Monday newspaper round-up: Overseas investment, Tesco, Vectura

(Sharecast News) - The government is to launch a £1.4bn fund to attract more overseas investment into the UK economy, particularly in sectors such as life sciences and electric vehicle production. In his budget announcement on Wednesday, the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, will also announce plans to lure highly skilled foreign workers and amend regulations to make it easier for international companies to relocate to the UK. - Guardian The majority of UK employers are planning to hire staff over the next 12 months, the highest recruitment intentions in eight years, as Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic have caused acute shortages of workers in sectors ranging from haulage to hospitality and social care. 80% of businesses and other organisations are planning to take on more staff over the next 12 months, according to a survey by the recruitment firm Hays. Recruitment intentions are particularly high in Scotland and Wales where 88% plan to hire over the next 12 months, followed by 87% in the East of England and 85% in London. - Guardian

Tesco has been targeted by hackers, crashing its website and app and causing frustration for thousands of customers. The hack, one of the worst cyber attacks to date on a British supermarket, poses a "serious problem" for Tesco's reputation and is estimated to be costing £20m a day in lost revenue. - Telegraph

Rail operators are scrapping printed timetables as part of a multi million-pound cost cutting exercise, sparking claims that passengers' personal safety is being put at risk. Pocket and poster timetables are in the process of being withdrawn and replaced with QR codes, sparking fears that elderly people without smartphones could be forced off the railways or left stranded at stations. - Telegraph

Concerns have increased that Philip Morris International will use its £1 billion takeover of Vectura to legitimise the tobacco industry's participation in public health after its chief executive was accused of lobbying the government over the deal. Jacek Olczak wrote to Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary, on the day Philip Morris unveiled its surprise 165p-a-share cash offer for the respiratory drugs company in July, seeking a meeting to "talk more about our plans for PMI and Vectura's operation in the UK". - The Times

The Treasury may unveil a boost for the City this week by signalling that regulators must put competition on the same footing as safety and soundness when making key decisions. The move is expected in the budget alongside a cut in the surcharge tax on banks' profits aimed at bringing the sector more into line with other industries and after a rapprochement between the government and financial services firms. - The Times