Thursdau 10 November

WHO’S IN, WHO’S OUT... ENGLAND SQUAD ANNOUNCED TODAY AS PRESSURE BUILDS ON BOSS P24

Tube strikes a blow to city’s reputation

ILARIA GRASSO MACOLA

UNIONS are yet again bringing London to a standstill today, with tube and overground services both subject to industrial action.

Yesterday, London Tories pinned the blame on the city’s Mayor, Sadiq Khan, saying he was “too weak to stand up to” militant union leaders.

Khan, however, said he had “repeatedly urged the unions to call off this action and work with TfL to find a solution”.

LEAH MONTEBELLO

FACEBOOK owner Meta axed 13 per cent of its worldwide staff yesterday as the tech giant finally responded to falling revenues.

In a note to staff yesterday, chief exec Mark Zuckerberg said it was one of “the most difficult changes we’ve made in Meta’s history”.

The Silicon Valley titan, which also owns Instagram and Whatsapp, employs around 5,148 people in the UK and opened a new swanky office in London’s Kings Cross earlier this year.

The social media boss said the layoffs were about becoming a “leaner and more efficient company”, as well as prioritising projects like the “longterm vision” for the virtual reality ‘metaverse’.

Investors had been piling pressure on Meta to reduce costs, with the firm’s share price down almost 70 per cent on the year. Some had expressed frustration at the cost of the ‘metaverse’ experiment, which so far has cost the firm almost $9bn this year alone.

Zuckerberg said that during the pandemic “the world rapidly moved online and the surge of e-commerce led to outsized revenue growth”, a trend he believed would continue after Covid-19.

However, he said “this did not play out the way I expected” and “the macroeconomic downturn, increased competition... have caused our revenue to be much lower than I expected”.

It was not clear last night how many jobs would be lost in the UK, though there were reports of hundreds of job

losses being on the cards at Meta’s European HQ in Dublin.

The news came a day after reports that Tiktok, a Facebook competitor, had slashed its worldwide revenue targets for the year by as much as $2bn.

Head of investment at Interactive Investor Victoria Scholar told City A.M. that although Facebook has been at odds with Bytedance-owned Tiktok to nab the attention of Gen Z, the latter’s “overconfidence has led to a spending problem that has got out of control”.

She reckons both firms are set to struggle as advertising dollars continue to get squeezed in the next year – something that will hit Meta the hardest if Zuckerberg keeps driving home his “moonshot bet on the Metaverse, which hasn’t paid off”.

Workers are striking over possible changes to pensions and staffing, though Transport for London has been at pains to say no decisions have been made on pensions, and changes to staffing patterns do not require a single job loss.

According to Richard Burge, chief executive of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, strikes will only hinder London’s competitiveness on the global economic stage, with them damaging the city’s ability to “credibly attract” investment.

TRANSPORT CHAOS TODAY

STANDING UP FOR THE CITY

Ukraine’s sheer willpower and western unity have struck a blow

THERE is, if one is minded to look for it, plenty of bad news about. So instead this column will focus on some good news: what increasingly looks like the routing of Russian forces in eastern Ukraine. As we report below, yesterday –in a bizarre televised meeting –the Kremlin elected to pull out of Kherson, the one regional hub it had managed to secure over what is now eight months of war.

Above all else it’s a triumph of

THE CITY VIEW

Ukrainian will. When much of the world saw Russian tanks crossing the border way back in February, it seemed odds-on that Kyiv would fall within weeks if not days.

How wrong so many analysts were –failing to account for the

BY

DAWN’S

CONTROL of the US Congress hangs in the balance after the Republicans underperformed expectations during the midterm elections yesterday. Donald Trump was reportedly “livid” on election night as his most high profile candidates failed to win their races, with CNN reporting that he was shouting at everyone in his close circle. As of last night the race for control of the US Senate came down to Nevada, Arizona and Georgia, with the Democrats needing to win two to stay in control of the upper house. The Republicans are expected to take control of the House of Representatives, but by a smaller majority than widely predicted.

Many senior Republican figures are now calling for Trump to step aside, after several of his handpicked candidates lost winnable Senate and gubernatorial races.

sheer bloody-mindedness of a people simply unwilling to lose their freedom.

But it would be remiss not to note the part played by a rare display of genuine western unity. At a stroke, much of the west –led by the US, the UK and France –stepped up to the plate to deliver arms and impose sanctions.

Those decisions have led, in part, to real hardship for many; pumping up the price of everything from fuel to a loaf of

bread. By and large, the public and their politicians have accepted that it is the right thing to do to stand up to fascist aggression.

It may not be the last time that western unity is tested. China continues to growl at its neighbour, independent and free Taiwan. Vladimir Putin may react to his global shame with even more aggression.

That the world’s dictators know when pushed to the wall that

the west can come together to defend liberal democracy is a valuable thing.

It is too early to declare Ukraine or the west victorious in this particular struggle, but that does not mean we cannot celebrate those moments when the side of good triumphs over the other. The time will soon come for western unity on rebuilding Ukraine –when cash will be as valuable as the javelins and the anti-tank missiles are now.

WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING

UK HOUSEHOLDS OFFERED CASH TO HELP PREVENT BLACKOUTS IN FRANCE

British households could be paid to help prevent blackouts in France this winter, under plans drawn up by National Grid. Power would not be exported if there wasn’t enough to meet UK demand.

THE FINANCIAL TIMES

LONDON DELAYS N IRELAND ELECTION IN HOPE OF RESOLVING EU TRADE ROW

London is pushing back a deadline to hold elections in Northern Ireland in the hope that the UK and EU can resolve a row over post-Brexit trade rules before next Easter.

THE TIMES

NHS NURSES VOTE TO STRIKE AT MOST HOSPITALS

Most hospitals in the UK will have nurses walking out before the end of the year in a dispute that could last until May. The Royal College of Nursing said the threshold for strike action had been met at 176 employers.

Russia orders troops to withdraw from key city of Kherson in symbolic defeat

RUSSIA has ordered its troops to retreat from the port city of Kherson in Ukraine in a major setback for Vladimir Putin’s war effort.

Russian general Sergei Surovikin yesterday said it was no longer possible to supply the city and the western bank of the River Dnipro.

Kherson, which had a pre-war population of 280,000, was the only provincial capital that was held by Russian forces.

Kherson city is the capital of Kherson oblast –one of four regions that Russia annexed on 30 September –

and fell to the Russians in the early weeks of the war. Surovikin said the withdrawal would happen at “the earliest possible juncture”.

“We will save the lives of our soldiers and fighting capacity of our units,” he said in a statement. “Keeping them on the right [western] bank is futile. Some of them can be used on other fronts.”

It comes after a major Ukrainian counteroffensive that began on 29 August and has seen Kyiv’s troops pushing back Russian artillery across the country.

sounded a cautious note after the announcement of the retreat.

“The statement of the Russian command can mean both the adoption of a political decision, and it can be a trap — turning out to be blurring our eyes before being drawn into urban battles,” he said.

“Until the Ukrainian flag is flying over Kherson, it makes no sense to talk about a Russian withdrawal.”

Vodafone sells towers stake in £14bn consortium deal

LEAH MONTEBELLO

VODAFONE agreed to sell a hefty stake in its phone mast business yesterday to KKR and Global Infrastructure Partners in a deal valuing the firm at €16.2bn (£14.3bn).

thousands of towers across 10 European countries, climbed as much as 12 per cent yesterday following the announcement.

Vodafone chief Nick Read said that deal was a “landmark moment”, allowing his firm to retain cocontrol and dump Vantage Towers off its balance sheet.

Podolyak, an adviser to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky,

Mykhailo

Russia does not have full control of the four Ukrainian regions it has annexed in the East, while its army continues to suffer large amounts of troop casualties.

The FTSE 100 firm said in a statement yesterday that it had agreed a €32-a-share deal for Vantage Towers, allowing Vodafone to move its 81.7 per cent holding into the private equity led joint venture.

Shares in Frankfurt-listed Vantage Towers, which operates tens of

The joint venture will crucially mean that Vantage will no longer be limited by borrowing restrictions imposed on telecom companies.

The consortium includes funding from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

STEFAN BOSCIA

THE

EARLY LIGHT Control of Congress was left hanging in the balance last night as Democrats beat midterm expectations and left Republicans licking their wounds

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH

Next snaps up collapsed Made in £3.4m swoop

LEAH MONTEBELLO

NEXT snapped up the brand, domain names and intellectual property of Made.com for £3.4m in a prepack adminstration yesterday, just 18 months after the retailer made its £775m London market debut.

In a statement yesterday, Made.com confirmed it had appointed administrators PwC to sell off its other assets and pay off its debts.

Chief exec Nicola Thompson, who took over this year, apologised to those impacted by the company going into administration, stating that the firm had “fought tooth and nail” to avoid this outcome.

She said the world of stable demand and reliable supply chains had “vanished” and “we could not pivot fast enough”.

PwC said there will be 399 job losses, with around 300 redundancies made yesterday from its 573 headcount.

Although around 12,000 UK orders are outstanding, cus-

tomers will not be able to get a refund from the company directly, but will need to try their bank provider.

The business only made its debut on the London Stock Exchange in June last year, hoping to continue the home improvement boom it had seen during the pandemic.

However, this proved to be short-lived, with the firm reporting a series of disappointing results in the past year.

Made posted a loss before tax of £35.3m for the six months to 30 June, versus £10.1m a year prior, with consumers turning away from big-ticket items as the cost of living bites.

“Speculation is rife as to why a recently successful business has plunged so rapidly,” said restructuring and insolvency partner at law firm Fladgate Jeremy Whiteson.

He warned that Made’s destiny was likely to be a recurring theme for consumer-orientated businesses as the economy continues to face a squeeze.

JD Wetherspoon shares sink after pub chain sales slow in October

EMILY HAWKINS

JD WETHERSPOON said demand at its budget pub venues had softened slightly in October, causing shares to sink yesterday.

The budget pub chain also said it was planning to sell 39 of its pubs, after getting rid of five sites over the past three months.

Shares closed down over six per

cent yesterday after the company admitted October trading had been slightly slower than expected.

Tim Martin’s pub chain posted buoyant sales for the first quarter, as like-for-like sales were 9.6 per cent higher than the same period last year. The chain will be hoping to entice punters who are keen to trade downwards amid the economic crunch.

In a note to investors yesterday, banking and wealth management group Investec said it felt the London-listed group was “one of the few long-term winners even in the current cost of living crisis”.

The pub operator reported a return to positive cash flow in the 2022 financial year and anticipates a positive cash flow in the current year.

Economic gloom finally spreads to UK jobs market ahead of recession

JACK BARNETT

UK JOB growth has slimmed for the first time since the 2021 Covid-19 winter lockdown, driven by employers bracing for the longest recession on record, a new survey out today reveals.

For the first time since February 2021, when the country was in the late stages of the third and longest pandemic lockdown, businesses trimmed hiring, according to the Recruitment and Employment

Confederation and consultancy KPMG.

The pair’s permanent employment index dropped to 45 last month, down sharply from September, meaning there are fewer vacancies.

A reading below 50 indicates most employers recorded a hiring reversal.

London led the overall survey lower, with the capital posting the weakest reading in the country at 41.5.

Demand for part-time staff, typically employed by pubs, bars and restaurants, also fell to 50.1.

WATCHES of Switzerland yesterday upgraded its outlook for the second half of the financial year after a significant uptick in the purchase of luxury items. The London-based firm saw a 30 per cent increase in revenue for its luxury watches to more than £660m up until October.

IT’S ABOUT TIME Luxury purchases help lift Watches of Switzerland’s financial outlook

Y2Pay: Robots eat into wages but help boost productivity in the UK

MILLIE TURNER

FEARS of robots taking people’s jobs have been “overblown”, with low investment and productivity growth being the real culprits behind the UK’s stagnant economy, according to a report by the Resolution Foundation published today.

However, automation has dampened wage growth for staff

operating alongside the tech, the report, in collaboration with the London School of Economics, found.

Fast developments in artificial intelligence technologies have sparked concern over the past decade of workers being side-lined for robots.

While automation has eaten into wage growth in the UK, the number of jobs actually increased in some sectors and productivity jumped where

robotics were introduced to fulfil some tasks. Between 1995 and 2019, an industry with one robot per thousand workers saw three per cent faster productivity growth on average, the report found.

The UK currently lags behind Europe in its adoption of robotics. But Gartner forecasts the UK’s spending on IT to surge ahead of European peers next year.

Aviva pledges to buy shares amid activist pressure

LOUIS GOSS AND ILARIA GRASSO MACOLA

AVIVA has vowed to continue returning “surplus capital” to shareholders through the launch of another share buyback scheme.

The British insurer yesterday set out plans to start buying back more of its shares from investors, without saying the amount it plans to repurchase, as it faces continued pressure from activist investors to boost shareholder payouts.

Aviva vowed to continue returning surplus capital to the firm’s investors “regularly and sustainably”, as the insurer seeks to pacify Swedish activist fund Cevian Capital, which holds a six per cent stake in the UK’s largest insurance firm.

Cevian has repeatedly called on Aviva to pay more money back to shareholders, asking the firm to hand over £5bn to investors by the end of 2022.

Aviva has so far returned £4.75bn to shareholders in the company after raising £7.5bn through a series of asset sales made following Blanc’s succession as chief executive of the UK firm.

The insurer said its Solvency II position “remains very strong” as the firm claimed it had shown “very strong resilience” in the face of the “high levels of market volatility” the UK experienced following the announcement of Liz Truss’ mini-budget in September.

Aviva’s pledge to launch another share buyback scheme comes after the insurer posted a 10 per cent increase in general insurance gross written premiums, which saw the line of its

business generate £7.2bn in the first nine months of 2022. The value of new business in Aviva’s UK & Ireland life insurance division also increased 46 per cent to £466m driven by an uptick that saw the value of new business from its annuities and equity release business jump to £143m, from £16m in the first nine months of last year.

Aviva’s baseline costs were down two per cent year-on-year to £2bn, in a sign the firm is on track to deliver its £750m savings target by the end of 2024.

Studios saves the day for ITV as the broadcaster rides out ad dip

LEAH MONTEBELLO

ITV APPEARED to survive its own bush tucker trial this quarter, with its studios arm saving the day with double-digit growth.

The I’m a Celebrity maker delivered a 16 per cent boost in revenue to £1.4bn, as ITV Studios continues to grow ahead of the market with a roster of big-hitters like Love Island.

Although total ad revenue fell two per cent compared to 2021, sending ITV shares tumbling yesterday, this was

largely expected, especially compared to the Euros summer last year.

Nonetheless, Hargreaves Lansdown equity analyst Sophie Lund-Yates said that mega-hits are still too few and far between for ITV, exposing the broadcaster to future losses.

The firm is due to launch its new streaming service ITVX next month, which will introduce a paid ad-free subscription offering. Lund-Yates said the move was “admirable”, but warned “there simply may not be enough spare eyeballs to go around”.

The I’m a Celebrity maker saw total external revenue climb six per cent to £2.5bn

Aviva has faced pressure from Cevian to increase shareholder payouts

EQT Ventures eyes UK spree with £970m fund

SWEDEN’s EQT Ventures said it was eyeing up a UK investment spree yesterday after it bucked a downturn in the market to raise $1.1bn (£970m) to pump into early-stage tech firms across Europe.

EQT, which has raised over $2.3bn since launching in 2016, said it was looking to fuel growth of firms across the continent and take advantage of subdued prices as the market is buffeted by headwinds this year.

Venture capital has dropped off in the third quarter of the year as rising interest rates and a looming recession make cash harder to come by for investors and start-ups. Analysts are predicting a sustained slide in investment levels as recession grips the UK and beyond.

But speaking with City A.M., EQT cofund lead Ali Mitchell said opportunities in the UK and beyond were still rife and the fund was looking to spur growth across tech sectors including gaming, so-called deep-tech and climate tech.

“We’re still seeing a lot of start-ups coming through at the very early stage. Actually, there’s been a rise in start-up founders,” he told City A.M.

“The legend goes that some of the greatest companies of our time were all started in the last big downturn, and that’s totally true. And we’ll see the same thing again.”

He added that the UK was likely to lean into its traditional industries in the years ahead and continue producing AI and deeptech start-ups out of its universities, as well as maritime and automotive firms. UK firms had been hampered by a lack of growth capital in the past however, he said.

“What we need is the money to support these companies to help them grow on a global stage,” he added.“And that’s one of the reasons I’m very proud to be back here, as a Londoner back in London – back from the Valley – to back these companies with a lot of money, because one of the things that Europe has lacked has been large, homegrown funds to build global winners.”

EQT has got the backing of a host of institutional investors, foundations and endowments across Europe, the Americas and APAC with the new fund.

It has already provided lead investment to 13 start-ups, with the firm now set to ramp up its investment in tech firms in the new year.

Jaguar Land Rover’s revenue surges on Range Rover models production

ILARIA GRASSO MACOLA

JAGUAR Land Rover’s revenue has surged over the last quarter following a ramp-up in the production of Range Rovers.

The luxury car maker yesterday posted a profit of £5.3bn –up 36 per cent on last year’s levels and 20 per cent higher than the last quarter.

The company’s order book increased to 205,000 units, 5,000

more than in June, as the marque’s three most profitable models –the New Range Rover, New Range Rover Sport and Defender –represented 70 per cent of the total.

Global retail sales –up by 11.8 per cent on the previous quarter – were higher in China and North America, slumping seven and 10 per cent in the UK and Europe respectively.

“Demand for our most profitable and desired vehicles remains strong and we expect to continue to improve

our performance in the second half of the year, as new agreements with semiconductor partners take effect,” said chief executive Thierry Bollore.

Late last month Jaguar announced a partnership with US manufacturer Wolfspeed to secure the supply of semiconductors for the electrification of its vehicles.

Despite ongoing semiconductor constraints, Jaguar managed to shrink its losses before tax by 42 per cent to

LONDON NEWBIE Ithaca Energy sees shares plunge almost 12 per cent on market debut in a lacklustre first day of trading

Venture and PE funds begin to reverse

CHARLIE CONCHIE

PRIVATE equity and venture capital funds have reversed and begun losing investors cash in the past quarter as the market is buffeted by a cocktail of interest rate hikes and a looming recession, according to a new report.

Private capital delivered a 1.1 per cent loss to investors in the second quarter of 2022 globally as the “macro environment shifted”, a new report from investment analysis

firm Pitchbook found. PE and VC strategies led the fall globally as they shed on average 3.2 per cent and 2.3 per cent respectively, analysts at the firm found.

It comes as the volatility that has rocked public markets spills over into private firms and sends valuations tumbling.

Pitchbook said that the bumper gains made in the preceding year had now begun to reverse.

“Preliminary figures for [the

second quarter] do show a recognition that the macro environment has shifted, as private capital is indicating a minus 1.1 per cent return,” said Hilary Wiek, lead analyst, fund strategies and sustainable investing at Pitchbook.

“In the preliminary figures, PE and VC trailed the other private fund strategies in the second quarter of 2022, with the highest fliers of 2021 having further to fall back to recognize the new normal.”

Firstgroup eyes long-term contract for Avanti as it focuses on timetable

FIRSTGROUP is working to deliver a long-term government contract for its hailed subsidiary Avanti as the group focuses on ensuring “acceptable” service levels to passengers.

“Our complete focus in the second half will be on operational improvements and delivering

acceptable passenger service levels,” chief executive Graham Sutherland said yesterday.

Avanti made the headlines over the summer when it was forced to slash services after a drop in the number of drivers volunteering to work on rest days led to cancellations and delays.

“We expect material progress as we launch the new timetables in

December,” the chief executive added.

Avanti last month was awarded a six-month contract extension by the Department for Transport (DfT) to assess whether it can run services.

“If we achieve that we’re also confident that we will be able to sign a national rail contract for Avanti.”

A DfT spokesperson told City A.M. the company must do more.

CHARLIE CONCHIE

ILARIA GRASSO MACOLA

AS THE UK’s largest public float of the year, Ithaca Energy received a subdued welcome yesterday. It was the first major company to use new listing rules for the London Stock Exchange. The North Sea oil and gas producer had raised some £288m to pay down debt, with its public listing priced at 250p a share, the bottom of an expected range. It has a market capitalisation of around £2.5bn.

Top dog leaves Brewdog to replace Simon Longbottom at Stonegate

EMILY HAWKINS

ONE OFBrewdog’s top bosses is leaving the brewer to head Stonegate, one of the UK’s largest pub chains.

David McDowall, Brewdog’s president and chief operating officer, is to take up the reins at the Slug & Lettuce chain, Sky News first reported yesterday.

Stonegate, which operates 4,500 pubs across the country, confirmed that its CEO Simon Longbottom would leave his role at the end of

February 2023.

Longbottom is exiting the Popworld operator to “pursue interests abroad” but will remain as a shareholder and work with Stonegate founder Ian Payne on the handover of his role.

Stonegate had risen from “a challenger brand to an industry leader in just eight years”, Longbottom said yesterday, describing his stint at the chain as “an amazing journey”.

Last year, momentum for the Scottish brewer and pub operator to

American dream for Flutter stays market horror

THE AMERICAN dream lives on for another quarter for Flutter, as the betting giant hikes it revenue guidance for US arm Fanduel.

The Paddy Power and Betfair owner told investors yesterday its thirdquarter revenues rose 22 per cent year-on-year to £1.89bn, largely thanks to its stateside success.

US revenue surged 82 per cent to $700m (£613m), pushing the firm to upgrade its revenue guidance to between $2.95bn-$3.2bn.

In Europe, the company kept its earnings in line with previous guidance at between £1.29bn and £1.39bn, moderated by “continued Irish retail weakness and UK fixture cancellations”.

The London-listed company added there was “no discernible sign of slowdown” due to the cost of living crisis, with average monthly players going up in the third quarter by 23 per cent from last year.

Flutter CEO Peter Jackson said he was confident Fanduel could turn a

profit in 2023, backing the boost from both the NFL and NBA seasons in the US.

However, the markets did not share this enthusiasm, with shares fluttering to the bottom of the FTSE 100 yesterday afternoon, making it the second worst performing stock on the UK index.

Analysts at Peel Hunt said the firm’s dwindling share price continues to

Flutter said there was no sign of a slowdown due to the cost of living crisis

deny Flutter “sufficient credit” for Fanduel’s place as the number one US sportsbook, with a 42 per cent market share.

Head of investment at Interactive Investor Victoria Scholar told City A.M. that the firm was weighed down by Jackson’s comments that the sector was unlikely to see UK reforms on gambling regulation before Christmas – something she said has been an “overhang” since the first quarter.

The white paper was expected this year, but has faced a number of delays.

make its market debut in London went cool, with Brewdog boss James Watt suggesting the firm could look at floating in 2023.

Brewdog has faced negative headlines this week after launching an ‘anti-sponsorship’ campaign for the Qatar World Cup, which critics deemed “disingenuous” in light of the firm donating profits to charities but continuing to show the tournament.

The firm was also slammed by unions, who noted the reported “culture of fear” present in its own workplace.

DRESS REHEARSAL Square Mile gets glimpse of Lord Mayor’s golden State coach

CITY workers got a surprise preview of the Lord Mayor’s show yesterday, with a predawn rehearsal starting in Guildhall Yard and travelling through The Mansion House and St Paul’s Cathedral. The main event is set to take place this weekend.

‘Storm gathering’, warns Marks & Spencer

MARKS & Spencer (M&S) has warned of a “gathering storm”, with the cost of living crunch facing consumers set to intensify after Christmas.

The group’s half-year profit slid after its joint venture with online grocer Ocado suffered a £0.7m loss.

In results to 1 October, M&S said its group profit before tax was £205.5m, versus a £269.4m sum last year.

Bosses pointed to a lack of business rates relief compared to last year and the fact that earnings from Russia no longer contributed to group results, as well as the loss-making Ocado.

Ocado has struggled to maintain its pandemic-era momentum in recent months, with shoppers adding fewer items to their baskets after the reopening of society following Covid-19 lockdowns.

M&S Food saw sales up by 5.6 per cent in the period, while its oncebeleaguered Clothing & Home arm was heralded by the retailer as the “stand out”, with sales up 14 per cent.

However, operating profit in its food business declined, sliding to £71.8m versus £124m last year.

M&S pointed to a combination of investment to retain loyal shoppers and monster operating costs.

The grocer said it did not pass through the full effect of inflation –which stood at 11 per cent in this time – to customers.

Market conditions were expected to become even more challenging in the months to come, bosses warned.

However, “far-reaching changes made over the past few years” to the group would provide it some insulation from a “gathering storm”.

“Uncertainty is at its maximum,” M&S boss Stuart Machin told reporters yesterday morning, though he added that customers were still determined to have a good Christmas despite this.

London SMEs are ‘choked off’ from goverment contracts, says Rayner

STEFAN BOSCIA

THE GOVERNMENT is “choking off” opportunities for London small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by missing targets in awarding government contracts, Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner has said.

Rayner yesterday told City A.M. that the public procurement process was a

“Tory racket”, with new figures showing just a quarter of London SMEs have been successful in their bid to win a government contract.

The figures from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) also show the government has not met its target of awarding one-in-three public contracts to SMEs by 2022.

The FSB, a business advocacy group,

warned small businesses were being “excluded” from government contracts due to red tape and “unnecessary contract terms”.

A Cabinet Office spokesperson said that government spending with SMEs hit a record £19.3bn for 2020-21 –an increase of £3.7bn on the previous year –and that new laws would “strengthen opportunities for SMEs.

LEAH MONTEBELLO

The grocer said it did not pass on the full effect of inflation – which stood at 11 per cent in this time – to customers

Rayner said that the public procurement process was a “Tory racket”

EMILY HAWKINS

Mortgage default wave more likely in Britain than other countries

JACK BARNETT

THE UK is at greater risk of being jolted by an uptick in mortgage defaults during the global economic slowdown, a top Wall Street bank has warned.

Goldman Sachs reckons the country will undergo a bigger unemployment surge than other English speaking countries, dealing a blow to households’ capacity to pay off home debts.

A one percentage point jump in joblessness results in a 20 basis point rise in mortgage defaults in Britain, Goldman estimated.

Unemployment has actually held low and is running at the lowest level since the 1970s, although this has been partly driven by an exodus of workers from the jobs market.

Spending power in the UK is on course

to drop quickly over the next two years, fuelled by pay growth failing to keep pace with historically high inflation, which is currently running at a 40-year high of 10.1 per cent.

“Income shocks pose a significant risk to defaults in the UK,” Goldman said.

Last week, the Bank of England forecast around 2m homeowners could face a £3,000 jump in their annual mortgage bills when they refinance due to banks passing on soaring UK debt rates sparked by Liz Truss’ mini-budget.

Goldman said the US, Canada and Australia are less likely to undergo an uptick in mortgage defaults, due to homeowners locking in debt for longer and a less severe rise in unemployment.

UK housing debt looks shakier due to “the shorter duration of UK mortgages” and a longer slump, Goldman added.

RENTERS in the UK probably collectively punched the air when they saw the latest Halifax and Nationwide HPIs revealed house prices dropped over the last month.

The country is now in the early throes of a property market slump. A huge real income shock, an uptick in unemployment and the quickest rate hike cycle by the Bank of England in recent history have heaped a lot of pressure on the housing market.

It’s not all upside though when house prices drop, as renters might

THE BOTTOM LINE

think. Pain is shifted elsewhere. First, there’s a risk some homeowners’ debt could top the share of their housing equity. A lot of mortgage loans in the UK are full recourse, meaning banks can grab other assets to cover the shortfall.

Second, a fall in house prices often dents confidence by making people feel poorer, prompting a spending slowdown and hitting economic

growth, something economists call consumption “wealth effects”. This would result in an uptick in unemployment and lower incomes.

Third, a rise in mortgage defaults sparked by rising debt servicing costs and rising prices squeezing incomes would spook banks. That is exactly what happened after the financial crisis, leading to a big credit crunch that held back the recovery.

Renters are seemingly still unable to catch a break.

JACK BARNETT

City of London update

The Lor d Mayor’s Show re turns this Satur day

THIS Saturday sees the return of the noisiest, largest and most colourful event in the City’s calendar : the Lord Mayor’s Show.

Military bands, Taiko drummers, mounted knights, a 1955 Austin Champ and a very large inflatable pig will be among the attractions in the three-milelong procession.

IN THE last six months, the homebuilder reported a net private sales rate of 0.51 homes per outlet per week, down 44 per cent on last year’s levels. As of 6 November, Taylor Wimpey’s total book order stood at around £2.6bn, representing 9,153 homes. This was down on last year’s £2.8bn and 10,643 homes. The company said it was focusing on selling in a “tougher market”.

Purplebricks shareholder revolt to shun chairman continues

PURPLEBRICKS shareholder

Lecram Holdings has once again sought to oust the online estate agents’ chairman.

The digital agent confirmed yesterday it had received an order from Lecram to ask shareholders to consider removing chairman Paul Pindar as a director.

Lecram has called for Harry Douglas Hill, the founder of online property site Rightmove, to be appointed a director to eventually take over the helm as chairman.

Purplebricks’ board doubled down on its support for Pindar,

adding that it believes he has the “continued support of a number of major shareholders”, including Axel Springer SE, which owns a 26.5 per cent stake in the company.

The board said it is reviewing the “legal validity” of the order with its advisers.

Lecram first began its revolt in July, saying “urgent action” was needed to stifle “continuing cash burn” and “restore its credibility” among investors.

Chairman Paul Pinder has “presided over this highly unsatisfactory performance”, Lecram wrote in July, adding he should “stand aside”.

Housing market demand suffers

The event will bring together over 6,500 people, 250 horses, and over 50 decorated floats travelling from Mansion House to the Royal Courts of Justice and back.

Nicholas Lyons has been elected as the next Lord Mayor, taking office on Friday 11 November. He will ride in the golden State Coach as part of the annual event, which celebrates the City’s ancient past and modern outlook, cheered on by an estimated 250,000 people lining the City’s streets.

OCTOBER saw buyer demand and agreed sales slip further, as the housing market continues to weaken.

New buyer enquiries dropped for the sixth month in a row, RICS Residential Market Survey revealed today.

House prices slowed considerably in momentum over the last month, with RICS declaring that growth had grinded to a halt.

Buyers have been exercising caution against a backdrop of a dramatic leap in mortgage costs. Experts said activity volumes were likely to slip back over the coming months.

lordmayorsshow.london

EMILY HAWKINS

MILLIE TURNER

again in October

ON TRACK Taylor Wimpey remains set to deliver a £922m full year profit despite cancellation rates increasing by 10 per cent

US Equal Weight Index Proved Defensive

approach to US indices

The most common type of equity index has its weights based on the market capitalization of each company within the index. Both the S&P 500 and the FTSE 100 are market-capweighted indices. This skews performance towards their largest constituents.

But there are also equally weighted versions of the same indices. So for the S&P500, each company is weighted at 1/500 th (0.2%). This entirely removes the “size bias” that cap-weighted indices create. This skews performance away from the largest constituents.

Critics of passive investing are actually critics of market cap weighting, not of indexes, which can be weighted in all sorts of ways. Their argument goes that investors’ funds blindly follow the weights of companies in an index in such a way that “the big get bigger” into a selffulfilling loop.

The reality is that the largest weighted companies are those with 1) highest earnings and 2) highest valuation multiples investors pay for those earnings. Companies drive indices, not the other way round.

But what is true that if and when indices become concentrated, one sector can materially dominate the performance of the overall index.

CONCENTRATION RISK

In the 1980s, the S&P 500 was dominated by Big Oil. In the 2020s- by Big Tech. For investors concerned about the tech sector and tech valuations, traditional passive funds were overly exposed. But accepting concentration risk is a choice, not an obligation.

In 2021, we set out the case for an equal weight approach to provide useful diversification for those wanting to invest in the US equity market yet requiring a more defensive position with lower exposure to tech and reduced concentration risk.

This defensive approach has proved effective in 2022 performance.

WHAT ARE THE OPTIONS:

£For the traditional passive approach –with higher concentration risk – there are no shortage of ETFs available. The largest is iShares Core S&P 500 UCITS ETF (LSE:CSP1). The largest holding is Apple

(7%) and tech makes up 26.3% of the index.

£The Xtrackers S&P 500 Equal Weight UCITS ETF 1C (LSE:XDWE). There is no largest holding – everything has an equal weight of 0.20%! Tech makes up 14.8% of the index. The fund is physical and costs 0.25% TER.

Using an equal weight index means an equal allocation individual stocks, the allocation to specific sectors is based on the number of companies in that sector, not their size.

An equal weight approach eliminates idiosyncratic, company-specific risk and is the ultimate“deconcentration” strategy.

J&J faces UK class action lawsuit over claims talc products caused cancer

LOUIS GOSS

NEW JERSEY pharma giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is set to face a class action lawsuit over claims asbestos in its talc products caused UK customers to develop cancer.

The UK lawsuit is being brought forward by a new UK law firm launched by high-profile Houston litigator Mark Lanier, who previously won a multibillion dollar settlement against J&J over claims its talc product caused 22 women to develop ovarian cancer.

The UK lawsuit is set to claim that thousands of British people may also have developed cancer due to being exposed to asbestos in J&J and other pharma companies’ talc products.

The launch of the collective action lawsuit follows the launch of Lanier’s new Manchester-based law firm.

Lanier’s US law firm – The Lanier Law Firm – previously won a $4.69bn (£4.12bn) payout from J&J in 2018.

The sum was later lowered to $2.1bn in 2020 before the US Supreme Court blocked J&J from further appeals in 2021.

The US trial lawyer’s new UK firm –Lanier, Longstaff, Hedar & Roberts LLP – is now set to launch a British collective action lawsuit against J&J.

Lanier’s new UK firm is set to argue that pharmaceutical giants, including J&J, continued to sell products to British consumers, despite having known about the presence of asbestos fibres in those products for decades.

“Companies have made many millions from the sales of its talc, and we believe there are many more victims, including in the UK, who deserve justice for having their lives cut short by

these terrible and incurable cancers, which could so easily have been avoided,” Lanier said.

As well as J&J, Lanier has previously led a series of high-profile lawsuits against some of the world’s largest companies, including German pharmaceutical company Merck and British oil major BP.

The lawsuit comes after J&J in August announced plans to stop selling talc products in all markets worldwide by 2023. At the time, the firm said in a statement that its “position on the safety of our cosmetic talc remains unchanged”.

J&J is one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, with the firm posting annual revenues of almost $94bn last year.

J&J has been approached by City A.M. for comment.

WARNING SHOT American biotech Novavax dials back revenue expectations despite roaring sales of Covid-19 vaccine Nuvaxovid

Novavax yesterday dialled back its revenue expectations despite the success of its Covid-19 jab.

The company forecast full year revenue to be on the low end of its previously forecast range of between $2bn (£1.7bn) and $2.3bn (£2bn).

The vaccine, known as Nuvaxovid, was responsible for $626m in sales in the three-month period.

ABOUT IG

IG was established in 1974 and offers UK investors the opportunity to buy and sell shares, investment trusts and exchange traded funds (ETFs) at low commission rates in a share dealing or ISA account, as well as ready-made, expertly-managed Smart Portfolios. For research purposes only. Nothing in this article constitutes a personal recommendation, endorsement or financial promotion. Any trademarks cited are the property of their respective owners.

Elston Consulting was established in 2012 and provides portfolio, fund and index research and investment solutions to wealth managers and financial advisers

NOTICES

All ETFs mentioned are London-listed ETFs and available on the IG share dealing platform.

Your capital is at risk. The value of shares, ETFs and ETCs can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in.

Octopus teams up with Lloyds in scheme to slash heat pump costs

CHARLIE CONCHIE

RENEWABLE energy firm Octopus yesterday struck a deal with Lloyds Banking Group to roll out low-cost heat pumps to customers, in a tieup that aims to help decarbonise domestic heating.

The two firms said the move was part of a wider “strategic partnership” that would encourage customers to retrofit existing UK properties with renewable tech and increase energy efficiency.

Lloyds said the pilot scheme had launched through the Halifax brand and would allow customers to use mortgage borrowing to fund

the switch to an air-source heat pump and bag £1,000 cashback after installation.

Rebecca Dibb-Simkin, chief product officer at Octopus, said the pilot came at a “crucial time” with customers facing “a dual climate and cost of living crisis”.

It comes after ministers rolled-out a “boiler upgrade scheme” which provides grants of £5,000 to move away from polluting boiler systems.

While heat pumps havefaced criticism due to prohibitively high prices that can reach £13,000, Lloyds and Octopus claimed the cost of installation could drop to £2,000 under their cashback scheme.

Organisations fail to track supply chain emissions

NET ZERO remains at the bottom of priority lists for organisations despite glowing pledges, a report by

Just a quarter of public and private sector bodies track emissions across their supply chain, the report in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply found.

Most urge that carbon management is important, the report added, but few are tracking their own impact.

Some organisations need to restructure their supply chains to drive progress, Deloitte partner Kathryn Thompson said.

MILLIE TURNER

Deloitte revealed yesterday.

US BIOTECH

Henry Cobbe CFA, Head of Research at Elston Consulting, looks at an alternative

In the US this year, equal weight indices have outperformed their cap-weighted versions

HALL SEEKING A DOUBLE IN THE DESERT

AMAJOR champion and twotime European order of merit winner by her early twenties, Georgia Hall has already ticked a lot of boxes in her young career.

Over the coming weeks she hopes to reach a new milestone: a first multiple title-winning year. Having claimed the Saudi Ladies International in March, Hall will aim for a second victory of 2022 at the same course in this week’s Aramco Team Series Jeddah before heading to the US for the finale to the LPGA Tour season, the CME Group Tour Championship.

Success at either big-money event would crown a fine year for the 26year-old from Dorset, who has been a regular presence at the top of leaderboards and achieved career-best finishes in the three US-based majors.

“It’s been my most consistent year yet,” Hall tells City A.M. “I’ve had a few goes in contention, which always means a lot to me, I’ve done pretty well

in the majors, especially in America, and I’ve been much more consistent there, which was one of my goals.

“I’ve just played really really solid golf, so I’m really happy with my season. Obviously it would be great to finish with another win. It would mean a lot. Another box ticked.

“It was nice for me to win early this season; all my wins have come AugustSeptember time. I tend to have a much stronger second half of the year.

“Winning early in the season by as many as I did was important and that’s helped create a very strong second half of the year.”

EAGLE OPPORTUNITIES

Hall has every reason to feel confident about teeing off today at Royal Greens, where she romped home by five shots in the Saudi Ladies International.

The Middle East has consistently brought out strong performances from the 2018 British Open champion, which she puts down to the quality of

the setups and the chance to test herself in breezy conditions.

“I think the courses suit me. A lot of desert around and normally it can get fairly windy. A lot of these golf courses are in really good condition which brings out the slightly better putters as well,” Hall says.

“I really like [Royal Greens], I think it suits me really well. I can reach pretty much every par five, which seems to be the strongest part of my game – long irons in. So for me it sets up a lot of eagle opportunities.

“Most importantly it gives me a lot of confidence, like other events I’ve done well in in the past. I feel like I don’t have a massive weakness to my game, but also the wind and weather come into it where I feel a bit more comfortable. I just really enjoy the week, so it helps with playing good golf.”

On top of that, she has performed well in all her previous appearances at Aramco Team Series events, just missing out to fellow Englishwoman

MATTHEW RELISHING THE R

probably 90 per cent American and now there are I think around 30 different nationalities. That’s been one of the biggest differences: the emergence of golf in different countries.

“And in the last five to 10 years, the bigger profile and the prize money going up. In the last five years it really has started to rocket for the ladies.”

Matthew, 53, plays only a handful of times a year now but enjoys sampling team competition again

WOMEN’S golf has come a very long way since Catriona Matthew first swung a club, thanks in no small part to the trailblazing Scot.

When she joined her local club in North Berwick in the early 1980s, prize money was a fraction of that in the men’s game, with just £5,600 on offer to the winner of the Women’s British Open. By the time Matthew won that same major in 2009 – just weeks after giving birth to her second daughter –it had snowballed to £300,000.

Now it is around £1m and a professional circuit once almost solely the domain of Americans has become far more cosmopolitan.

“It’s changed hugely. Probably the biggest difference over the whole 20odd years I’ve been on tour is the different nationalities and depth all around the world,” she tells City A.M.

“When I first started the tour was

One of the forces behind swelling purses in women’s golf has been the Aramco Team Series, at which Matthew, 53, will take part in Jeddah this week. The string of five $1m events, which became part of the Ladies European Tour last year, reaches its conclusion for 2022 at Royal Greens in Saudi Arabia.

Matthew, whose career has also been defined by the Solheim Cup, plays only a handful of times a year now but relishes the chance for team competition.

“I’ve enjoyed the Aramco Team Series because of the team element where my individual score is not quite as important as it is in a normal event,” she says. “Obviously they’re not quite the same as the Solheim but I’ve played in enough 72-hole strokeplay events that it is nice to do something different.”

BETTER PLAYERS

Matthew, who played in nine Solheim Cups and captained Europe to back-toback victories in 2019 and 2021, believes the Aramco Team Series has also helped the LET to retain talent. “I think

Second win of the season is in Englishwoman’s sights as she returns to scene of her last victory, she tells Frank Dalleres

Hall won by five shots when she played the Saudi Ladies International at Royal Greens in March

Solheim Cup icon believes game is heading in right direction, she tells Frank Dalleres

Bronte Law in London earlier this year and never finishing worse than seventh in four outings.

Part of Europe’s Solheim Cup wins in 2019 and 2021, Hall says she enjoys the switch from 72-hole strokeplay to the series’ simultaneous team and individual competitions.

“It’s nice to play in a different format. It’s really fun picking your team and seeing who else you get drawn with. It makes it different and more interesting and I’ve really enjoyed taking part when I can,” she adds.

“I really love team events. You play strokeplay all the time so it’s really

one of the strongest positions it’s ever been in. I think that will continue.”

ANOTHER LEVEL

Hall puts her strong season down to an even more cool-headed approach on the course and a stricter fitness regime that has allowed her to perform when playing for several weeks in a row.

“I feel like I’ve strengthened parts of my game that were slightly weaker last year,” the world No28 says.

“I’ve always been someone who doesn’t stress on the course but I think I’ve brought it to another level where I’m literally focusing like it’s a practice round. They say practise like you play and play like you practise – I try to be a bit more intense when I practise and then when I play I feel like I’ve done the hard work to go and produce on the course.

“Also my fitness this year, I’ve really tried to incorporate that more in my weeks off, getting a bit stronger. By the fourth or fifth week [of tournaments in a row] normally mentally I tire a bit, but this year I’ve been able to keep going, so I think the physical side of things has really helped to allow my body to carry on. That’s probably been one of the main factors this year why I’ve been more consistent.”

FIVE EVENTS, $5M: HOW SERIES WORKS

The Aramco Team Series comprises five events, each offering $1m in prize money. Players compete in fourballs for the team crown over the first two days, with the final day reserved for the conclusion of the individual competition.

BANGKOK, 12-14 MAY

The curtain raiser to the 2022 series took place at a new stop on the circuit, the Thai Country Club. Belgian Manon de Roey (right) won the individual prize and Australia’s Whitney Hillier captained the winning team –following in the footsteps of Tiger Woods, who won the Asian Honda Classic at the venue 25 years ago.

LONDON, 16-18 JUNE

nice to change it up. To be playing not only for yourself but for other people makes it fun.”

The Aramco Team Series has injected an additional $5m in prize money to the Ladies European Tour each year, providing much-needed financial security to the circuit post-pandemic. It is just the latest development in the growth of women’s golf and women’s sport more generally, which Hall believes will continue to thrive.

“What Aramco has done for the LET has been phenomenal. I’ve spoken to a lot of girls and they say how much they enjoy the events and how much it has helped the tour,” she says.

“Hopefully we continue to have events like this and other sponsors raise their level. Women’s sport is in

However she fares in Saudi Arabia this week, Hall is also hoping to challenge in Florida next week at the CME Group Tour Championship.

She was tied for seventh two years ago at the lucrative event, which will this time pay the winner an LPGA Tour record $2m from a prize fund of $7m.

Beyond that, Hall has set herself the targets for 2023 of adding a second major – this time in the US – and climbing from her current world ranking into the very top echelons.

“I’ve had some good finishes there and I think that golf course suits me well so I’d love to try and finish [the year] on a high there,” she adds.

“I’d love to win a major in America and be in the world top 10. That’s my goal next year. If my ranking gets better it means I’m contending more.”

RISE OF WOMEN’S GOLF

first and foremost for the players it has brought bigger purses,” she says. “They are good for the LET. Hopefully it encourages other tournaments to raise their purses a little bit.

“Certainly a lot of the Europeans will come to the European Tour now rather than go straight out to the States. The more money you get, the better players and it just improves everyone.”

Matthew could expect to bank many times more than her $9.7m in career prize money if she were starting out now, but she insists she doesn’t envy the rewards on offer today.

“I don’t think so, no,” she says. “I think you can look back at the generation before me and they probably thought we were playing for much bigger purses than they did. It’s one of these things. It’s just great to see the higher profile of women’s golf.

“We’re definitely heading in the right direction. Everyone would like more TV coverage – the more TV coverage, the more the players are known and then you get more people interested and bigger crowds. That then leads to bigger purses.”

Although her schedule has slimmed, Matthew offered a reminder that her playing days are far from done when finishing in a share of third at the US Senior Women’s Open in August.

“I think that’s a big goal of mine. I had some good finishes in the US Women’s Open but I never managed to

win it,” she says. “It’s just a different stage of my career. Obviously you’re still playing against good players who are at the same stage in their careers. A win is a win, it doesn’t really matter who you are playing against. Any time you win a major would be great.”

AMBITIONS

She intends to continue cherry-picking events with a view to winning one of the two senior majors – and remains puzzled by the absence of a senior version of the Women’s British Open.

“The US Senior Women’s Open is my main focus to really compete and try and win the event,” she says.

“The one thing it would be great to see is a Women’s British Senior Open start up. That would be nice to see and perhaps have the opportunity to play

in it. I don’t know why that hasn’t happened yet. Hopefully [chief executive] Martin Slumbers and the R&A are thinking about it.”

Matthew’s other ambitions include helping to foster new generations of Scottish women challenging for the biggest prizes in golf.

“I’d love to see more girls playing golf in Scotland and a better flow of players coming through, competing on the world stage and vying for No1 spot,” she adds.

“You’ve got [Scottish No1] Gemma Dryburgh who’s been playing really well out in the States this year. Hannah Darling is just going into her second year of college in the US, she’s one of the big hopefuls.

“Grace Crawford is a wee bit younger again and another with potential. The more you get, the more they push each other on.”

One thing Matthew is adamant that she won’t be doing, however, is captaining Europe at a future Solheim Cup in an attempt for an unprecedented hat-trick.

“No, not at all –that’s an easy question. I was really lucky to do it twice but there’s always someone else whose career is at that stage and it’s their turn,” she says. “For Suzann [Pettersen] it was the perfect time for her to do it next year. It’s not something you can hog. I think I’d be chancing my luck to go for three.”

Centurion Club, nestled in the Hertfordshire countryside just north of the capital, hosted the first stop in last year’s inaugural series and returned as a host venue this summer. Bronte Law (left) won an allEnglish duel with Georgia Hall for the individual title, snatching victory with an eagle at the last, while South African Nicole Garcia’s quartet won the team competition.

SOTOGRANDE, 18-20 AUGUST

Nelly Korda (right) justified her star billing by winning the solo prize at the third leg of the series in southern Spain during the summer. Elder sister Jessica completed a clean sweep for the star siblings of US golf at La Reserva Club by captaining the winning side in the team competition.

NEW YORK, 13-15 OCTOBER

JEDDAH, 10-12 NOVEMBER

The

late 2020.

US star Lexi Thompson made it consecutive American winners of individual Aramco Team Series competitions with a three-shot victory in the Big Apple last month. Swede’s Johanna Gustavsson captained the winning team.

series concludes at its spiritual home (above), Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, where the format was first trialled as the Saudi Ladies Team International in

I’ve played really solid golf so I’m really happy with my season. It would be great to finish with another win

It would be great to see a Women’s British Senior Open. I don’t know why that hasn’t happened yet

PIA TO PEER: BABNIK AND CHALLENGERS

ARAMCO Team Series Jeddah defending champion Pia Babnik is back at Royal Greens this week and hoping that a focus on the team competition will serve her well again.

The Slovenian teenager underlined her immense promise by winning the individual competition 12 months ago, her second professional title in a breakthrough year.

Still only 18, Babnik has gone from strength to strength in 2022, with a topthree finish at a major among her season highlights.

“I only have good memories of last year’s tournament,” she said. “I had a great team, a great amateur and I had great fun throughout the tournament.

“I was more focused on my team score but it turned out that that was even better for my individual result.”

Babnik is one of 10 players in a high-quality field in Saudi Arabia who have already tasted victory at previous Aramco Team Series events.

English pair Bronte Law and Charley Hull are on that list, having respectively won the individual competitions in London earlier this year and New York last season. Law will

be hoping a return to the unique format of the $5m series sparks a turnaround in fortunes, having missed six cuts in 12 outings since her win.

By contrast, Hull is riding high in the world top 20 after claiming her second LPGA Tour title last month.

Compatriot Georgia Hall will also be among the contenders at Royal Greens, where she won in March at the Saudi Ladies International (see pages 12-13).

Alison Lee, who triumphed at Sotogrande last year, will aim to make it three American winners in a row in the series, following Lexi Thompson and Nelly Korda.

Belgian Manon de Roey is also seeking her second Aramco Team Series crown, having won the first leg of this season’s circuit in Bangkok.

Johanna Gustavsson, Nicole Garcia and Whitney Hillier are all former winning captains of the team competition at previous Aramco Team Series events and set to play this week.

And a woman who knows a thing or two about team contests, Suzann Pettersen, is coming out of retirement to play her first pro event since sinking the winning putt at the 2019 Solheim Cup.

Teenage champion is back to defend her crown but faces stiff test from fellow Aramco Team Series winners, writes Frank Dalleres

De Roey won the first leg of this year’s series in Bangkok

Hull took the 2021 New York title and is in fine form

Babnik has gone from strength to strength in 2022

Pettersen is coming out of retirement to play

Jeddah

Law won on home soil at the London event earlier this year

Countdown to the Crypto AM Summit and Awards

WITH only days to go, the countdown to one of the most hotly-anticipated events on the crypto calendar is on.

The Crypto AM Summit and Awards 2022 begins on Tuesday November 22 with a VIP reception before kicking off two days of world class discussion, debate and networking ahead of a glittering awards ceremony at the Leonardo Royal St Pauls, London, on Thursday November 24.

Binance Academy, Cardano Foundation, The City of London Corporation and Jade City spearhead the partnership programme, helping to tip the theme of this year’s summit towards education.

Binance Academy is an open access blockchain and crypto learning portal that hosts free educational resources in more than 20 languages. Cardano Foundation is an independent Swissbased non-profit that oversees and supervises the advancement of Cardano.

The City of London Corporation is the governing body of the Square Mile, supporting a diverse and sustainable London within a globally-successful UK. Jade City is a next-generation virtual economy designed to be the first trustless platform where physical jade and other precious stones can be freely traded and stored as NFTs.

The headline sponsors are joined by general partners Astraea Group, Minima Global, FMFW, Luno, World Mobile, Archax, Sardine, Coinweb, Tingo, Cudos, Clay Nation, Inspira Wealth, CMS Law, Matrixport and Drunken Monkey Members’ Club.

Dozens of speaker sessions have been lined up across the schedule, featuring key figures from every corner of the industry ahead of the awards ceremony. There are 20 honours up for grabs, all deliberated over by a panel of independent judges.

Hosting the event for the third year, Crypto AM founder James Bowater hailed it as one of the stand-out occasions in the world of blockchain.

“The excitement is really building as we rapidly close in on throwing open the doors to our speakers and honoured guests for what is a truly magnificent celebration of our industry and the wonderful people who are associated with it,” he said.

“Our sincerest thanks of appreciation go to all our partners who make this possible.

“It is important to note that we have

chosen to focus on education within blockchain and cryptocurrency – a subject close to my heart – so to have Binance Academy and Cardano Foundation among our ranks as headline sponsors with the City of London Corporation and Jade City is especially gratifying.”

Some tickets are still available, and can be purchased online by visiting www.cityam.com/camsa22/.

FTX debacle dominates narrative of crypto markets

IT’S BEENan up-and-down week in the crypto markets, with the prices of most major cryptocurrencies seeing significant movement amid ongoing drama at major crypto exchange FTX. The total crypto market capitalisation dropped to $900 billion from over $1 trillion on Wednesday morning. Will we see a recovery this week?.

The price of Bitcoin hit highs of more than $21k over the weekend and looked relatively strong, but by yesterday had slipped to just below $18k – the lowest it’s been since 2020. The market leader

by total value is down 14 per cent over the past seven days.

Other major cryptocurrencies have performed worse, with Ethereum down 21 per cent since this time last week to $1,238. Solana is the week’s big loser though, falling more than 40 per cent since last Wednesday, with FTX found to be holding a large amount of the cryptocurrency on its books. Last year, FTX launched a marketplace for Solana NFTs and has reportedly invested heavily in several Solana-related crypto projects.

The major driver behind the turbulence this week the FTX situation. FTX is facing an ongoing bank run after the release of a Coindesk article related to Alameda Research’s (an FTX subsidiary) assets and liabilities. The article led Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), to start actively selling FTX’s native token, FTT after raising concerns related to the financial health of FTX. They have since offered to buy FTX. FTT has fallen from $26 to lows of $15 over the last seven days. FTT has since

experienced massive news-driven volatility. Open interest relative to market cap sits at 7.65% compared to 2.8% last week. The growing open interest has been accompanied by massively negative funding rates at Binance and Bybit, suggesting a substantial demand for shorting FTT.

FTX FALLOUT MAY NOT BE OVER

COINBASE CEO Brian Armstrong has hinted that the FTX saga which engulfed the crypto markets is far from over. Asked on a Bloomberg Technology interview if his own exchange had considered buying FTX up, as Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao has agreed to do, he gave a cryptic response that suggested there is more to the drama.

“There’s reasons why that would not make sense, and I’m not at liberty to share the details right now,” he said.

“I think I’m going to let other people share that if and when they’re ready, or it’ll probably all come out eventually.”

DCMS TO HOLD BLOCKCHAIN USE INQUIRY

THE UK government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport has begun accepting evidence for its inquiry into the “operation, risks, and benefits of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the wider blockchain”.

The inquiry, which is welcoming anyone to submit evidence before Friday January 6, is also expected to look at the wider benefits of NFTs and blockchain technology to the UK economy. It is also likely to examine whether more regulation of the industry is required, ahead of a Treasury review.

BOWATER SHORTLISTED

CITY AM’s Crypto Insider - James Bowater - has been shortlisted for honours at the prestigious AIBC Europe awards in Malta later this month. The enigmatic founder of Crypto AM was recognised for his unwavering dedication to being one of the world’s most respected blockchain advisors. Joined on the shortlist by such names as Roger Ver, Wesley Ellul, Dustin Plantholt and Taku Tanaka, the winner will be announced on Thursday November 17.

MASSIVE GAINS FOR DFI MONEY

AMID this week’s shocking market collapse, in which Bitcoin lost a tenth of its value before hitting a two-year low, few cryptocurrencies escaped dramatic losses.

One, however, mysteriously triumphed in the face of a tidal wave of losses. DFI Money (YFII) – a fork of Yearn Finance –lifted more than 30 per cent in the 24hour aftermath of Tuesday’s token tumble. Last night it was trading at $1,891 – up by 50 per cent across seven days, and 94 per cent over the month.

Even with a 24-hour trading volume of 372 per cent and a trading activity of 86 per cent ‘buy’, the $73.8 million market cap Ethereum-based token still has some way to go before reaching its all-time high of $9,405 set in September 2020.

Matt Hancock MP, pictured speaking at a previous Crypto AM event, is expected to make a keynote address at this year's summit

CATEGORY

UK CRYPTOASSET BUSINESS COUNCIL

The UK Cryptoasset Business Council (UKCBC) was born out of a necessity to promote and defend the interests of the UK’s cryptoeconomy at the highest levels of Government. Ultimately, the problems facing the sector are political and therefore require political solutions.

It serves as an anchor in bringing together select business leaders to educate Westminster and Whitehall, helping to identify and shape policy pathways to ensure the UK becomes a global crypto hub and making the industry more accessible to the senior policy and decision makers.

The UKCBC is underpinned by six overarching principles, from promoting growth to ensuring high levels of consumer protection –all of which are pertinent to the advancement of a supportive operating ecosystem that balances innovation with consumer

DIGITAL POUND FOUNDATION

The Digital Pound Foundation (DPF) was formed in October 2021 for the purposes of research, advocacy and multi-stakeholder collaboration with respect to the design, development and implementation of a well-conceived digital Pound, in publicly issued (CBDC) and privately issued (stablecoins and other types of tokenised money) forms, and a healthy and diverse ecosystem for new forms of digital money. We see new forms of digital money as a critical enabler of the transition to a digital economy, and as a platform for innovation for the UK to maintain its leadership in financial services and Fintech.

CATEGORY IN

INNOVATE FINANCE

Innovate Finance is the independent industry body that represents and advances the global FinTech community in the UK. Its mission is to accelerate the UK’s leading role in the financial services sector by directly supporting the next generation of technology-led innovators.

Innovate Finance’s membership ranges from seed stage startups and global financial institutions to investors, professional services firms, and global FinTech hubs. All benefit from Innovate Finance’s unique position as the single point of access to promote enabling policy and regulation, talent and skills, business opportunity and growth, and investment capital.

By bringing together and connecting the most forward-thinking participants in financial services, Innovate Finance is helping create a global financial services sector that is more transparent, more sustainable and more inclusive.

GMEX

GMEX Pyctor (Pyctor) was recently acquired by GMEX Group, a leader in digital business and technology solutions for exchanges and post-trade market infrastructure. Pyctor is a digital assets posttrade market infrastructure technology offering, which now operates as an entity within the GMEX Group. This leading fintech provides regulatory compliant digital assets network and custody technology, and is designed for firms operating in regulated environments. Before being spun out to GMEX Group, Pyctor was successfully incubated in ING Neo’s Amsterdam innovation lab and was jointly developed with multiple blue chip financial institutions (both asset managers and banks) and regulators, with a focus on custody of digital assets. The GMEX and Pyctor combined aim to address the need for a decentralised solution to mitigate security/hacking risks with its Ecosystem-as-a-Service enabling end-to-end trading, clearing and settlement flow.

GUNNERCOOKE LLP

CRYPTO COMPARE

As the digital asset markets continue to grow, so does the need for high-quality research that brings greater clarity and transparency to this rapidly evolving industry.

CryptoCompare’s suite of complementary research reports provides market participants with trusted and unbiased, highquality data and analysis. These reports have allowed for the greater adoption of digital assets with detailed research that empowers those interested in the digital asset space.

As the UK moves towards becoming a blockchain and cryptoasset hub, there are new and innovative ways of doing business. However, the sector generally has difficulty accessing traditional banking facilities, even for basic banking services – a point which has indeed been noted by the Financial Conduct Authority. gunnercooke is the first major UK law firm to accept payment in cryptoassets for legal services. This has opened the door to DeFi firms in the blockchain and cryptoasset sector to be able to access legal advice which they otherwise would simply not be able to pay for. The initiative has influenced other law firms to look at the potential ability to accept payment in cryptoassets, which was not previously considered possible.

The first payment was made by Attestant, and Coinpass was the exchange used to convert the cryptoassets to fiat.

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YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR BROKER VIEWS AND MARKET REPORTS

LONDON REPORT BEST OF THE BROKERS

FTSE 100 hit by string of downbeat results as M&S takes a tumble

LONDON’s FTSE 100 was yesterday weighed down by investors ditching retail and leisure firms after several large players in the sector revealed they had been hit by the UK economic slowdown.

The capital’s premier index edged 0.14 per cent lower to 7,296.25 points, while the domestically-focused midcap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the UK economy, dropped 0.26 per cent to 18,649.

British high street stalwart Marks & Spencer said profits slumped 24 per cent over the first half of the year and warned of a “gathering storm” of swelling costs and a consumer spending pull back in response to high inflation plaguing its finances.

Those downbeat results pushed M&S’s shares, listed on the FTSE 250, 3.37 per cent lower and to near the bottom of

the mid-cap index.

Analysts warned M&S’s mid to upper market position could be its Achilles’ heel over the next year.

“It doesn’t sit in the luxury space where the clientele is insulated from cost-of-living pressures nor does it offer the kind of value on offer from discount chains and grocers,” Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said.

Budget pub chain JD Wetherspoon also warned of rising costs eroding its finances, forcing it into selling 39 pubs.

The firm’s shares tumbled yesterday, shedding 6.31 per cent to finish second bottom of the FTSE 250.

The pound weakened over one per cent against the US dollar. UK borrowing edged lower.

US stocks opened lower after midterm elections looked set to hand the Republicans thin senate and house majorities.

CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS

AVI GLOBAL TRUST

British investment firm AVI Global Trust has bolstered its board with a new chairman to succeed Susan Noble, who is set to retire.

Graham Kitchen, who has been a non-executive director since January 2019, will step into the role following the trust’s Annual General Meeting on 20 December 2022.

Kitchen, previously an investment manager at

Picton Property Income has maintained its Hold rating from analysts at broker Peel Hunt, after beating expectations yet again despite a weakening real estate market in the UK. Occupier demand across the company’s £852m portfolio remains “robust”, analysts said. The company has been given a target price of 95p, with it currently standing at around 86p.

SCRAP ME, SCRAP ME NOT

Spire Healthcare, one of the largest providers in the country, has been upgraded from an Add to a Buy. Analysts at Peel Hunt said they were “encouraged” by how the company has been handling the post-pandemic landscape. The medium to long-term outlook for the healthcare industry looks likely to fall in Spire’s favour, analysts added. The company now has a target price of 315p, up from 295p.

TOM

Invesco, Threadneedle and Janus Henderson, brings more than 25 years of experience to the position.

“It has been a true honour for me to serve as chairman over the past five years,” said Noble. “Graham is an experienced fund manager and brings to the board exceptional expertise both in managing investments and teams of investment managers.”

FLADGATE

Law firm Fladgate has built out its immigration and property litigation practices with two partners.

Antonia Torr, joining the immigration practice, brings over 11 years of experience across investor visas,

sponsorships, international adoption and complex human rights issues.

Michael Metliss, stepping into the property Litigation team, has advised on a string of high level property disputes including Tesco and The Crown Estate, over his three-decade long career so far.

“We know that their dynamism, experience and clientcentred approach will benefit our people and our clients in equal measure,” managing partner Grant Gordon said.

NUMIS

Investment bank Numis has announced two senior

appointments to be based in London.

Stephanie Johnston, who has been with Numis for nearly a decade after joining from law firm Simmons & Simmons, has been promoted to general counsel.

Meanwhile Melanie Saluja joins the firm as a managing director in investment banking, bringing experience from across Deutsche Bank and UBS after 20 years in the industry.

“As Numis continues to diversify its operations, having people like Stephanie and Melanie on board – in senior positions with such a broad skillset – is vital in helping us achieve our ambitions,” co-CEOs Alex Ham and Ross Mitchinson said.

The sword of Damocles appears to be constantly dangling over higher-rate pension tax relief, and it has become something of a tradition for rumours to emanate from the Treasury about its imminent demise ahead of Budgets and Autumn Statements.

SELBY, AJ BELL

EDITED BY SASCHA O’SULLIVAN

Sunak needs to learn to fight for his decisions - if not for Gavin Williamson

MALCOLM Tucker once reassured a hapless minister that their job was safe because it was too soon to fire them; “Sacked after 12 months - looks like you've f***ed up. Sacked after a week - looks like he's f***ed up”. It’s apt that the behaviour of a man who seemed to yearn to star in The Thick of It has proven him right.

On Tuesday night, Gavin Williamson became the first minister to leave Rishi Sunak’s government following allegations of behind-the-scenes threats and bullying. But this was a scandal with few revelations: Williamson has twice proven to be both lousy and lazy as a departmental minister, but he was widely celebrated as an astute fixer within the party. The now former minister has even publicly joked about “pedalling secrets, dark arts… or even a threat”.

He was successful as both David Cameron’s PPS and Theresa May’s Chief Whip before managing Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak’s successful bids for the Tory leadership. With his pet tarantula a baroque flourish, he had never hidden his delight in intrigue and gossip, nor his enjoyment for the rougher side of politics.

Given the difficult job Sunak faces in

persuading a reluctant party to pass painful tax rises and spending cuts, there was a sound argument to bring Williamson in to help with party management. There was an even stronger argument to deny his services to Sunak’s enemies on the backbenches. Undoubtedly, over the next few weeks, more than a few arms will have to be twisted.

Yet when confronted with evidence of Gavin Williamson being Gavin Williamson, and sending threatening messages after being “snubbed” over invites to the Queen’s funeral, Sunak almost immediately capitulated. He called the comments “unacceptable”, emboldening Williamson’s many ene-

mies to make more serious allegations, including him threatening to reveal personal information about MPs or telling a civil servant they should “slit their throat”.

Williamson’s sacking shows the diffidence that has become a pattern of the new prime minister’s behaviour. He spent the beginning of this week in Egypt after reconsidering his decision to stay away from the Cop27 environmental summit when it became clear that he would be seceding the stage to Boris Johnson. He bizarrely relegated announcing he would restore the moratorium on fracking to an obscure aside in his first Prime Minister’s Questions, rather than ag-

gressively rolling out a popular policy. Likewise, his remarks upon becoming prime minister, where his references to both Johnson and Liz Truss understated his disagreements with them, making it harder for him to present himself as a clean break from his scandals or her economic chaos.

And then, of course, the continued, bizarre contortions surrounding Suella Braverman. Again, like with Williamson there was a legitimate argument to bring her back into the government. Her abrupt departure from Truss’s cabinet was largely due to disagreements over immigration policy.

To be frank, there would be very few politicians left if every backbencher

As long as we talk in emotive terms like reparations, we make the climate political

NO MATTER if a delegate was wearing an Arabian thawb, an African dhuku or a Western business suit; all attendees I encountered at Cop27 in Sharm El-Sheik, Egypt were unanimous in recognising that action must be taken to stem the impact of climate change – and fast.

It was clear from the very beginning of this climate summit, that a key theme was going to be “loss and damage”.

In other words, rich countries paying with cash for the impact of their carbon use on developing nations. Naturally, this carries political contention.

For Rishi Sunak, who debated whether to attend the conference at all, the optics coming from Sharm ElSheik were not ideal. In less than two weeks, Jeremy Hunt will take to his feet in Westminster and deliver a difficult Autumn Statement that is likely to see the painful combination of tax rises and spending cuts. Yet, 3,000 miles away in the Egyptian desert, Sunak was doubling down on Britain’s

Leon Emirali

commitment to spend £11.6bn to tackle climate change. In Westminster speak, that’s equivalent to the salaries of 350,000 NHS nurses.

Whilst some are calling for “reparations” to developing nations, it is terminology that is deeply unhelpful. In truth, climate change has no borders. Instead of framing climate change investments from developed nations as pay back, they should instead highlight the universality of the impact of climate change. Rising sea levels in the Asia-Pacific region will eventually have an impact on global supply chains and critical infrastructure. Financing projects to stop that from happening is not a reparation. It’s an

investment in the future. Allowing ourselves to get bogged down in a blame-game about the past is unlikely to help our future.

Delegates at the climate summit were universal in their acceptance of the risks we face, but there are still those, far away from the private jets and gala dinners of a UN summit that are sceptical. Those people simply can’t be dismissed. In fact, to remove political contention from action on climate change, these audiences must be brought on board.

For many struggling to make ends meet now, the idea of spending vast, unimaginable sums on tackling an invisible enemy such as climate change leaves a sour taste in the mouth. So do the protestors glueing themselves to motorways. So does the evocative language around reparations and pay back.

Climate change shouldn’t be a political or partisan issue, but its reality means it has to be. Whilst Joe Biden will jet into Egypt soon, his predecessor (and perhaps successor) could be

less inclined to do so.

To eliminate the risk of climate change action being rejected by the global electorate, we must start talking about the issue in retail terms that appeals to those struggling with everyday problems. Let’s not be shy in talking about the risk to businesses and the economy. Let’s highlight the need to diversify our energy supply in light of a hostile Russia and other energyproducing states. Let’s remove emotion around the conversation about climate change, less about “stolen childhoods” and more about “maintaining our existing way of life”.

There is no easy answer to climate change and it is understandable that some may become frustrated by the lack of speedy action. But the stakes are too high for the grown-ups in the room to simply ignore. Instead, let’s reframe the debate on climate and bring everyone along. Failure can’t be an option.

£ Leon Emirali is a communications adviser and a former government aide

who swore at a bumbling whip had to resign or every minister who leaked information to backbench allies was fired. All Sunak had to do was place her return to the Home Office in the context of his broader reembrace of immigration restrictionism, making clear that he doesn’t view the leaks to Sir John Hayes as a resigning matter. Instead, he is insisting on the absurd synthesis where everyone continues to pretend that Braverman should have resigned on October 19 and that her six days away from the frontbench was sufficient punishment for misbehaviour. As with Williamson the refusal to argue for his minister emboldened her enemies, with former party chair Jake Berry allowed to place the most negative spin on Braverman’s actions without fear of contradiction.

Boris Johnson would often make a song and dance about never shying away from a political brawl. Even until the last moment, he was telling rebels (which, lest we forget, amounted to most of his parliamentary party) they would have to “dip their hands in blood” to get rid of him. Although less colourful than her predecessor, Liz Truss bragged about being a “fighter not a quitter”. But neither's boasts stopped their premierships being broken.

Sunak’s polish gives him a veneer of competence. But he has yet to break their habit of making unforced errors which forces retreats and u-turns under fire. If he wants to avoid their fates, he needs to discover both greater wisdom and resolve.

£ Will Cooling writes about politics and pop culture at the It Could Be Said substack

Will Cooling

Gavin Williamson resigned on Tuesday night

BRAVER-MEN AND WOMEN OF THE POLICE Ah Suella Braverman. The Home Secretary determined to make enemies. Braverman sent out messages saying she ‘fully backs the police’ but failed to acknowledge the journalists wrongly arrested and thrown in a cell for doing their job

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Whistleblowing into the void

[Re: Sir Gavin Williamson resigns as minister after bullying allegations, Nov 8]

Building trust needs to start at the top: the Prime Minister needs to be open and honest in all his dealings within government, with parliament and with the wider public.

He should encourage the same from his new team. Earlier this year, the Sue Gray report found some staff who see wrongdoing in government are afraid to speak up.

This needs to change urgently if we are to restore trust in our public institutions. A review of the

whistleblowing arrangements in the civil service is needed. It appears that staff are now coming forward with historic concerns about behaviour in government. A good whistleblowing system would allow those concerns to be raised and addressed at the time.

Whistleblowers are often the first to spot risks and malpractice, and all organisations should value them as a vital early warning system, often preventing small problems turning into disasters.

If we are to avoid scandals of bullying and harassment within parliament or government, we need people to speak up to stop harm. A wise prime minister should make a wider review of whistleblowing a priority within the civil service to deliver the greater accountability he promised.

Elizabeth Gardiner

CLOSE THE FLOODGATES England at risk of more flooding this winter

If every mistake results in a boycott, firms will stop publishing green promises

Jhanvi Gudka

AS THE famous saying goes, no publicity is bad publicity. However, the emergence of cancel culture – a modern day phenomenon often talked about as a form of boycott – has had a huge influence over the way we think, behave and crucially, communicate. While cancel culture has undoubtedly brought about positive change and social justice, it has also left businesses and individuals worried at the thought of unforeseen repercussions of things they say and do. The fear of being subject to mass disapproval has slowly but surely closed the door on nuance.

With this context, perhaps the latest buzzword in sustainability isn’t all that surprising. Coined by consulting firm Treehugger, the term “green hushing” refers to companies that are under-reporting their sustainability initiatives to avoid public scrutiny. According to recent research from the consultancy South Pole, while 72 per cent of the 1200 businesses they spoke to have set sustainability targets,

whole of England is at risk of some kind of flooding this winter, the Environment Agency has said. February is set to bring the highest risks of flooding as a result of a weather phenomenon called a La Niña.

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER TUBE STRIKE

Today London will be greatly affected by traffic turmoil, as tube strikes risk grinding the city to a halt. Londoners will be better off resorting to a Lime bike or an e-scooter to get to work.

Not all news is bad news, though: at least we have been spared from the train strikes. The RMT was planning to strike last Saturday, Monday and Wednesday, but it called action off following what could finally be a breakthrough in the negotiations. Train service will

still be reduced, however, as the u-turn came with too little warning for train operators to prepare.

The RMT has said it “will now enter into a period of intensive negotiations with Network Rail and the train operating companies”. This doesn’t mean train strikes are over, however. The charismatic RMT general secretary Mike Lynch guaranteed that “if we have to take strike action during the next six months to secure a deal, we will”.

nearly 25 per cent will not be publishing them. Green hushing is something that has come into sharp focus over the past few months and has been described as everything from a “survival strategy” for businesses, to the “distant twin” of greenwashing.

In many respects, it makes sense that a business would rather keep its head below the parapet, especially with the myriad financial and regulatory penalties laid upon organisations both big and small for miscommunicating their sustainability efforts. One of the most high-profile recent examples of this is the landmark ruling by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority to ban HSBC’s adverts for greenwashing. The ruling was made on the basis that its commitment to invest $1tn to help its

customers transition to net zero was at odds with the bank’s continued investments into the most polluting industries in the world.

However, on the other side of the coin are a huge number of positive sustainability stories that attract similar media exposure, perhaps the most notable relating to Patagonia and its founder Yvon Chouinard’s decision to give away the company’s profits to fight climate change. There is also the growing conversation about the role of startups in climate innovation.

Public statements do not simply serve to catch companies out. Naturally it helps to hold businesses accountable, set industry benchmarks and ensure transparency, but it also has the power to encourage others to do the same and drive the wider sustainability agenda forward. It is still a sector relatively nascent in terms of innovation, regulation and information, so keeping the lines of communication transparent and open is even more important to help determine what works and what doesn’t.

The only way to keep sustainability at

the top of the agenda is with encouragement and accountability. It stands to reason that the companies with the resources, deep pockets and influence to make positive change should not only be pushed to make public commitments, but deliver on them too. For this to happen, we need to make room for scrutiny, regulation and transparency – as well as mistakes. Mistakes stimulate discussion and encourage learning - and, with honesty and humility, it is possible to come back from them.

Of course, mistakes have to come with a resolution as well, rather than continued bad behaviour. Simply pursuing a tactic of trying to scare companies into submission will only drive our priorities underground, and make accountability harder.

Progress comes with collaboration –the worst possible step we could take now is forcing businesses and individuals with good and green intentions to recoil in fear.

£ Jhanvi Gudka is Head of Sustainability at Fieldhouse Associates

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The fear of being subject to mass disapproval has closed the door on nuance

Editorial Editor Andy Silvester | News Editor Ben Lucas

Comment & Features Editor Sascha O’Sullivan

Lifestyle Editor Steve Dinneen | Sports Editor Frank Dalleres Creative Director Billy Breton | Digital Editor Michiel Willems Commercial Sales Director Jeremy Slattery

EXPLAINER-IN-BRIEF:

HSBC fell foul of the UK Advertising Standards authority over its net zero pledge

The

LIFE&STYLE

Crown

Boiling point has been reached: The Crown season 5, which dropped on Netflix on 9 November, feels sadder and more unnerving than ever as the show brings the drama into the 1990s.

If The Crown season 4 was all about blockbuster moments such as introducing Margaret Thatcher and Diana, as well as those horrible arguments between the princess and Charles, season 5 is more paired back.

That’s not to say they don’t cram a lot in. These were the years when Diana did her Panorama interview revealing “there were three of us in that marriage,” and when the Queen spoke about her “annus horribilis,” the year when two of her children divorced and Windsor Castle burned down.

But in dramatic terms, The Crown season 5 has fewer loud, ostentatious moments. It is also perhaps slightly less fun than season 4 –fewer games of Ibble Dibble, for instance. Instead there’s a turn towards more serious scene-setting as the foreboding sense of Diana’s death looms.

Naturally, much time is spent telling her story properly, with much thought, detail and nuance put into showing how she was screwed around by pretty much everyone, from Charles to Martin Bashir.

The Panorama storyline is even more gripping than I’d hoped, putting Bashir in an intolerable light.

It all revolves around Elizabeth Debicki, who is ravishing and utterly con-

vincing as Diana. During one scene in which Princess Margaret is watching the Panorama episode, I had to rewind to check whether or not it was actual Diana or Debicki acting that was being shown on screen, such is the likeness.

Debicki channels Diana’s mix of self pity, openness and fear with near-perfection. It’s a commanding performance whether she’s front-and-centre or a small part in the corner of a different scene.

Elsewhere, there’s more majesty.

Jonathan Pryce is hilariously austere as Prince Philip. He bowls into scenes and blurts out opinions in just the way Philip would have, and Imelda Staunton is just so obviously the Queen that it feels as if she always has been.

This is the Queen most of us know best: older and a little softer, and Staunton has an uncanny way of mimicking the way Her Majesty used to purse her lips and sort of wobble them up and down. It’s one small party favour from a giant bag of tricks Staunton employs.

Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret gets perhaps the funnest scenes and the best light relief on a sojourn with Peter Townsend, who pops up to visit her after 40 years, and Dominic West continues to extract the performative side of King Charles – replete with fancy suits – that many of us struggle to envisage today. Charles’ alleged plot to overthrow the Queen has gained headlines, but in practice those scenes aren’t particularly memorable. Much

better is a noticeably plush-looking origin story about Dodi and Mohammed Al Fayed.

It’s surreal seeing William and Harry pop up, especially William, who gets a good few lines.

His relationship with Diana is de-

picted as sometimes argumentative, another strand to season 5 which is likely to ruffle feathers.

The Crown season 5 is as high quality as any of the other seasons. Casual viewers may find certain parts a little slow, certainly by comparison to the

previous season, but things are getting serious now. We all know what’s coming next and if this season had one job, it was to tell Diana’s story properly. Debicki, through a fabulous, scene-stealing performance, achieves this and more.

REGAL COSPLAY: ROCK STAR CHARLES IN THE CROWN

Bloodworth

There’s been much hoo-haa about how The Crown isn’t historically accurate, but one element about the show that is close to fact is the style sense of the royals. It’s hard to believe by today’s standards but in the 1990s Prince Charles was actually something of a style icon.

God love him, but these days we’re used to seeing the King looking forgettable in rather pedestrian two-piece suits, but back in the day Charles’ attire was as much of an accepted part of the man’s personality as his love for a good joke and an extramarital affair. (We’ll leave that part to The Crown…)

In the first episode of season 5, now available on Netflix, Charles looks fetchingly

like a rock star, sporting a skinny cravat on top of a linen white shirt and flailing around on board a yacht. This is a Charles the trend set could get on board with. In another episode, he looks pleasingly louche sporting a burnt yellow pocket tissue and matching polka dot tie also in the same shade.

Charles! Were you ever really this carefree? It’s flirtatious and ostentatious, much like actor Dominic West’s performance as the prince. Some critics have

said he goes over the top but while I was watching the new season I choose to accept Charles as a foppish man about town - it’s way more fun that way, and his clothes, certainly those fetching double-breasted jackets, point excitingly to his past sense of Elsewhere there is more fun to be had in surveying royal clothing in the series. Timothy Dalton aka the guy who played “serious James Bond” in the late 1980s has a role as Peter Townsend, Princess Margaret’s 1950s love interest. He’s wearing a pristine black tux in one episode and even goes to a cocktail party. Was the real Townsend like this? Probably.

Party-loving Margaret wouldn’t have put up with a bore, but either way, Dalton is excellent at playing the handsome Townsend, who’s so suave that this basically feels like James Bond cosplay.

Besides seeing royals as other, cooler

people entirely, this season of The Crown is an excuse to study an absolutely fabulous era of men’s suited clothing. The 1990s earmarked the normcore trend, epitomised in the clothing of men like Jerry Seinfield, which was all about oversized suits, often in uniform blocks of colour, and sometimes with powerful touches like angular lapels. Wolf of Wall Street served it first and now The Crown is offering a new slice of 1990s style nostalgia. If it’s a chance to imagine Charles as a riotous rock star, spilling his Red Stripe overboard from his yacht then we say why not?

Forget the headlines that cry sensationalism – the latest series is defined by its sensitive and careful storytelling, says Adam Bloodworth

The Crown makes the royals look like 007 and rock stars, says Adam

The

season 5: Forget the outrage, Elizabeth Debicki makes this superb TV

007 returns in The Crown: Timothy Dalton as Peter Townsend in season 5

Timothy Dalton dressed in a sharp tux? This is basically James Bond cosplay

Ed Warner

NO DECKCHAIR shuffling for Richard Thompson. English cricket’s new leader has pretty much cleared the deck of the governing body’s directors. His kind words about departing colleagues he has barely overlapped with suggests this is a diplomat with admirable stiletto-wielding skills.

Now he must hire replacements capable of backing the reset that the sport so urgently needs. Forget the bland role profiles that the England and Wales Cricket Board has published: time-servers and those of a timid disposition needn’t bother applying.

Thompson is one of five non-executives on the ECB board – one of these positions standing vacant after the untimely death of the senior independent director who led the process that resulted in the hiring of the former chair of Surrey CCC. There are also five directors drawn from cricket, plus the organisation’s chief executive and chief financial officer.

With a new CEO inbound – Thompson’s long-standing lieutenant at Surrey, Richard Gould, from Bristol City FC – by the time the board refresh is complete at least seven of the directors will be new, including the chair himself. Usually one would worry about a loss of corporate history and continuity given such an upheaval, but in this case it must be a cause of celebration for those frustrated by the weak leadership of recent years.

If in any doubt about the challenge Thompson poses to the board that hired him, consider for a moment Baroness Amos’s decision to step down at the next AGM. She only joined in May last year and was by far the ECB’s strongest representative in the face of MPs’ hostility during the select committee inquiry into racism in cricket.

The question of racism continues to cloud the sport. The disciplinary hearings about Yorkshire begin on 28 November and will create headlines. Ads for ECB board roles are tailored accordingly. The first line in the job spec reads: “We are looking for candidates who can help cricket become more equal, inclusive and diverse.” You wouldn’t have seen that just over a year ago – or any time previously.

As I’ve noted before, it’s by no means

universally accepted that cricket is institutionally racist, and the rush to (re)action in Yorkshire shows the risks of hurried changes. I’d expect Thompson to be alive to the breadth of challenges facing the ECB and craft his board accordingly, while ensuring that his ambition for cricket to be a game for everyone suffuses its work rather than smothering other objectives.

Those stated objectives include having thriving and sustainable schedules for the elite game, domestically and internationally. This is where non-executive backbone will be of paramount importance. Tough decisions need to be taken to declutter the calendar while protecting the financial health of the first class counties, and enabling

board will be new. For the past couple of years we have been told that The Hundred, the ECB’s controversial new competition, is sacrosanct. That its long broadcast deal makes it inviolate at the heart of the summer season. But why shouldn’t a new group of people untainted by its creation negotiate a radical restructuring or even cancellation of the contracts underpinning this under-loved newcomer?

If Thompson is to tackle the existential challenges facing English cricket, he needs committed wingmen and women: a trusted CEO to deliver the strategy (tick); and non-execs with time to engage with the sport, share the creative load and deliver whole-hearted support outside the boardroom.

Of course, success on the pitch would make everything just a little easier for the chair and his colleagues, both present and future. By the time you read this you may already know whether England’s men have reached the T20 World Cup final. The tournament has certainly been a welcome reminder of cricket’s core appeal – as well as its vul-

GET ‘EM OUT OF HERE!

And so it begins. Season 22 of I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! Just as Strictly Come Dancing has reached the halfway point in its 20th outing.

As has become customary, both feature a couple of retired sports stars, although ITV’s signing of Mike Tindall might be as much a reflection of his royal marriage as past rugby career.

A quick trawl through Wikipedia –don’t judge me too harshly –reveals 34 sporting contestants on I’m A Celebrity… down the years and 41 hoofing in Strictly.

I’m happy to suck up these celebrity contests as lazily as the next couch potato, and I’m conscious that individual mo-

tivations are more nuanced than simply money, career rebooting and/or a needy craving for lost limelight. But they do stand as annual muddy and spangly reminders of the mayfly duration of many elite sporting careers.

Remember these contestants? Joe Bugner, David Ginola, Fatima Whitbread, Neil Ruddock, Jimmy Bullard, Victoria Pendleton, Dennis Taylor, Martin Offiah, Sam Quek, Joe Calzaghe, Peter Shilton, Graeme Swann, Ben Cohen, Martina Hingis, Willie Thorne, Richard Dunwoody, Diane Modahl,

Our heroes are indeed a long time retired and only the very fewest of the few achieve such superstardom that their bank balances and egos are impervious to the corrosiveness of time.

Even the great Martina Navratilova

took a turn in the jungle back in 2008, two years after retiring with career earnings of $22m.

The less remunerative the sport, the sooner their stars appear on our screens in new guises. Jill Scott, last seen getting in the face of a German opponent as the clock ticked down to the Lionesses’ European Championship win in July, is already down under with Ant and Dec.

And occasionally a sportsperson is still competing. Long jumper Jade Johnson’s dancing in 2009 didn’t sit easily with our performance department at UK Athletics. In the event, she picked up a career-limiting injury.

To those prepared to bare their vulnerability and reveal previously hidden talents for our entertainment: thank you, and please keep doing so.

Maybe, though, our greatest admiration should be reserved for those elite athletes who craft entirely successful existences in different walks of life, where retirement is neither a mindset nor a burden but just a word attached to an earlier phase of their career.

Warner is chair of GB Wheelchair Rugby and writes at sportinc.substack.com

Why shouldn’t a new group untainted by its creation cancel the newcomer?

Ed

SPORT

GEORGIA HALL INTERVIEW

English golf ace out to cap fine season with second win PAGE

12

NEWCASTLE OWNERS INJECT FURTHER £70M

£ Newcastle United’s owners have injected a further £70m little more than a year after taking over the club. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is the largest shareholder in the Magpies, who said that “further investment is expected”. The additional funds promise to bolster Newcastle’s spending power in the upcoming January transfer window. Chief executive Darren Eales added: “We are at the beginning of a longterm plan that aims to build a club that can compete consistently at the highest levels of English and European football.”

NOWELL: ENGLAND WILL RESPECT JAPAN THIS TIME

£ England wing Jack Nowell says they will not repeat the mistake of disrespecting Japan when the sides meet again on Saturday. The Brave Blossoms led at half-time on their last visit to Twickenham in 2018 before England rallied to win 35-15.

“Maybe as a team we didn’t give Japan the respect they deserve,” said Nowell, part of the England side who lost to Argentina on Sunday.

“You have got to give them the respect. But at the same time it is not about just trying to cope with what they have got, it’s about letting them cope with what we’ve got.”

WHITE, 60, REACHES UK CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS

£ Veteran snooker player Jimmy White, 60, has become the oldest man to reach the finals of the UK Championship since 1993. The popular Englishman, a six-time runner-up at the World Championship, sealed his place in the televised stages at the Barbican by winning a fourth qualifying match yesterday. “I’ve been hitting the ball well for some time,” said White, who claimed the UK title 30 years ago.

“I’m not here to just make the numbers up. If I bring my A game, I can win the competition.”

MAD NOT TO SELECT JAMES

I’M HOPING that James Maddison is among the 26 names when Gareth Southgate announces his England squad for the World Cup later today.

Maddison is at the peak of his powers and is, in my view, the country’s most in-form midfielder at the moment.

The Leicester man has a rare ability to find pockets of space and you can’t pass that up in international football.

But he has also improved his defensive diligence too. Southgate may not be a fan but I think he’d be making a mistake if he doesn’t pick him.

Maddison is behind Jack Grealish in the pecking order but injuries happen at tournaments and he represents a classy option on the bench.

Grealish is also a must for me. World Cups are made for players like him and I think he’ll enjoy more impact than he has with Manchester City.

Phil Foden, Mason Mount and Bukayo Saka will surely go but I don’t think Jadon Sancho is affecting games

FOOTBALL COMMENT

anywhere enough to join them.

In central midfield, Kalvin Phillips might have declared himself fit but I’d leave him at home and instead take Conor Gallagher to Qatar.

I just don’t think there is enough time for Phillips to get up to speed for a tournament that starts in 10 days so he’ll be undercooked if he goes.

I’d include Gallagher as back-up to Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham and Jordan Henderson for his mobility and all-round game. James Ward-Prowse doesn’t offer enough for me.

None of England’s midfielders can play up front so if I were in Southgate’s

shoes I would be greedy and take six forwards.

Harry Kane is a cert, Raheem Sterling’s England record means you can’t leave him behind, and I think Marcus Rashford has looked enough like his old self lately to make the cut, but I would also select Callum Wilson, Ivan Toney and Tammy Abraham.

Wilson is in terrific form for Newcastle and has played his way in. Toney has great self-belief and you can’t have too much of that around the squad. Abraham, meanwhile, knows Southgate’s approach and has gained valuable experience against different types of defending while at Roma.

Injuries are a real danger at World Cups and especially this one, due to the lack of time to rest before and during a condensed tournament, and England need options if Kane were to be ruled out.

That injury risk means squads are bigger than usual so there is room for Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Assuming he is fit, I would take Kyle Walker as he can play several roles in defence and brings a lot to the team. Ben White is also versatile and deserves a place.

With Kieran Trippier and Luke Shaw sure to go, I’m happy with England’s full-back options despite the absence of Reece James and Ben Chilwell.

At centre-back I’d have John Stones, Eric Dier and Harry Maguire but not

Conor Coady. Dier started the season well, even if he has dipped a little more recently.

World Cups are all about who is the right choice at a certain time; if the tournament had taken place in the summer the squad would be different.

The exception to that rule is Maguire. He may have been dropped by Manchester United but Southgate doesn’t have an experienced alternative, so leaving him out would weaken the squad.

Trevor Steven is a former England footballer who played at two World Cups and two European Championships.

@TrevorSteven63.

ENGLAND captain Jos Buttler insists he has faith in fringe players to step in if needed in this morning’s T20 World Cup semi-final against India in Adelaide. Buttler’s men could be without batter Dawid Malan and bowler Mark Wood as they seek to join Pakistan in Sunday’s final in Melbourne. “We have some fantastic players who have not yet played in the tournament and they will be desperate to make their mark,” he said. “If they get their chance, they’ll perform.” Openers Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan hit half-centuries as Pakistan pulled off a surprise seven-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first semi-final in Sydney yesterday.

ON YOUR MARKS England ready for T20 World Cup semi-final against India

Trevor Steven

The Leicester man has a rare ability to find space but has improved defensively too