Friday newspaper round-up: Thames Water, CMA, UAE

(Sharecast News) - The UK government has reportedly approached multiple restructuring advisers for the role of special administrator for Thames Water if the troubled utility falls into bankruptcy. Teneo, Interpath and EY are among the companies contacted by the government as it prepares contingency plans should Britain's largest water company be forced into nationalisation, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the process. - Guardian The Barclays chief executive, CS Venkatakrishnan, could have his maximum pay package rise by 45% to more than £14m, as part of a deal being considered by the bank's board. The high street lender is understood to have written to the bank's largest shareholders regarding potential plans to overhaul its pay structures for Venkatakrishnan and its finance chief, Anna Cross. - Guardian

Britain's competition regulator is cutting almost 10pc of its staff after a wave of accidental overspending. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), whose chairman was unexpectedly ousted by the Government earlier this week, recently announced a scheme to cut around 100 roles. - Telegraph

The United Arab Emirates is at risk of total wipeout on a £600m loan it provided to the Barclay family as part of its doomed bid for control of The Telegraph. The Gulf petrostate's media arm, International Media Investments (IMI), helped the Barclay family pay off £1.2bn in overdue borrowing from Lloyds Banking Group with a new loan in 2023. - Telegraph

AstraZeneca has announced a £460 million investment in Canada as uncertainty over a large investment in the north of England continues. Britain's biggest public company said it would create 700 new scientific and "high-skilled" jobs as part of the move to a larger, "state-of-the-art office" in the greater Toronto area, Ontario. - The Times

Strong earnings growth over the past year has made purchasing a home for first-time buyers slightly more affordable, according to Nationwide. Britain's biggest building society said that the typical first-time buyer with a 20 per cent deposit would have to make mortgage payments equal to 36 per cent of their monthly take-home pay, down slightly compared with 2023. However, that ratio remains well above the long-run average of 30 per cent. - The Times