6:37 am, February 25, 2023
Sunak to press on with Brexit deal talks as EU leader cancels visit
The prime minister will keep working towards securing a post-Brexit deal after plans for an in-person meeting with the European Commission president was called off.
After having ‘positive’ phone discussions with Rishi Sunak yesterday, Ursula von der Leyen was expected to arrive in Britain today for further talks on the Northern Ireland Protocol.
But UK government sources said she was no longer scheduled to make the journey, adding that further talks between the two will occur within the coming days, without being more exact on timings.
Government being ‘counterproductive’ over Clean Air Bill, says MP
The government is being ‘counterproductive’ by not passing a Bill that would compel ministers to maintain good air quality, a Green MP has said.
Caroline Lucas and Baroness Jenny Jones are pushing for the Clean Air Bill to receive royal assent, but Lucas told the PA news agency the government wasn’t giving it parliamentary time.
If passed, it would give the UK Health Security Agency enhanced powers to review pollutants and their limits and would establish a Citizens’ Commission for Clean Air that could institute legal proceedings.
No 10 resists calls to follow EU on staff TikTok ban
Rishi Sunak is resisting calls to ban government officials from using TikTok.
It comes amid renewed concerns about the use of the popular Chinese-owned video-sharing app by government and parliamentary staff, following the European Commission decision to suspend its use on devices issued to staff or personal devices that staff use for work.
A similar ban has already been introduced for US government employees. Commons foreign affairs committee chairwoman Alicia Kearns said the UK government must review its policies. A No 10 spokesman said he was ‘not aware’ of any ban on Downing Street staff using TikTok.
Energy bills set to eat up tenth of average salary – TUC
Energy bills will account for up to 10 per cent of the average salary from April, new research suggests.
The TUC said its analysis found that the average energy bill will rise to £250 a month – more than double the amount workers were paying a year ago.
The union organisation called on the government to set up a public energy company to lower bills, saying that workers on low pay were being hit the hardest.
Teaching union defers strike action
A teaching union in Scotland has agreed to defer industrial action that was set to take place next week after members ‘marginally’ voted to accept a new pay offer from the Scottish government.
The national executive of the Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association ‘unanimously’ agreed to defer strike action on Tuesday and Wednesday after a consultation with members showed a small majority would vote in favour of the Scottish government’s new pay deal.
Sir Bernard Ingham – Margaret Thatcher’s press secretary – dies at 90
Sir Bernard Ingham, the long-standing press secretary to Margaret Thatcher, has died after a short illness, his family said.
The former reporter, who was 90, died with his family around him yesterday lunchtime, a statement said.
His family described him as a ‘journalist to his bones’, and he continued to file a column for the Yorkshire Post until as recently as last month.
BASF to shed 2,600 jobs in cost-cutting drive
Chemicals maker BASF plans to axe around 2,600 jobs in a cost-cutting drive spurred in part by the impact of high energy prices.
The announcement came after charges related to the exit from Russia of the company’s gas and oil subsidiary pushed it to a loss in 2022.
BASF, which is based in Ludwigshafen, Germany, said the cost-cutting programme would take place this year and next to generate annual savings of more than 500m euros (circa £441m).
Cineworld shareholders set to be wiped out as firm expects to exit bankruptcy
Cineworld hopes to be back from bankruptcy protection before the middle of the year, but the debt-ridden business expects any deal with its creditors will wipe out its shareholders.
The world’s second-largest cinema chain said yesterday that it had been approached by ‘a number’ of potential suitors, but none of them had been willing to pay in cash to buy the whole business.
It is thought that any rescue deal for the business – which is saddled with a $6bn (£5bn) debt – will mean handing over control to the companies and people that Cineworld owes money to, and shareholders are unlikely to get anything back.
BMW i4 eDrive35 can now be ordered in UK
Order books for the BMW i4 eDrive35 have now opened, making it the latest model to join the fully electric BMW family.
Available in Sport and M Sport trim, the four-door Gran Coupé has a claimed WLTP fully electric range of up to 299 miles, and features the same BMW Curved Display with BMW iDrive and Operating System 8 found in all BMW i4 models, as well as in the BMW iX and iX1.
It’s priced from £49,995 on the road and is available to order now in the UK, with deliveries expected to start this summer.
Yesterday’s headlines on Car Dealer you might have missed
- The car dealers, manufacturers and automotive experts bringing you exclusive insight at Car Dealer Live
- Used car prices rise 1% in February but EVs dominate top 10 biggest fallers list
- I drove to Ukraine with used car dealer SUV Prestige and donated a pick-up to the war effort
- EV production charges ahead by almost 50 per cent as car manufacturing dips slightly
- Report finds new wave of Chinese brands are likely to drive down ICE and EV prices
- Vehicles destroyed as fire breaks out at Cazoo’s Long Bennington site
- Range Rover owners in London are finding it impossible to get insurance cover
Market movements
The FTSE 100 closed down 29.06 points yesterday to end the week on 7,878.66. The Cac 40 was down 130.16 points at 7,187.27, the Dax was down 265.95 points at 15,209.74, and the Dow Jones was down 336.99 points at 32,816.92.
Weather outlook
It’ll be colder with patchy cloud moving in from the north-east today, bringing scattered showers into eastern areas, occasionally wintry on the hills, says BBC Weather. Western areas will see the best of the sunshine.
Sunday will be dry with brighter spells in the west of the UK, especially the north-west. It’ll be cloudy elsewhere, especially over the east of the UK, which may have light showers.
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