Wednesday newspaper round-up: Minimum wage, Rolls-Royce, CBI, Debenhams

(Sharecast News) - Some of the UK's best known retailers including WH Smith, Marks & Spencer, Argos and LloydsPharmacy are at the head of a list of more than 200 companies collectively fined £7m for failing to pay the legal minimum wage. The businesses were also forced to pay out £4.9m to about 63,000 workers left out of pocket after violations of the rules were uncovered by inspectors at HMRC, varying from breaches related to asking workers to pay for aspects of their uniform to paying the incorrect apprenticeship rate. - Guardian Rolls-Royce's new boss has said the British company is ready to rejoin the market for smaller jet engines once manufacturers build a new generation of planes. Tufan Erginbilgic told reporters at the Paris air show on Tuesday that the company was "actually ready" to re-enter the market for engines for single-aisle jets, although it would probably take a decade for a new opportunity to come up. - Guardian

A plan to build the first supersonic passenger jet since the Concorde has taken a significant step forward after the company behind the effort signed key deals to design and build the plane. Boom Supersonic, which aims to have Concorde-style jets flying by 2027, said Italian aerospace giant Leonardo would make part of the fuselage on its new aircraft. - Telegraph

The CBI has been barred from attending meetings with other top lobby groups as it seeks to re-establish itself after a sexual misconduct scandal. It has been denied entry to meetings with ministers alongside other leading business groups, including the Federation of Small Business, the British Chambers of Commerce, the Institute of Directors and Make UK, according to the Financial Times. - The Times

The true cost of Debenhams' demise has been laid bare in documents that show clothing suppliers, landlords and lenders will not recover £1.3 billion they were owed before the retailer collapsed. The beleaguered British department stores group fell into liquidation in December 2020, bringing down the curtain on 242 years of trading. The pandemic proved to be the final straw for a business that had been struggling for years, falling into administration in 2019 before Covid-19 struck. - The Times