Monday 12 June 2023

LONDON’S BUSINESS NEWSPAPER

ATHENIAN DREAMS WHY THE GREEK CAPITAL IS THE HOTTEST CITY BREAK THIS YEAR P16-17

BANKS MUST ‘ADAPT’ IN TECH BATTLE

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

ISSUE 3,993

SEXTON STUNNER IRISH FLY HALF IN DANGER OF MISSING WORLD CUP P20

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STURGEON ARRESTED Former Scottish leader questioned by cops

FORMER BARCLAYS BOSS WARNS ESTABLISHED LENDERS CHRIS DORRELL A FORMER bank boss has warned London’s established banks they need to adapt faster to the rise of fintechs if they are to survive. Antony Jenkins, who led Barclays from 2012 to 2015, has told City A.M. that the oldest players in the industry face a “world of very slow decline” if they fail to adapt to new technologies. “This industry is really on the brink of having to undergo radical transformation if it’s going to remain relevant to its customers,” he added. Jenkins highlighted how the explosion of user-friendly fintech firms had transformed the banking landscape. He also predicted that the entry of big tech firms into the market, such as Antony Jenkins led Barclays from 2012 to 2015

Apple and Amazon, would put banks under pressure to adapt to remain competitive. According to research by fintech firm 10x, founded by Jenkins, 20 per cent of customers who left their bank did so because of poor customer experience. The research shared exclusively with City A.M. – which surveyed over 150 banks leaders and more than 150 managers in eight different markets – shows that bank leaders around the world are aware of the scale of the problem, with nearly two thirds of leaders suggesting they have further to go on embracing new forms of technology. The same proportion admitted that their slow rate of digital transformation has directly resulted in them missing out on new customers. As Jenkins argued, “these issues have moved from something that sat largely

inside the technology department to something that has become a strategic issue for banks.” But the research also suggested that banks would struggle to hold onto their staff if they failed to upgrade fast enough. Some 94 per cent of managers surveyed said they would leave their current position to work for a competitor bank with better tech. Although Jenkins did not think that banks were “the dinosaurs roaming the savannah that they are sometimes painted as”, he warned that without fundamentally changing they would face “slow decline”. He suggested that banks would either have to fundamentally redesign their in-house technologies from the ground up or operate on a ‘banking as a service’ (BaaS) model, where they are pushed down the value chain. “The danger is that if you don’t pick one of those two models – and then execute really well against it – you could be in a world of very slow decline,” he said.

JESSICA FRANK-KEYES FORMER Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon was released without charge yesterday after she was arrested as part of an ongoing police investigation into the party’s finances. Sturgeon, 52, was arrested on Sunday afternoon and taken into custody “by arrangement” with Police Scotland, where she was questioned by detectives. In a statement, Sturgeon said the experience was “deeply distressing”. She wrote: “Obviously, given the nature of this process I cannot go into detail. “However, I do wish to say this, and to do so in the strongest possible

terms. Innocence is not just a presumption I am entitled to in law. I know beyond doubt that I am in fact innocent of any wrongdoing.” It comes after her husband Peter Murrell and then-SNP treasurer Colin Beattie were detained and questioned in April. Both were released without charge pending further inquiry. Sturgeon and Murrell’s home and the SNP headquarters in Edinburgh were also searched. The investigation, launched in 2021, began after allegations £600,000 raised for Scottish independence campaigning was used elsewhere. Murrell quit as SNP chief executive after Sturgeon resigned as leader In February, and the party agreed to review transparency and governance.

Fed ‘skip’ on rates now analysts’ favourite with inflation beginning to cool CITY A.M. REPORTER THE US Federal Reserve is set to pause its interest rate hiking campaign at its next meeting this week, analysts predict. Top officials from the central bank have signalled it will likely avoid hiking the world’s most important

interest rate, which now hovers between 5 per cent and 5.25 per cent, when it announces its next rate decision on Wednesday. In April, US inflation fell to 4.9 per cent, while core inflation, which removes more volatile food and energy costs, slowed to 5.5 per cent. May’s US inflation numbers, out

on Tuesday, are expected to drop again, with headline inflation falling to around 4.1 per cent and core price rises slowing to about 5.3 per cent. Most economists think the Fed will skip on another hike this week, but they predict the monetary authority will lift

its rate to at least 5.5 per cent this year. “Recent briefings from some Fed officials do suggest that a divergence of views is forming on Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell

how to move next, with a slight bias towards skipping June and looking to July for the next rate hike,” Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, said. Meanwhile, the European Central Bank looks set to hike rates by another 25 basis points to 3.5 per cent on Thursday this week.

INSIDE NO RECESSION - BUT WEAK GROWTH REMAINS P5 SVB UK PREPS CHARM OFFENSIVE P7 LSE HITS BACK AT EURONEXT P11 THE NOTEBOOK P14-15 OPINION P19-20 SPORT

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MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

STANDING UP FOR THE CITY

Starmer will need more than his foes’ missteps to take No 10

W

ith friends like these, the saying goes, who needs enemies? For Keir Starmer, it reads the opposite: with enemies like the SNP and the Conservatives, what use has he for friends? It is his foes doing most of the heavy lifting for the Labour leader. North of the border, the SNP’s uncomfortably close getting-toknow-you session with Police Scotland should give Labour the chance to win back the Scottish

THE CITY VIEW seats it will need to secure a Westminster majority. Down south, with Rishi Sunak looking as comfortable and assured as he has in Downing Street, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his rose-tinted acolytes are contriving to restart a

Conservative civil war. It is not far lack of trying that the blue touch paper, so far at least, remains unlit. It would be tempting, then, for Starmer et al to think it wise to shut up shop until the election, relying on frustration with those in office to drive the party into government. Tempting, but a mistake. History is littered with examples of complacent oppositions, who failed to understand that disaffection is

only an electoral winner if it’s allied with a belief that the other lot might be better. Labour under Starmer remains a blancmange of a party; structurally just about sound, but with no recognisable shape. It is no longer ‘too far out’ for the party to be coy on policy not least as Rishi Sunak steps up his game. In recent weeks the outline of a Sunak government is becoming clearer, with some blue water developing between he and the

A ROYAL GANDER Metropolitan Police officers attempt to herd a family of Egyptian geese off Spur Road, outside Buckingham Palace, in preparations for the King’s birthday

work of his successors. That he simply waved through Boris Johnson’s absurd honours list speaks to a man keen to put that era of Tory government behind him - with his eyes focussed more on turning Britain into a modern economic player. Will it work? Probably not before the election. But as a vision, there’s at least something there that might appeal. The next election is far from a foregone conclusion in favour of the Labour party.

WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING THE GUARDIAN

UKRAINE CLAIMS TO HAVE LIBERATED FRONTLINE VILLAGES IN DONETSK

Ukraine’s armed forces have claimed to have liberated three frontline villages in western Donetsk, almost a week after the launch of counter-offensive operations.

THE INDEPENDENT

FORMER ATTORNEY GENERAL GIVES DAMNING VIEW OF DONALD TRUMP INDICTMENT

Former Trump administration attorney general Bill Barr gave a devastating analysis of the indictment against Donald Trump, his former boss, in an appearance on Fox News Sunday, calling the evidence “very damning”.

THE FINANCIAL TIMES

NHS FEARS ‘SIGNIFICANT’ DISRUPTION AS JUNIOR DOCTORS GO ON STRIKE

A senior NHS leader has warned of thousands of cancelled appointments as junior doctors in England prepare to walk out for 72 hours from Wednesday morning in their long-running battle over pay.

Cabinet minister claims politics has Paul Scully fails to make Tory ‘moved on’ from Boris Johnson drama mayoral candidate shortlist JESSICA FRANK-KEYES POLITICS has “moved on” from the drama of Boris Johnson, a senior cabinet minister has claimed amid a row over the former prime minister’s resignation as an MP and honours list. Energy secretary Grant Shapps told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday that while former London mayor Johnson possessed “many qualities”, No 10 was under “new management”. He said: “I think the world has moved on from what was quite a dramatic pe-

riod under Brexit and of course under the issues related to Covid, the vaccines and the rest of it.” Johnson quit Parliament on Friday, sparking a by-election in his marginal seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip, after being given a critical report by the Privileges Committee into claims he recklessly or deliberately misled the House of Commons over Partygate. In an explosive resignation letter, the former PM branded the panel a “kangaroo court” and laid into successor Rishi Sunak, accusing his government of

ditching the 2019 manifesto pledges . Johnson has also faced controversy in a dispute over claims names were removed from his peerages submission, while government insists Sunak and No 10 were not involved. Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner branded it a “plot to reward the carousel of cronies”. Shapps also insisted to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg that speculation about Johnson making a swift return to Westminster was misplaced and “in the realms of the hypothetical”.

JESSICA FRANK-KEYES CONSERVATIVE MP Paul Scully has failed to make it onto his party’s shortlist in the race to take on Sadiq Khan for mayor of London. The upset saw the minister for London – widely thought of as the likely Tory favourite – snubbed in favour of assembly member Susan Hall, former No 10 advisor Daniel Korski and lawyer Mozammel Hossain KC. Scully, who has been the MP for

Sutton and Cheam since 2015, was expected to make the list with big name backers in Westminster including former cabinet heavyweight Brandon Lewis and exCity Hall Conservative leader Gareth Bacon. He told City A.M.: “While I'm disappointed by today’s decision, I'd like to extend my deepest gratitude to Team Scully, the many volunteers, activists, councillors, assembly members and MPs across London who supported my campaign.”

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

Banks failing to pass on rates to savers, say MPs CHRIS DORRELL BANKS have been short changing customers for nearly a year, MPs have argued, with the average mortgage rates exceeding savings rates by over three per cent since last July. At the end of last week the average rate on offer for a two-year mortgage was 5.87. The average rate on a savings account was just 2.27 per cent, according to data from Moneyfacts. Since the Bank of England started raising rates back in December 2021, the average gap between savings rates and mortgage rates has been 3.3 per cent. Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, recently admitted that the pass through on rates had been “unusually weak”. The low rates on offer, particularly at the major high street lenders, has attracted cross-party criticism, with the influential Treasury committee de-

manding that banks “up their game” on savings rates. Andrea Leadsom, a Conservative MP who sits on the committee, told City A.M. “it’s quite clear” banks have failed to pass on the rise in interest rates to savers. “We’ve all noticed the disparity between the speed with which the costs of higher interest rates are heaped on borrowers and how slowly any of it is shared with savers,” Angela Eagle, a Labour MP who also sits on the committee, told City A.M. Eagle also noted the bumper profits banks have made this year as they’ve benefited from higher interest income. In response, British banking lobby group UK Finance said: “The market is competitive and there is a wide range of different savings products available, we therefore encourage customers to shop around for the product best suited to their needs”.

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Odey exits fund as misconduct claims mount PRESS ASSOCIATION

The Open Society Foundation directs about $1.5bn a year to human rights groups

Billionaire George Soros hands control of $25bn empire to son CITY A.M. REPORTER BILLIONAIRE financier George Soros has said he is handing control of his sprawling business empire to his son, Alexander Soros. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, hedge-fund-managerturned-philanthropist Soros, 92, said previously that he didn’t want his

Open Society Foundations and $25bn empire to be taken over by one of his five children, but now he has changed positions as “he’s earned it.” His son, Alexander, 37, who was also interviewed by the newspaper, said he’s “more political” than his father and that he plans to continue donating family money to back leftleaning US political candidates.

CRISPIN Odey is to leave Odey Asset Management (OAM), the partnership said on Saturday, following a series of allegations of misconduct. In a statement, the executive committee of OAM said Odey, who founded the hedge fund, will “no longer have any economic or personal involvement in the partnership”. It follows a report in the Financial Times, together with Tortoise Media, which included several allegations of sexual harassment or misconduct from women who either worked at the firm or had social or professional dealings with Odey. The statement, signed by chief executive Peter Martin and chief financial officer Michael Ede, said the firm investigated the allegations concerning Odey but “cannot comment in detail as it is bound by legal obligations of confidentiality”. The statement said: “As from today, he will no longer have any economic or personal involvement PA in the partnership.”

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MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

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Services businesses seeing light at the end of a long economic tunnel ANNA WISE OPTIMISM among UK manufacturers has dipped to its lowest level in more than two years as they grapple with high costs and material shortages, according to new analysis. In contrast, confidence among companies in the services sector has seen a welcome boost.

Accountancy and business advisory firm BDO’s report flagged a growing chasm between confidence and output levels in the services and manufacturing sectors. A 10-month high in service sector output gave businesses reason to be more optimistic in May. The services optimism index grew to 100.79, the highest reading since July last year when recession fears began to grip

and recruitment activity declined. A score above 95 signals growth. BDO’s poll of polls looks at data from the UK’s most influential business surveys of 4,000-plus companies. Meanwhile, the manufacturing optimism index fell to 91.56, the lowest score since February 2021 when the UK economy was in the middle of its third lockdown.

Rio Tinto’s boss Jakob Stausholm said: “I don’t see us doing really big M&A right now”

As mega mining deals return, Rio Tinto shies away from M&A CITY A.M. REPORTER THE BOSS of FTSE 100 mining giant Rio Tinto has said that while he is “not afraid” of mergers and aquisitions, he would prefer to focus on improving the company’s existing portfolio. “I don’t see us doing really big M&A right now,” Jakob Stausholm told the Sunday Times in an interview. “If you do big M&A, you’re going to lose focus. As soon as you do it, all your effort goes into integrating two

cultures,” he said. His comments come as major mining deals return in the sector, including Newmont’s takeover of Newcrest and Glencore’s bid for Teck Resources. The firm is also working to secure a licence for a major lithium mine in Serbia, after it was revoked due to environmental concerns. “I just think we’re going to get a second chance, because we have a value proposition which is second to none for the Serbian population,” he said.

No UK recession but weak growth outlook remains CHARLIE CONCHIE THE UK will dodge a recession this year but a tight labour market and sticky inflation will choke off future growth, according to the latest economic forecast from KPMG. Wonks at the Big Four firm have predicted that the UK will only eke out growth of 0.3 per cent in 2023, but warned the UK faced a number of threats which could prolong a period of “lacklustre” economic performance. The ongoing stickiness of UK inflation, recent tensions in the banking system, the uncertain impact of such rapid rise in interest rates on the economy, and worsening geopolitical tensions could all threaten to tip the UK into a recession. “We've seen a slightly stronger momentum for the UK economy but risks are still elevated on the downside,” said Yael Selfin, chief economist at KPMG UK. “A stickier inflation will see monetary policy tightening even further, increasing the risk of unwelcome side effects among other potential headwinds.” KPMG said the growth was weak by

historical standards and some threats to the economy were yet to be fully uncovered. A forecast from the British Chambers of Commerce last week similarly predicted that growth in the economy would “flatline” but the UK would dodge a technical recession this year, as had been widely predicted in 2022. Inflation in the UK has proved more stubborn than economists expected – it dipped into single figures for the first time in nearly a year at the last reading although core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, increased further, from 6.2 per cent to 6.8 per cent in April. KPMG said elevated core inflation, services price inflation and pay growth all point to a “more persistent underlying price pressure”, which may keep interest rates at elevated levels. “Although inflation is set to continue to fall in the near term, borrowing costs will likely remain higher for longer, depressing activity,” KPMG forecast. They are predicting that rate setters at the Bank of England will lift rates to a peak of 5.25 per cent this year.

CITYAM.COM

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CAR FIRMS FACE £730M BILL OVER LOW EV SALES

Car manufacturers could face up to £730m in fines if they don’t increase their sales of electric cars by 2024, according to new analysis from green consultancy New Automotive. The UK’s Zero Emissions Vehicle Mandate (ZEV) forces car manufacturers to make 22 per cent of their total UK car sales electric in 2024, and 100 per cent in 2035. Under the scheme, car makers are fined if they miss their targets. New Automotive’s research found that the 32 manufacturers who are currently eligible for inclusion in the ZEV Mandate would fall short of 2024 targets based on current sales, and face a collective charge of up to £730m. Lord Johnson said London Tech Week will show the UK is the “number one place” to invest

UK tech firms hope to cash in as Asian investors head to London CHARLIE CONCHIE ASIAN investors are set to descend on London this week as the UK government tries to lure foreign cash into the country’s tech sector. A delegation of Asia-Pacific investors representing some £100bn of funds will head to the capital for London Tech Week, with a host of

tech firms set to pitch to investors today in an event at the London Eye. Minister for investment Lord Johnson said London Tech Week was a chance for the UK to show it is a “science and technology superpower” and the “number one place to invest”. The government also said a number of APAC tech firms are preparing to move their regional HQs to London.

NO GOODIES FOR UK EV SECTOR IN UK-US DEAL

UK carmakers and battery producers are not set to benefit from the muchanticipated US-UK economic partnership announced on Thursday, trade experts told the Financial Times. The UK is pushing for a deal which would enable UK-built EV’s exported to the US to receive US tax credits. But analysis from trade experts suggests that under current proposed arrangements, automakers including Jaguar Land Rover and some battery producers, would not qualify for these benefits because batteries and vehicles will still need to be assembled in the US in order to be eligible for the tax credits.

©Getty Images

FOUR MONTHS ago, the name Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) may have brought to mind sleepless nights and frantic calls for much of the tech industry. But this week bosses at the nowHSBC–owned tech and startup lender are set to headline London Tech Week in the bank’s first big public relations push since it was rescued from collapse in March. The lender, reportedly set to be renamed HSBC Innovation Banking, will post speakers across the three-day flagship event at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in Westminster, with boss Erin Platts set to address delegates alongside HSBC UK chief Ian Stuart on the topic of ‘fuelling UK entrepreneurship’. The speech will mark Platts first major public engagement since the implosion of the startup-focused lender. Platts’s handling of the crisis angered

some at the time after she said the UK arm was a ring-fenced entity in a bid to settle fears rippling across the Atlantic, but was then forced to withdraw her comments hours later after the bank collapsed. HSBC then swooped in to buy the UK unit for one pound as part of an 11th hour rescue deal to save it from bankruptcy. HSBC bosses have also been on a major charm offensive in a bid to keep customers with the bank. One tech customer of the lender, which had all its cash tied up in HSBC, told City A.M. they had stayed with the bank in part because they had met with HSBC bosses in the wake of the collapse. “We’ve kept all our money with SVB UK largely because the service and relationship with SVB has continued to be excellent,” Ash Ramrachia, the founder and chief of Manchester-based tech talent firm Academy, said.

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IN BRIEF

Refreshed SVB UK unit prepares charm offensive CHARLIE CONCHIE

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Barratt warns of skills crisis if solar panels are forced on new UK homes NICHOLAS EARL THE UK's biggest housebuilder has warned of a skills shortage in the country’s solar panel sector, arguing there would need to be significant boost in training for new technicians if the government decides to make the installation of solar panels mandatory for new-build houses. Oliver Novakovic, technical and innovation director at Barratt Developments, told City A.M. that the FTSE 100 firm was "supportive of

having solar panels on all new homes" in line with regulatory requirements already imposed in Scotland. But he said the policy needs more consideration. “One of the biggest challenges will be the shortage of skills,” he said. Scaling up “won’t happen overnight”. Demand for solar technicians is already rising, with hiring platform Indeed reporting a 315 per cent increase in demand for installers over the last three years. By the next decade, industry body

Regulator circles as Tesco prepares quarterly results LAURA MCGUIRE TESCO is set to report its first quarter trading results on Friday as the UK’s competition regulator circles the country’s largest supermarket chain over concerns about its pricing strategies. Last week, it emerged that consumer goods champion Which had reported Tesco to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) over claims that it does not display its clubcard prices clearly enough. Which? said the grocer does not highlight the unit price of clubcard deals clearly enough to shoppers, making it hard for them to figure out the cheapest product, the BBC reported. In response to the claims, a Tesco spokesperson told City A.M. that the consumer good giant is “supportive of calls for greater clarity on the regulations in this area, in the interests of both businesses and consumers, and are actively looking at how we can make the way we display pricing even clearer for our customers. “However, given that we are comply-

Solar Energy UK is forecasting that 60,000 people will be employed within the solar sector by the end of the decade – up from 7,000 in 2020. A government spokesperson said: “In 2021, we set the performance standards for new buildings at a level that means most new homes will likely be built with solar panels." They confirmed the government is working to publish a full technical consultation later this year on the Future Homes Standard, the proposed update to building regulations.

Demand for solar installers has risen 315 per cent in the last three years

SW19 VIA THE BIG APPLE Wimbledon’s iconic Hill is set for a return to Brooklyn so US fans can get a taste of the tennis

ing with all the current rules, we are disappointed that Which? has chosen to make these ill-founded claims against our Clubcard Prices scheme, which helps millions of households get great value week-in, week-out, and could save shoppers up to £351 per year.” It comes as Tesco – and a number of other supermarkets – have been acTesco’s Clubcard scheme was recently criticised by Which? cused of profiteering during a period of high inflation. The CMA is currently looking at UK supermarkets to examine whether a “failure in competition is contributing to grocery prices being higher than they would be in a wellfunctioning market.” Concerns over high food prices also pushed Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to meet with supermarkets last month to discuss how best to reduce the burden of rising prices for households. Tesco and Sainsbury’s recorded a downturn in their profits for 2022/23.

ATTENTION is slowly turning to the Wimbledon Championships – here and across the pond. The All England Law Tennis Club has announced plans to reinstate ‘the Hill’ in Brooklyn Bridge Park next year, allowing fans based in the US a taste of south west London’s hospitality right in the heart of the Big Apple.

Slow down! MPs demand insurance and number plates for electric bikes GUY TAYLOR

The calls come following a series of accidents involving e-bikes over the past few years

ELECTRIC bikes should be insured and have number plates due to the safety risks for pedestrians posed by speedy riders, warned MPs and industry members on Sunday. As more and more e-bikes take to the streets of the UK and counts of widely reported incidents grow, calls

are growing for measures to help bring the electric vehicles to heel. Iain Stewart, chairman of the Transport Committee, told the Mail on Sunday: “There is a case for looking at insurance arrangements. I don’t think the regulations are a good fit for new technologies.” Greg Smith MP, another committee member, told the paper that “with

more types of vehicles competing for road space, it is only fair that all users are treated equally.” “E-bikes and e-scooters can achieve considerable speeds and cause damage to other vehicles and injure people, so should have to carry the same insurance requirements and tax liabilities as users of motor cars,” Smith argued.

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

LSE exec hits back at Euronext after IPO barbs CHARLIE CONCHIE A LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE (LSE) executive has hit back at the chief of the pan-European stock exchange after the Euronext boss claimed that the UK’s markets had lost their lustre on the international stage. Stephane Boujnah, boss of the seven European exchanges competing with London, claimed in an interview with The Sunday Times that in a “post-Brexit world” international listings have moved to the Euronext platforms. Boujnah’s comments come amid a period of panic in the City as IPOs dry up and tech firms scope out listings overseas. Fears were fuelled by British chipmaker Arm snubbing London for New York. Boujnah pointed to the fact Euronext’s seven bourses have cumulatively hosted 24 fresh Charlie Walker defended the City

listings this year – double London’s 12. However, LSE primary markets boss Charlie Walker slammed Boujnah’s comments and comparison. “Adding up volumes across the seven different exchanges which Euronext own and comparing them to the LSE is like comparing the points Manchester City have with the next seven largest teams combined because they have the same owner,” Walker said. “Companies from all over the world and across different sectors come to London because they gain unrivalled access to an international investor base, deep pools of capital and liquidity,” he added. The City got a boost last week when two IPOs were revealed, including a fintech firm which hailed the appeal of the capital as the home of innovation firms. LSE officials and regulators have been looking to overhaul listing rules since Brexit to keep the City competitive.

NEWS

LIGHTS OUT F1 Arcade secures millions for global expansion

A FORMULA 1 competitive gaming chain, founded by hospitality heavyweight Adam Breeden, has secured £30m in funding from investors to fuel its expansion globally. The concept, launched last year in St Paul’s, London, merges simulator racing with food and cocktails. It has grown in popularity in recent years, largely made popular by Netflix’s ‘Drive to Survive’ series – with F1 Arcade already securing plans to bring its gaming houses to Boston and Birmingham.

Twitter is refusing to pay its Google Cloud bills as firm’s troubles pile up GOKUL PISHARODY TWITTER has refused to pay its Google Cloud bills as its contract comes up for renewal this month, which could result in the company’s trust and safety teams being crippled, Platformer reported on Saturday. Before Elon Musk's takeover of the social media platform last year, Twitter signed a multi-year contract

with Google related to fighting spam and protecting accounts, among other things, the report said. The Platformer report did not give details on how the conflict between the companies could hinder Twitter's trust and safety teams. Media company The Information said Twitter has been trying to renegotiate its contract with Google since March. In March, Amazon warned Twitter

it would withhold ad payments due to the company’s outstanding bills to Amazon Web Services. Since October Twitter has cut costs dramatically and laid off thousands of employees. Musk ordered the company to cut infrastructure costs, such as spending on cloud services, by $1bn, a source told Reuters. Twitter and Google didn’t respond Reuters to requests for comment.

Business magnate Elon Musk has overseen cuts to infrastructure costs

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OFFICE RETURNS AFRESH Argyll’s John Drover tells Guy Taylor the capital is better than ever

with City A.M. also shows that office leaseholders are choosing to hold their for longer.

RACE FOR SPACE

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HE boss of London’s oldest office provider Argyll has said he has seen “unprecedented” levels of office occupancy in the last six months, defying concerns that Covid-19 had permanently pushed Londoners toward homeworking. Speaking to City A.M. Argyll chief executive John Drover said that rates of occupancy had reached 90 per cent, with the firm seeing a 26 per cent uptick in clients. “We’ve had, for the last six months, the highest consistent occupancy we’ve ever had, and I’ve been here since January 2000. Higher than before the pandemic, higher than before 2008.” “The last time we were at this sort of occupancy level was the dot com

The capital’s office space remains in demand, helping offices provider Argyll ride out the pandemic’s aftermath boom,” he said. Drover – who returned to the sector to boost the flexspace provider’s post-pandemic per-

formance, following a brief retirement – told City A.M. that at current levels the firm was almost “back to back” letting its office spaces. The high office-occupancy rates come not only amid ongoing debate

about the impact of homeworking trends, but also against the backdrop of soaring costs for firms. Despite this Drover said that Argyll was still seeing normal rates of “business churn.” Company data shared

“They’re staying for a record amount of time, so I think in 2019 our average length of stay was about three years. We’re here in 2023 and it’s over four years now.” He told City A.M. that these shifts were in part down to cultural changes accelerated by the pandemic, as businesses were forced to embrace new styles of working. Small business owners previously felt that to become established and promote stability, they would have to take a longer term lease, but this “stigma” has now “gone away,” post pandemic. “Flexible offerings are now mainstream,” Drover said. It is one of many shifts in work habits prompted by the seismic changes seen during the pandemic, but according to Drover, a ubiquitous move to homeworking doesn’t appear to be one. “We work with a lot of smaller companies, they could work from home or work from very near where they live, but they’re actually choosing to take spaces back in central London, and I think it’s because they are coming in to have these face-to-face interactions again,” Drover said.

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Hedgie boss and GB News funder Marshall eyes bid for The Spectator CITY A.M. REPORTER HEDGE FUND boss Sir Paul Marshall is mulling a potential bid for The Spectator magazine after its parent company was forced into receivership last week, according to reports. The parent company of The Spectator and the Telegraph, a Bermuda-based holding firm owned by the Barclay family, was placed into the hands of receivers last week after failing to cough up debts owed to Lloyds Banking Group.

The two Telegraph titles and The Spectator magazine will now be auctioned off as part of the arrangement. Marshall, who runs the hedge fund Marshall Wace, has reportedly been openly discussing a bid for The Spectator, The Sunday Times reported. The Spectator could reportedly fetch as much as £50m in a bidding process. The move would build the hedge fund billionaire’s stake in the rightwing press, with Marshall already

owning a major chunk of right-wing news outlet GB News. The sale will shift the titles out of the control of the Barclay family who scooped up the titles in 2004 for £665m. The sons of the late Sir David Barclay have been removed from the board of directors but are reportedly trying to cling on to the publications. In a statement last week, receivers at Alix Partners said they were “willing to continue discussions” with the Barclays’ firm. The two titles are profitable.

The ‘Speccie’ has thrived in both print and online under editor Fraser Nelson

Life sciences to receive boost in new virus plan JESSICA FRANK-KEYES GOVERNMENT ministers are set to launch a new biothreats radar programme to guard the UK against disease outbreaks, bio-attacks and antimicrobial resistance - with a potential windfall on the way for the UK’s life sciences companies. Boosting the high-growth sector with £1.5bn a year, pandemic prepareddness and data monitoring are also priorities for the unit, set to be run by the National Situation Centre. The sector is growing, with new centres of excellence in Canary Wharf and Paddington coming on stream. Deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden said: “Covid was the biggest peacetime challenge in a century, and we must be diligent in preparing for future threats on this scale.” It comes as former Covid vaccine taskforce chairman Dr Clive Dix issued a stark warning that ministers had “systematically dismantled” critical vaccine plans made during the crisis. The UK’s official Covid inquiry will begin hearing evidence on pandemic preparedness this week, amid a legal row between chairman Baroness Heather Hallett, Prime Minister Rishi

Sunak and former PM Boris Johnson over evidence disclosures including WhatsApp texts. The bio-radar will aim to centralise data from government, independent advisors and global experts to offer a “comprehensive” picture of known and developing biological threats. Other commitments in the strategy include creating a nationwide biosurveillance network and a biosecurity task force; founding a UK biosecurity leadership council; developing new microbial forensics tools; and partnering with industry on vaccine and diagnostics initiatives. It comes after Sunak’s recent visit to Washington DC, which saw him meet with US president Joe Biden and reaffirm the two nations’ bilateral work on health and biosecurity. Dame Jennie Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said the strategy and “commitment to developing a biosecure future” would strengthen the UK. “With partners in industry and academia, UKHSA will work across government to ensure that through improving the UK’s pandemic preparedness, we keep the public safe,” she added.

Covid ‘came from Wuhan lab leak’ - report JESSICA FRANK-KEYES A WUHAN lab leak after deadly coronaviruses were spliced into a mutant superbug may have caused the global Covid-19 pandemic, an indepth investigation has claimed. Chinese scientists at the Wuhan Institute of Virology were running a dangerous undercover programme of experimental bioresearch, the Sunday Times’ Insight team reported yesterday. US investigators privy to top-secret documents believe the Asian

superpower was behind suppressing the work, which has been linked to claims the military is pursuing bioweapons. Reporters reviewed hundreds of confidential reports, memos, papers and emails obtained since the pandemic began in January 2020 – more than three years ago. The Wuhan lab began looking into the SARS virus in 2003, received US state funding and collaborated with leading researchers on cutting edge techniques, the paper said. It conducted risky experiments on

viruses from bat caves in southern China – initially publicising its findings in the name of vaccine research – before going dark in 2016. Authorities hushed up deaths in 2019 linked to a virus found in a mine in Yunnan province – now known to be the only close ‘relative’ of Covid-19 in existence prior to that year. One investigator told the Times: “It has become increasingly clear that the Wuhan Institute of Virology was involved in the creation, promulgation and cover-up of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Danone UK boss: Government hasn’t got the stomach to tax fatty foods JESSICA FRANK-KEYES

The cost of shopping has already increased significantly in the past few months

THE UK boss of a major global food firm has called on ministers to link VAT rates to the “health credentials” of products containing fat, salt and sugar, in the first example of such a demand coming from business rather than government. James Mayer, president of Danone

UK & Ireland, which sells the Actimel yoghurt drink brand, said some food brands lacked “enough appetite to change” amid an obesity crisis. He told the Observer: “The UK food industry’s efforts [to make food healthier] have not moved fast enough. We’ve reached a point where... intervention from the government is a necessary course of action.”

Mayer stressed he did not want to see the cost of food increasing for the public but urged ministers to set “clear parameters for industry and consumers” on healthy products. A Food and Drink Federation spokesperson said: “An additional tax on manufacturers will not help them to reformulate. It will only add to the financial burden they already face.”

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MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

THE NOTE BOOK Big hitters gather to look at HR’s biggest 2023 challenges

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HE floorboards of the Royal Opera House have been trodden by many a global superstar over the years – but last month they were taken over, not by the stars of art and culture, but by some of the biggest names in workplace culture. Baroness Martha Lane Fox, Dame Emma Walmsley (pictured), Simon Sinek, Sir Trevor Phillips and Matthew Syed were just five of 26 world-class speakers who joined us at Mindgym’s ‘Davos of HR’ to solve some of the biggest HR challenges facing today’s business leaders. Addressing an audience of 160 senior HR leaders from some of the world’s largest companies (from Shell to Chanel, Nestle to Unilever, Meta to Deepmind, Burberry to Barclays, the Bank of England to Deutsche Bank, Rolls Royce to British Aerospace) – our experts offered clearsighted advice on how to navigate these challenges. What to do about

productivity, flatlining in the UK since the 2008 recession (and since the birth of social media, as one of our speakers pointed out), topped the agenda. Our experts unpicked the impact poor leadership has had on productivity, debated whether more robust, evidencebased leadership coaching could help transform productivity, and explored which can do more to transform productivity: psychology or technology? Employee wellbeing, in freefall since the start of the pandemic, was another key point of contention – in particular the dilemma of how to improve wellbeing without compromising productivity. The elusive challenge of culture change, often held up as a North Star for attracting and retaining talent, also featured, as did ‘What would make tomorrow’s leaders better than today’s?’ (In the past decade, investment in leadership development doubled, but trust in senior leaders fell by a third). For each of these dilemmas, behavioural science seems to offer the answers.

Can companies improve wellbeing without reducing workload?

A REAL READ ON AI’S IMPACTS I, Human argues compellingly that artificial intelligence is altering human intelligence – fuelling narcissism, diluting self-control, reinforcing prejudice – and reveals how human learning can still counteract the malign effects of machine learning. Tomas’s easy style and dry humour belie the seriousness with which he tackles this vital issue of our time. Take note before the robots take over how you think.

With studies showing the $50bn+ companies spend on “wellness” initiatives is largely wasted, Mindgym’s psychologists have identified what to do instead that will make a difference. Out with meditation apps, free fruit and yoga classes and in with rebuilding workplace culture around the five drivers that have most effect on workplace wellbeing: certainty, competence, autonomy, belonging and purpose. Not only will this greatly improve staff wellbeing, stemming the flow of lost workers to the workforce, it also transforms productivity and performance, enhances creativity and increases workplace commitment. To quote Tessa West, associate professor of psychology at New York University, and a member of Mindgym’s academic board: “We need to recalibrate away from wellness and towards the psychological components of wellbeing within the workplace.”

I Human: AI, Automation and the Quest to Reclaim What Makes Us Unique, by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic

£ We were delighted to hear from AI expert Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, a professor of business psychology at both UCL and Columbia University, and a member of Mindgym’s academic board, as part of our productivity panel. “Technology will probably create many new jobs, more so than it destroys,” predicted Dr Chamorro-Premuzic. “But for people to have access to the new jobs, you need to reimagine their career potential. AI doesn’t eliminate jobs, but it changes the constellation of skills required to perform those jobs, so investing in reskilling and upskilling is key.”

E-COMMERCE platform THG could face a shareholder rebellion at its upcoming annual general meeting (AGM) this month over concerns surrounding the return of a non-executive director. Two separate shareholder advisory groups, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, are said to have asked investors to vote against the re-election of Ian McDonald at the firm’s AGM on 21 June, the Financial Times reported. McDonald, who is also a non-executive director (NED) at Boohoo.com, sits on THG’s remuneration, nomination and sustainability committees. ISS and Glass Lewis are reportedly concerned about McDonald, who joined the THG board in 2010, due to his position as founder of Belerion Capital, which last year helped manager King Street Capital on an unsuccessful takeover bid for THG. Moreover, ISS has criticised McDonald’s role as a NED stating he could “not be considered” independent as he has been on the board together with two of THG’s founders for some 13 years. A Glass Lewis report, seen by the outlet, also describes McDonald as an “affiliate or insider” on the pay committee.

However in its annual report THG defended McDonald’s position, arguing it would “not be in the best interests of the company and its shareholders for Iain McDonald to step down”. In response to concerns about McDonald, THG told City A.M.: “Charles Allen [non-executive chair of THG] joined the board as independent nonexecutive chair in March 2022 with a clear mandate to improve governance, transparency and to strengthen and refresh the board by improving its independence and diversity. “Since then, the board has appointed three new independent [NEDs] in Gillian Kent, Dean Moore and Sue Farr, as senior independent non-executive, and with a commitment for further appointments in line with good corporate governance and as a matter of priority during 2023,” the company said in an emailed statement. City A.M. has contacted Glass Lewis and ISS for a comment. News of a looming stand-off with shareholders comes amid a challenging period for the brand, which in April posted an operating loss of £495.6m as its costs are jacked up by soaring international delivery costs. The group also batted away a takeover bid from US private equity giant Apollo.

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Where interesting people say interesting things: today, it’s Octavius Black, CEO of learning platform Mindgym

CAN I QUOTE YOU ON THAT?

I think investing in development and in leadership and management skills is one of the most important things we ever, ever do. Dame Emma Walmsley, CEO, GSK

THG set to battle shareholders over non-exec LAURA MCGUIRE

NEWS

Halfords profits to fall as staff shortage bites ANNA WISE

The chain has changed hands numerous times since it was founded in 1973

Travelodge owners eye £1.2bn price tag for budget hotel chain LAURA MCGUIRE BUDGET hotel chain Travelodge will be put up for sale with a price tag of over £1bn as its owners look to cash in the recovery of the travel sector. Its owner of nearly a decade, US asset management firm Goldentree is said to be in talks with investment banks to explore a potential sale of the chain, with sources telling The Sunday Times it is gunning for a £1.2bn offer for 595 hotels. Travelodge, headed by retail and leisure veteran Jo Boydell, has seen profits surge over the last year. In its latest financial results, revenues were

25 per cent up from 2019 to £909.9m, while pre-tax earnings for the year increased by £83.8m to £212.9m. In August the group opened its first new-build budget luxury hotel in London Docklands, as it looked to expand its ‘budget-luxe’ upgrade programme. Travelodge was bought in 1995 by British conglomerate Granada Group and later acquired by private equity firm Permia in 2003 before being sold to Dubai International Capital for £675m in 2006. It was then taken over by Goldentree in 2012. City A.M. has contacted Golden Tree and Travelodge for a comment.

INVESTORS in Halfords will be hoping the retailer has made progress in repairing holes in its workforce as it is set to unveil its full year financial results. The bike and car parts seller warned over its profits earlier in the year amid a shortage of mechanics. The firm, which also services cars and bikes, said it was struggling to recruit enough skilled technicians to meet higher levels of demand. The retailer also flagged a slump in sales of higher-priced items in its retail business; furthermore, it has been knocked by a “massively declining” consumer tyre market, but said it may start to recover in the first half of the new financial year. Chief executive Graham Stapleton said the firm was having to look at its staff pay and flexible working policies because “people want to work less, and more flexibly”. Halfords is set to make a profit of £54m for the latest full year, according to analysts compared to nearly £100m last year. The profit warning sent Halford’s share price tumbling by a fifth. It recovered, but shares have declined by seven per cent so far this year. The London-listed business is also expected to report sales of around £1.6bn for the full year. Shareholders will be hoping to receive an update on consumer demand and the strength of the tyre market when Halfords reveals its PA financial results on Thursday.

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

ENERGY

City A.M.’s energy editor Nicholas Earl delves into the sector’s challenges in his weekly column

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NEWS

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HADOW chancellor Rachel Reeves watered down Labour’s ambitious climate pledges last week, slashing plans to invest £28bn per year in so-called green industry. The party’s pledged Green Prosperity Plan, which Reeves herself announced in 2021, has fallen victim to Labour’s fiscal rules – as the opposition seeks to bolster its economic credibility ahead of next year’s election. Instead, Labour will ramp up investment over time, reaching £28bn a year after 2027 – over halfway towards the end of the term. Reeves will catch a lot of flak for her U-turn from green groups and the left of her party, but her decision reflects rampant interest rates, the war in Ukraine and the disastrous fallout of the mini-budget from the Liz Truss government. However, it is a shame that one of Labour’s few strong pledges has been scrapped, with the party seemingly preferring to make the next election a referendum on the Conservative government’s vast ineptitudes, rather than power an alternative and robustly greener vision for the future. But what would that Labour vision actually look like, if they talked about it? We’ve parsed the runes and taken our best shot at working it out.

GRID’S GRIN, AT LEAST AT THE PACKET The National Grid’s CEO John Pettigrew has joined fellow energy sector bosses from Shell and BP in securing a hefty pay packet. The energy executive took home £7.2m in the last financial year, up from £6.6m a year earlier, according to the FTSE 100 power networks company. Meanwhile, hundreds of renewable projects await approval for grid connections.

OIL PRICES AWAIT CHINA’S NEXT STEPS

NUCLEAR – 7/10 Nuclear power is the only realistic lowcarbon option for baseload energy, and Labour leader Keir Starmer deserves credit for confirming it will be a “critical part” of the UK’s energy mix if he gets the keys to Downing Street. He has called for more large-scale GW projects alongside under-construction Hinkley Point C and the mooted Sizewell C, and supports small modular reactors. While the government’s goals for nuclear power are ambitious, they have struggled to get new projects off the ground. Labour has to show how it can build up plants quickly while containing costs – with Sizewell C straining for funds and Hinkley Point C over budget and delayed by three years. This includes convincing UK-based pension funds and investment firms wary of supporting nuclear plants that cost tens of billions of pounds.

OIL AND GAS – 2/10 Labour might criticise protestors clogging up roads and disrupting sporting events, but it still agrees with them. Starmer has pledged to stop all new oil and gas developments if he wins the next election, to ensure the UK reaches its net zero goals. He also wants to further reduce energy bills by ramping up the windfall tax on the

Labour’s energy plan: must try harder profits of fossil fuel companies – scrapping the 90 per cent investment relief. This outlook may be principled, but it is also hugely damaging to the UK’s supply security ambitions and green agenda. As it stands, 75 per cent of the country’s energy consumption is still supported by oil and gas, and the Climate Change Committee predicts half of the UK’s energy requirements between now and 2050 will still be met by oil and gas. It makes no sense to throttle supply before reducing demand through ramping up renewables and energy efficiency across households, public buildings and the grid. It is also incoherent to rely instead on supplies from the US, Middle East and Norway rather than domestic supplies that support jobs in the UK. Until an environmental experiment can explain why Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves

highly carbon-intensive liquid natural gas (LNG) is better for the environment than domestic supplies, it is also unclear how it even helps with the country’s net zero ambitions. If Labour is serious about governing, the party must divorce themselves from the manifesto of Just Stop Oil.

ism and planning obstacles that have crushed onshore wind and solar farms, and reducing the consultation periods to get projects off the ground. If it achieves this, then they could unlock billions of pounds of private investment, and potentially even fill the funding gaps from Reeves’s U-turn.

RENEWABLES – 8/10

VERDICT – 5/10

Labour’s green energy agenda is vast and worthy of immense credit. What is especially admirable is the sense of urgency throughout its policies. The opposition wants to make the UK a clean energy super power, targeting a quadrupling of offshore wind, tripling of solar power and doubling of onshore wind – all by the end of the decade. It has also announced the publicly-owned GB Energy to help drive the campaign for cleaner domestic energy. What it now needs to do is pledge to break down the barriers that no amount of funding on projects can break – such as reforming National Grid to make connections speedier, tackling the Nimby-

Reeves’s steely approach to the nation’s finances and Labour’s ambitious agenda for renewables plus their eventual embrace of nuclear power all deserve credit and serve to position the party as a legitimate alternative to the Tories. More details are needed over policy and Labour should embrace the private sector more, with the City at the heart of Britain’s green dreams. But the UK will still need oil and gas for decades to come, and relying on overseas vendors to meet the country’s needs with highly carbon-intensive LNG is a supply security threat and environmentally unsound. There is still time left for Starmer and Reeves to think again; otherwise their energy policies will not be fit for office.

£ The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA)’s executive director Fatih Birol doesn’t expect Opec’s sustained production cuts to drive up oil prices – and instead thinks the market is waiting for economic data from China to improve, with both benchmarks treading water, below $75 per barrel. Out of the 2m barrels per day growth that the IEA expects this year in global oil demand, 60 per cent is set to come from China.

SEND US YOUR THOUGHTS What can we do to improve energy security? Email energy editor Nicholas Earl at nicholas.earl@cityam.com

Labour would boost wind and nuclear and slash planning red tape JESSICA FRANK-KEYES LABOUR would slash planning regulations in a reported bid to boost Britain’s green energy construction of wind farms and nuclear plants. Sir Keir Starmer is set to make an announcement on climate change later this month, according to The Sunday Times, which is set to include

a ‘fast track’ planning scheme. Last week the party faced criticism for appearing to water down its £28bn pledge on green investment after pushback over fiscal responsibility, after confirming the plans wouldn’t fully be in place until 2027. Labour would prioritise onshore wind turbines and nuclear power plants if they win office, and they also

expect to unveil a new framework for national planning decisions. One party source said Labour was committed to green energy investment and claimed the current planning system is “holding back change”. The government and the Conservative Party have been contacted for comment.

Labour is considering removing areas’ veto power over green developments

CITYAM.COM

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

MARKETS

CITY DASHBOARD

YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR BROKER VIEWS AND MARKET REPORTS

LONDON REPORT

BEST OF THE BROKERS

Markets await interest rate decisions from US and EU central banks

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ARKETS in London closed lower on Friday as a stronger pound and uncertainty over the global economy weighed on investor sentiment. The FTSE 100 closed 0.5 per cent lower while the FTSE 250 finished the week 0.1 per cent lower. Caution was the watchword in London at the end of last week, ahead of a big week for central banks. After central banks in Canada and Australia hiked rates, all eyes will now be on the US Federal Reserve, which is set to pause its aggressive interest rate hike campaign on Wednesday. However markets expect Jerome Powell (pictured) and co to continue hiking rates again in July. Meanwhile the European Central Bank looks set to hike rates again by 25 basis points to 3.5 per cent on Thursday.

The Bank of Japan, which faces a different set of challenges, will announce its latest rate manoeuvre on Friday. Meanwhile, while there are no decisions from the Bank of England this week. Bank governed Andrew Bailey is set to give evidence in Parliament on the question in a session titled: “Bank of England: how is independence working?” On the corporate front, Tesco and industrial rental equipment maker Ashtead Group announce results this week. Ashtead shares briefly hit 12-month highs earlier this year, in the wake of the publication of their Q3 numbers, and the firm is well positioned to take advantage of the US government’s new infrastructure investment program. Tesco will deliver its first quarter results on Friday, where chair John Allan will step down following the company’s annual general meeting.

To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com

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Crest Nicholson had a tough set of results on Thursday, reporting a 60 per cent drop in profits due to the unrelenting impacts following former prime minister Liz Truss’s mini budget. Peel Hunt analysts said that market conditions have since recovered but rising mortgage rates are once again impacting demand. Peel Hunt cut their target share price from 250p to 240p but retained its ‘Buy’ rating.

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Digital advertising and marketing firm S4 Capital has maintained its full year guidance, despite slower revenue growth in early 2023. CEO Martin Sorrell said the lower revenue growth was due to a slowdown in growth in two addressable markets; technology platforms and technology services. Peel Hunt analysts agreed, making “no changes” to forecasts. They maintained its ‘Buy’ rating.

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“If the message you want to send is that another hike will come in July, why wait when the only extra data of note between now and then is another CPI and payrolls report? Is the US economy likely to be in a significantly different place between now and then?” MICHAEL HEWSON, CMC MARKETS

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OPINION

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

OPINION EDITED BY ELENA SINISCALCO

If Ben Wallace takes the helm of NATO it could be a boost for Global Britain Eliot Wilson

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HE prime minister was in Washington DC last week to meet president Biden. While there, it is believed, he pressed the case for Ben Wallace to be the next secretary-general of NATO. The incumbent, the former Norwegian premier Jens Stoltenberg, will step down at the end of September after nine years in the job, longer than any other secretary-general except Joseph Luns who stayed in post from 1971 to 1984. Britain’s defence secretary is not the only candidate in this unannounced jostle. The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, has also been in the US, and has been bruited as a candidate - she would be the first woman to lead the Alliance. Recently, however, she has seemed to shy away from the idea. Kaja Kallas, the Estonian premier, has also been mentioned. She is a fluent and persuasive communicator, but some NATO leaders think her too hawkish, and believe that a secretarygeneral from a state which borders Russia would hardly lower the temperature of international relations (though in one sense that shouldn’t matter). Three of the 13 NATO chiefs have come from the United Kingdom: Lord Ismay, the first post-holder, Lord Car-

Ben Wallace has been defence secretary for four years rington, and Lord Robertson of Port Ellen. Given that the position is never held by an American, and that France has a complicated relationship with the Alliance which would preclude a French candidate, Britain’s dominance is striking. Wallace is a very plausible candidate, which begs two questions: can he become the next secretary-general, and should he? Ben Wallace has been among the Conservative Party’s front ranks for a long time. He was elected to the House of Commons in 2005, and before that was a Member of the first Scottish Parliament. He has impressive defence credentials: he served as a regular offi-

cer in the Scots Guards for seven years, including in Northern Ireland. His ministerial career has also been largely security-focused. After a year as a government whip, he served in the Northern Ireland Office before being appointed security minister at the Home Office by Theresa May. As the minister responsible for counter-terrorism, cyber security, domestic state threats and, after 2017, economic crime, he was in charge of responding to the Westminster Bridge attack, the Manchester Arena bombing and the London Bridge attack in 2017, and the Salisbury poisonings in 2018. When Boris Johnson sacked the

able, pro-Brexit but Jeremy Hunt-supporting Penny Mordaunt as defence secretary in 2019, Wallace seemed the obvious replacement (after Hunt had turned it down). This summer Wallace will celebrate his fourth anniversary as defence secretary: only Denis Healey and Geoff Hoon have served longer. He has been an influential figure, securing significant increases in the defence budget, and has been in the thick of the UK’s support for Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022. This has made him a well-kent face on the international security circuit; he has forged working relationships with politicians

across the Alliance. This network of connections, combined with his extensive CV, would make him an effective secretary-general, able to begin tackling NATO’s agenda from his first day. Heading this agenda will be issues arising from Ukraine: containing Russia, maintaining US commitments to European security, and dealing with the future enlargement of the Alliance. Wallace can do the job, but should he? His departure from domestic politics would leave a noticeable gap. He’s one of the few heavyweight cabinet ministers who is not continuously manoeuvring for promotion. The Ministry of Defence would feel his loss too. Unless Mordaunt were to return as secretary of state, there is no “oven-ready” successor in cabinet. It would be left to someone like Tom Tugendhat, Jeremy Quin or James Heappey to step up, and it would not be a like-for-like swap, at least at first. If it becomes clear that Wallace is NATO members’ preferred candidate, and he wants the job - he has said it “would be fantastic” - it would be outrageous to deny him because of his value to the current government. He would be an excellent NATO chief, with authority and expertise, and his presence in such a senior international post would be a fillip for British influence. Replacing him as defence secretary would be challenging, but Rishi Sunak should reflect that it is a nice kind of problem to have. An able British head of NATO would be a major boost for - I’m going to say it - Global Britain. £ Eliot Wilson is co-founder of Pivot Point and a columnist at City A.M.

SEE YOU IN The success of London’s financial services COURT can create equality of opportunity in the UK

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N A 1975 speech, former prime minister Margaret Thatcher argued that the UK should strive to achieve an “equality of opportunity,” ensuring everyone has the same chance to reach similar levels of success, whatever their focus. In a time of unprecedented headwinds for the UK, as the economy pushes to recover from the pandemic and unlock the opportunities of Brexit, now more than ever we need a catalyst to support the nation in reaching its ambitions. The British financial and professional services industry spreads opportunity throughout the UK. It helps people achieve business and ownership dreams through credit and mortgages; it helps the trailblazing companies of tomorrow grow through loans and support schemes. And, importantly, it helps our broader economy, employing over 2.5 million people with two thirds of jobs based outside London. That’s almost eight per cent of total UK employment. I am also hugely impressed with the excellent work and opportunities being

Chris Hayward

created in financial services centres outside of the capital in cities like Belfast, Edinburgh, Bristol, Belfast and Cardiff. They expand past our shores and onto the global stage. It’s clear countries look towards the UK - particularly at our financial and professional services - and see opportunities for investment. EY’s latest Attractiveness Survey for Financial Services reported the UK continues to be Europe’s leading destination for foreign direct investment. We recently saw the strength of the UK’s pull as WE Soda - the world’s largest producer of natural soda ash made its debut on the London Stock Ex-

change. The IPO is expected to raise £645m. And last week we saw how the Alberta Investment Management Company - one of Canada’s largest asset managers - plans to more than double its headcount in London and invest billions in the UK, hailing the City as more of a gateway to the world than New York. So we have to build on this success to put our country at the forefront – not just in financial services but holistically, by creating an environment that fosters investment, nurtures staff and preserves our world. Just last month, we hosted the Net Zero Delivery Summit at the Mansion House, where government and financial innovators discussed the route to a carbon neutral future. We are also ensuring that our financial services benefit from the many opportunities of a more diverse workforce, through the SocioEconomic Diversity Taskforce. But we know we must go further still. With a general election in front of us, the world is looking to the UK to redefine and grow British business. It’s a big

opportunity to build on our strengths. We have seen this ambition from the government, especially in the financial and professional services sector through the Edinburgh Reforms and the Financial Services and Markets Bill. We now need to ensure businesses take the opportunities of these reforms and bring about real change. This change is at the heart of our flagship Finance for Growth programme. It’s not a project aimed at tinkering around the edges or making minor adjustments to our financial services sector. We want to see real positive change, focused on tech, innovation, and sustainable finance. A financial and professional services sector that is best in class can create jobs and new prospects that support every household and the whole economy, bringing about that “equality of opportunity” that everyone in the UK so deserves. £ Chris Hayward is the policy chair of the City of London Corporation

Last week, Donald Trump was charged over his handling of classified national security records after leaving the White House, becoming the first ever former US president to be indicted by a federal court. He’s expected in court in Miami tomorrow. Grab your popcorn…

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

WE WANT TO HEAR YOUR VIEWS

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Post-Brexit appeal? [Re: London seals European finance investment crown every year since Brexit, June 5] While EY’s latest research shows that UK political uncertainty and Brexit haven’t had a negative impact on attracting investment in London, there are still several industries, including construction, healthcare and automotive, that have diminished since Brexit. The fintech and financial services sectors are a top focus for dealmakers, since they mirror the city's reputation as

a global fintech hub. With several new regulatory initiatives under way to reaffirm London’s place as a top financial center, including a proposal for less stringent listings requirements which is already bringing in prospective high-level listings within the city, the UK must continue to prove its competitiveness and attractiveness. The recent EU-UK Financial Regulatory Forum is a good sign that a mutually beneficial framework for financial services may be possible. With the OECD announcing that Britain will escape a recession this year, this could also prove to be a confidence booster for foreign direct investment. Merlin Piscitelli Datasite

HOTTER THAN IBIZA UK is reaching record temperatures this June

Southern England and the Midlands were hit by a heat alert over the weekend, as temperatures reached higher than those recorded in Ibiza, Marbella and Tenerife. It was ten degrees hotter than normal temperatures in June - and expect the sun to shine very warmly this week too.

EXPLAINER-IN-BRIEF: THE IMPACT OF FLOODS ON UKRAINIAN FARMLANDS WILL BE HUGE Last week, the Kakhovka dam in Ukraine was destroyed, causing floods of disastrous proportions. The dam was the largest reservoir in the country in terms of volume. The human and environmental consequences are now painfully clear. The economic consequences will also be bad, with farmers likely to be the worst affected. As a result of the destruction of the dam, the irrigation system of the entire Kherson region was destroyed. According to the Ukrainian Agri

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

Council, it will take more than $1bn and 5 years of work to restore it. The Council says water supply has been cut off to 31 irrigation systems in the Dnipro, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions, most of which are currently temporarily occupied by Russian troops. According to the chairman of the Council, Andriy Dykun, Ukraine is losing “14 per cent of its agricultural production, or well over 3 million tons of grain grown in the south”. ELENA SINISCALCO

Certified Distribution from 03/04/2023 till 30/04/2023 is 67,569

OPINION

15

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

The housing crisis speaks to unique social injustices - and is distinctly acute in London Richard Blakeway

W

HAT’S your housing crisis? Few are untouched by this dysfunctional housing market. Every week I investigate cases involving young professionals facing service charge hikes, overcrowded families living with mould, and elderly couples desperate for a home suiting their needs. I have witnessed a profound shift in who is coming to the Ombudsman, where we are now undertaking 10,000 investigations a year. Reports of mental or physical health decline - because of poor living conditions or disabilities being overlooked - are common. I’ve seen schools writing to landlords about the poor housing of their pupils. This crisis is limiting social mobility, disrupting communities and holding back the economy. London is the epicentre of this national crisis – half of complaints are here. Every day I see the trade-offs and invidious choices this perfect storm creates in housing management. Difficult decisions are made over whether to repair, to rebuild, or rehouse. I see some appalling conditions and residents treated in dehumanising ways. I also see heroic housing professionals, let down by systems, data or leadership. There is a wider debate to be had about ensuring these issues are fixed so these dedicated professionals can stay in this vital sector. While there is no shortage of ideas to solve the housing crisis, most struggle to address its scale, complexity or rootcauses. Ultimately, what we really need is an unprecedented building programme to replace those homes which are no longer fit for purpose. But no building programme will be fast enough for the residents who are contacting us every 60 seconds – a rate which is turning us into an emergency service. So, investing in existing homes must be a priority alongside building new ones. Disrepair cannot be isolated in the housing crisis; it’s integral to a wider housing strategy. Yet, ultimately, there is one building material that matters: money. There needs to be significant capital investment, both public and private. That capital should be patient – as solving this crisis will take time. There also needs to be investment into housing

Half of complaints received by the Ombudsman are in London professionals to attract talent and develop skills. Last year, I ordered more than 6,000 remedies to put things right – roughly one every ten minutes – including a record £1m compensation. These remedies are necessary and hold landlords to account, but with greater investment, we would ultimately see fewer problems to remedy. Until this housing crisis is addressed, we will continue to see rising casework. Complaints provide lessons on how to tackle the crisis. Key insights include better data and information management. Records can be poor and this can lead to extensive delays and unresponsive landlords. Poor systems were exposed by Grenfell but run wider. Next, there is the erosion of trust. Our latest Spotlight report showed one in five repairs appointments are missed. These failings are often compounded by poor communication. Finally, there’s the culture aspect. Our work reflects the everyday experi-

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ences of people navigating this housing crisis, both residents and landlords. The scale of the challenge risks normalising some poor staff behaviours. Legitimate resident concerns can be dismissed or mishandled because of the sheer volume of calls. Unacceptable responses can become accepted practice. Staff can be apathetic about the prospect of change with too little time, resource, or senior support. Whatever the pressures, landlords cannot lose sight of respect, and complaints are an indicator for senior leaders of culture and behaviours. Secure housing is a basic human right. Social landlords have a proud history of tackling social injustice and this housing crisis speaks to new social injustices in health, equality and race. Any housing strategy has to listen to residents and be bold enough to rise to the challenge. £ Richard Blakeway is the Housing Ombudsman

Our terms and conditions for external contributors can be viewed at cityam.com/terms-conditions Printed by Iliffe Print Cambridge Ltd., Winship Road, Milton, Cambridge, CB24 6PP

16

LIFE&STYLE

CITYAM.COM

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

TRAVEL Forget the Parthenon and all the history Ash Hiden gets to grips with Athens’ excitingly vibrant food and drink scene

ALTERNATIVE ATHENS

Y

ou will want to see the Parthenon. I get it. The imposing temple on the hill of the Acropolis serves as an ancient advertisement for Athens, stamping your mental passport like a marble version of the Hollywood Sign. But once that’s out of the way, it’s time to put the history textbook down, step outside the classroom, and explore what the city has to offer in the present day. To immerse yourself in Athens in the roaring 2020s, Gatsby is where to stay. Serving guests since late 2021, the ex-prison is now a complex of 33 art deco inspired rooms in the heart of the city, with easy-access to the many hotspots of the Monastiraki neighbourhood. Arriving at this boutique hotel, you’ll find local young professionals exploring the cocktail menu alongside international travellers in town for a brief stint. I had come to Athens as I’d heard about the burgeoning food scene, and at Gatsby that night, my charming and knowledgeable host for the evening, Konstantinos, walked me through a menu epitomising Athens’ ability to combine the classical with the contemporary. The catch of the day sea bass crudo, bathed in soy, lime and ginger was a flavourful but light way to start alongside creamy Taramas topped rye bars. Chicken infused with traditional Ladolemono was properly stand-out. I’d started off very well. Athens has as much to experience in the way of cool bars, restaurants and new hangouts as it does traditional offerings. Looking further afield pays off when you reach the city’s must-visit Line restaurant, a thirty minute walk from Gatsby. Concealed along a sleepy suburban street where old boys tinker under bonnets of cars and adolescent cats play fight in the sun, you’d be forgiven for assuming you were lost. Drawing closer, the sounds of house music revisions of ‘80s classics fill your ears. Line’s ex-factory setting has been respectfully altered for posterity but nothing more. From the well sitting prominently in the open space in front of the bar to the gantry above the barista’s station, original touches abound. The industrial history is the backdrop for Line’s forward thinking approach to their food and drink. Vasilis Kyritsis, Line co-owner and co-proprietor of respected Athenian mainstay The Clumsies, talked us through the elements that have helped them become #31 in The World’s 50 Best Bars despite only opening in January 2022. “We love the industry and want our staff to realise a career in hospitality is possible, rather than seeing it as ‘just’ a job,” he says. “All our staff are salaried rather than paid hourly and have health insurance. It’s our hope that this security takes out some of the worries that hospitality staff have and they feel happy here.” It appears to be doing the trick for their culture. I could barely find a table free during brunch service. At Line, ingredients you’d typically call ‘waste’ are turned into interesting things for the plate. The date puree served with rye bread and powdered aubergine is made from leftovers from the venue’s homemade fruit wine production. Something so unique is the eggs benedict. Pretty standard, you’re saying. Yet this bennie was served encased in a savoury doughnut,

THE TRAVEL HACK

Award-winning travel specialists Scott Dunn still have a variety of special summer excursions available. We like the sound of their ‘secret season’ Caribbean trips to Antigua. Call 020 8682 5080.

with hollandaise piped into it as you would usually see with jam. Being here for brunch, it took all I had to not stay until the evening to see what else the ingenuity of the Line chefs had in store. Reluctantly dragging myself away, I hit the neighbourhood of Exarchia in the north east that feels like a cousin of Berlin’s Kreuzberg or Neukölln. The contrast between the anarchist street art and the commissioned murals sitting above, high enough out of reach to all but the most dedicated tagger, evidence the uneasy coexistence of the prevailing punk ethos with encroaching gentrification. Sitting in the shade of trees and graffitied post-war apartment buildings outside Exarchia’s bustling Karagiozis cafe bar on Koletti 33 street, one young resident and soon to be historic tour guide explained with pride how locals do business. “Just around the corner a vacant car park was due for development, but the people

wanted something different,” she said. “One night they broke in and occupied it; planting flowers and vegetables in the freshly broken ground. We like to call it guerilla gardening.” We took a short walk to what is now Navarinou Park to find families of three generations playing with their dogs and enjoying the evening sun in the rebel plot. This ingrained activist spirit is finding current changes harder to fight. The construction of a new Metro station in Exarchia Square rather than next to the nearby National Archaeological Museum it would serve has divided opinion. Some see it as a much-needed improvement to local infrastructure; others lament the project as a desecration of a community’s only purpose-built green space and just the latest attempt to sterilise the area. For those looking to learn more about the traditional side of Greek food and drink, the handily titled Alternative Athens hosts

an engaging walking food tour to give you a solid grasp of the basics. The Turkish influence dating back to the Ottoman Empire becomes apparent early on, from the sweet baklava of the first stop to the traditional coffee and conspicuously named Greek Delight that accompanied it in the second. Further on you are treated to a clear locals' favourite souvlaki joint and a traditional taverna before exploring meat, fish, and fruit and veg markets. While the former may challenge even the most vociferous carnivore, the latter causes a sigh at the thought of having to return home to the supermarket aisles. Having opened last July, there’s still a lot of buzz around Tsiftis in the centrally-located neighbourhood of Ilisia, also walkable from the hotel. It’s easy to see why. Blending gastronomy with the sociability of everything-in-the-middle Greek dining, the idea is that a good meal is best shared. Smaller plates are what’s popular and the

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

THE LONG WEEKEND

BOOK THIS Welsh pinot noir has beaten US and French competition at recent wine awards, and now the nation’s vineyards are opening for tourism. Enjoy a wine break with White Castle Vineyard and a stay at the Angel Hotel in Abergavenny. Book by calling 01873 857121

menu changes weekly, dependent on the best market produce and catches from the docks. A cured grouper with wild herbs sat in sharp, fermented mountain tea and moustos reminiscent of a soy kombucha. The mild and delicately flakey cod paired wonderfully with chargrilled celeriac and an out of this world wild mushroom fricassée. Accompanying these was the best domestic wine we’d found in Athens, with the danger of intensely acidic and overly bold varieties nowhere to be seen. Athens is primed, willing, and able to take you forward. As our friend in Exarchia said: “More is said about what the Greeks did in 447 BC than what we’re doing right now. But hey, it pays the bills.”

NEED TO KNOW Rooms at Gatsby Athens start from £150 for a double standard room; gatsbyathens.com; to book a tour visit alternativeathens.com and for general information go to visitgreece.gr

PICTURE THE SCENE... In Tuscany, my bathroom window looks out onto what appears to be a cartoon approximation of a magical kingdom. Hillsides fold towards a horizon seemingly so far away it cannot be properly seen. The light splashes differently onto each copse of trees, tightly gathered like fistfuls of hair. The culmination of the colour and light is the fantastic Fanta Orange sunset. Tuscany’s absolutely gorgeous, isn’t it? Basically a much warmer version of Surrey with more olive trees and hills, it is verdant like our green and pleasant land but more sun-bleached. Villa Lena is one of the most stunning properties in the region, with orchards, good food and wine and the titular 18th century villa. The Villa itself is an intriguing composition of majestic and totally creepy, its sun-blushed orange frontage hiding the sobering reality there’s no heating, meaning it’s unoccupied for half the year. There’s a cool perk: an artists’ residency programme means guests live alongside artists. Six creatives move into the Villa at a time, occupying the Artists’ Studios behind the property for one month stints. Artists run workshops for guests such as floral masterclasses, clay making and painting. Tuscany is punctuated by these rectangular and stately villas, like Monopoly hotels, standing in opposition to the endless greenery. Villa Lena sits at the tip of a piece of land that’s the highest in the region, with spectacular wrap-around views. Standing by the edge of the pool and looking out for miles, you’re in danger of getting a serious God complex.

LIFE&STYLE

17

VILLA LENA TUSCANY Hang out with artists in a stunning Italian villa, says Adam Bloodworth

TOP TIP Book one of the spacious rooms at the top of the old horse’s stables that have been converted. From my bath, big enough for two, I could see the room’s original artworks in one direction and a view of the horizon in the other

GETTING TO KNOW THE ARTISTS At the pool, three sunbathers arrived individually and laid out their towels. They were independent of one another, but were swimming together when I backstroked over for a chat. From Canada and the United States, these were the artists, each here for something different: one to finish a piece of longform fiction, another to make pottery and another to take photographs. We bopped around in the still chilly water (it was early summer) and caught up later in the restaurant. At Villa Lena, the real attraction is the connections. The artists’ residency means financiers and artists who may in ordinary life never meet are bound by their surroundings. You can make as much or as little of the connections as you like, but the intimate Villa is designed to allow spontaneous meetings easy. In a place this pristine and silent, there is plenty of time and inspiration for conversation. After the art classes, guests might sink back into a sun lounger, focus on the horizon and never speak to the artists again, having their own private holiday. Or they may end up drinking local and organic Sangiovese by the bucketload then following one another on Instagram. Artists leave a ‘trace’ of their work behind so all bedrooms and public spaces are littered with original pieces. Next up is My Queer Blackness, My Black Queerness, a month-long series in July. This Pride Month, why not book a stay to learn more about LGBTQ identities? VISIT YOURSELF Rooms start from £334 per night with breakfast included; villa-lena.org

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MARKETS

FTSE 100 7562.36 37.38

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

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Price Chg High Low

GILTS Tsy 2.500 24................374.17 -0.27 389.8 359.2 Tsy 5.000 25 ..............100.33 -0.09 108.5 100.3 Tsy 4.250 27 .................99.50 -0.10 113.4 98.0 Tsy 6.000 28 ...............108.19 -0.15 126.6 106.8 Tsy 4.125 30 ...............335.60 -0.68 378.4 301.5 Tsy 4.250 32 ...............100.78 0.03 122.0 98.2 Tsy 4.250 36 .................99.07 0.17 124.9 94.8 Tsy 4.750 38 ............... 103.36 0.15 134.8 98.5 Tsy 4.250 46.................96.20 0.28 135.3 89.5

AEROSPACE & DEFENCE BAE Systems.................940.0 1.2 1032.0 714.0 Chemring Gp .................292.0 -8.0 351.0 255.5 QinetiQ ............................368.0 -1.2 394.2 322.0 Rolls-Royce .....................149.2 -0.2 158.0 66.2

AUTOMOBILES & PARTS Aston Martin................. 274.8 2.8 608.8 89.6 TI Fluid Systems ...........132.6 -1.4 182.0 92.7

BANKS Barclays ...........................156.3 HSBC Hldgs.................... 607.5 Lloyds Banking ................45.3 NatWest Group .............261.0 Standard Chartered....660.8 TBC Bank Group.........2455.0 Virgin Money UK...........155.8

-1.3 189.7 133.9 -3.5 647.5 442.2 -0.1 54.0 39.1 0.0 309.9 210.7 -6.6 790.8 519.6 5.0 2590.0 1158.0 1.1 197.9 118.4

BEVERAGES Britvic..............................879.0 -5.0 936.0 707.5 Coca-Cola HBC AG.....2338.0 -29.0 2565.0 1674.0 Diageo ...........................3320.5 -5.5 3960.0 3319.5

CHEMICALS Croda International ..5274.0 -750.0 7482.0 5260.0 Elementis.........................109.4 -1.6 129.0 87.7 Johnson Matt ............. 1736.0 -22.0 2373.0 1730.0 Synthomer ........................88.0 -5.4 265.6 88.0 Victrex ..........................1524.0 -22.0 1931.0 1504.0

CONSTRUCTION & MATERIALS Balfour Beatty ...............365.2 -2.2 393.4 247.4 Barratt Devel ................462.9 -6.8 506.4 323.4 Bellway .........................2226.0 -44.0 2500.0 1586.5 CRH ................................3862.0 -54.0 4353.0 2756.5 Genuit Group ..................331.0 4.0 438.0 252.5 Grafton Group................851.8 -1.8 988.7 630.6 Ibstock.............................159.9 -0.2 208.2 148.3 Marshalls........................ 293.6 -2.0 497.4 225.4 Morgan Sindall Gp.....1864.0 -22.0 2025.0 1392.0 Persimmon....................1213.0 -6.5 2195.0 1138.5

FTSE 250 19091.66 15.89

Ä

Price Chg High Low Taylor Wimpey...............113.9 -1.4 128.2 85.1 Vistry Group...................761.0 -3.0 938.5 519.5 Volution ..........................425.0 -10.0 448.0 275.5

DIVERSIFIED INDUSTRIALS Smith (DS) ......................310.9 -5.6 368.5 241.8 Smiths Gp..................... 1659.5 6.0 1797.5 1364.0 Smurfit Kappa Gp.....2890.0 -92.0 3596.0 2452.0 Vesuvius ..........................418.4 0.0 435.0 284.6

ELECTRICITY Drax Gp ........................... 556.2 11.0 793.0 473.4 SSE .................................1843.0 -1.0 1900.0 1428.0

ELECTRONIC & ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT Halma ............................2415.0 -22.0 2498.0 1876.5 Morgan Advanced ........277.5 -5.0 323.5 217.0 Oxford Instruments .. 2715.0 -10.0 2855.0 1720.0 Renishaw..................... 4034.0 -28.0 4338.0 3342.0 Spectris ........................3584.0 -43.0 3841.0 2690.0

EQUITY INVESTMENT INSTRUMENTS 3i Infrastructure...........318.5 1.5 350.0 288.5 Aberforth Smlr Cos...1280.0 10.0 1422.0 1068.0 Alliance Trust .............1002.0 0.0 1044.0 887.0 Allianz Tech...................260.0 2.5 266.0 200.0 AVI Global Trust...........195.0 1.0 205.5 174.6 Baillie Gifford Japan... 756.0 6.0 827.0 662.0 Bankers InvTst................ 99.1 0.2 108.2 93.0 Bellevue Healthcare.....153.6 -0.4 180.2 132.4 BlackRock Smaller ....1328.0 2.0 1470.0 1170.0 BlackRock Wld Mining618.0 -1.0 771.0 533.0 Bluefield Solar ...............129.4 -1.0 146.5 120.0 BR Throgmorton .......... 610.0 -2.0 668.0 487.0 Caledonia Inv ............. 3440.0 -25.0 4055.0 3055.0 City of London IT.........405.5 -2.0 431.5 372.0 Digital 9 .............................65.0 0.2 94.6 61.1 Edin Inv Trust...............655.0 -1.0 690.0 543.0 Edin Wwide ....................146.4 -0.6 209.5 143.8 European Opp ............... 778.0 -4.0 795.0 629.0 F&C Investment...........896.0 -7.0 992.0 770.0 Fidelity China SPE ........218.5 0.5 302.0 178.6 Fidelity Emg ..................602.0 2.2 651.0 555.1 Fidelity Eur .................... 347.0 -2.0 360.0 267.0 Fidelity Spec Val ...........273.0 0.0 292.5 233.5 Finsbury G&I Tst ......... 877.0 -5.0 920.0 734.0 GCP Infra Inv...................80.5 -1.1 118.2 79.0 Global Smaller ...............145.8 0.0 162.2 122.4 Greencoat UK.................147.0 0.1 167.2 135.6 Harbourvest Glb.........2210.0 10.0 2485.0 1930.0 Henderson Sml Co .......800.0 5.0 910.0 680.0 Herald Inv Trust ........1824.0 20.0 1950.0 1560.0 HICL Infr .........................142.0 0.0 180.6 140.0 Hipgnosis Songs Fund ... 82.1 -0.1 115.8 79.7 ICG Enterprise.............1138.0 -2.0 1202.0 954.0

CITYAM.COM

FTSE ALL SHARE 4133.32 17.58

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Price Chg High Low IMPAX ENVIRO MKTS413.0 -3.0 481.0 381.5 JPM American..............748.0 7.0 795.0 655.0 JPM Emerg Mkt ............107.2 0.2 119.8 92.2 JPM Euro Disc. ..............397.5 -0.5 448.0 345.0 JPM Glbl Gth .................462.0 0.0 476.5 386.0 JPM Japan IT ...............500.0 7.0 511.0 412.5 Jupiter Fund Mngt ....... 110.5 -1.0 160.5 83.8 Law Debenture .............802.0 2.0 860.0 656.0 Mercantile IT ................206.0 -1.0 222.0 160.0 Monks Inv Tst ..............995.0 -3.0 1098.0 888.0 Murray Inc Tst .............854.0 -5.0 885.0 715.0 Murray Intl Tst ............ 264.5 0.0 273.6 230.4 Next Energy Solar ........104.0 0.6 122.6 100.2 Ninety One ......................174.8 0.9 220.0 160.4 Pantheon Intl Partn.....271.0 0.0 282.0 231.0 Pershing Square.........2786.0 -30.0 3055.0 2330.0 Personal Assets Tr ......470.0 0.5 498.6 467.0 Polar Cap Tech Tst....2215.0 5.0 2285.0 1708.0 Renewables Infra Gp...120.0 1.0 147.4 118.2 RIT Cap Partners.......1864.0 4.0 2540.0 1846.0 Schroder Asia ...............505.0 0.0 551.0 446.0 Schroder Oriental .........257.5 -1.0 281.0 231.5 Scot American Inv ......529.0 0.0 542.0 440.0 Scottish Mortgage ......686.6 0.6 926.6 612.2 Sequoia Econ Infra ........80.5 0.0 97.6 77.3 Smithson Inv................1417.0 2.0 1485.0 1140.0 Syncona ...........................154.4 2.4 211.5 137.4 Temple Bar ....................225.0 -1.0 249.0 197.6 Templeton Em Mkts ....152.4 0.8 164.6 130.6 Twentyfour .................... 101.2 0.2 106.0 91.2 Vietnam Enterprise .....586.0 2.0 700.0 500.0 VinaCapital Vietna ......456.0 4.0 517.0 392.0 Witan Invest ................. 228.5 0.0 236.5 202.0 Wwide Healthcare ....3240.0 10.0 3475.0 2825.0

FIXED LINE TELECOMMUNICATIONS BT Gp................................147.0 -0.6 196.6 112.0 Telecom Plus ...............1486.0 -18.0 2500.0 1482.0

FOOD & DRUG RETAILERS Greggs.......................... 2682.0 -12.0 2904.0 1673.0 Ocado Gp ........................386.6 20.1 944.8 343.4 Sainsbury(J).................. 267.0 -0.5 289.6 169.9 SSP Group.......................273.4 1.4 277.0 184.8 Tesco ................................261.9 -0.1 284.6 199.2

FOOD PRODUCERS Assoc British Foods ..1859.5 -16.0 2070.0 1237.0 Cranswick ....................3284.0 -10.0 3340.0 2586.0 Hilton Food Gp ..............668.0 0.0 1106.0 500.0 Premier Foods ...............132.4 1.4 134.4 92.8 Tate & Lyle .................... 756.0 -3.0 831.5 657.2 Unilever.........................3970.0 -29.5 4443.5 3553.5

Ã

RISERS

Network Int ................................ 383.00 Ocado Gp ..................................... 386.60 Ithaca Energy .............................. 153.20

% 5.6 5.5 4.9

Price Chg High Low

Price Chg High Low

FORESTRY & PAPER

HOUSEHOLD GOODS

Mondi ............................1243.0 -15.0 1705.0 1242.0

Berkeley Grp Hldgs ...3977.0 -13.0 4504.0 3165.0 Crest Nicholson ............229.0 -2.6 283.6 172.1 Reckitt Benckiser ..... 6034.0 -80.0 6808.0 5556.0 Redrow ............................491.2 -7.0 585.0 372.6

GENERAL FINANCIAL 3i Group .........................1991.5 -6.5 2000.0 1059.0 Ashmore Gp...................228.6 -1.0 286.4 180.9 Bridgepoint Group.......224.0 0.6 303.4 173.9 Capital Gearing ......... 4585.0 -10.0 5170.0 4530.0 Close Brothers ..............963.0 0.0 1148.0 858.5 CMC Markets .................169.8 -5.4 312.0 167.0 Coats Group......................70.8 0.8 79.0 50.9 Hargreaves Lans ...........861.6 4.0 983.0 740.8 IG Gp ...............................696.0 2.0 847.5 648.0 Integrafin Holdings.....260.4 5.0 330.8 207.2 Intermediate Cap ...... 1477.0 20.5 1562.5 953.2 Intl Public Prtnshps .....138.8 1.6 169.4 136.0 Investec.......................... 469.3 10.5 546.4 351.6 IP Group ............................54.6 -1.4 88.1 52.5 JTC ....................................713.0 3.0 844.0 571.0 Liontrust..........................785.5 -1.5 1290.0 704.0 London Stock Exch...8650.0 -90.0 8865.0 6738.0 Man Group .....................229.0 0.7 286.8 204.3 OSB Group ......................525.5 0.5 587.5 375.4 Paragon ...........................561.0 4.0 608.0 366.0 Petershill Partners ........161.2 1.2 239.5 142.0 Plus500 ........................ 1427.0 -33.0 1951.0 1410.5 Provident Financial ......210.0 -12.0 243.8 136.3 Quilter ................................86.7 0.6 123.0 80.3 Rathbone Grp..............1950.0 2.0 2220.0 1570.0 Ruffer Investment ......287.0 1.5 318.0 276.5 Schroders.......................458.9 -2.2 604.4 358.8 SDCL Energy ....................88.7 -0.1 125.4 82.4 TP ICAP ...........................155.0 1.0 204.4 102.5

Ä

% FALLERS Croda International................. 5274.00 -12.5 Synthomer .................................... 88.00 -5.8 Provident Financial .....................210.00 -5.4

INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING Bodycote .........................619.0 6.0 705.2 460.4 Hill & Smith .................1486.0 6.0 1492.0 893.0 IMI .................................1608.0 -27.0 1674.0 1071.0 Melrose Ind ................... 523.8 1.6 534.7 286.6 RHI Magnesita .......... 2560.0 10.0 2750.0 1584.0 Rotork ............................. 328.4 -2.8 342.2 229.6 Spirax-Sarco ..............11190.0 -20.012350.0 9130.0 Weir Gp......................... 1794.5 -16.0 2021.0 1328.5

INDUSTRIAL METALS Evraz...................................81.0 0.0 81.0 80.9 Ferrexpo ............................97.4 -0.1 175.0 91.9

INDUSTRIAL TRANSPORTATION Clarkson....................... 3050.0 -50.0 3655.0 2500.0 Intl Dist Serv..................197.2 -0.7 294.5 183.2 Redde Northgate ......... 384.5 4.0 437.5 283.5

LEISURE GOODS Games Workshp.........9315.0 60.0 9920.0 5690.0

Price Chg High Low Hochschild Mining ..........82.8 -0.3 110.7 51.5 Rio Tinto .......................5125.0 -2.0 6377.0 4486.0

MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS Vodafone Gp.....................74.9

0.7 131.0

74.2

NONLIFE INSURANCE Admiral Gp...................2294.0 1.0 2392.0 1729.0 Beazley............................578.0 -17.0 687.5 469.6 Direct Line Ins ...............164.6 -1.4 257.3 135.0 Hiscox.............................1130.0 -8.0 1193.0 842.0 Lancashire Hldgs..........586.0 -32.5 664.0 368.6

OIL & GAS PRODUCERS BP .....................................468.9 -3.8 567.6 363.9 Capricorn Energy..........194.6 -2.6 261.8 191.3 Energean ......................1099.0 8.0 1569.0 932.0 Harbour Energy.............251.0 4.9 497.2 224.8 Ithaca Energy ................153.2 7.2 210.0 138.6 Shell ...............................2294.5 -14.5 2604.5 1936.4 Tullow Oil ..........................25.7 0.0 55.4 22.6

OIL EQUIPMENT & SERVICES Wood Gp(J) .................... 135.7 -0.4 226.0 104.5

PERSONAL GOODS Burberry Gp.................2225.0 PZ Cussons......................188.0

1.0 2641.0 1580.0 0.6 221.0 170.4

LIFE INSURANCE

PHARMACEUTICALS & BIOTECHNOLOGY

abrdn ................................214.3 -2.1 236.1 133.0 Aviva................................400.9 -2.6 467.9 373.8 Just Group ........................83.5 -0.1 95.3 56.0 Legal & General............ 239.4 1.4 284.3 204.1 Phoenix Gp.....................558.8 -3.0 684.2 506.8 Prudential ..................... 1114.0 -10.5 1371.5 797.6 St James Place ........... 1160.0 -3.5 1304.5 920.0

AstraZeneca...............11712.0 -38.012294.0 9656.0 Dechra Pharma...........3618.0 -12.0 3810.0 2520.0 Genus.............................2430.0 -4.0 3272.0 2298.0 GSK ................................ 1378.0 2.8 1802.6 1296.0 Hikma Pharma ............1890.5 52.0 1890.5 1190.5 Indivior ..........................1710.0 9.0 1998.0 1365.0 Puretech ..........................239.5 -2.0 294.5 147.6

GENERAL RETAILERS

MEDIA

REAL ESTATE

ASOS ................................325.1 -18.0 1209.0 325.1 B&M..................................533.2 1.6 539.8 295.5 Currys.................................50.5 0.0 85.3 49.7 Dunelm Gp.....................1150.0 1.0 1275.0 670.5 Frasers Group ...............684.5 -4.5 949.5 600.0 Howden Joinery Gp .....671.6 1.4 743.6 480.9 Inchcape......................... 797.0 2.0 941.0 666.0 JD Sports Fashion ........148.7 -2.4 186.7 89.2 Kingfisher........................237.7 -3.0 291.5 203.0 Marks & Spencer ..........188.2 -2.0 190.2 93.2 Next ...............................6434.0 -58.0 7076.0 4383.0 Pets at Home Gp .......... 394.2 5.8 395.0 257.8 Watches of Switz ........645.0 -6.0 1037.0 635.5 WH Smith......................1619.0 10.0 1714.0 1132.5

4imprint.......................5020.0 20.0 5090.0 2240.0 Ascential .........................241.2 -2.8 308.2 176.2 Auto Trader Gp .............617.8 7.8 675.0 486.2 Future.............................. 720.5 8.5 1971.0 710.2 Informa............................707.2 -7.8 729.0 501.8 ITV .......................................70.1 -0.3 90.1 55.2 Moneysupermkt.com.. 254.6 -1.2 280.4 168.9 Pearson ............................819.4 0.0 995.2 734.6 RELX .............................. 2531.0 -24.0 2722.0 2081.0 Rightmove Group..........521.8 1.0 663.0 445.4 WPP .................................862.2 -2.8 1051.5 725.8

Assura ................................48.8 -0.5 71.2 47.7 Big Yellow Gp ..............1162.0 0.0 1426.0 987.0 British Land ................... 347.0 -4.0 517.6 324.8 CLS Hldgs .........................131.6 -2.2 216.5 128.2 Derwent London ........2166.0 -16.0 2924.0 1876.0 Grainger..........................249.6 -2.8 297.2 205.4 Grt Portland Est ............737.0 0.0 737.0 737.0 Hammerson ......................26.6 0.6 30.5 17.2 Land Securities..............613.6 -7.4 744.6 485.3 LondonMetric Prop ......186.3 -0.3 250.8 161.8 Primary Hlth Prop ........101.6 -0.4 147.9 98.7 Safestore Hldgs............958.0 -1.0 1177.0 794.0 Savills .............................. 907.5 -10.0 1190.0 763.5 SEGRO .............................800.6 -2.0 1095.0 694.0 Shaftesbury....................120.4 -0.6 152.4 95.5 Supermarket Income ....82.5 0.2 129.0 77.6 Target Healthcare ..........78.6 -1.4 117.2 66.7 TR Property IT .............298.0 1.5 412.0 263.5 Tritax Big Box................140.9 -1.0 197.3 125.7 Tritax Eurobox ................60.1 -0.2 95.9 57.0

HEALTH CARE EQUIPMENT & SERVICES Convatec ........................ 203.2 0.2 248.6 199.0 Smith & Neph...............1194.0 -3.0 1314.5 984.6 Spire Health ...................223.5 -4.5 250.0 203.0

MINING Anglo American .........2457.0 -2.5 3672.5 2223.5 Antofagasta ................ 1467.5 6.0 1805.0 991.6 BHP Group .................. 2380.0 1.0 2855.0 2034.0 Centamin ...........................96.5 -1.0 125.5 74.4 Endeavour Mining .... 2024.0 -18.0 2184.0 1461.0 Fresnillo ...........................677.2 0.4 968.0 644.0 Glencore ......................... 435.0 -1.4 578.1 400.0

£

/€ 1.1703 /$ 1.2578 /¥ 175.29

à 0.0064 €/$ 1.0749 Ä 0.0031 à 0.0033 €/£ 0.8546 Ä 0.0046 à 1.1080 €/¥ 149.79 à 0.1360

Price Chg High Low UK Commercial Prop .....56.6 -1.0 81.5 50.0 Unite Group ...................923.0 7.0 1207.0 791.5 Urban Logistics .............130.6 -2.4 183.5 117.5 Workspace Gp ...............521.5 2.0 657.0 343.4

SOFTWARE & COMPUTER SERVICES Auction Tech..................733.0 4.0 1010.0 571.0 Baltic Classifieds...........165.0 0.2 166.0 124.4 Computacenter ......... 2298.0 18.0 2624.0 1810.0 FDM Group.....................685.0 4.0 924.0 599.0 Kainos Gp .....................1284.0 -12.0 1740.0 954.5 Micro Focus Intl........... 532.0 0.0 532.0 256.3 NCC Grp .............................87.6 1.3 240.0 86.3 Playtech..........................604.5 -7.0 634.5 390.8 Sage Group ....................859.6 -7.2 878.5 595.6 Softcat ..........................1407.0 15.0 1436.0 1071.0

SUPPORT SERVICES Ashtead Gp ..................5368.0 38.0 5874.0 3359.0 Babcock Intl Grp........... 317.2 -0.4 360.6 268.6 Bunzl ..............................3070.0 -48.0 3225.0 2575.0 DCC ................................4733.0 0.0 5350.0 4030.0 Diploma.........................3070.0 -30.0 3100.0 2158.0 discoverIE Gp ................912.0 -3.0 915.0 597.0 Essentra........................... 181.4 -3.2 299.5 175.2 Experian ...................... 2868.0 -48.0 3160.0 2285.0 Ferguson.....................11530.0 -105.012380.0 8680.0 Hays ................................. 109.0 -0.1 130.7 101.2 Intertek Gp..................4287.0 -57.0 4528.0 3619.0 IWG ..................................165.5 2.7 215.8 115.4 MITIE GROUP..................96.2 -3.3 99.5 56.0 Network Int .................. 383.0 20.2 397.0 180.6 Pagegroup .....................440.0 -2.4 491.6 362.2 Rentokil Initial.............. 643.4 -7.2 656.8 445.0 RS Group ........................800.0 2.0 1159.0 788.8 Serco ................................143.8 1.0 188.3 141.7 Travis Perkins...............855.8 -25.8 1082.5 738.0 W.A.G .................................93.2 -1.4 103.0 69.8

TECHNOLOGY HARDWARE & EQUIPMENT Spirent Comms..............184.5

0.7 286.2 168.1

TOBACCO Br Am Tob....................2590.5 Imperial Brands ......... 1725.0

9.0 3628.0 2554.5 2.5 2185.0 1695.0

TRAVEL & LEISURE Carnival...........................909.4 12.2 910.2 501.4 Compass Gp................. 2172.0 -4.0 2235.0 1641.0 Dominos Pizza............... 279.6 -1.2 330.6 215.2 easyJet ............................491.5 0.3 528.0 285.1 Entain ............................1296.0 -1.0 1587.5 1075.5 FirstGroup.......................139.9 4.7 141.2 93.5 Flutter Ent................. 15240.0-200.016725.0 7614.0 Intercontl Htls ............5442.0 16.0 5784.0 4193.0 Intl Cons Airl..................159.8 0.8 173.6 93.7 Mitchells & Butlers ......216.0 -1.6 217.6 102.0 National Express ............117.4 -0.2 223.0 105.7

Price Chg High Low TUI AG .............................551.5 3.0 1895.0 506.6 Wetherspoon (JD)....... 726.0 -12.5 783.5 389.8 Whitbread....................3372.0 44.0 3404.0 2285.0 Wizz Air Holdings ......2725.0 70.0 3158.0 1357.5

AIM 50 Advanced Medical....... 235.0 -3.0 306.5 219.5 Alliance Pharma............. 60.0 0.4 119.6 35.3 ASOS ................................325.1 -18.0 1209.0 325.1 Camellia .......................6050.0 50.0 6650.0 4380.0 Central Asia Metals ....200.5 -0.5 292.5 185.6 CVS Group .................. 2070.0 32.0 2192.0 1549.0 Dart Group ...................1288.0 -17.0 1381.5 667.8 Diversified Energy ..........93.2 -0.4 142.0 83.8 EMIS Group.................1360.0 4.0 1910.0 1292.0 FD Technologies.........1880.0 18.0 2135.0 1230.0 Fevertree Drinks ........1285.0 -82.0 1477.0 821.5 Frontier Devs ................539.0 9.0 1630.0 419.0 Gamma Comms .......... 1190.0 6.0 1210.0 1012.0 GB Group ........................280.4 -9.0 647.0 280.4 Gooch & Housego ........596.0 12.0 936.0 426.0 Hurricane Energy...............7.8 0.0 9.2 5.8 Impax Asset Mgmt .....645.0 16.0 883.0 500.0 Iomart Group .................165.0 4.0 200.0 112.0 IQE .......................................21.1 0.3 59.9 20.6 James Halstead............220.0 2.0 229.0 176.0 Johnson Service Gp ..... 110.4 -0.2 125.4 77.0 Keywords Studios .....1852.0 30.0 2992.0 1745.0 Learning Tech Gp..........100.7 -1.3 151.0 98.3 M&C Saatchi ..................172.5 -1.5 204.0 128.0 M.P. Evans...................... 770.0 -10.0 988.0 760.0 Majestic Wine.................113.2 -0.2 308.8 75.5 Midwich Group.............485.0 20.0 600.0 404.0 Molten Ventures ...........301.6 3.4 488.6 247.0 Mortgage Advice B ..... 762.0 36.0 1100.0 482.0 Next 15............................ 774.0 -1.0 1112.0 700.0 Nichols...........................1055.0 30.0 1320.0 970.0 Numis Corporation .......333.0 -0.5 341.0 170.4 Polar Capital Hdgs.......542.0 3.0 555.0 45.0 Purplebricks Gp................. 0.5 0.0 19.4 0.4 Renew Holdings ........... 722.0 2.0 757.0 555.0 RWS Holdings ...............258.0 6.2 408.4 227.4 Secure Income REIT ...461.0 0.0 478.5 455.5 Serica Energy ...............250.0 8.2 450.0 207.5 Smart Metering Sys ....775.0 -3.0 958.0 691.0 Telford Homes .............. 349.5 0.0 349.5 349.5 Thorpe (F.W.)................369.0 0.0 440.0 345.0 Watkin Jones...................68.3 5.0 225.5 63.3 Young’s Brew NV..........891.0 -1.0 892.0 564.0 Young’s Brew-A .........1200.0 25.0 1270.0 870.0

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

SPORT

19

CRICKET

Aussies show glimpse of ruthless mentality

A

USTRALIA secured a timely pre-Ashes boost just five days out from the series by winning the World Test Championship on Sunday. Their 209-run victory over India under the blazing heat at the Oval across the last five days showed, mostly, their strengths before the Baggy Greens take on England on Friday in the opening Test of the Ashes series. Here’s what we learned from the Australians as they head to Birmingham as champions and Ashes holders.

STARC’S WARNING

Does Scott Boland start ahead of Mitchell Starc in the Ashes? He should if he doesn’t. Boland was seismic against the Indians and gave onlookers a lesson in consistent pace attack throughout the five days. He took two wickets for 59 runs in the

Baggy Greens show they’ll take cricket to England, despite Bazball, with India win ahead of Ashes, writes Matt Hardy first innings at an economy of 2.95 and three wickets for 46 in the second innings at an economy of 2.88. Starc, in contrast, took two wickets for 71 runs in the first innings at an economy rate of 5.20 and two for 77 at an economy of 5.50 in the second innings. Boland has rocked up and sent a statement to head coach Andrew McDonald. On this evidence, he simply must be given the new ball against the English batters – there’s no contest.

DEEP INTO THE ORDER

Yes, opener David Warner was sent packing from the crease with a second innings total (one) reminiscent of many scores achieved on English pitches, but

Australia proved they have runs right down the order – something England captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum will need to consider when attacking the Baggy Greens. Steve Smith knocked a century in the first innings while Travis Head hit over 150 in his opening knock. Alex Carey backed up a 48 with a 66 not out in his second innings while Marnus Labuschagne and Starc also crossed the 40-run threshold in the second innings. We know that Bazball-era England will go out with an attacking mentality but Australia will do the same with the bat. The tourists will challenge England with the bat, and that’s something Eng-

land haven’t necessarily been confronted with yet under Stokes and McCullum.

PITCHES WILL TELL

Do England still want hard, fast pitches like the one seen at the Oval? That’s what captain Stokes has previously said when asked for his summer preference. But Australia’s performance in south London may cast doubts. Does Boland take the new ball this summer?

Many have said Australia’s key to holding on to the famous urn is setting par scores and relying on their bowlers to run through England. But over the last five days they’ve shown their ability to bat hard and long, and declare at the right time – something England have prided themselves on in innings gone by. The reality is that Australia surpassed a par score in their first innings and got on the front foot. England have said they prefer chasing totals. The two clashes in styles are destined to meet this summer. The Ashes transcend cricket, and an inform Australia will only add to the occasion this summer.

OPINION

FOOTBALL COMMENT Trevor Steven

B

Y WINNING the Champions League for the first time, Manchester City have planted their flag in the history books and equalled Manchester United’s treble, but I don’t think this achievement is about legacy. It’s about how they become Barcelona, Real Madrid or Bayern Munich. And there isn’t a magic answer; it’s about sustained and absolutely elite performance from the top to the bottom of the whole club. Beating Inter Milan in Saturday’s final in Istanbul was not the destination, just part of the journey that City are on. It ticked the box that they needed to tick to get to the next level. The next challenge is consistent achievement in the Champions League. Pep Guardiola acknowledged it himself after the match with a tongue-incheek comment about only being 13 behind Real Madrid’s tally of European Cups. I think City want to be at their level of status in 20 years’ time. For all of the investment in the club over the last 15 years, the key element in their success is Pep. Real Madrid have a different model that relies more on buying stars, but City’s focus on development and talent identification represents the way the game is going.

CRUYFF

Life will go on when Guardiola does decide to leave Manchester. After Johan Cruyff departed Barcelona, others whose philosophies he had helped to shape built on his work. Pep was one and took Barca to new levels. He is a mentor too and we are already seeing the influence of the Guardiola way in a new wave of managers, from those who worked under him, such as Mikel Arteta, to those who look at tactics in a similar way, like Roberto De Zerbi. I would love to see him at City another five years. I think he will want to challenge himself to achieve more with the club. Perfection is his goal – he won’t be happy until they steamroll Real Madrid 4-0

CITY WILL WANT TO EMULATE REAL MADRID in a Champions League final – and they are not there yet. I don’t like comparing different eras – Sir Alex Ferguson could say he won more; Pep has done it at multiple clubs – but we can say for sure that Guardiola is the best around today. He is the centre of the footballing world and he brings so much to the Premier League. Guardiola is a perfectionist

TASTED

The Champions League final was a frustrating watch. I expected much more from City, although you have to recognise how well-drilled Inter were. That fact and the early injury to Kevin De Bruyne turned it into a different contest. It became just about getting the job done. For all that these City players had achieved, you could see that they were anxious in a one-off game that had so much riding on it. I thought Pep’s decision to leave out Kyle Walker backfired. Federico Dimarco, on Inter’s left flank, was get-

Winning the Champions League was not the destination, just part of the journey that City are on

ting regular crosses in, but City got away with it a little bit. The match became an arm-wrestle and Rodri took his chance when it came. As for the players, they have now seen and felt what it takes to win the Champions League. Having lost the final two years ago, most of them have tasted both sides. They know that anything less won’t get them there, and that truly will change the club. Trevor Steven is a former England footballer who played at two World Cups and two European Championships. @TrevorSteven63.

20

SPORT

MONDAY 12 JUNE 2023

CITYAM.COM

WHY CITY WON’T REST Trevor Steven on the Champions League final fallout PAGE 19

SPORT RUGBY UNION

Sexton’s World Cup in balance as misconduct probe escalates EXCLUSIVE

MATT HARDY JOHNNY Sexton and Leinster have been slapped with a misconduct letter by European rugby chiefs in a move which could scupper the talismanic Ireland No10’s World Cup swansong, City A.M. can reveal. Sexton stands accused of three counts of misconduct following his side’s loss to La Rochelle in the Champions Cup final last month, where the injured flyhalf was not playing. The 37-year-old is alleged to have mouthed obscenities towards the three on-pitch officials – referee Jaco Peyper and touch judges Karl Dickson and Christophe Ridley. Is it understood that the officials were asked for witness statements, with at least one of them describing Sexton’s behaviour as intimidating. Video footage appears to show Dickson ushering away Sexton as he approached the group of officials following his side’s 26-27 loss to La Rochelle. European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) said this weekend that it did not wish to comment on the matter. Sexton was also accused of being part of an alleged row in the tunnel at halftime, along with other players and coaches from both teams, but City A.M. understands that these have been found to be of little significance and are unlikely to see major repercussions.

A significant punishment for Sexton could jeopardise his hopes of retiring with a World Cup trophy in hand, with the No10 confirming this year’s tournament in France to be his last. Misconduct letters are part of the disciplinary process when issues such as these occur on or around a rugby pitch. Leinster were sent the letter late last week and now have the opportunity to respond to the allegation. For context, one of the members of Pau’s coaching team, Sebastien Piqueronies, was banned for 10 weeks for grabbing Scottish referee Sam Grove-White in the Challenge Cup this season. A letter from EPCR, which manages the disSexton hasn’t played a match since March due to a groin injury ciplinary process in European competitions, to Pau listed a decision, charges, pleas and evidence as part of an evidence gathering process. Pau’s coach pleaded guilty to committing misconduct but denied swearing. His ban for a physical action is unlikely to be matched by any punishment handed to Sexton for his alleged verbal behaviour but, if found guilty, could rule the Irish No10 out of his country’s World Cup warm-up matches and potentially the World Cup itself if long enough. Leinster were approached for comment.

TENNIS

FOOTBALL

Pep: We deserve more credit for treble FRANK DALLERES PEP Guardiola hopes Manchester City’s treble-clinching Champions League victory will see his team get the credit they deserve for an era of extraordinary success. City edged out Inter Milan 1-0 in Istanbul on Saturday night to become kings of Europe for the first time and only the second English team to complete the continental treble. It took their tally of trophies under Guardiola to 12 in the last six seasons, an achievement for which the Spaniard believes has not had adequate recognition. “Especially this season, the entire world has said if we don’t win the Champions League we will not be complete, it will not be enough,” he said. “Winning these five Premier

Leagues and arriving in three semifinals, and two finals, is exceptional, but everyone says, ‘no, you have to win’. “But winning the Champions League every season is difficult unless you are Real Madrid. The other ones sometimes arrive and do it. Not just for me, for the club, for our CEO and players – we had everything but not the Champions League, as if the Premier League is nothing. “So I like this competition for the fact we won it, to be part of history. The players know they will be remembered for the rest of their lives. But now give credit for the five Premier Leagues we won in six years. “It is important because people now forget about it and focus on creating a museum to put all our

trophies in, because what we have done in the last years is unbelievable, not just the Champions League, but many titles.” City, who won the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, are set to parade their trophies through Manchester on an open-top bus on Monday and Kevin De Bruyne insists deeper reflection on their achievements can wait. “That’s not something I’m really thinking about right now. The season is so long we should just enjoy this moment,” said De Bruyne, who suffered a hamstring injury in the final. “We’ve had subdued parties up until now, but now we can really enjoy it for a couple of days, as we should. We’ve not lost one game in the Champions League this season so I think we deserve it.”

FOOTBALL

Henman: Djokovic ‘greatest male player of all time’

Women’s Super League sees 60 per cent revenue growth

MATT HARDY

FRANK DALLERES

NOVAK Djokovic now stands alone at the top of the men’s Grand Slam charts after his straight sets win over Casper Ruud in the final of the French Open, leading to former British No1 Tim Henman describing him as the “greatest man of all time” The Serbian beat his Norwegian opponent 7-6 6-3 7-5 at Roland Garros to win his third French Open and 23rd Grand Slam in total. The win puts him one ahead of Rafael Nadal and equal with Serena Williams for major tournaments won in the open era. Ruud led 3-0 early on in the match

but Djokovic fought back to take the first set 7-6. The world No3 took the second set 6-3 and wrapped up the third 7-5 as the clock struck three hours 13 minutes. With Roger Federer retired and Nadal inching towards the end of his career, it is likely Djokovic will remain the stand-alone leading Grand Slam winning man. Henman said: “I don’t think there can be any doubts now about who is the greatest male player of all-time.” Djokovic’s win was his 94th on at the ATP level, 15 behind Jimmy Connors and nine behind Federer.

WOMEN’S Super League clubs are on a path to sustainability after growing revenues by 60 per cent in a year. WSL teams’ collective income swelled from £20m to £32m in 2021-22, according to analysis by Deloitte published today. And it is expected to have enjoyed another substantial uplift this season as WSL attendances grew by 200 per cent following England’s European Championship win. “The women’s game achieved significant leaps in revenue in the 2021-22 season,” said Zoe Burton, director in Deloitte’s Sports Business Group. “The Lionesses’ success at the Uefa

Women’s Euros is pinned as an inflexion point for the popularity of women’s football, so it’s telling that even before this historic win revenues had begun to grow in the Women’s Super League.” The WSL’s £8m-a-year TV deal was the principal driver of the revenue increase in 2021-22. Wage costs were up 37 per cent to £25m in 2021-22, with the wages-to-revenue ratio falling from 92 per cent to 78 per cent. And WSL teams made a collective pre-tax loss of £14m, which was largely covered by funding from their wider club. Attendances exploded from an average 1,923 in 2021-22 to 5,616 this season on the back of the Lionesses’ win.