Monday 27 February 2023

LONDON’S BUSINESS NEWSPAPER

SPOTTED IN THE SNOW CITY A.M. ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THE RAREST OF LEOPARDS P16

MOVING FORWARD?

THE VERDICT ON BORTHWICK’S NEW ENGLAND P18

LONDON SET TO POWER RECOVERY

ANOTHER BREXIT ROW

Brexit deal on way in just ‘days’

JAMES SILVER

THE DEPUTY Prime Minister has said a deal with the EU over changes to the Northern Ireland protocol could be announced as soon as today –but there is still little sign it may command the support of Brexiteer Tories and Northern Irish politicians.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen will meet with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in London today to thrash out changes to Northern Ireland’s legal and customs relationship with the continental bloc.

Dominic Raab told Sky News’ Sophy Ridge yesterday that there had been “real progress” in recent days.

“We want to make sure all the pieces are in place,” he continued yesterday.

CAPITAL TO OUTPACE REST OF THE COUNTRY THIS YEAR, RECKON ANALYSTS

JACK BARNETT

LONDON will power the UK economy out of recession and is poised to be the fastest growing area in the country over the coming years, new forecasts published today reveal.

The capital’s economy is on track to expand at an average annual rate of 2.6 per cent between 2024 and 2026, pushing it to the top of the countrywide growth table, according to consultancy EY. The City’s high performing financial and legal sectors will fuel London’s best in

class economic growth over the coming years, the report said.

While London’s GDP is expected to undergo a minor blip, shrinking 0.2 per cent this year, also the lowest of any region, it is tipped to race past Britain’s overall growth rate of 2.1 per cent per annum in the years afterwards.

Experts said the report illustrates policymakers need to avoid making the capital a casualty of the government’s levelling up agenda or risk holding back the UK economy for years to come.

“London’s performance is dependable,

but should not be taken for granted,”

Julie Carlyle, managing partner for EY in London, said.

“While there is a need to level up the rest of the country, London will have its own investment needs to be met so that the capital can continue to help form the backbone of nationwide growth,” she added.

Her calls come as Britain is teetering on the edge of slipping into a recession driven by the cost of living crisis wreaking havoc on family and business finances.

Dire forecasts about the economy

suffering a recession that could have knocked around three per cent off GDP now look slightly overcooked, although EY still suspects the UK economy as a whole will shrink 0.6 per cent in 2023.

The firm reckons the coming slump will be fuelled by “declines in services most dependent on household spending”.

Inflation has been a key downward pressure on economic growth, though some forecasters now expect price hikes to fall back to the Bank of England’s target rate of two per cent as soon as the end of the year.

Any deal is likely to get through parliament, but Sunak would rather do it with the support of his own party –and backbench heavyweight Boris Johnson –rather than being forced to rely on votes from the Labour party.

Mark Francois, who leads the Eurosceptic ERG grouping of Tory MPs, has said that any deal which continued to allow the European Court of Justice a say over Northern Ireland would not be acceptable.

“It is simply not going to fly,” he said over the weekend in a warning to Sunak and Downing Street.

Major Home REIT investor looking at ‘propositions’ for embattled property trust

EXCLUSIVE CHARLIE CONCHIE

TOP HOME REIT investor Liontrust has slammed “serious shortcomings” at the beleaguered social housing firm and said it is mulling “propositions” with other major shareholders to try and

steady the ship.

The FTSE 250 asset manager, Home REIT’s third largest shareholder, broke its silence on the debacle surrounding Home REIT in a statement over the weekend, after the firm faced down investors for the first time in an annual general meeting last Monday.

Home REIT has been plunged into crisis since a damning report by short seller Viceroy Research in November raised questions over the fragility of its rental income and the financial stability of its tenants. Shares tumbled more than 50 per cent before being suspended at the beginning of January amidst a host

of miserable news coverage.

City A.M. has since revealed the National Crime Agency is scrutinising deals made by the firm in which it appears to have paid major mark-ups for run down housing, while a slew of tenants have withheld rent from Home REIT in protest at the shoddy standard of

housing it provided to some of society’s most vulnerable.

“It is clear there have been serious shortcomings in the operations and governance of Home REIT,” a Liontrust spokesperson said to City A.M.

£ CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

STANDING UP FOR THE CITY

Time for Sunak to push back against his ideological backbenches

WE HAVE to stop thinking if there is a deal that is about to be done, it means we’ve been done over in some way.” So said the rational Eurosceptic George Eustice over the weekend about the response of his more extreme colleagues to reports of changes to the Northern Ireland protocol. He’s right. The absurd overreaction in recent weeks to changes to Northern Ireland’s relationship with the UK and the

THE CITY VIEW

EU –changes which would make Northern Ireland more not less aligned with the rest of the UK –highlights the strange truth that the biggest obstacle to Brexit working is now the most hardcore of Brexiteers. Look back ten years ago to what the

Eurosceptic think tanks were asking for then –a Swiss, or Norwegian, arrangement –and contrast to their hardline attitude today. Then, it was a question of pragmatism; leaving the European Union a chance to allow Britain to write its own regulatory handbook, sign its own trade deals and encourage the machinery of government to move more quickly and more effectively. None of those are objectionable goals. Yet since the

vote in 2016, the Brexiteers within the Tory party have never taken a backward step. Brexit has never been hard enough; after the horrific miscalculation of the Labour party in its decision to oppose Theresa May’s deals, they have pushed for an ever more aggressive split. They see no benefit from a pick-and-choose arrangement which, amusingly, the EU now seems open to: a genuinely bespoke arrangement that would allow the UK to

ITALIAN TRAGEDY At least 58 have died after an overloaded boat carrying migrants sank in rough seas in southern Italy yesterday, having spent four days on the water

benefit from the ‘good bits’ like the Horizon programme, whilst having the freedom to branch out elsewhere. Instead, they’d now rather have the relationship between the UK and our closest trading partner descend into acrimony with a bill to rip up the protocol in its entirety. Ideology has its place in politics, and rightly so. But Britain’s postBrexit future cannot be dictated by a minority of MPs for whom nothing will ever be enough.

WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING

THE FINANCIAL TIMES

LABOUR SECURES £2M

DONATION FROM LORD DAVID SAINSBURY

Lord David Sainsbury, former chair of the eponymous supermarket chain, has given £2m to Labour in a big boost for Britain’s main opposition party as it gears up for the next election.

THE TELEGRAPH DRIVERS COULD BE HIT WITH NEW ‘TYRE TAX’ IN NEW CRACKDOWN ON EMISSIONS Drivers risk being forced to pay a “tyre tax” as Britain explores a crackdown on brake and tyre wear emissions. Ministers have hired advisors to explore how to address the harmful emissions.

THE GUARDIAN BP BOSS COULD BE IN LINE FOR SPECIAL BONUS OF UP TO £11.4M BP is set for a clash with investors after it emerged that its chief exec could be in line for a special bonus of up to £11.4m. The payment, in shares, would be on top of his £1.38m salary and annual bonus.

Aussie-backed deal to put the spark back in Britishvolt delayed by funds check

JAMES SILVER

A DEAL to reinvigorate Britishvolt, the battery maker which fell into administration earlier this year, has been delayed while administrators check the availability of funds, according to reports over the weekend.

The UK tech darling Britishvolt, which had received highprofile backing from senior members of the government, tumbled into administration in January after it failed to secure sufficient private sector

investment to trigger a host of taxpayer-backed funding guarantees.

But there appeared to be hope for the North East-based firm when an Aussie firm, Recharge, expressed an interest in picking up the company and its planning consents to pair it up with a planned gigafactory outside of Melbourne.

EY, Britishvolt’s administrators, tagged Recharge as their ‘preferred bidder’ earlier this month.

However it was reported by the Sunday Times that a planned deal has been held up while administrators work to confirm Recharge has sufficient funds available to complete the transaction.

The leader of Northumberland council, Glen Sanderson, told the newspaper that he was still hopeful a deal would be struck.

Britishvolt plans to make lithiumion batteries. Most industry observers believe domestic supply of the batteries, used in electric vehicles, would be crucial to developing a homegrown electric vehicle industry.

Plans for a Britishvolt lithium-ion battery factory were believed to have fallen by the wayside after the collapse of the firm but Aussie-based Recharge may prove a saviour

Tale of two cities: Giants split on future of work

LOUIS GOSS

DIFFERING plans for the futures of HSBC’s and Lloyd’s of London’s headquarters have revealed a growing split in attitudes towards the long-term prospects of working from home.

Lloyd’s of London is reportedly in talks to extend the lease on its iconic City headquarters as it works to bring staff back into the office in resisting the postpandemic shift towards homeworking.

The insurance marketplace is in talks with its landlord to continue working out of its One Lime Street building, well after its lease expires in 2031, the Sunday Telegraph first reported.

Lloyd’s previously said it was considering exiting its City headquarters due to widespread uptake of remote working during the pandemic.

The world’s largest insurance marketplace later ruled out plans to cut its lease short, by using a break clause to end its contract with the property’s owner, Chinese insurer Ping An, in 2026.

Now, the City institution is in talks to ex-

Deals a-plenty in insurance sector in 2022 but uncertainty now reigns

LOUIS GOSS

INSURANCE sector M&A deals surged to a 10-year high in 2022, as the end of Covid-19 drove an uptick in deal-making activity.

tend its lease well beyond 2031, in a sign it has rejected the post-Covid trend for homeworking.

Lloyd’s chief executive John Neal has pushed flexibility at Lloyd’s, with the centuries-old marketplace using technology to offer syndicates more twentyfirst-century capabilities.

HSBC, by contrast, is looking for new London offices that are half the size of the space it currently occupies in its Canary Wharf tower, the Sunday Times first reported.

The bank’s plans reveal a growing split among London’s top employers between those bullish on the future of inperson working and those confident in long term trends towards working from home.

HSBC is working with estate agent Cushman & Wakefield to find new London premises, as it prepares to exit its Docklands HQ when its lease expires

The bank’s 8,000 London staff currently occupy 1.1m s ft of space in the bank’s 45 story tower at 8 Canada Square.

Insurance companies completed 449 M&A deals last year, marking the highest number of deals for a decade, new data from Clyde & Co shows.

Liontrust seeks ‘resolution’ that will protect Home REIT investors

CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE

Liontrust said it was “looking to achieve a resolution that “protect[s] shareholder value” and ensures “that good quality housing continues to be provided to vulnerable people”.

The comments mark the first public intervention by one of Home REIT’s big institutional investors and signal a potential move from its investor base against the board. Other major investors in the firm, which have so far

remained publicly silent, include M&G, Blackrock and Sarasin Partners.

Home REIT also revealed two weeks ago that it is mulling a sale to an investment firm called Bluestar. However, the bid has raised eyebrows due to ties between Bluestar and Home REIT’s former investment adviser Alvarium. Bluestar has rejected a connection between the firms and said it has severed any ties with Alvarium.

Home REIT did not respond to a request for comment.

The surge in deals, from 418 in 2021 to 449 in 2022, came as execs regained confidence in markets following the end of Covid-19, the report said.

This saw the release of pent-up demand, as insurance companies finalized deals that had been put on hold during the pandemic.

“Deals that were put on hold during the pandemic continued to

come to market in 2022, maintaining the upswing in deal-making that began the previous year,” Clyde & Co chair Eva-Maria Barbosa said. Looking ahead, mid-market players will likely take a more cautious approach than the biggest firms in the sector, with the world’s top players keen to plough on with plans for expansion in the face of difficult conditions.

The plant in your reception has been living its best life since you got an all-in-one card reader from Barclaycard Payments.

It handles customer payments and manages inventory as well as bookings. Less time on all of that means more time watering the Philodendron in your life.

What’s good for small business is good for everyone.

There have been criticisms over the quality of property provided by Home REIT

Lloyd’s of London appears set to stay in its iconic building

Recession fears chill UK investment as CBI urges Hunt to rethink tax grab

JACK BARNETT

UK BUSINESSES are poised to mothball investment due to uncertainty over whether the country is on course to tip into a recession and a looming tax grab, a new survey out today indicates.

Fears of a slowdown in spending caused by families’ finances being squeezed by the cost of living crisis has knocked optimism among UK services companies, which generate around £2 in every £3 of GDP.

“Uncertainty about demand

continued to weigh on business investment, resulting in expected cutbacks in spending on land and buildings, as well as vehicles, plants and machinery,” according to a new report from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the country’s largest business lobby group. Interest rates have also climbed to a 15-year high of four per cent, making it more expensive for companies to borrow to fund investment.

A decline in investment intentions has been compounded by Chancellor

Revolut close to bagging British banking licence

JACK BARNETT

FINTECH darling Revolut is poised to bag its UK banking licence within weeks, The Mail on Sunday reported. The digital bank is on track to clear a major hurdle to receiving formal recognition from regulators this week when it releases its long overdue financial accounts for 2021.

Its 2021 numbers –which are set to be released on Wednesday and signed off by auditor BDO –are expected to mark its first full year profits.

If Revolut does receive its licence, it would put an end to a long campaign by the firm, headed by former Credit Suisse and Lehman Brothers trader Nik Storonsky, 38, and Vlad Yatsenko, 39, to gain recognition that it is operating in line with legal requirements and consumer protections.

UK banking licences are signed off by the country’s two most foremost financial watchdogs, the Prudential Regulation Authority, which sits within the Bank of England, and the Financial Conduct Authority.

Securing a licence

allows banks to lend money, which is becoming more attractive due to interest rates hitting their highest level in 15 years at four per cent.

Revolut is the UK’s largest fintech, valued at nearly £30bn.

It initially started out by offering currency exchange cards, but now provides many typical banking services.

The company has ridden the wave of Brits shunning physical cash and opting for mobile-based banking.

Revolut said it does not comment on ongoing licence applications.

Its rival Monzo, famed for its coral coloured debit card, has held a banking licence for several years. Fintech bank Starling also has its licence. Revolut has succeeded in securing banking licences in a host of other markets, including several across western Europe.

Last week it announced plans to hire around 1,700 people in London over the next year as it continues its expansion, which will be supercharged in the UK if it secures the much sought-after licence.

Jeremy Hunt pushing ahead with a six percentage point corporation tax hike to 25 per cent from April.

The CBI has backed that decision, but has called on the government to launch a permanent succession to the 130 per cent super deduction to soften the tax grab.

Worsening investment confidence

“underscores the need for serious action to build momentum in the economy at the spring budget,” Charlotte Dendy, head of economic surveys at the CBI, said.

Jaguar loses out in Lander trademark spat

LOUIS GOSS

LUXURY carmaker Jaguar has failed in its bid to block a Cheshire campervan company from trademarking the word ‘Overlander’.

Jaguar asked a tribunal to block Warrington firm Car & Commercial Solutions from registering the word ‘Overlander’ as a trademark, due to it sharing similarities with its own ‘Lander’ brand.

BAE took in a record £37bn in new orders in 2022 under chairman Sir Roger Carr

BAE outgoing chair: It is sad it took a war to prioritise defence

CITY A.M. REPORTER

THE OUTGOING chairman of defence giant BAE Systems has said it is sad that it has taken a war for governments around the world to prioritise defence spending.

BAE announced last week that it took in a record £37bn in new orders in 2022, and forecast even higher earnings for this year

“Government’s first responsibility is to protect its people, and to do that it has to have a strong defence industry...

It’s sad that it took a war to trigger the

recalibration [by investors] that has happened over the past 12 months, but it did,” Sir Roger Carr told the Sunday Times in an interview.

Carr said the buzz around ESG was a “huge shift” from the original focus on EPS, or earnings per share. While ESG issues were “appropriate and worthy” objectives, a “balance of the two is still right,” he said.

Many investors had previously dropped defence companies on ethical grounds, but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has forced a broader re-think on arms investments.

The tribunal ruled, however, it is unlikely any potential customers might actually confuse Jaguar’s cars with the Cheshire firm’s campervans, despite the similarities in branding, according to court documents seen by City A.M.

In a ruling, handed down on 16 February, it said putting ‘over’ before ‘lander’ creates an entirely different word, as it refused to block the Cheshire firm’s trademark request.

It added that the “stylised” lettering used in the campervan maker’s Overlander trademark bears few visual similarities to the “conventional” font used for Jaguar’s Lander brand.

JMW Solicitors’ lawyer Philip Partington, who represented the Cheshire campervan company in the case, said: “Hopefully this victory will show other business owners that they should not view multinational opponents as an insurmountable challenge”.

Jaguar was approached by City A.M. for comment.

All eyes on Mick Lynch and the RMT after another union agrees pay deal

JAMES SILVER

ONE of the rail unions involved in industrial action which has brought misery to commuters in recent months agreed to a pay offer over the weekend –piling further pressure on militant union the RMT to do the same.

Members of the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) voted in favour

of a two-year pay rise worth nine per cent, with 80 per cent of management staff and 60 per cent of ‘grade members’ onside.

Steve Montgomery, who chairs the operator body the Rail Delivery Group, said it was a “positive breakthrough which shows these disputes can be resolved when members are given an opportunity to have their say in a democratic vote”.

“We hope that the RMT leadership will take this opportunity to reconsider their rejection of our equivalent offer... and allow their members a referendum on their own deal,” he continued.

Support within the RMT membership for ongoing strike action has begun to falter in recent months, with boss Mick Lynch refusing to put the current pay offer to members in a vote.

Uncertainty about demand in the economy is forcing firms to pause on investment

Revolut boss Nik Storonsky

Net UK housing wealth ‘exceeded £7 trillion for first time last year’

VICKY SHAW

NET UK housing wealth exceeded £7 trillion for the first time last year, according to calculations from an estate agent.

The total value of UK homes reached £8.68 trillion at the end of 2022, Savills said.

With outstanding mortgage debt standing at £1.66 trillion, according

to Bank of England records, Savills calculated that net housing wealth stood at more than £7 trillion.

Of this, nearly half – £3.34 trillion –was held by mortgage-free homeowners, the estate agent said.

Lucian Cook, head of residential research at Savills, said: “The growth in house prices over the past three years has added considerably to the paper wealth of homeowners, driven

in no small part by the welldocumented ‘race for space’.”

But he added: “Recent interest rate rises are going to continue to put first-time buyer and second stepper budgets under pressure in 2023 and 2024. Combined with the prospect of lower levels of housebuilding, we expect that 2022 will represent a high watermark for the value of the UK’s housing stock for a few years.”

Eyes on housing firms ahead of results week

AUGUST GRAHAM

SHAREHOLDERS are likely to be looking for any indication of what housebuilders Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey think the next year will look like for the sector when they report this week.

The businesses are due to reveal their financial results for last year on Wednesday and Thursday amid a growing sense of unease in the sector.

The housing market is struggling at the moment, with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) data indicating that 96,650 homes were sold in January, the lowest since 2015 and 11 per cent down compared with a year earlier.

House prices have also started to cool off, with Halifax data from earlier this month suggesting that the average house sold for more than £12,000 below its August peak in January.

It comes as interest rates have been rising, adding to the cost of taking out a mortgage.

The Bank of England’s base rate has hit four per cent – up from 0.1 per cent a little over a year ago – and could rise further still.

“Persimmon’s feeling the pressures of

a tough housing market, and the group’s valuation has tumbled around 40 per cent in the last 12 months as a result,” said Aarin Chiekrie, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

“We’ve already heard that ‘notably weaker’ customer demand and higher cancellations pushed full-year forward sales down from £1.6bn to £1.0bn in 2022. And as the mortgage rate environment remains challenging for home buyers, we don’t expect to hear things picking up in this area.”

He said the results next week will show in more detail how the business is being impacted by rising costs, and how badly they are hitting its profitability.

“But we’re most interested in the outlook statement. The group should give an indication of how forward sales have been at the start of this year, as well as what the rest of 2023 could look like.

“The fear is that the current dip in house prices could be the start of a bigger correction.If that looks like the case next week, there could be a negative market reaction.”

Meanwhile analysts expect revenue at Taylor Wimpey to hit £4.44bn, up from £4.28bn a year earlier.

Bank mortgage approval data to reveal health of property market

JACK BARNETT

THE BANK of England will release fresh data on mortgage approvals in January on Wednesday, revealing the latest health of the UK’s housing market.

The cost of living crisis and higher interest rates have put people off buying a house or moving.

December saw mortgage approvals fall to only 35,612 –the lowest level since January 2009.

Deutsche Bank is expecting approvals

for home loans to have slipped again to around 33,000.

But Oxford Economics is more optimistic. “With the mood music around prospects for house prices gloomy and the cost of mortgage loans still much higher than a year ago, we think approvals recovered to a still depressed 42,000,” the group said.

Nationwide’s house price index, out on the same day, is poised to show prices are stagnating in response to a slowdown in demand.

December saw mortgage approvals in the UK fall to the lowest level since January 2009

PA

CEO of Newport’s Chinese owner stole tech secrets

CITY A.M. REPORTER

THE BOSS of the Chinese company that owns Britain’s largest semiconductor factory was handed a jail sentence over allegations he stole trade secrets, it has been revealed.

Zhang Xuezheng, the founder of Wingtech, was sentenced to 17 months in jail and fined in 2005 for buying trade secrets from ZTE, his old employer, The Sunday Telegraph reported citing old local Chinese news sources.

Zhang is also the chief executive of Dutch company Nexperia, a subsidiary of Chinese outfit Wingtech, which was ordered to sell its 86 per cent in British semiconductor firm Newport Wafer Fab in November.

The government made the decision to overturn the £63m takeover citing national security concerns, arguing the firm’s role could “undermine UK capabilities.”

Nexperia is currently challenging the government’s decision in court.

Norwegian billionaire convicted for lying in £285m Deutsche Bank case

LOUIS GOSS

NORWEGIAN billionaire Alexander Vik has failed to overturn a conviction for lying to a UK court during a £285m dispute with Deutsche Bank.

Zhang, according to the reports, recruited staff to acquire ZTE’s tech secrets so his companies could use them to create rival products.

A spokesperson for Nexperia told The Sunday Telegraph that the firm was “aware of old press reports about a dispute in China” but that the matter was “later resolved allowing Zhang to do business freely”.

Nexperia was approached for comment by City A.M. News of the reported conviction comes at a

time of heightened awareness of Chinese investment in UK firms and public infrastructure.

Late last year the government decided to pay around £100m to buy out statebacked China General Nuclear Power Group’s 20 per cent stake in nuclear power station Sizewell C to reduce Beijing’s potential involvement.

Deutsche Bank first sued the magnate’s company, Sebastian Holdings, back in 2009 over a series of loss-making foreign exchange

Mitie continues to grow telecoms division as it dials up for 5G push

JAMES SILVER

UK OUTSOURCER Mitie is set to expand its swiftly-growing telecoms divisions with acquisitions of land and infrastructure, according to reports over the weekend.

The government-mandated removal of Huawei from the UK’s telecom network off the back of national security concerns has created an “enormous amount of work,” the managing director of Mitie’s technical

services Simon Venn told the Financial Times.

“If you consider just the sheer volume of telecoms masts in the UK, it runs into, for each operator, thousands of masts and the removal of that Huawei equipment and hardware [is] a massive task in itself, so it’s an opportunity,” Venn told the newspaper.

Shares in Mitie are up just shy of 50 per cent over the past twelve months, recovering to pre-pandemic levels around 80p a share.

deals, and the court has since ordered the firm to pay $243m (£203m) in damages and 85 per cent of its costs, taking the claim to £285m. But after struggling to recover debts, the bank pursued Vik.

High Court judge Jane Moulder later convicted Vik of contempt of court after he lied about the extent of his knowledge of the firm, and failed to hand over further

information about the firm’s assets. Moulder said, however, Vik could avoid prison if he provides the information required.

Vik challenged the claim but on Friday the Court of Appeal upheld the conviction, and maintained he could still avoid jail if he handed over the necessary information.

Deutsche Bank and lawyers for Vik were approached for comment.

Mitie is looking to benefit from the removal of Chinese operator Huawei

Nexperia is challenging the decision to block the £63m Newport takeover

ENERGY

APRICE war for heat pumps was triggered last month, when British Gas owner Centrica unveiled a £3,000 product for households, comparable in cost to a gas boiler.

This offer is well below current trading expectations – with installations typically clocking in at £8,000-£14,000 on the retail market, according to Uswitch data.

Big Six rival and fellow heat pump advocate Octopus Energy has since challenged Centrica’s bid for customer value, offering the nascent home-warming technology for £2,500.

Heat pumps are considered by the energy sector to be a vital tool in the race to net zero and theoretically providing cheaper and more efficient power – with devices lasting 20 years (twice as long as a gas boiler) and taking at least 25 per cent off heating costs.

They work by compressing air to heat up and then circulating it through buildings, providing a greener solution to boilers.

Downing Street wants 600,000 heat pumps a year fitted by 2028, offering £5,000 grants in England and Wales through the £450m Boiler Upgrade Scheme – which has enabled Octopus and Centrica to slash their prices. Yet, the biggest hurdle appears to be public apathy, not cost.

PUBLIC SCEPTICISM

Last week, the House of Lords’ environment and climate change committee slammed the government’s incumbent boiler scheme as “seriously failing”.

Since its launch last May, official figures reveal that only 7,600 of the first 30,000 heat pump vouchers had been redeemed by the end of January, using up just £38.4m of the first year’s £150m budget.

The committee has called for more practical benefits for households installing heat pumps, such as improved certificate ratings for energy efficiency – making properties more desirable to buy at a later date – and a public information campaign about the benefits of heat pumps.

Jess Ralston, energy analyst at climate group ECIU, argued such a low take-up was damning as households grappled with record energy bills – with UK homes among the most gas reliant in Europe, relying on the fossil fuel to heat 85 per cent of homes.

“Heat pumps offer the chance to get off gas, insulate themselves from this volatility while also avoiding the air pollution that gas boilers generate,” she said.

Adam Bell, head of policy at Stonehaven and ex-BEIS head of energy, said heat pumps were “critical to the future of our energy system”, but conceded they would also require behavioural change from customers.

He explained: “Heat pumps are most efficient when they’re left to run themselves; many consumers, however, like the controllability that comes from gas boilers. This is a challenge for anyone selling heat pumps to people who’ve only used gas boilers their entire lives.”

However, Octopus remains optimistic

City A.M.’s

editor Nicholas Earl delves into the sector’s challenges in his new weekly column

NEEDS PUMPING UP AMBITION

Rebecca Dibb Simkin, chief product and marketing officer at Octopus, believed it would be like any adoption cure, comparing it to the initially sluggish growth of electric vehicle sales before its recent embrace into the mainstream – when people became more familiarised and at ease with the concept.

She said: “You embrace those early adopters – people who want to get one, while reassuring those people who aren’t ready yet they don’t have to have one yet. We’ll start with them, and then everyone else can just get used to this kind of

It’s just heating your home.”

Since Octopus started offering heat pumps last year, around 50,000 of its three million plus customers have registered their interest in

PLENTY OF PINCH POINTS

Charles Wood, deputy director policy at trade body Energy UK, also argued public awareness of the benefits of heat pumps was a key factor in boosting installations.

Energy wonk Jess Ralston believes there is work to be done

which could prevent them entering the mainstream, such as a lack of skilled technicians.

“The number of installers who can put these in and the cost of installation are actually very heavily linked. As we get more people trained to install heat pumps, we’ll also see just more choice and more competition. So, it makes it easier for consumers to find a lower cost deal,” he explained.

There is also a skills challenge, as in so many industries. The UK is home to 3,000 heat pump engineers, per a NESTA study, some way short of 28,000 required.

Another key factor is the poor quality of the UK’s housing stock, which jeopardises the

An EDF study last year revealed more than half the country’s households only meet the insulation standards of 1976 or older. For heat pumps to offer value for customers, the government will need to boost the insulation of the country’s housing. While Downing Street has committed nearly £13bn over the next five years to making homes more energy efficient, concerns remain that the government has moved too slow on the issue. With the industry regarding the technology as so integral to the energy transition, it will be incumbent on the government to find realistic ways of boosting take-up if it is sincere in its climate goals.

Centrica and suppliers head for court in legal battle over Bulb sale

NICHOLAS EARL

BRITISH Gas owner Centrica is set to lock horns with the government in court today over its handling of the sale of collapsed energy supplier Bulb to rival Octopus Energy.

Centrica argues Octopus was offered state support to fund the hedging of energy supplies for Bulb’s

1.6m customers – terms that were not offered to Centrica.

This, Centrica argues, has given Octopus an unfair advantage and distorted the market, as Octopus saw its customer base jump from 3.3m to 4.9m customers.

Octopus dismisses the claim, however, and argues it negotiated a deal in good faith with Bulb’s

administrators Teneo and the government.

Centrica is one of three energy firms raising complaints as part of a judicial review of the process, alongside Big Six rivals Eon UK and Scottish Power.

The supplier will make its case at a London hearing this week, with a ruling expected in the spring.

energy

Tough economy driving punters to vegan options

LAURA MCGUIRE

PLANT-BASED food producer Meatless Farm is hoping to use the cost of living crisis as an opportunity to win over customers keen to maximise their budgets and eat more sustainably.

Meatless Farm founder Martin Toft

Bech told City A.M. that while the cost of living crisis is obviously tough on consumers, he sees this moment as an opportunity for shoppers to both save money and help the environment.

Inflationary pressures weighing on budgets are increasingly driving consumers to ditch the meat and opt for plant-based options in order to save money, according to research.

A recent study conducted by research group Mintel, showed that 35 per cent of supermarket shoppers are scaling back on meat products or cutting it out all together to maximise their budgets.

While Meatless Farm products are currently about the same price as medium quality meat –where a package of Meatless Farm mince costs around £2.75 and Sainsbury’s own brand 12 per cent fat mince is priced at around £2.90 –Bech said he hopes to see prices come down

Food shortages heap even more pressure on struggling restaurants

LAURA MCGUIRE

BRITISH restaurateurs have said shortages of fruits and vegetables are proving “very problematic”.

further in the next few years.

“You are going to see that cost coming down because the volumes are going up, and we start gaining some of those efficiencies of essentially just larger volume,” he said. “We don’t want price to be the reason why you don’t eat a more sustainable protein on your plate.”

Meatless Farm has seen its 2022 sales up 30 per cent year on year, with Bech predicting the company to reach £25m in sales by the end of the year.

Meanwhile market leaders Quorn and Beyond Meat have generated sales of £224.9m and $79.9m (£66.8m) respectively in the past year.

Since its conception in 2016, Meatless Farm has also seen its combined growth rate reach 69 per cent, and is looking to close a £35m investment round next month.

Bech says that the group has seen a lot of interest from private companies who have ESG in its mandate and are looking to “invest money now for the future”.

In the meantime, Bech said the firm is focusing on its major deals with Pret a Manger and TGI Fridays, which he said are crucial to winning shoppers’ hardearned pounds in the supermarkets.

RESIDENTIAL PLAY British Land releases new images of Canada Water development

THE FIRST properties at British Land’s 53acre Canada Water development will go on sale this week, as the largest singledeveloper project in the capital for a decade moves towards fruition.

“A whole new district and destination for London will be created at Canada Water, with the rest of London on the doorstep,” said British Land’s Emma Cariaga.

Corporation tax rise will cost UK economy £30bn in lost growth

CITY A.M. REPORTER

THE PLANNED six per cent increase in corporation tax could cost £30.2bn of lost GDP after a decade, according to calculations by the Taxpayers’ Alliance. Corporation tax is due to rise from 19 to 25 per cent in April.

“The simple fact is that businesses are being discouraged from investing in Britain because of the planned increase in corporation tax,” John O’Connell, chief executive of the Taxpayers’

“We’re experiencing mass shortages with the supply of fruit and vegetables. We are struggling to get avocado and berries in particular,” Philip Inzani, founder of Polo 24 Hour Bar, a cafe and bar

on Liverpool Street, told City A.M.

Inzani said the business is caught between a “rock and a hard place” as he does not want to increase prices and “alienate customers”.

It comes as major supermarkets have been forced to limit sales of fridge staples such as tomatoes and peppers due to supply shortages, which could last until April or May.

The shortages have been blamed

on poor weather in southern Europe and northern Africa, which has disrupted crop growth.

Kate Nicholls, chief of UKHospitality told City A.M. that, for now, the industry is managing to cope. While experiencing intermittent disruption to supply, “the sector is managing to navigate through current challenges without widespread shortages,” she said.

Alliance, said.

Astrazeneca said recently it would locate a new manufacturing plant in Ireland rather than the UK because of the “discouraging” tax regime.

“The Chancellor should give British business some breathing room and cancel the corporation tax rise,” O’Connell said.

Former home secretary Priti Patel has also called for the tax rise to be ditched, arguing that “now is not the time” to further tax big business.

The work you do here , makes you stronger out there

THE NOTE BOOK

Rugby must learn lessons as finances hit rock bottom

THE Premier League is one of Britain’s biggest global exports. It’s the envy of football fans across the world.

Testament to its pulling power is the fact we have countries queuing up to buy up clubs in the league.

Contrast that with rugby.

Financially, the club game is in dire straits. Wasps and Worcester have gone bust, and Leicester Tigers are reportedly seeking permission to raise £13m through a share subscription to avoid breaching their banking contract.

CVC Capital Partners paid £200m for a 27 per cent stake in Premiership Rugby back in 2018 but changes have been slow and the pandemic may have damaged clubs’ finances irreparably.

It’s an open secret that rugby administrators are fearful of the class actions for repetitive concussions facing the sport. But sanitising rugby so the danger is removed isn’t going to help and to the supporters which remain it seems strange that rugby union is changing its rules whilst rugby league, American football and

MUSK DO BETTER

boxing aren’t. Many rugby administrators argue that rugby needs to broaden its appeal to increase participation and viewers and thereby increase media rights. But there are doubts as to whether changing the rule will succeed in broadening its appeal. What’s more, rugby’s existing audience is valuable –market research firm Nielsen called it “sizeable, mature and affluent”.

Much better to press ahead with promoting what rugby is.

The Netflix documentary being filmed over the Six Nations championship aimed at providing a behind the scenes look at the competition is a step in the right direction. On that point, a brand that is often synonymous with rugby is Guinness. Sponsors of the Six Nations, last month it became the number one beer sold in British pubs for the first time.

Rugby chiefs should spend some time looking at what Guinness did to achieve that accolade. Mainly, it was really good marketing. One thing it definitely wasn’t was messing around with the product.

Elon Musk has courted controversy nearly every day since he took the helm at Twitter. For my money, top of his intray should be banning anonymous accounts. It’s an absolute disgrace that we still have a situation where people can get away with spouting bile from their bedrooms hiding behind some pseudonym. I suspect if many of these keyboard warriors had to front up their words, the platform may be a much more civilized and safer place.

£ As we count down to the Spring Budget, the Chancellor will be looking to make a raft of savings. It has always puzzled me why we’ve never had a dedicated procurement minister for Whitehall. The government has bigger buying power than most FTSE 100 companies yet still operates in silos with departments buying on their own instead of taking advantage of the massive economies of scale. This approach is mirrored in local government with one council buying a book for £5, another the same book for £10. Madness.

Putin attempts to shore up war support at home

GUY FAULCONBRIDGE

RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin cast the confrontation with the West over the Ukraine war as an existential battle for the survival of Russia and the Russian people –and said he was forced to take into account NATO’s nuclear capabilities.

A year since ordering the invasion of Ukraine, Putin is increasingly presenting the war as a make-or-break moment in Russian history –and saying that he believes the very future of Russia and its people is in peril.

“They have one goal: to disband the former Soviet Union and its fundamental part –the Russian Federation,” Putin told Rossiya 1 state television in an interview recorded on Wednesday but released yesterday.

The NATO and the West dismiss such narrative, saying their objective is to help Ukraine defend itself against an unprovoked attack.

Putin said the West wanted to divide up Russia and then control the world’s biggest producer of raw materials, a step, he said, that could well lead to the destruction of many of the peoples of Russia including the ethnic Russian majority.

“I do not even

NO LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE

£ Some good news amidst the economic gloom came on Monday of last week with the latest figures showing global investment in low carbon energy hit a record high of $1.1 trillion dollars, according to Bloomberg. The biggest chunk of spending went on renewable energy and electrified transport, both vital to getting the world on the road towards a sustainable future. The more daunting news is that global investment still needs to increase threefold if we are to reach the bold target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

CAN I QUOTE YOU ON THAT?

Giving absolutely everything of yourself to this job is the only way to do it. The country deserves nothing less. But, in truth, that can only be done, by anyone, for so long. For me, it is now in danger of becoming too long.

Season two of Clarkson’s Farm has been captivating viewing. It showcases everything that’s great about England. A fantastic cast of contrasting characters, beautiful countryside, mouth watering local food and community spirit in action. It also sadly shows everything that’s wrong with our bureaucracy as an army of clipboard wielding local government bureaucrats aim to thwart Clarkson’s attempts to build a car park and restaurant to support his thriving farm shop. Obscure planning objections including fears of light pollution win the day, despite the fact the business would have created 50 jobs and supported other local farms in the area. Is it any wonder that with a planning system that has so many vested interests we haven’t built enough homes?

Blackstone boss enjoys bumper salary packet

RHEA BINOY

AND JOSE JOSEPH

BLACKSTONE chief executive officer Steve Schwarzman took home about $1.26bn (£1.05bn) in pay and dividends for 2022, a regulatory filing showed.

know if such an ethnic group as the Russian people will be able to survive in the form in which it exists today,” Putin said.

He said the West’s plans had been put to paper, though did not specify where.

The United States has denied that it wants to destroy Russia, while President Joe Biden has warned that a conflict between Russia and NATO could trigger World War Three, though he has also said Putin should not remain in power.

Putin said the tens of billions of dollars’ worth of US and European military assistance to Ukraine showed that Russia was now facing off NATO itself –the Cold War nightmare of both Soviet and Western leaders.

Ukraine says it will not rest until every last Russian soldier is ejected from Ukraine, including from Crimea which Russia annexed in 2014.

Vladimir Putin’s existential framing of the war allows the 70-yearold Kremlin chief to gird the Russian people for a much deeper conflict while it also allows him much greater freedom in the types of weapons he could one day use.

Russia’s official nuclear doctrine allows for the use of nuclear weapons if they are used against it.

Thales will provide a significant amount of kit to Ukrainian forces this year

French defence giant on hiring spree in more uncertain world

GV DE CLERCQ

FRENCH defence and technology group Thales plans to hire 12,000 new staff this year as there is strong demand across its product range, CEO Patrice Caine said in an interview with French weekly Le Journal du Dimanche.

He said that over the past eight years Thales, which has total staff of 80,000 of which 40,000 in France, had recruited 5,000 to 8,000 people per year and that last year already it had hired

11,500 new staff.

Caine said that all the firm’s activities –defence and security, aeronautics and space, identity and digital security –were growing strongly.

“The company is a reflection of its markets, which are all seeing dynamic growth, with needs growing in all our fields of activity,” he said.

Caine, who recently met with Ukraine’s defence minister, said that France would deliver its Ground Master 200 radar air defence system to Ukraine in May.

Schwarzman received more than $1bn in dividends from his Blackstone shares and $253.1m (£211m) in compensation, filing showed on Friday.

Goldman Sachs slashed compensation for CEO David Solomon by 29 per cent to $25m (£20.9m) for 2022, while JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon's total compensation was unchanged at $34.5m (£28.9m).

Higher interest rates, inflation, recession worries and geopolitical tensions from the Russia-Ukraine conflict have prevented private equity firms like Blackstone from selling assets for top dollar.

Blackstone's net profit from asset sales fell sharply by 55 per cent to $366.9m (£307m) during the fourth quarter, down from $817.5m (£654m) a year earlier.

The company posted distributable earnings of $6.6bn (£5.5bn) in 2022, which was up seven per cent year-over-year.

“In 2022, Blackstone delivered record distributable earnings, $226bn (£190bn) in inflows, and realized a number of the most profitable fund investments in our history,” a Blackstone spokesperson said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

Where interesting people say interesting things. Today, it’s Giles Kenningham, founder of Trafalgar Strategy

Nicola Sturgeon on her departure from the top job

CITY DASHBOARD

Week ahead: Bank of England speeches to dominate agenda

INVESTORS will be parsing over a string of speeches from top Bank of England rate setters this week for clues on whether the central bank is close to ending its aggressive campaign to tame inflation.

Ben Broadbent, a deputy governor at the Bank, kicks off a busy week of central banker speech at Threadneedle Street’s annual research conference today.

Chief economist at the monetary authority and ex-Goldman Sachs banker Huw Pill takes the reins from Broadbent tomorrow before Catherine Mann’s remarks in the morning.

The rate of price increases has fallen for three straight months and is expected to potentially hit the Bank’s two per cent target by the end of the year. Those forecasts have raised expectations of the Bank ending its rate hike cycle at its next meeting on 23 March

with a 25 basis point rise, which would leave borrowing costs at a 15-year high of 4.25 per cent.

“Lastly, and more importantly, Governor Bailey will be taking the spotlight on Wednesday, in what will likely be a key speech for markets, at the Cost of Living Crisis Conference,” Sanjay Raja, senior economist at investment bank Deutsche Bank, said.

Final purchasing managers’ indexes on Friday are likely to reinforce last week’s early estimates revealing the UK private sector economy shockingly expanded in February, possibly signalling the country will avoid a much-tipped recession this year.

Online supermarket Ocado dominates the corporate agenda with the firm posting full year results tomorrow. Fund manager Abrdn also updates markets on the same day.

YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR BROKER VIEWS AND MARKET REPORTS

BEST OF THE BROKERS

BRINGING THE HOUSE DOWN

“How steep house prices drop this year is going to lean heavily on whether households turn their noses up at higher mortgage rates.

Shares in Wagamama owner Restaurant Group are still worth buying, even as the firm faces soaring labour costs, high energy prices, and subdued footfall in its cinema and airport linked eateries, Peel Hunt’s analysts said, as they argued the firm’s “longer-term outlook is more favourable”. The analysts gave Restaurant Group a ‘buy’ rating with a price target of 60p.

Numbers out from the BoE on Wednesday will probably show exactly that, justifying Nationwide’s HPI on the same day revealing price growth has stalled.”

JACK BARNETT, ECONOMICS EDITOR

Victorian Plumbing is in a strong position to capture an even larger share of the market for bathroom materials, Peel Hunt’s analysts said, as they noted the ecommerce firm has already grown its share from three per cent in 2015 to 19 per cent in 2021. Peel Hunt’s analysts gave Victorian Plumbing a ‘buy’ rating with a price target of 120p.

OPINION

EDITED BY SASCHA O’SULLIVAN

The DUP lives rent free in Sunak’s mind and our collective political memory

Eliot Wilson

EXCEPT for viewers in Northern Ireland.” For many years, the attitude of British politics to the panjandrums of Belfast has been summed up by the continuity announcer’s familiar phrase: it is different, separate and anyway hard for those on the mainland to understand. Since Brexit, however, Northern Ireland has shouldered its way back on to the news agenda in a way we have not seen since the heady days of the Good Friday Agreement, which will celebrate its quartercentury this year.

Leaving the European Union was always going to be complicated for Northern Ireland, as it is the only part of the UK which shares a land border with an existing member state. The solution to these complexities was the Northern Ireland Protocol, an annex to the Withdrawal Agreement. By placing a de facto customs border down the Irish Sea, the protocol attracted the ire of many in the Unionist community, and Rishi Sunak, since coming to power last year, has been seeking to negotiate a revision of the protocol with the EU. It is now being briefed that a new deal is close: initially rumours suggested it would be published last week, but according to the latest predictions, it could be done by today. If a “refresh” of the protocol has been negotiated with

the European Commission, much will depend on whether it earns the favour of the Democratic Unionist Party. Over the weekend, foreign secretary James Cleverly said the outcome of the deal is “to make sure people, businesses and political representatives of those people in Northern Ireland are comfortable with the resolution”.

That the DUP holds such an important role in delivering a verdict on an international agreement at first seems counterintuitive. The party holds just eight seats at Westminster, and is only the second party in the suspended Northern Ireland Assembly, with 25 of the 90 seats. The government has a healthy majority in the Commons of almost 80, and Keir Starmer has already promised Labour would vote through a revised deal. There are many voices urg-

ing the prime minister to simply ignore the DUP.

It is not, however, as easy as that. In bare mathematical terms, the DUP has no leverage. This has not always been the case: when Theresa May gambled on a general election in 2017 and lost her majority, it was the DUP which agreed a confidence-and-supply deal to sustain her in office. Those memories are still vivid in our collective political memory, and many right-wing Conservatives, instinctively wary of the EU and committed to the Union between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, will look to the DUP as a canary in the mineshaft. If the Paisleyites - those followers of the former first minister - endorse a new protocol, it will have passed a certain test, but if they give the thumbs down, Tory rebels may be emboldened

to challenge the government.

This is on top of the deadlock in the Northern Ireland Assembly, which has been unable to nominate an executive because the DUP has refused to follow the requisite steps and pick a candidate for speaker of the assembly. The party has pledged to remain obstructionist until the protocol is changed significantly, or better yet, scrapped. The new slate of MLAs elected last May remain, therefore, ready to serve but unable to take their seats.

The urge in Downing Street to face the DUP down must be strong. It won only 21.3 per cent of the vote at the last assembly elections and is a party for which intransigence is familiar territory. There is a respectable intellectual argument that the protocol affects the whole of the UK and its relationship with international or-

We can help the Gulf states go green by increasing our trade ties and investment

FOR many people watching Messi and Mbappé from the other side of the globe, the recent World Cup in Qatar would have been their first exposure to the Gulf. The UK, however, has long been acquainted: the stadium that hosted 80,000 fans during the final was designed by a British firm, Fosters and Partners.

There has been intense focus on investment by Gulf States in the UK’s favourite pastime recently, with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund buying Newcastle United and a much talked about Qatari bid to buy Manchester United.

Opportunities like these are what attract investors to the United Kingdom. Abu Dhabi’s long-standing investment in Manchester City, for example, has helped to revitalise the area while also bringing in thousands more people to visit them and watch the very best footballers play.

Of course, the projects don’t start in Old Trafford and stop in St. James’s

Nicholas Lyons

Park. They spread throughout the UK, in service industries like hotels and restaurants. These investments aren’t even confined to the planet earth, as UK ministers met with Saudi representatives to discuss a joint investment in space-based solar power, a venture that could result in significant investment in British businesses.

Our trading relationship stands at about £33bn – covering everything from our food and drink to our financial and professional services sector. There is scope to grow this partnership considerably in two areas, a mission I hope to advance this week while visiting the Gulf.

The first area is in sustainability. In the run up to the United Arab Emirates’ presidency of Cop28 this November, we have an opportunity to share our expertise in sustainable finance and of the duties the presidency confers.

As a result of making their name in oil and petrochemicals, the UAE’s presidency has not been without controversy. But among the Gulf states, there is a growing recognition of the need to diversify, given the volatility of that market. Kuwait, for example, has pledged to have a carbon neutral oil and gas sector by 2050 and in other sectors by 2060. So I will be positioning the UK as the leading partner in sustainable infrastructure to support this transition.

The second priority is asset management. My trip to the Gulf comes immediately off the back of a week-long visit to Australia, where we launched the Global Investment Futures campaign which promotes our investment manager sector. We currently have over AUD$615bn of Australian investment in

this sector, making us the second largest destination for their investment.

With more than £11tn worth of assets under management in the UK, and with over 80 newly launched green, ethical and alternative energy funds in 2020, our investment management sector has much to offer the Gulf.

The breadth of investments sits right at the heart of the government’s preparation for a Free Trade Agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council, consisting of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – an Agreement which could bring over £1.5bn each year to the UK through expanded trade.

For the Gulf, investing in the UK financial and professional services sector is an open goal, one that will revolutionise their sustainable infrastructure and create more trade and jobs here in the UK. Unlike the World Cup final, both sides can emerge victorious.

£ Nicholas Lyons is the Lord Mayor of the City of London Corporation

ganisations, and that therefore any changes should be debated and decided on a UK-wide basis. Theoretically it is a coherent argument, but it ignores the grubby business of politics.

Sunak would be better advised to carry the DUP with him. In Northern Ireland terms, they are the largest Unionist party and, under the current arrangements, it would be impossible to create a functional executive without them, leading to the continuation of direct rule by Whitehall. This will only engender more friction in an already tense devolution set up. Having the DUP’s assent would make life significantly easier for Sunak.

More fundamentally, though, the DUP matters in Northern Ireland. Their distinct trend towards hardline social conservatism and profound distrust of Republicans and Nationalists has limited its voter base to 23 or 24 per cent, but that is still a significant enough faction. For context, UKIP was able to perhaps indelibly change the shape of Westminster politics with just 12.6 per cent of the vote in 2015.

The PM may think he needs to order an especially long spoon, or at least one for his Northern Ireland secretary, Chris Heaton-Harris. But the Tory Party is the body of Conservatives “and Unionists”, and the DUP’s central objection to the protocol, that it divides Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK, has considerable truth and merit. The support of the party would have symbolic importance, but it would also be a diplomatic coup in international terms for a prime minister whose expertise still lies elsewhere.

£ Eliot Wilson is co-founder of Pivot Point and a columnist at City A.M

Rishi Sunak is attempting to hash out a new Northern Ireland Protocol

PAT ON THE BACK Well, it might be more of an aggressive thump if it’s coming from Pat Cullen, the boss of the nurses union, and directed towards Rishi Sunak. No10 and the RCN chief will be busy drilling into a potential new pay offer this week , after Cullen agreed to suspend today’s strikes

WE WANT TO HEAR YOUR VIEWS

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Taking up digital IDs will only help

[Re: Explainer: Why Tony Blair and WIlliam Hague are calling for digital ID cards, Feb 22]

As a nation, the UK just does not trust ID cards. But it’s important we don’t let this reluctance extend to digital identities as well. Many countries like the United States and Australia have rolled out digital driver’s licences to improve the citizen experience— whether that’s applying for a licence or using it to prove their ID.

For this to be embraced here, we need incremental change backed by transparency and safeguards. The UK should incorporate a standards-based approach that ensures individuals

control their data, so they only share specific information to a service provider, such as a date of birth or address.

People want access to the digital world simply and safely without the need to log in constantly. Apple Pay and Google Wallet work well in that regard, as people trust that their credentials wouldn’t be sold or misused.

The future is to have your ID credentials, like your age and address, stored alongside your payment method to act as a form of validation, which would improve and secure the shopping experience. If this works well, the need for a formal national digital ID card with all its contentious issues just goes away. Imagine a world where you never need to log in again.

Eve Maler ForgeRock

TIK TOK UK under pressure to follow EU and US ban on China-owned app

Collecting ethnicity data for the pandemic taught City diversity chiefs hard lessons

NEVER has Diversity and Inclusion been so high on the agenda of financial and professional services firms (and diligent HR teams). How advanced firms are on their D&I journey is key to mapping the way to their destination. However, in analysing the data from the Covid-19 pandemic, the Office for National Statistics hit on a sore point: the recording of ethnicity data against different categorisations is inconsistent, which means it is difficult to compare like for like when firms and regulators seek to track progress.

In analysis published last month, the ONS talked about issues faced when researching the disparate impact of Covid-19 mortality rates on ethnic minority groups, which was adversely impacted by the inability to collate reliable ethnicity data with a consistent definition.

Could the difficulties faced by health researchers similarly account for the low rates of firms collecting ethnicity data beyond recruitment stages, and the low levels of firms voluntarily publishing ethnicity pay gaps?

EXPLAINER-IN-BRIEF: THE TURNIP WAR RAGES ON AFTER VEGETABLE RATIONING

The turnip is an unlikely figurehead of any political debate. But it will be front of mind today as supermarkets continue to try and deal with vegetable shortages.

Last week, Environment Secretary told us we should “cherish” the turnip instead of fretting over other foreign veg.

“A lot of people would be eating turnips right now rather than thinking necessarily about aspects of lettuce and tomatoes and similar”, she said.

There are obvious benefits to

eating local, seasonal foodsboth in terms of health and sustainability. Yet the current shortages point to the weaknesses in Britain’s food chains. Tomatoes and cucumbers are in short supply mainly because of extreme temperatures in Spain and north Africa. But lettuce, peppers and cauliflower have also been rationed by Britain’s biggest supermarkets. Though Brexit is not the main culprit here, it surely didn’t help.

ELENA SINISCALCO

The government pendulum on publishing ethnicity pay gaps has swung from side to side. Its current momentum is towards simply encouraging firms to do so and it is expected that, at some point, it will provide guidance. However, despite two private members’ bills and a debate in Parliament as a result of a petition, the government still does not intend to make publishing ethnicity pay gaps compulsory.

In financial services, further guidance is awaited but currently firms are in “limbo”. However, it is crystal clear that regulators view D&I as a key indicator of good culture.

Financial services firms are also aware that the FCA, the PRA and the Bank of England intend to introduce some form of regulation to drive D&I progress as a means of improving culture and preventing “groupthink”. However, we are yet to see their delayed consultation caper on D&I.

According to the FCA, detailed ethnicity data from firms found “divergent outcomes for different ethnic minority groups”, presumably on aspects such as progression and retention as well as pay. Consequently, consistency in the subcategories of data collected across

the industry will be key, so that true impacts and like-for-like analysis can be undertaken – a point that the ONS consistently makes – not just in relation to ethnicity, but also other protected characteristics (and wider data sets like socio-economic data). Firms are keen to improve data collection but they understandably want to do so against consistent data.

While regulators consider formal rules, there are a number of questions to consider. Should firms use the UK 2021 census categories to collect ethnicity data? Does this risk skewed results, with 19 categories resulting in low numbers and the risk that, in smaller firms, confidentiality of pay data (where only a handful of people are within a certain ethnic group) may become an issue? Should firms collect data from all protected characteristics in the Equality Act, just some or go beyond the areas the Equality Act covers? Does the Financial Services Skills Commission’s Social Mobility toolkit, with its very specific questions on socio-economic status, help? Most importantly, is waiting for the regulators’ consulta-

tion paper delaying firms’ efforts to improve diversity data collection?

In a telling concession, the CIPD’s 2021 Guide for UK employers on voluntary ethnicity pay reporting simply split the data into two groups – comparing pay only between white and ethnic minority employees. Ethnicity is not a binary issue and so this approach is easy to criticise, but perhaps the belief was that a simple route has a greater chance of being used by more businesses. Financial services firms will not get away so lightly, and law firms already have to report diversity data in some depth. Yet until the financial services regulators introduce consistency with rules, firms could face undoing work they have started in good faith. Setting the final destination is relatively straightforward - actually recording the correct data is where the hard work lies. If firms don’t collect and record the data consistently across the board, they stand a strong chance of getting lost along the way.

£ Sophie White is a partner at Eversheds Sutherland

Sophie White

The ONS highlighted issues in collecting data on ethnicity during the pandemic

UK politicians will be under pressure this week to get to grips with Britain’s position on TikTok, the Chinese owned social media app after the European Commission banned it on work devices as a result of privacy concerns.

TRAVEL

We’re high up in trans-Himalayan Ladakh – dizzyingly high – and oxygen is hard to come by here. To reach the tiny village of Ulley, where we’re holed up in a local homestay, we’ve already passed through thundering mountain ranges, following lines of army trucks coiled like sunbaking snakes. We’ve motored up the world’s second-highest navigable mountain pass, which loomed at a blizzardy 17582ft, higher even than the famous Mount Everest Base Camp which sits at 5,5150m. It has been what you might call ‘a slog’; is it any wonder some of us are feeling short of breath? But I’m hoping it will be worth the altitude sickness. I’ve come here, to India’s farthest reaches, in search of some of the rarest wildlife on the planet: elusive snow leopards that slink like fleeting gusts of wind between huge granite boulders and rare Tibetan wolves, their numbers decimated by retaliatory killings from local farmers. A couple of hundred miles away in army-heavy Dras, the hardy villagers live alongside lumbering Himalayan brown bears, which are otherwise so rarely-seen they are thought be the inspiration behind the famous yeti myth.

Ulley itself consists of a small clutch of houses surrounded by wind-whipped tiramisu mountains. It’s about the size of a central London roundabout. You won’t find it on the map. Up here at 14,000ft, the buildings teeter at an altitude that can floor some Olympic athletes (and send even the most intrepid tourists scarpering back to Delhi). Temperatures can plummet to minus 30 degrees in the winter – the sort of cold that feels like a knife held to the throat – and as spring-fed pipes freeze shut, running water vanishes completely. There’s more than a passing chance of getting snowed in.

But if the landscape’s hostile, the Snow Leopard Lodge, a homestay run by local man Tchewang Norbu and his son Stanzin, is a cosy, low-slung hug of a building. It’s from here that we’ve been searching for leopards for the past few days, trudging our way through echoing mountain valleys and scouring rocky ridges for something toothier than the blue sheep that dot the horizon, or the sturdy ibex rooted defiantly to vertiginous scree slopes. Villagers here –who know these mountains better than anyone on the planet – are employed as ‘spotters’, scouring the ice-bitten landscape for hours on end. The lodge also works in partnership with The Snow Leopard Conservancy, using funds generated by tourism to help research and protect the predators. Still, relatively little is known about the snow leopard. The solitary creatures –known in Ladakhi proverb as being ‘as beautiful as ten women, as strong as ten men and as wise as ten astronomers’ – have a colossal range that covers almost two million square kilometres of Central Asia. They are almost never seen. In fact, they are so hard to pin down that researchers have no real idea how many of the threatened creatures actually exist (the latest estimate from WWF puts the number at around 4000, with 100-300 thought to be left in Ladakh, an area the size of Scotland). Many outings like mine prove fruitless, with eager travellers having to content themselves with pug marks in the mud or the thick scent of a cat’s marking on a

SEARCHING FOR SNOW LEOPARDS IN INDIA

THE TRAVEL HACK

Ladakh is known for extremely low temperatures throughout the year, so visit in high season from April to July when temperates are 15 to 30 Degrees Celsius.

rock; nerve-tickling signs that a ‘mountain ghost’ has passed through.

WAITING

We have help in the shape of brilliant naturalist guide Surya Ramachandran, who shows us how to stuff our ears with toilet paper to keep out the cold, and Norbu himself, whose leopard-spotting abilities make him something of a local legend. But so far, the only predators we’ve seen are golden eagles.

Our first glimmer of hope comes at breakfast time. Through clinking cutlery sounds the cellophane crackle of the radio, and one word repeated three times in monotone: “Shanku, shanku, shanku.” I launch myself out of my seat, trailing globs of masala omelette and spilling chai tea across the table. I grab my binoculars and clatter outside. With shaking hands, I raise my binoculars to the side of the

Grab my binoculars, and with shaking hands, I survey the side of the mountain

mountain. There. Two of them. Trotting past prayer flags that flutter in the wind. Not leopards but something big: wolves, bellies almost grazing the ground after a good feed. We track them as they pick their way across the mountains, pausing to howl like they're calling to the gods.

That night we watch snow leopard documentaries and trawl through old camera trap footage of puffy-furred cubs. Norbu de-

scribes what it’s like to see the cats: “When I see a snow leopard it feels like a spirit has taken over my body. Like I could fly. I feel completely exalted.” We nod politely, stomachs curdling with envy, reminding ourselves that even wildlife cameramen have to resort to footage sprung by camera traps.

The final morning breaks with a sun as sharp as pincers. We head out to retrieve a camera trap that we laid a few days earlier, hoping desperately that we might have snagged some of our own footage. The tape is blank. When we return to the lodge, heads ringing with altitude, some of the group go to their rooms to work or rest. I stand in the lounge, shifting my weight from foot to foot, staring at the photographs of snow leopards on the walls, their eyes as blue as frosted marbles. I pause, shrug my coat back on and walk determinedly up to the spotters’ point.

Up here, it’s as if the landscape has held

Snow leopards are called the ‘ghosts’ of the Ladakh because they’re so hard to see. Lizzie Pook went on their trail

BOOK THIS

its breath. Twenty minutes glug slowly by. Thirty. Then something happens. Suddenly, spotter Namgyal starts to shout. “Shan! Shan! Shan!” His eyes are glued to his scope, finger pointed urgently at the mountain. I still my breath and put my eye to the scope. There she is. High on the ridge. Silhouetted like a sphinx. It’s a snow leopard. My stomach folds in on itself.

The cat hauls itself to its feet, its halfcoiled tail high in the air. She looks like something you’d see emblazoned on a warrior’s shield. Thick-set. Heraldic. Then a cub appears in the frame. My breath snags. Another cub follows. I make a sound I’m not sure I’ve ever made before. The balls of fluff clamber onto their mother’s back and she pads steadily across the mountain. They climb bussized boulders as quick as spiders and leap from rock to rock, limbs spread wide as we ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ as if we’re watching a firework display.

LADAKH IN NORTHERN INDIA IS KNOWN AS ‘LITTLE TIBET.’

As you search for snow leopards you’ll pass cobalt lakes and sand dunes across a landscape that feels ever-changing, all set to the backdrop of snowy mountains.

It’s not only the leopards: antelope, shapo, Tibetan hare, and bird life is all viewable. You’ll also visit the Tibetan city of Leh to learn about snow leopard conservation and experience shopping bazaars and windy-windy streets.

Luck doesn’t even cover it. I’ve seen a ghost.

In memory of Stanzin Farma, who always had a beautiful smile on his face and made us feel so at home in the mountains.

NEED TO KNOW

andBeyond’s Snow Leopard Expedition starts from £5,336 per person. Price based on two sharing and includes all meals, internal flights, one day in Delhi on a B&B basis, all activities in Ladakh, transportation, a donation fee for snow leopard conservation and services of a tour leader. Go to andbeyond.com for more information about upcoming trips.

THE

DEAN HOTEL CORK, IRELAND THE LONG WEEKEND

There’s a video doing the rounds of Cillian Murphy being asked where’s the best city to go drinking. Without hesitating he replies ‘Cork’. Filled with rickety old pubs that seem to grow organically from the city’s architecture, like some alcoholic Hogwarts, it’s ideal for a weekend of enthusiastic bar-hopping.

GETTING THERE: With Cork airport a swift 20-minute drive from the city centre, you can leave London at 5pm and have a pint of Beamish in your hand before 8pm. If you get a chance, neck a couple of pints before you get on the plane –it’ll take the edge off the notoriously windy landing, which often involves descending at a terrifying 45 degree angle before you touch down, instilling in you a new appreciation for life.

WHERE TO STAY: The Dean hotel is a great, central hub from which to explore the beautiful old town. Located close to the river, it’s a short walk to the main shopping and eating streets, as well as a decent starting point for a good old fashioned pub crawl. The Dean has a buzzy downstairs bar and an upstairs restaurant, Sophie’s, with a roof terrace and views across the docks. The food varies throughout the day, from a hearty Irish breakfast, through to woodfired pizzas and steaks in the evening. The rooms are modern and chic, and if you’re going in a group I highly recommend the penthouse (available from €250 per person), which is a sprawling collection of rooms bigger than most London flats and includes a huge TV, table football, record player, and sweeping copper bathtubs. The hotel also has a decent gym, and a

TO BOOK

The Dean has rooms from €150 a night, with the penthouse starting from €250 per person. To find out more and to book go to thedean.ie

swimming pool complete with acrobat’s rings hanging from the ceiling.

DON’T MISS: The last weekend of October is the Cork Jazz Festival, the biggest event in the city’s calendar and a great time to really luxuriate in a long weekend of persistent inebriation.

Virtually all of the city’s pubs and events spaces have musicians booked, ranging from enthusiastic locals to internationally renowned stars. Be prepared to book early and pay dearly for hotels over the weekend –it really is a massive deal in Cork –and get your restaurant reservations in nice and early, too.

Having said that, there’s fun to be had simply sloping from bar to bar, each one spilling out into the (inevitably wind- and rain-swept) streets, and elbowing your way through the throng to catch a glimpse of a bunch of extravagantly bearded men thrashing out a barely recognisable, discordant cover version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

SO ABOUT THE DRINKING... Cillian knows what he’s talking about. There are more strange old pubs than you could possibly drink at. The Shelbourne in the Victorian Quarter is a great place to start before you shamble over to the Mutton Lane Inn, hidden down a shaded alley, which feels every bit as old as its 250 years. For something completely different, try the High-B Bar, a tiny little venue above a shop that looks like your nan’s living room and doesn’t allow mobile phones. For a more traditional Irish music experience, The Corner House has live bands on yearround and is known for its trad sessions.

Bar hopping through the pubs of Cork is a world-class weekend a short hop from London, says Steve Dinneen

Clockwise from above: One of Cork’s attractive churches overlooking the bay; Sophie’s restaurant in The Dean hotel; Saint Patrick's Bridge

SPORT

JUST THE START

FOOTBALL

Blues ‘suffering’ says under-fire manager Potter

FRANK DALLERES

UNDER-FIRE Chelsea manager Graham Potter admits he and his team are “suffering” after losing to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League for the first time in five years.

Oliver Skipp’s first goal for Spurs and a late second from Harry Kane earned a 2-0 win that lifted them back into the top four and deepened the gloom around Chelsea and Potter.

The Blues have won just once in 2023 and are now closer to the relegation zone than to the Champions League qualifying places.

“I haven’t done enough at this club to have too much good faith and I accept that but my job is to not worry too much about that,” said Potter.

“I understand the question [about being under pressure], totally and to try to focus on keep helping the team, keep helping the players because I really like these players.

“They are good lads, they want to do better, they want to win but at the moment we are suffering and that’s my responsibility.

Ten Hag toasts new era after delivering his first trophy for Manchester United

FRANK DALLERES

MANCHESTER United celebrated their first silverware under manager Erik ten Hag and the end of a six-year trophy drought after beating Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final.

Midfielder Casemiro’s header and an own goal from Newcastle defender Sven Botman decided an absorbing contest at Wembley that United deserved to win.

Newcastle, seeking their first domestic cup since 1955, took the game to United early on but struggled to recover from conceding twice in 10 minutes before half-time.

“First you have to win the first one, and that is what we did today,” said Ten Hag.

“We can get a lot of inspiration from this and more confidence that we can do it.

We are still at the start of restoring Manchester United to where we belong –and that is winning trophies.

“We invest at the start of the season with the staff, who have done an incredible job with the players. We are together. There was a real hunger and desire for trophies, because that is what Manchester United stands for.”

Ten Hag was dismissed as Erik “ten months” by some critics after a shaky start to life at Old Trafford but the former Ajax manager is having the last laugh. Indeed, the 10-month anniversary of his appointment was marked not with dismissal but a trophy, while the team remain on course for Champions League qualification.

Midfielder Bruno Fernandes said their first title since the 2017 Europa League

was reward for their improvement in Ten Hag’s debut season but had now whetted his appetite.

“We have been searching for this moment, us, the fans and the club. We are all together and finally we get our trophy, I think deservedly,” he said.

“It has been an amazing period [this season] but we want and need more, it is not enough for this club. I am satisfied, because now I get my trophy, but I want more and we want more.”

Despite defeat, Newcastle manager Eddie Howe has overseen his own quiet revolution but must now restore momentum in the Premier League after slipping out of the top four.

“Getting beaten in a final is never nice. Seeing fans disappointed hurts,” said Howe. “We were fighting relegation last

France end Scotland Grand Slam hopes with bonus-point win

MATT HARDY

A LATE Gael Fickou try earned France a bonus-point 32-21 win and denied Scotland a sensational comeback in the third round of the Six Nations in Paris.

Fly-half Romain Ntamack put Les Bleus ahead early on before Scotland were reduced to 14 men when Adam Gilchrist was shown a red card in the sixth minute for a high tackle.

Frenchman Mohamed Haouas was sent off for head-on-head contact but his side managed to extend their lead to 19-0 through Ethan Dumortier and Thomas Ramos.

Scotland, however, began their comeback with a Huw Jones try before half-time.

Jones scored again and Finn Russell crossed the whitewash while Ramos kicked six points off the boot to leave the Scots within four of their hosts.

But Fickou’s (right) last-minute score put an end to any hope of Scotland winning and killed off an ambitious dream of a Grand Slam.

Scotland remain second in the Six Nations table, five points behind unbeaten Ireland and level on points with both England and France. Italy are fifth and Wales are bottom of the table.

season. This season was an unknown for us. Players have done exceptionally well but we are not the finished article.”

Casemiro headed United in front in the 33rd minute, rising highest to meet Luke Shaw’s free kick from the left and then seeing his goal given onside after a VAR check. They doubled their lead six minutes later when Rashford’s shot across goal deflected off Botman and over Newcastle’s third choice goalkeeper Loris Karius.

United defender Lisandro Martinez blocked a goal-bound shot as the Magpies pressed in the second half, while substitute Jacob Murphy’s effort swerved just wide. At the other end Karius, playing his first game for two years, made important saves from Rashford and Fernandes.

“I know and can feel they want the results to get better but we are in a tough moment.”

Skipp put the hosts on course for their first win over their London rivals at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with a rasping drive just after the start of the second half. Kane made the result safe eight minutes from time when he guided in Eric Dier’s flick-on from a corner at the far post.

“Chelsea have been a difficult opponent for us over the last few years so it’s a really important win to keep us around fourth,” said Kane. “Overall I thought we deserved the win.”

Spurs continued assistant manager Cristian Stellini’s 100 per cent home record while deputising for convalescing boss Antonio Conte.

“Our desire was this to win, play a great game and to fight for every ball and we are happy for the fans, the club and of course for us and Antonio who is still at home,” said Stellini.

“My expectation is that Antonio will be back this week.”

Australia win to claim sixth

Women’s T20 World Cup

MATT HARDY

BETH Mooney hit an unbeaten 74 as Australia beat South Africa by 19 runs to win their sixth Women’s T20 World Cup yesterday in Cape Town.

Overwhelming favourites Australia set the host country a target of 157 at Newlands, with Mooney’s contribution the bulk of the 156 total.

South Africa opener Laura Wolvaardt knocked 61 runs in response with Chloe Tyron adding 25 runs of her own but the Proteas, who beat England in the semi-finals on Friday, fell 19 runs short in their first ever Women’s T20 World Cup final.

“It is a pretty special effort. All the

teams came hard at us, but to be able to perform throughout the tournament I am super proud,” Australia’s captain Meg Lanning said.

“It is a special group –not just the players, but the support staff, who put in a lot of work behind the scenes.

“They allow us to just go out and play our cricket. To have all the support from back home and here has been amazing and we certainly feel it.”

South Africa skipper Sune Luus said: “It’s been absolutely amazing to play in our home ground with so many people watching and the support.

“We’ve never imagined being in the final and the ground being filled too. Thank you Newlands.”

CRICKET

RUGBY UNION

FOOTBALL

Win must be turning point for Moyes’s men

BEFORE West Ham United welcomed fellow strugglers Everton to the London Stadium last month, reports emerged that manager David Moyes might be for the chop if they lost to his old team.

The Hammers duly won their first Premier League match in eight attempts and Moyes lived to fight another day.

Five games later, having accrued just two more points in the interim, rumours that the club could oust Moyes resurfaced ahead of Saturday’s visit from Nottingham Forest.

West Ham responded again, this time with their biggest win of the season: a 4-0 triumph in which all goals came in the last 20 minutes.

FLOATING IDEAS

It’s tempting to reason that the east

RUGBY UNION

Six Nations clash shows exactly where England and Wales are, writes Matt Hardy

IT HAS always been one of those Six Nations matches fans look for when the fixtures are released, but Saturday’s clash between Wales and England did little to extinguish what has been a fiery couple of months for the home side.

Given threats were made by players to strike in the days leading up to the 20-10 loss to England in Cardiff, the cagey affair heaped more sorrow on Wales while handing Steve Borthwick a much needed first away win.

Here are three things we learned from the round three match.

ENGLAND EVOLUTION

England have clearly evolved in their three matches under Borthwick, whereas Wales have plateaued or even regressed in their three since Warren Gatland returned.

The three tries for the visitors, from Anthony Watson, Ollie Lawrence and Kyle Sinckler, mean that England have crossed the whitewash 11 times in three matches.

Wales, on the other hand, have scored on just three occasions in their opening three matches against their home nations opponents.

Coached in attack by Harlequins’ Nick Evans, England have developed from the side that won just five matches in 12 Tests under Eddie Jones in 2022.

They are making more line breaks than last year and are developing a more robust system than before.

It may look boring but Borthwick’s men are starting to put together an impressively resilient game plan which will get the ultimate test in their next two games against the world’s top two sides, France and Ireland.

DEFINITION OF INSANITY

It is difficult to dissect where Wales are at the moment without acknowledging that they’re in one of the deepest ruts they’ve been in for decades.

They’re a nation of incredible talent and create one of the sport’s greatest atmospheres on their doorstep but they’re seemingly unable to make use of those assets.

On Saturday, against a backdrop of

West Ham can’t rely on the threat of the sack sparking their

London club’s board now know what to do each week: float the idea of Moyes getting sacked and the wins will keep flowing. But the truth is that the cycle of boom and bust is not sustainable and Moyes and Hammers both need the Forest game to be a turning point in the campaign.

Too often in 2022-23 West Ham have taken one step forward and the two steps back. The win over Everton was a case in point.

They followed it up with an FA Cup win over Derby but then failed to win any of their next three and slipped into the relegation zone

writes Frank Dalleres

with a 2-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur. This season wasn’t meant to be Consecutive top-seven finishes appeared to herald a new upwardly mobile era under a revitalised Moyes, while a transfer outlay of around £150m on Brazil midfielder Lucas Paqueta, Italy forward Gianluca Scamacca, Ivory Coast winger Maxwel Cornet and Morocco defender Nayef Aguerd promised much.

Instead West Ham have struggled to find consistency away from the Europa League, where they have won eight from eight. By contrast, just six of their 16 wins in all competitions have come in the Premier League, with the result that they have been dragged inexorably towards the bottom of the table.

THREAT OF THE DROP

These are uncertain times in the boardroom, following the passing of co-owner David Gold, and a relegation fight is not helpful.

Daniel Kretinsky is said to be ready to exercise an option to increase his 27 per cent stake into majority owner-

TALE OF TWO SIDES

chaos off the field in the days prior, Wales offered little except a brilliant Louis Rees-Zammit interception read.

Gatland was called upon by the national team as a settler, a calming presence for a monumental year. It has been anything but.

Some of his comments about the potential strikes were taken badly, and at the end of the day his side have been outmuscled and outplayed in all of their matches this year – albeit England were the least dominant.

There’s never a quick fix in international sport, and often it takes time to develop players who have been stagnant under a previous regime.

But Gatland doesn’t have time, and players and fans alike are beginning to see that.

In round four they head to Rome to

play their closest rivals in the Six Nations table, Italy.

The Azzurri ran France close and this weekend held their own against a brilliant Irish team.

Wales simply must win that game in two weeks, but it’s a long way from a certain result.

THE UNDROPPABLES

Cardiff was a raucous bowl of noise, atmosphere and mixed emotions throughout the 80 minutes on Saturday and a number of England players added to their value.

Back rowers Lewis Ludlam and Jack Willis continued their rich vein of form throughout the afternoon, with the duo working well to effect turnovers, make crunching tackles and carry beyond the gainline.

ship. But the threat of the drop may cause the Czech billionaire to think twice, or at least generate a debate about the price.

West Ham do not want to sack Moyes. For all their reputation for hard-nosed negotiation, the board have only fired two managers – Slaven Bilic and Manuel Pellegrini – in the last 11 years. Perhaps Saturday was a breakthrough moment and January signing Danny Ings, who scored twice, will prove to be the attacking spearhead they have lacked.

The schedule isn’t about to get any easier, with an FA Cup trip to Manchester United followed by Premier League games against Brighton, Aston Villa and Manchester City either side of a Europa League tie, so it may be now or never if this season is going to go down as a blip rather than the final chapter in Moyes’s time at the club.

Centre Ollie Lawrence solidified his case to be England’s No12 at this year’s World Cup. The former Worcester back scored a crucial try to seal the victory but was smart throughout the 80 and probed the Welsh defence well.

Alex Mitchell, the replacement No9, was crucial in the tempo change in the final quarter and could knock Jack Van Poortvliet onto the bench against Antoine Dupont and the French.

Wales are bottom of the Six Nations and they’re struggling.

The last thing they need is a trip to Rome, which is exactly what they’ve got in a fortnight.

England are up and running under Borthwick but two huge obstacles remain in this year’s Six Nations which should give a true reflection of where the side are.

REMAINING SIX NATIONS FIXTURES

ROUND 4

Italy vs Wales (Saturday 11 March, 2:15pm)

England vs France (Saturday 11 March, 4:45pm)

Scotland vs Ireland (Sunday 12 March, 3:00pm)

ROUND 5

Scotland vs Italy (Saturday 18 March, 12:30pm)

France vs Wales (Saturday 18 March, 2:45pm)

Ireland vs England (Saturday 18 March, 5pm)

team into life time after time,