind-hearted play with a mean exterior, or a mean play with a token element of kindness. It centres around Michael (David Harbour, fresh from running up that hill in the new Stranger Things), a sweet but troubled man who has spent time in the titular “mad house”.

He’s a full-time carer for his father Daniel, a savage old goat not long for this mortal coil, who revels in torturing his son – the first thing we see him do is toss a freshly-prepared bowl of soup across the room and it’s all downhill from there.

Michael is given some respite by the arrival of a brusque but compassionate end of life nurse, with whom he forges an awkward connection, until his obnoxious siblings Ned and Pam get wind of the situation and descend vulturelike to pick at the scraps.

Theresa Rebeck – a prolific playwright perhaps best known for her 2011 play Seminar starring Alan Rickman – sets the scene for a Sam Shepard-style psychodrama, attempting to tell the story of the nation, the human condition, perhaps even the wider cosmos through the prism of one dysfunctional family.

The problem is Rebeck appears to think very little of the nation, the human condition and the wider cos-

mos, resulting in a play that’s relentlessly misanthropic.

Michael’s fragility makes him an easy mark for Ned, an oily hedge fund manager, and Pam, the very definition of a Karen, who undermine him with a fervour bordering on the psychotic.

And worst of all is Daniel, a bigoted narcissist clearly inspired by Donald Trump – “fake news!” he sneers when someone points out his bad behaviour – who happily admits emotionally abusing his children and using religion to prevent his now-deceased wife from leaving him. Grim.

There’s plenty of dark comedy mined in the interactions between Michael and Daniel – even the sneering paternal declaration that “I never loved you” prompts a ripple of shocked laughter – but these moments are always underpinned by screaming, existential tragedy. There are moments of revelation in the second half that hint at a path to redemption, but these mostly turn out to be cul de sacs.

That’s not to say this is a bad play – there are smart riffs on death, on emotional inheritance, on unspoken family dynamics, on the strangeness of existence. In the face of all this, Michael’s mental health issues are presented as the most sensible reaction to all the senselessness.

We root for him, this awful family’s sole moral compass, hoping against the odds that he’ll end up on top. But as the play snaps abruptly shut, as if the final act were simply abandoned, even that notion is thrown back at us like an ungratefully-received bowl of soup.

STAGE RECOMMENDED CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA / PAGLIACCI ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

P

BY TACITA QUINN

ietro Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana and Ruggero Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci. Name a more dramatic duo… I’ll wait.

Opera’s favourite double act returns to the Royal Opera House in the form of Damiano Michieletto’s Olivier Award winning production, with all its ‘slice of life’ tragedy intact.

Cleverly intertwining the double bill, Michieletto’s ‘Cav and Pag’, revived here by Noa Naamat, are set in the same charmingly scruffy, but clearly cursed Italian village. Think Broadchurch but Sicilian. The set, designed

by Paolo Fantin, screams mid-century quaint, and is impressive in its combination of mundane detail and the unmistakable whiff of lingering violence.

Kicking off with Pietro Mascagni’s Cav, Italian dusk warms the stage and illuminates Turiddu’s bloodied body.

Beginning at the end secures the trajectory of tragedy, as the drama reveals Turiddu (SeokJong Baek) to have wooed the naïve Santuzza (Aleksandra Kurzak) after his ex-fiancée Lola (Aigul Akhmetshina) ran off with another bloke.

Within about ten minutes you’re hooked. Baek’s voice is full of heat, and is the perfect companion to Akhmetshina’s sultry Lola, whose

mezzo notes ooze sexual certainty.

Kurzak is more captivating as the heartstrong Nedda than the mousy Santuzza, but she nails the singing in both, complete with gut wrenching vocal lamentations and a bitter Easter curse.

Michieletto’s Pagliacci actually begins in Cavalleria Rusticana’s Intermezzo.

Bright eyed baker Silvio (Mattia Olivieri) kisses Nedda to begin their affair and seal their fates. Roberto Alagna’s Canio, Nedda’s protective husband, is full of brash confidence, only adding to his mad descent as ‘the clown’.

Like the stoic mother she is, Mama Lucia holds the production together and returns in Pagliacci for a touching scene with Santuzza. Elena Zilio’s mezzo voice is still bold and bright, convincing as a spritely and warmhearted Nonna to be.

Conductor Antonio Pappano is in his element amongst the swells of Italian verismo, and the Leoncavallo is handled particularly well. The Royal Opera House chorus is on top form, with chills heading straight to the spine in the alarming last moments of Pagliacci. Whilst the acting occasionally took a hit, punches aren’t pulled on the singing, and this cast is worth the splurge.

Although Covid scuppered the original intentions for the cast, it was imperceptible on the night; the chemistry is spot on. So, if you’re tiring of imminent governmental collapse, take a leaf out of Theresa May’s book and take a trip to the ROH? It will sort you right out.

CITYAM.COM

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

LIFE&STYLE

MOVIES

NEW THOR IS A FUN ADVENTURE BUT THIS FRANCHISE IS STARTING TO AGE RECOMMENDED THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER DIR. TAIKA WAITITI

D

BY JAMES LUXFORD

espite eight Marvel Cinematic Universe titles planned for this year (three films, five TV shows plus specials), audiences show no sign of superhero fatigue. May’s Doctor Strange is the second highest grossing release of the year, while Moon Knight and Ms Marvel have introduced new facets to the entertainment juggernaut. Can Taika Waititi, the man who brought fun to Asgard in Thor Ragnarok, keep the momentum going?

Chris Hemsworth returns as Thor, finding himself listless following the events of Avengers: Endgame. He is called back into action to fight Gorr The God Butcher (Christian Bale), a vengeful being who has sworn to kill all gods following the death of his daughter.

However, Thor isn’t alone in his quest: old flame Dr Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is now Mighty Thor, gaining new powers after finding Thor’s former weapon while fighting cancer.

Child death and terminal illness… happy summer everybody! While Love and Thunder has a downbeat opening, most of the film has the same irreverent spirit as Ragnarok. This is both a strength and a weakness – Waititi is ex-

cellent at characterisation, quickly making the two Thors and Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) a team to remember with their hilarious rapport. There’s also the return of favourites such as Korg, the rock-based sidekick played by Waititi himself, and a slight correction in terms of Queer representation.

Portman’s reintroduction could have felt awkward, but she and her co-star have more chemistry than ever before.

Rather than a bland, interchangeable hero, Jane is vulnerable and goofy in places, while also looking the part when it matters. She gives Hemsworth extra dimension, while also having a compelling journey of her own.

Despite this, it becomes clear quickly that this is a film content to tread old ground. There are too many elements that are similar or worse than last time out, and the film struggles in the crucial dramatic moments.

This isn’t helped by Bale, who completely misjudges the tone and delivers a pantomime performance that feels like a discounted Lord Voldemort. Russell Crowe’s appearance as Zeus, a spiritual successor to Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster, is more cringe than thigh slapping.

Ending on a sweet note, Thor Love and Thunder delivers the visual spectacle fans will be hoping for and, in Portman, another fantastic female hero. However, all the hair metal in the galaxy can’t disguise a franchise that has begun to repeat itself.

RECOMMENDED BRIAN AND CHARLES DIR. JIM ARCHER

A

BY JAMES LUXFORD

rtificial Intelligence in cinema usually doesn’t end well. From 2001’s HAL to Aliens’ Ash, there’s usually something evil lingering underneath the circuits. In the new British comedy Brian and Charles, however, all the robot star wants is a train pass.

Ricky Gervais collaborator David Earl writes and stars as Brian, a lonely man living in rural Wales who turns to inventing as a means of getting through a personal tragedy.

After some spirited misfires, he is inspired to invent a sentient robot made from a washing machine and a mannequin head. His new friend names himself Charles, but their friendship is threatened by a jealous local and Charles’ curiosity about the outside world.

It’s a simple, quirky film that brings to mind Lars and the Real Girl or 2014 black comedy Frank. Director Jim Archer doesn’t really sweat the intricacies, with Charles’ mechanics and Brian’s grief left to the audience’s imagination.

It’s a story about the walls that are put up around people after painful experiences, and how a childlike perspective can knock them down. Innocently

EDITOR’S PICKS Brian and Charles is a simple, quirky film that brings to mind Lars and the Real Girl or 2014 black comedy Frank amusing, it’s a joy to watch the pair bob up and down to music in a messy kitchen, or see Charles’ sudden, excited movements convey the emotion his frozen face can’t.

Earl has to carry a lot of the film and does a terrific job, playing a harmless oddball that many will have met at some point in their lives.

He has an adorably awkward connection with Sherlock actor Louise Brealey as Hazel, a villager who has a soft spot for Brian and becomes his accomplice in the film’s surprisingly tense third act.

Offbeat comedies often have difficulty with tone, but Brian and Charles manages to make both the moments of comedy and menace work. Rather than being a portent of mankind’s doom, this robot provides a hilarious lesson in how to be human.

• TONY!

Harry Hill’s rock opera about Tony Blair flew a little under the radar but it’s one of the best musicals in years. Now approaching its final weekend at the Park Theatre, it will satisfy both politicis nerds and those who appreciate a wellpenned tune. I wouldnt be surprised to see this transfer to the West End or embark on a national tour so keep an eye out for new dates.

• THE MIRROR OF UNCERTAINTY

Check out this surreal collection of paintings of audience members by drummer Paul May, on display at the Barbican Library.

17

18

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

MARKETS

FTSE 100 7189.08 81.31

Ã

FTSE 250 18875.53 281.05

Price Chg High Low

GILTS Tsy 2.500 24 ....................376.74 Tsy 5.000 25 ...................108.22 Tsy 4.250 27 ....................112.12 Tsy 6.000 28 ...................124.89 Tsy 4.125 30 ....................365.58 Tsy 4.250 32.....................119.03 Tsy 4.250 36 ...................120.77 Tsy 4.750 38.....................130.19 Tsy 4.250 46 ....................130.17

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Price Chg High Low

DIVERSIFIED INDUSTRIALS 0.24 -0.13 -0.28 -0.31 0.54 -0.20 -0.13 -0.14 0.11

379.4 117.5 124.6 140.4 402.3 138.0 148.0 163.4 175.8

357.2 106.8 109.6 121.5 352.1 114.1 115.9 124.8 123.6

Smith (DS) ..........................279.9 2.6 462.3 270.5 Smiths Gp..........................1416.0 32.0 1629.0 1355.5 Smurfit Kappa Gp.......... 2719.0 58.0 4305.0 2623.0 Vesuvius...............................293.2 4.8 567.0 284.6

ELECTRICITY Contour Global...................253.5 1.5 257.0 178.0 Drax Gp ................................671.5 47.0 831.5 393.8 SSE ......................................1701.0 4.0 1920.0 1445.5

ELECTRONIC & ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT

AEROSPACE & DEFENCE BAE Systems ......................816.4 -1.4 Chemring Gp .....................322.0 8.0 Meggitt ................................787.0 3.0 QinetiQ ................................380.0 6.2 Rolls-Royce ...........................85.3 3.1 Ultra Electronics ........... 3490.0 74.0

838.4 367.5 839.2 380.0 147.5 3490.0

527.2 256.0 397.0 243.0 78.2 2350.0

Halma ................................2136.0 Morgan Advanced ...........272.0 Oxford Instruments ......1984.0 Renishaw .........................3888.0 Spectris ............................2851.0 XP Power.........................2850.0

18.0 7.5 -6.0 90.0 61.0 0.0

3216.0 412.5 2680.0 5565.0 4083.0 5630.0

1876.5 262.5 1760.0 3568.0 2458.0 2730.0

EQUITY INVESTMENT INSTRUMENTS

AUTOMOBILES & PARTS Aston Martin..................... 425.9 32.3 2081.0 393.6 TI Fluid Systems .............. 150.8 6.8 323.5 144.0

BANKS Barclays ...............................151.0 4.2 217.1 140.6 HSBC Hldgs........................ 535.6 16.9 567.2 359.8 Lloyds Banking ....................42.3 1.0 55.1 41.2 NatWest Group..................218.3 7.1 253.5 192.2 Standard Chartered.........597.0 18.8 638.6 410.0 TBC Bank Group..............1214.0 4.0 1656.0 901.0 Virgin Money UK ...............136.1 4.0 218.1 124.2

BEVERAGES Britvic..................................824.5 -1.5 1006.0 741.0 Coca-Cola HBC AG.........1800.0 -37.5 2784.0 1460.5 Diageo ...............................3518.5 -92.5 4103.5 3343.0

CHEMICALS Croda International .....6828.0 2.0 10410.0 5908.0 Elementis.............................103.0 2.5 158.7 97.2 Johnson Matt..................1896.5 22.5 3168.0 1721.0 Synthomer .........................234.8 1.6 564.0 222.4 Victrex ...............................1833.0 62.0 2706.0 1590.0

CONSTRUCTION & MATERIALS Balfour Beatty ..................259.8 Barratt Devel.......................457.1 Bellway .............................2156.0 CRH ....................................2853.0 Genuit Group ......................383.5 Grafton Group....................741.8 Ibstock.................................161.5 Marshalls............................ 449.4 Morgan Sindall Gp.........1844.0 Persimmon ....................... 1772.5 Taylor Wimpey .................. 114.8 Vistry Group.......................813.5 Volution .............................. 345.5

CITYAM.COM

6.4 -2.6 4.0 43.0 -1.0 7.4 0.0 1.8 38.0 -92.5 -0.6 -0.5 0.0

319.0 760.0 3526.0 4002.0 801.0 1412.0 239.2 845.0 2685.0 3018.0 182.9 1261.5 560.0

215.6 448.5 2070.0 2756.5 375.0 715.0 154.0 436.2 1776.0 1772.5 113.8 760.5 336.5

3i Infrastructure...............333.0 Aberforth Smlr Cos ......1180.0 Alliance Trust....................940.0 Allianz Tech ........................219.0 AVI Global Trust................181.4 Baillie Gifford Japan....... 725.0 Baillie Gifford US ..............163.2 Bankers InvTst ..................101.6 Bellevue Healthcare.........164.2 BlackRock Smaller .........1316.0 BlackRock Wld Mining....571.0 BR Throgmorton ..............559.0 Caledonia Inv .................3440.0 Chrysalis Inv ........................96.9 City of London IT.............401.0 Edin Inv Trust ...................592.0 Edin Wwide ....................... 186.0 European Opp ...................678.0 F&C Investment ...............832.0 Fidelity China SPE ...........285.0 Fidelity Emg .......................637.0 Fidelity Eur ........................285.5 Fidelity Spec Val ..............262.5 Finsbury G&I Tst..............790.0 GCP Infra Inv.................... 108.6 Global Smaller ...................140.8 Greencoat UK.....................152.6 Harbourvest Glb.............2100.0 Henderson Sml Co ............816.0 Herald Inv Trust .............1630.0 HICL Infr ............................. 174.4 Hipgnosis Songs Fund .... 108.2 ICG Enterprise .................1112.0 IMPAX ENVIRO MKTS....413.0 JPM American...................710.0 JPM Emerg Mkt ................108.4 JPM Euro Disc. .................380.0

8.5 14.0 12.0 7.5 1.4 12.0 3.2 2.0 3.6 26.0 29.0 5.0 -10.0 1.2 2.0 3.0 3.2 9.0 10.0 5.5 9.0 1.0 4.0 0.0 -0.6 -1.6 -1.0 10.0 9.0 38.0 0.4 0.2 26.0 3.0 6.0 2.0 0.5

366.5 1612.0 1078.0 370.0 222.0 1106.0 356.0 125.0 208.0 2220.0 792.0 1042.0 4100.0 277.0 425.0 657.0 348.5 891.0 946.0 400.5 918.0 345.0 315.0 930.0 118.6 177.0 159.9 2940.0 1370.0 2630.0 183.0 129.2 1314.0 583.0 782.0 139.0 582.0

302.0 1162.0 887.0 200.0 172.0 662.0 146.0 95.5 132.4 1254.0 502.0 533.0 3160.0 90.0 377.0 578.0 160.8 644.0 770.0 218.5 605.5 267.5 256.0 734.0 100.2 138.0 129.6 2005.0 778.0 1560.0 161.0 102.6 954.0 381.5 654.0 99.8 366.5

FTSE ALL SHARE 3956.98 46.18 Price JPM Japan IT ...................448.0 Jupiter Fund Mngt ............141.1 Law Debenture .................760.0 Mercantile IT.................... 180.2 Monks Inv Tst ....................977.0 Murray Inc Tst..................829.0 Murray Intl Tst ...............1230.0 Ninety One ..........................196.7 Pantheon Intl Partn ........250.0 Pershing Square.............2450.0 Personal Assets Tst... 48300.0 Polar Cap Tech Tst .........1942.0 Renewables Infra Gp.......136.0 RIT Cap Partners...........2445.0 Schroder Asia ...................525.0 Schroder Oriental ............255.0 Scot American Inv ..........475.0 Scottish Mortgage .......... 801.4 Sequoia Econ Infra ............89.1 Smithson Inv...................1244.0 Syncona ...............................201.5 Temple Bar..........................214.0 Templeton Em Mkts .........149.4 Vietnam Enterprise .........641.0 VinaCapital Vietna ..........481.0 Witan Invest ......................211.0 Wwide Healthcare ........3255.0

Ã

Chg High Low 1.5 729.0 412.5 3.5 298.2 135.2 16.0 830.0 724.0 2.6 291.0 173.8 19.5 1472.0 888.0 9.0 952.0 770.0 2.0 1320.0 1076.0 3.7 277.4 190.1 6.0 351.0 240.5 15.0 3115.0 2330.0 -50.050900.047350.0 32.0 2750.0 1778.0 0.8 139.4 123.2 20.0 2765.0 2250.0 13.0 617.0 498.0 3.0 276.5 251.5 4.5 543.0 442.5 25.4 1543.5 670.6 1.1 114.6 88.0 25.0 2025.0 1140.0 3.5 222.0 157.2 4.5 254.4 201.6 4.2 197.6 140.6 -8.0 791.0 641.0 3.5 545.0 438.0 3.0 257.0 202.0 10.0 3845.0 2825.0

FIXED LINE TELECOMMUNICATIONS BT Gp ....................................190.8 1.6 200.9 135.2 Telecom Plus ...................2010.0 30.0 2010.0 1010.0

FOOD & DRUG RETAILERS Greggs ................................1923.0 Ocado Gp .............................851.4 Sainsbury(J).......................213.9 SSP Group..........................235.8 Tesco......................................257.1

30.0 28.0 -0.8 1.3 -0.7

3416.0 2090.0 340.0 303.2 303.4

1808.0 727.8 203.3 207.8 229.7

11.0 -32.0 0.3 1.0 0.4 -2.6 -45.5

2185.0 4148.0 146.6 1250.0 126.8 906.5 4358.0

1526.5 2918.0 95.8 990.0 98.3 733.5 3328.0

FOOD PRODUCERS Assoc British Foods........1573.5 Cranswick ........................3032.0 Greencore Gp .......................96.3 Hilton Food Gp .................. 991.0 Premier Foods....................109.2 Tate & Lyle ..........................773.8 Unilever.............................3825.5

FORESTRY & PAPER Mondi ................................ 1469.5 28.0 2068.0 1309.0

GENERAL FINANCIAL 3i Group .............................1152.0 26.0 1503.5 1059.0 Ashmore Gp.......................208.4 0.4 410.0 207.6 Brewin Dolphin .................509.0 0.0 517.0 266.0 Bridgepoint Group........... 223.0 6.0 569.0 216.0 Capital Gearing .............4980.0 -10.0 5180.0 4905.0 Close Brothers ................1036.0 32.0 1602.0 987.0

Ã

RISERS % Currys .............................................73.55 10.5 Aston Martin .............................. 425.90 8.2 Mediclinic Intl .............................476.20 7.7 Price CMC Markets .....................276.5 Coats Group..........................63.0 Hargreaves Lans...............808.4 IG Gp.................................... 683.5 Integrafin Holdings......... 222.4 Intermediate Cap ..........1365.5 Intl Public Prtnshps .........162.2 Investec ...............................427.2 IP Group ................................71.8 JTC .......................................598.0 Liontrust..............................914.0 London Stock Exch ........7582.0 Man Group .........................250.2 OSB Group ......................... 479.0 Paragon............................... 476.8 Petershill Partners ...........215.5 Plus500 ............................1560.0 Provident Financial ..........193.3 Quilter ....................................98.5 Rathbone Grp..................1920.0 Ruffer Investment........... 303.0 Schroders.........................2702.0 SDCL Energy .......................117.6 TP ICAP .............................. 106.0

Chg High Low 4.5 468.5 219.5 -0.1 81.4 58.2 10.0 1677.0 762.6 5.5 945.0 648.0 0.6 602.0 213.0 23.0 2379.0 1284.5 1.4 174.8 156.0 13.9 536.8 270.5 1.4 155.2 66.7 6.0 936.0 571.0 2.0 2485.0 863.0 -86.0 8504.0 6370.0 7.8 259.6 178.8 6.6 599.0 418.8 -10.0 617.5 427.2 0.0 350.7 194.8 0.0 1673.0 1255.5 2.3 381.6 189.0 2.2 197.1 96.4 10.0 2210.0 1518.0 1.5 325.0 230.0 18.0 3871.0 2578.0 2.6 124.0 97.8 -0.3 208.2 103.5

GENERAL RETAILERS B&M......................................377.0 Currys.....................................73.5 Dunelm Gp...........................814.5 Frasers Group ...................688.0 Howden Joinery Gp.........606.2 Inchcape..............................712.0 JD Sports Fashion ............122.2 Kingfisher...........................248.6 Marks & Spencer ..............138.7 Moonpig...............................211.6 Next ................................... 6172.0 Pets at Home Gp ..............292.4 Vivo Energy ........................149.0 Watches of Switz ............800.0 WH Smith.........................1386.0

6.7 7.0 14.5 21.0 -1.2 22.5 3.9 6.3 3.7 -1.8 34.0 3.6 1.0 11.5 24.5

644.0 141.6 1521.0 813.5 975.6 933.0 234.0 375.5 256.9 424.6 8426.0 519.0 149.0 1518.0 1805.5

355.8 66.5 776.5 562.5 581.4 647.0 102.9 234.8 131.6 190.6 5764.0 278.0 100.0 750.0 1311.0

HEALTH CARE EQUIPMENT & SERVICES Convatec............................. 221.0 -6.0 262.6 166.8 Mediclinic Intl ...................476.2 34.0 476.2 275.8 Smith & Neph...................1132.5 -32.5 1570.5 1120.5 Spire Health .......................233.0 5.0 254.5 206.0

HOUSEHOLD GOODS Berkeley Grp Hldgs .......3799.0 21.0 4943.0 3670.0 Countryside ....................... 235.6 0.2 571.5 225.8 Crest Nicholson ................238.0 -0.6 424.2 233.0 Reckitt Benckiser .........6250.0 -112.0 6489.0 5391.0 Redrow................................486.6 3.0 718.8 470.4

INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING Bodycote ............................522.5 22.5 984.5 500.0 Hill & Smith .....................1180.0 10.0 1902.0 1110.0

Price IMI ......................................1207.0 Melrose Ind ........................154.6 RHI Magnesita ...............1899.0 Rotork .................................240.0 Spirax-Sarco..................10710.0 Weir Gp..............................1429.5

Chg High Low 34.0 1838.0 1150.0 3.5 190.8 107.6 56.0 4262.0 1823.0 5.4 373.4 233.8 95.0 17135.0 9130.0 51.0 1916.5 1363.0

INDUSTRIAL METALS Evraz .......................................81.0 Ferrexpo ..............................122.4

0.0 646.2 53.1 2.2 495.2 116.0

INDUSTRIAL TRANSPORTATION Clarkson...........................2940.0 50.0 4180.0 2835.0 Redde Northgate .............334.0 0.0 443.0 334.0 Royal Mail .......................... 272.8 5.1 578.8 267.7

LEISURE GOODS Games Workshp ............ 7020.0 10.0 12220.0 6005.0

LIFE INSURANCE abrdn ....................................161.0 Aviva ....................................398.3 Just Group ............................66.7 Legal & General.................242.1 Phoenix Gp.........................585.0 Prudential ........................1025.5 St James Place ................ 1116.5

299.0 602.9 106.0 307.8 701.4 1553.5 1731.5

148.9 382.3 65.7 233.2 568.2 881.0 1054.0

-25.0 4.0 -3.0 76.0 33.0 2.8 2.6 -1.2 10.6 -17.0 2.0 4.0

3170.0 2240.0 454.4 253.8 741.8 499.5 1416.0 829.0 3910.0 1551.0 624.0 464.4 125.8 63.2 270.6 167.0 869.4 571.8 2449.0 2008.0 800.4 531.0 1224.0 761.6

187.0 76.5 84.0 3.7 27.0 -11.6 24.8 3.8 172.5

4170.5 1781.5 3019.0 109.8 2100.0 986.8 541.5 173.4 6292.0

2470.5 1019.5 1835.2 75.8 1510.0 622.4 296.2 79.9 4375.5

MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS Vodafone Gp ........................127.4

Price Chg High Low Direct Line Ins ..................240.5 3.3 316.4 231.4 Hiscox .................................. 943.2 13.0 990.2 792.8 Lancashire Hldgs.............. 403.2 14.0 675.5 346.6

OIL & GAS PRODUCERS BP .........................................385.2 Capricorn Energy..............216.0 Energean ............................970.5 Harbour Energy .................319.0 Shell ...................................2033.5 Tullow Oil...............................42.0

16.6 5.2 38.5 20.5 59.3 2.3

451.4 229.8 1391.0 530.0 2440.0 62.2

278.4 125.6 620.0 298.5 1833.4 39.7

OIL EQUIPMENT & SERVICES Wood Gp(J) ........................152.8 10.2 256.5 142.6

PERSONAL GOODS Burberry Gp.....................1629.0 -0.5 2182.0 1482.0 PZ Cussons.........................205.0 -1.0 264.5 182.8 AstraZeneca ..................11004.0 26.0 11054.0 8063.0 Dechra Pharma...............3756.0 24.0 5405.0 3110.0 Genus................................2660.0 4.0 6070.0 2234.0 GSK .....................................1791.4 1.2 1810.4 1380.4 Hikma Pharma ..................1717.0 34.5 2690.0 1482.0 Indivior ................................312.4 6.6 336.8 148.1 Oxford Biomedica ............486.5 5.5 1634.0 415.0

REAL ESTATE

MINING Anglo American .............2816.0 Antofagasta...................... 1116.5 BHP Group .......................2248.5 Centamin ...............................79.8 Endeavour Mining...........1667.0 Fresnillo ...............................674.0 Glencore ..............................433.2 Hochschild Mining ..............83.7 Rio Tinto ..........................4860.0

% -8.8 -5.0 -4.1

PHARMACEUTICALS & BIOTECHNOLOGY 4.5 10.6 0.3 8.9 12.0 41.7 20.0

MEDIA 4imprint............................2415.0 Ascential ............................284.8 Auto Trader Gp.................584.2 Euromny Inst Inv...........1340.0 Future .................................1812.0 Informa...............................538.8 ITV ..........................................66.1 Moneysupermkt.com ....... 183.1 Pearson ............................... 760.2 RELX .................................2250.0 Rightmove Group..............597.2 WPP .....................................784.6

Ä

FALLERS

Baltic Classifieds.........................125.80 Persimmon .................................1772.50 Flutter Ent................................ 8090.00

0.7 139.5 106.9

NONLIFE INSURANCE Admiral Gp.......................2321.0 28.0 3688.0 2103.0 Beazley.................................487.8 13.0 504.0 343.4

Assura ....................................66.5 Big Yellow Gp ...................1321.0 British Land .......................465.0 Captl & Count Prop ..........145.0 CLS Hldgs ...........................202.5 Derwent London ............2726.0 Grainger..............................282.4 Grt Portland Est ................737.0 Hammerson ..........................20.3 Land Securities..................681.4 LondonMetric Prop .........235.8 Primary Hlth Prop .............137.5 Safestore Hldgs ..............1072.0 Savills .................................1057.0 SEGRO ...............................1002.0 Shaftesbury....................... 532.0 TR Property IT .................368.5 Tritax Big Box ....................185.1 Tritax Eurobox ......................87.2 UK Commercial Prop ..........75.1 Unite Group ..................... 1106.0 Urban Logistics................. 160.0 Workspace Gp ..................552.5

0.2 -12.0 14.5 4.1 1.5 66.0 1.6 0.0 0.8 20.8 3.0 -0.3 0.0 29.0 -0.5 9.5 5.5 3.3 1.6 1.3 34.0 0.0 1.0

79.8 1724.0 556.4 179.3 262.0 3802.0 335.0 803.5 39.9 813.2 285.2 169.6 1418.0 1450.0 1436.5 662.0 510.0 249.0 124.0 93.4 1237.0 199.0 971.0

59.6 1200.0 441.7 138.4 185.2 2570.0 269.8 700.5 19.0 643.6 225.6 131.1 1008.0 975.5 950.6 515.0 354.5 178.5 84.4 72.4 990.2 118.5 538.5

SOFTWARE & COMPUTER SERVICES Auction Tech .....................928.0 9.0 1642.0 788.0 Avast....................................506.0 -6.0 645.4 474.0 Aveva Gp...........................2342.0 -21.0 4220.0 1924.0 Baltic Classifieds...............125.8 -12.2 255.0 99.8

£

/€ 1.1807 /$ 1.1997 /¥ 163.14

Price Computacenter...............2420.0 FDM Group.........................869.0 Kainos Gp ..........................1164.0 Micro Focus Intl ................277.9 NCC Grp ...............................190.6 Playtech ..............................542.5 Sage Group ........................ 652.4 Softcat ...............................1331.0 Trustpilot............................ 100.5

à à Ã

0.0103

€/$ 1.0160

0.0102

€/£ 0.8469

1.7360

€/¥ 138.17

Chg High Low 60.0 3030.0 2268.0 10.0 1362.0 830.0 34.0 2084.0 954.5 11.9 466.1 256.3 -2.6 335.0 167.4 2.5 770.0 351.0 -1.6 853.8 595.6 17.0 2240.0 1253.0 0.9 460.0 79.1

SUPPORT SERVICES Ashtead Gp ......................3722.0 Babcock Intl Grp...............312.8 Biffa .....................................370.0 Bunzl .................................2846.0 DCC ....................................5214.0 Diploma.............................2326.0 discoverIE Gp.....................647.0 Essentra...............................249.5 Experian ........................... 2613.0 Ferguson .......................... 9240.0 Hays ......................................116.8 Homeserve ........................1170.0 Intertek Gp......................4291.0 IWG........................................191.4 MITIE GROUP..................... 58.0 Network Int........................192.2 Pagegroup...........................419.4 Rentokil Initial...................497.3 RS Group ............................895.5 Sanne Group......................906.0 Serco ....................................174.6 Travis Perkins.................... 972.6

128.0 6450.0 4.2 380.2 -0.8 416.0 36.0 3163.0 110.0 6486.0 44.0 3460.0 -13.0 1262.0 2.5 357.0 64.0 3667.0 160.0 13305.0 2.8 175.4 4.0 1174.0 37.0 5782.0 6.3 328.0 0.9 77.3 4.0 394.4 13.4 680.5 0.8 636.2 35.5 1255.0 0.0 946.0 0.6 183.8 12.8 1830.0

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TECHNOLOGY HARDWARE & EQUIPMENT Spirent Comms..................247.2

0.4 300.2 215.4

TOBACCO Br Am Tob ........................ 3379.5 -109.0 3628.0 2512.5 Imperial Brands ............. 1810.0 1.0 1882.0 1486.0

TRAVEL & LEISURE 888 Holdings......................161.0 -6.5 478.0 Carnival................................681.4 22.6 1766.4 Compass Gp......................1751.0 21.0 1820.5 Dominos Pizza...................285.6 6.6 465.2 easyJet ................................372.5 15.3 933.4 Entain ................................1096.5 -43.5 2377.0 FirstGroup............................127.4 1.9 139.5 Flutter Ent.......................8090.0 -348.0 15890.0 Intercontl Htls ...............4450.0 113.0 5338.0 Intl Cons Airl......................109.3 3.5 188.0 Mitchells & Butlers ..........182.7 -1.3 295.0 National Express ...............179.7 0.7 284.2 Rank Gp .................................85.0 0.8 183.2 TUI AG .................................133.2 1.9 357.0 Wetherspoon (JD) ............611.5 -4.5 1168.0 Whitbread........................2522.0 58.0 3438.0

160.7 619.6 1407.5 272.6 345.5 1096.5 73.6 7922.0 4193.0 102.9 182.7 178.7 79.5 127.5 605.5 2431.0

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0.0002 0.0075 0.2640

Price Chg High Low Wizz Air Holdings ...........1807.0 91.5 5398.0 1695.0

AIM 50 Abcam ................................1243.0 -15.0 Advanced Medical ...........290.0 -2.5 Alliance Pharma................ 116.2 0.2 ASOS....................................982.5 73.5 Camellia ............................6150.0 -50.0 Caretech Holdings ............742.0 0.0 Central Asia Metals .........214.0 6.0 CVS Group........................ 1632.0 27.0 Dart Group ..........................783.8 -106.0 Diversified Energy .............111.4 4.1 EMIS Group.....................1858.0 -8.0 FD Technologies ............2090.0 5.0 Fevertree Drinks ............1284.0 -21.0 Frontier Devs....................1474.0 44.0 Gamma Comms ..............1082.0 16.0 GB Group ............................ 429.4 11.2 Gooch & Housego ............900.0 0.0 Hurricane Energy..................6.8 0.4 Impax Asset Mgmt ......... 572.0 -11.0 Iomart Group .....................168.2 -1.8 IQE...........................................36.0 2.0 James Halstead ................ 201.0 5.0 Johnson Service Gp ...........98.6 0.0 Keywords Studios ........ 2268.0 18.0 Learning Tech Gp ...............117.8 1.8 M&C Saatchi ......................153.6 0.8 M.P. Evans ..........................858.0 2.0 Majestic Wine....................172.0 2.1 Midwich Group .................590.0 15.0 Molten Ventures ...............413.8 7.8 Mortgage Advice B .........852.0 -48.0 Next Fifteen Comm .........935.0 2.0 Nichols...............................1205.0 5.0 Numis Corporation ...........253.5 -3.5 Polar Capital Hdgs...........480.0 -30.0 Purplebricks Gp................... 14.2 -0.7 Renew Holdings................ 651.0 -6.0 RWS Holdings ....................341.6 -0.8 Secure Income REIT ...... 461.0 0.0 Serica Energy....................290.0 14.0 Smart Metering Sys........846.0 22.0 Telford Homes................... 349.5 0.0 Thorpe (F.W.)......................387.0 12.0 Watkin Jones .....................215.0 -0.5 Young’s Brew NV..............750.0 0.0 Young’s Brew-A................1158.0 4.0

1750.0 341.0 121.6 4835.0 6925.0 747.0 284.0 2770.0 1423.0 128.8 1890.0 2500.0 2812.0 2840.0 2335.0 952.5 1490.0 11.7 1482.0 265.5 53.3 580.0 173.4 3302.0 235.8 216.0 1085.0 879.0 700.0 1180.0 1500.0 1458.0 1540.0 383.0 902.0 76.5 872.0 678.5 480.0 418.5 1030.0 349.5 520.0 276.5 982.0 1660.0

1049.0 256.5 96.4 783.5 5850.0 530.0 200.5 1549.0 783.8 97.7 1136.0 1378.0 1212.0 1078.0 1026.0 386.2 816.0 2.1 555.0 140.0 28.2 196.0 97.7 1952.0 107.1 125.0 672.0 152.1 494.0 392.2 852.0 874.0 1105.0 230.0 480.0 14.1 594.0 331.8 382.5 144.0 688.0 349.5 371.0 205.5 648.0 1120.0

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19

RUGBY COMMENT Ollie Phillips

T

OMORROW’S match against Australia is a must-win for England, having been well beaten in the opening Test of the series last weekend.

They were on top for the majority of the game but just failed to capitalise in the moments where it was pretty even – their two late tries saved face in their 30-28 loss to the Wallabies.

I am surprised head coach Eddie Jones has stuck with the Marcus SmithOwen Farrell partnership at fly-half and inside centre.

It didn’t seem to work too well last week given the attacking ability of the side and a tough, foreign tour might have been the perfect place to try something new out.

Farrell is the orchestrator for Saracens and used to controlling everything while at Harlequins Smith uses the zippy Danny Care to give him a platform. They’re different players but both fly-halves for their clubs – so the national side, too, should pick one and go with it.

I am excited to see Guy Porter get the nod at No13 even if it means the squad is without a place for Joe Marchant.

He’s a big ball carrier – much like the Springbok Andre Esterhuizen, who Smith is so used to feeding at Harlequins. And it’s a first start for Tommy Freeman too, though I am surprised Henry Arundell hasn’t started after his brilliant try off the bench last week.

Freeman, like his opposite wing Jack Nowell, likes to go looking for the ball and we have seen that being a key pillar of Jones’s set up.

And finally it is worth a nod to Courtney Lawes who will pick up his 100th

Smith-Farrell selection needs solving international cap at the Suncorp Stadium. He’s been one of England’s best servants; an absolute machine.

It’s going to be a close match tomorrow in Brisbane and England could just nick it but a missed kick here or a stupid yellow card there, like last week, will make all of the difference.

AROUND THE GROUNDS

On the other summer tours, I thought Wales were excellent last week in their

narrow loss to the Springboks – in fact, it was their best game under coach Wayne Pivac – but feeding off South African mistakes again showed their lack of creativity.

It is also fair to say that they bottled it, falling to a superior forward game from the home side. South Africa have rung the changes while Wales have made just one, but I still think the home side are favourites.

I’m starting to admire Ireland’s reluc-

tance to start anyone at fly-half other than Johnny Sexton. He is class – way above any other option – but eventually he will go and his side will be rudderless.

They will lose heavily again at the hands of the All Blacks tomorrow morning and consign their series to failure.

Scotland will be fuming with their loss against Argentina, having hyped themselves up as potential 2-0 series

winners. The best they can do now is draw but that’s where Scotland are now, and I am not sure they’ll be able to build too much further without the likes of Stuart Hogg, Finn Russell and Chris Harris. £ Former England Sevens captain Ollie Phillips is the founder of Optimist Performance, experts in leadership development and behavioural change.

Follow Ollie on Twitter and on LinkedIn.

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20

SPORT

CITYAM.COM

FRIDAY 8 JULY 2022

ENGLAND CONUNDRUM Ollie Phillips on picking either Smith or Farrell PAGE 19

SPORT

SPORT DIGEST

RAFA OUT Nadal withdraws ahead of Wimbledon semi-final with injury

JABEUR AND RYBAKINA TO PLAY SINGLES FINAL

£ Ons Jabeur and Elena Rybakina will meet in tomorrow’s Wimbledon final after impressive semi-finals wins yesterday. Jabeur became the first Arab player to reach a Grand Slam final with a 6-2 3-6 6-1 win over Tatjana Maria while Rybakina impressed in her straight sets win over Simona Halep.

RONALDO TO MISS MAN UNITED PRE-SEASON TOUR

£ Cristiano Ronaldo will not take part in Manchester United’s preseason tour to Thailand and Australia, it was revealed yesterday.

The 37-year-old has been granted additional time off and reports suggest he is looking to depart the club to ensure he is still able to win trophies in the coming seasons.

Further reports suggest his club are willing to listen to offers.

SWIMMER SAYS SHE WAS DRUGGED AT WORLD MEET

£ Mary-Sophie Harvey yesterday claimed she was drugged at swimming’s World Championships last month. The 22-year-old Canadian said there was a “four-tosix-hour window” where she cannot recall a thing and woke up having suffered a sprained rib and concussion. Swimming’s world governing body Fina said it had launched an investigation.

TWO BRITS IN TOUR DE FRANCE TOP FIVE

Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from Wimbledon ahead of his semi-final match against Nick Kyrgios due to injury. The 22-time Grand Slam winner had completed an epic quarter-final win over Jannik Sinner to earn a spot in the last four but looked visibly injured as he played. The withdrawal means Australian Kyrgios will progress straight through to the final where he will play either Britain’s Cameron Norrie or world No3 Novak Djokovic. Nadal this year won the opening two Slams on the calendar for the first time in his career and a win in SW19 today and on Sunday would have put him 75 per cent of the way towards a calendar Grand Slam.

£ Defending Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar won yesterday’s stage of the cycling race as the Slovenian took the yellow jersey. Two-time winner Pogacar attacked at the top of a short climb to pull away from the Peloton. Ineos’ Tom Pidcock finished fourth in Longwy. Pogacar leads Neilson Powless by four seconds – Adam Yates is fourth and Pidcock fifth in the general classification.

NORRIE MATCH HIS BIGGEST

Brit No1 has shot at making history but must overcome one of the greatest ever, writes Matt Hardy

W

HEN British No1 Cameron Norrie ventures through the double doors, on to Wimbledon’s Centre Court and into a cathedral of raucous noise today, it will be the biggest moment of his fiveyear professional career.

He may have won Indian Wells last year, arguably the biggest non-Grand Slam event on the circuit, but reaching the latter stages of one of the four majors – let alone the pinnacle in SW19 – tops it all.

Standing between him and a spot in Sunday’s gentlemen’s singles final,

however, is one of the greatest players of all time.

World No3 Novak Djokovic is on the hunt for his 21st Grand Slam; his last came at the All England Club last year.

Coming into this semi-final he has won 1,010 professional ranking matches to Norrie’s 135.

Djokovic’s 87 titles and 20 Slams dwarf the four won by the South Africa-born Brit, who before this year had never progressed beyond the third round of a major.

And the disparity in career prize money is enormous.

Not including this tournament, Norrie has topped $5m in winnings and is set to add at least £500,000 to that no matter this afternoon’s result.

The Serbian former world No1 on the other hand has pocketed more than $150m in prize money during a near20-year career that has seen him battle for supremacy with Rafael Nadal – today’s withdrawn semi-finalist – and Roger Federer.

Norrie will face No1 seed Djokovic

To reach this point at the Championships, both Norrie and Djokovic have had to win 15 sets of tennis but interestingly they’ve both lost the same amount of sets – four.

Norrie has had three straight-sets wins – in rounds one, three and four – while he’s endured two matches – in rounds two and his quarter-final – that went the distance.

Djokovic has won two straight-sets matches – in rounds two and three – while winning two matches in four sets – in rounds one and four – and toppling Jannik Sinner in five sets in the last eight.

There’s no doubt Norrie is riding a wave of home advantage at Wimbledon, the kind of wave that helped Nick Kyrgios to a doubles title in Melbourne and Andy Murray’s triumphs at the All England Club, but it will be an uphill battle to beat a ferocious Djokovic.

The Serb himself has received a warm welcome from the British crowd in the last two weeks and, in a new

move for the 35-year-old, has seemed to enjoy interacting with fans and embraced the atmosphere.

But against Norrie, he will be against 15,000 people on Centre Court – not that he’s unused to being the pantomime villain.

Norrie is breaking new ground in south west London this afternoon and the experience will be an abnormal one for him – his biggest title having come in the leafy outposts of southern California.

He will need to start like Sinner did and be aggressive from the off, and then go one further than the Italian and hold on to service games to win enough points to sneak the win.

Should he complete what would quite simply be an astronomical upset against the Serb it would be the biggest win in his career, and the biggest at Wimbledon for a Brit since Murray beat Milos Raonic in the 2016 final. History is up for grabs and it’s for Norrie to make it.