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Friday newspaper round-up: Starling Bank, airlines, SFO, EDF

(Sharecast News) - Starling Bank has reported its first annual profit thanks to a surge in lending, though executives played down the impact that a controversial boom in Covid loans had on its path to profit. The chief executive and founder, Anne Boden, said the latest set of earnings were a "landmark" for the eight-year-old digital bank. Starling, which is backed by investors including Goldman Sachs and Austrian billionaire Harald McPike, swung to an inaugural annual profit of £32m for the year to March, from a loss of nearly £14m over the previous 12 months. - Guardian Airlines have been warned that they could face fines if they do not tackle "harmful practices" fuelling chaos at UK airports, including selling more tickets than they can supply and not warning passengers about the risk of cancellations. In an open letter, the aviation and competition watchdogs told carriers they could be penalised if they are shown to be contributing to the misery of passengers hit by this summer's widespread airport disruption. - Guardian

The embattled director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has vowed to fight on after an official review laid bare "disastrous" mistakes in a major bribery investigation, and the third man jailed in the case had his conviction quashed. Lisa Osofsky, who was appointed in 2018, admitted that the findings of former High Court judge Sir David Calvert-Smith made a "sobering read" but that she intends to stay put and implement his recommendations. - Telegraph

Indian conglomerate Tata Group has threatened to shut Port Talbot steel works unless it is given a £1.5bn government lifeline to help reduce carbon emissions. The company's Tata Steel UK business, which owns the plant in South Wales, has been in talks with the Government about decarbonisation plans over the past two years, but those have now stalled. As one of Britain's largest industrial groups, Tata Steel UK is a huge emitter of carbon dioxide. - Telegraph

EDF is seeking to amend the controversial subsidy contract for its £26 billion Hinkley Point C nuclear plant so that it will not be penalised even if the plant does not start to generate power by 2030. Hinkley was supposed to start up in 2025 but EDF has pushed this back to mid-2027, primarily blaming Covid disruption, and warned of the risk of a further 15-month delay. - The Times

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Monday newspaper round-up: Coal power plant, Deloitte, RBS scandal
(Sharecast News) - Britain's only remaining coal power plant at Ratcliffe-on-Soar in Nottinghamshire will generate electricity for the last time on Monday after powering the UK for 57 years. The power plant will come to the end of its life in line with the government's world-leading policy to phase out coal power which was first signalled almost a decade ago. - Guardian
Friday newspaper round-up: Gambling ads, road building schemes, public sector pensions
(Sharecast News) - Ministers have been urged to intervene to stop football clubs from setting their own rules on curbing gambling advertising, after research showed Premier League fans were bombarded with nearly 30,000 gambling messages on a single weekend. Clubs in the top flight have so far avoided compulsory restrictions on gambling sponsorship, instead addressing public concern through voluntary measures such as a ban on front-of-shirt logos, starting in 2026. - Guardian
Thursday newspaper round-up: JLR, electric cars, Royal Mail
(Sharecast News) - Rachel Reeves is pushing for the UK's tax and spending watchdog to upgrade its national growth forecasts to reflect the economic boost Labour says can be achieved from its blitz of planning reforms. In a development that could open up additional spending headroom for the chancellor before next month's budget, the Treasury has held talks with the Office for Budget Responsibility to try to persuade its officials that unblocking the planning system could drive up growth. - Guardian
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Visa, Caroline Ellison, Brookfield
(Sharecast News) - Business leaders have warned that the government's plans for a major global investment summit are in danger of falling flat, amid growing frustrations over high costs of involvement and its timing two weeks before the budget. As a central plank in Labour's proposals to drive up investment in Britain, the party pledged in the general election campaign to host the summit within the first 100 days of winning power to show that the UK would be "open for business" under a new government. - 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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