Wednesday newspaper round-up: Morrisons, Thames Water, Matalan

(Sharecast News) - Morrisons is closing a fruit-packing plant in Bradford, putting 450 jobs at risk in the supermarket's home city where it traces its roots back to 1899. The debt-laden supermarket chain, which is battling to save costs after a takeover in October 2021 by the American private equity group Clayton Dubilier & Rice, said it was moving operations from the Cutler Heights area of the West Yorkshire city - its first ever fruit-packing plant - to another plant in Thrapston, Northamptonshire, and a distribution centre in Wakefield in the second part of this year. - Guardian London's mayor Sadiq Khan "lacks the legal power" to extend the ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) to the whole of the capital, five Conservative-led councils have argued in the high court. Lawyers for four outer London boroughs - Bexley, Bromley, Harrow and Hillingdon - and Surrey county council said that "key information was not disclosed" in consultations over the proposed expansion of the Ulez. - Guardian

A £1bn cash injection will not be enough to steady the ship at crisis-hit Thames Water, the industry regulator has warned. Ofwat said the cash that Thames is currently seeking from investors is only expected to get the troubled company through to the end of March 2025, with further injections needed for a lasting turnaround beyond that. - Telegraph

The planned £4 billion sale of Center Parcs is said to be hanging in the balance after a number of prospective bidders dropped out of the race amid a sharp downturn in private equity dealmaking. First-round bids were due towards the end of June, with Brookfield Property Partners, which has owned Center Parcs since 2015, taking a handful of parties through to the second stage. - The Times

Matalan has been accused of employing "cowboy buying practices" by a group of Asian suppliers after the retailer reportedly asked for price cuts of 20 per cent on some clothing orders. The manufacturers, who spoke to The Times on condition of anonymity, claimed that the discount fashion and homeware chain is engaged in some of the "most aggressive, unreasonable buying practices" they had ever seen. - The Times