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Tuesday newspaper round-up: Post Office, Barclays, income tax revenues

(Sharecast News) - Ministers have drawn up urgent plans to clear the names of hundreds of post office operators who were wrongly convicted of theft and fraud in the Horizon IT scandal as the government scrambled to get on the front foot over the major miscarriage of justice. The justice secretary, Alex Chalk, will hold talks with the senior judiciary to confirm how the convictions can be overturned as soon as possible, so victims can have speedier access to millions of pounds of compensation. - Guardian The top director responsible for safety and security at Sellafield is to leave the vast nuclear waste dump in north-west England, it has emerged. Mark Neate, the Sellafield environment, safety and security director, is to leave the organisation later this year. - Guardian

Barclays cut its workforce by around 5,000 last year as part of an ongoing push to strip costs from the lender. The bank confirmed the size of the job losses for the year ending December 2023 after reports emerged that it was planning to cut 2,000 jobs in a £1bn cost-cutting drive. Investors are awaiting an update in February from chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan, also known as Venkat, which could lay out further cost reduction plans. - Telegraph

Income tax revenues have leapt by more than 70 per cent since 2010 to £264 billion, illustrating the sharp rise in the tax burden overseen by successive Conservative administrations since the party came to power more than a decade ago. Analysis of figures from HM Revenue & Customs by The Times revealed that Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt have been raising income tax receipts without actually lifting headline rates. - The Times

The American entertainment group that was backing a 21,500-capacity Sphere venue in east London has pulled the plug on the project after claiming it had become a "political football" between the government and the mayor of London. Sphere Entertainment has withdrawn its planning application for the "glowing orb" near the Olympic Park in Stratford, saying that the process had descended into a turf war between Sadiq Khan and Michael Gove, the levelling-up secretary. - The Times

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Thursday newspaper round-up: CMA, Riverford, Lloyds, Arm Holdings
(Sharecast News) - The appointment of the former boss of Amazon UK to lead the competition watchdog poses a threat to its independence and pledge to hold big tech to account, according to a group including tech companies and the former business secretary Vince Cable. The group - which includes the News Media Association, the Firefox developer Mozilla, the consumer group Which? and the Future of Technology Institute - has written to the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, to raise concerns about the appointment of Doug Gurr as the interim chair of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). - Guardian
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Thames Water, Johnson & Johnson, BoE
(Sharecast News) - Thames Water may need as much as £10bn in debt and equity investment to repair its finances, according to a representative of creditors hoping to lend the struggling utility another £3bn. London's high court heard evidence on Tuesday that suggested the UK's largest water company may need significantly more resources than the roughly £6.3bn it has previously indicated. - Guardian
Monday newspaper round-up: Zero-hours contracts, Barclays, Asos
(Sharecast News) - Hundreds of thousands of British workers are on zero-hours contracts despite being with the same employer for years, according to analysis from the TUC. The majority of zero-hours contract workers have been with their employer for more than 12 months, while one in eight have not been granted regular employment rights after more than a decade working in the same place, the organisation said. - Guardian
Friday newspaper round-up: Apple, Daily Mail, OpenAI, Homebase
(Sharecast News) - Apple slightly beat analysts' expectations in its first-quarter earnings for fiscal year 2025 on Thursday. The iPhone-maker's revenue rose by 4%, coming in at $124.30bn, barely above estimates of $124.12bn. Earnings per share were $2.40, just ahead of analysts' expectations of $2.35. Shares rose more than 8% in extended trading after CEO Tim Cook indicated in an earnings call on Thursday that Apple is on the trajectory for revenue growth next quarter. - Guardian

Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

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