Heathrow Sorry For T5 Baggage Fiasco

By Siobhan Robbins, Sky Reporter

Bosses at Heathrow have said they cannot confirm when passengers still waiting for bags, stranded after a computer glitch, will receive them.

The issues began at Terminal 5 last week and affected thousands of departing British Airways passengers.

Some had to fly without their luggage after the problems meant bags had to be manually processed, which takes a lot longer.

Speaking to Sky News on his first day as chief executive of Heathrow, John Holland-Kaye apologised to customers and said the issues had now been resolved.

However, he could not confirm when customers would receive their belongings, saying: "I can't give an exact time scale for that, we should have put all of the bags into the system here at Heathrow today that are remaining.

Pic: Navjot Gill

"It will then take a few days for British Airways to manage the process of getting them back into the hands of passengers.

"The best advice would be to contact British Airways to see how we can best do that.

"I would like apologise once again to any passengers who have been affected by this.

"We need to do better and as chief executive, starting today, it's my determination we should do".

Coleen Rooney was among those affected by the IT issues, which lasted from June 26 to 29.

The wife of England and Manchester United footballer Wayne took to Twitter to vent her frustration, writing: "Feel sick ... just received my 4 cases 2 days late from BA Heathrow to Las Vegas. Opened them all and they have been completely ransacked."

British Airways said it had been in touch with Mrs Rooney to apologise and confirmed it had launched an investigation.

In a statement regarding the delays, a spokesperson from the airline said: "We have been working round the clock to reunite customers with their bags since the airport's baggage system in Terminal 5 first started experiencing IT faults last Thursday morning."

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

Tinder Founder Accused Of Sexual Harassment

The founder of dating app Tinder has been suspended over claims a former marketing executive was sexually harassed.

Whitney Wolfe says she was subjected to inappropriate private messages from co-founder Justin Mateen, as well as a pattern of abusive behaviour at the US-based start-up company.

In her court claim, filed in Los Angeles, she alleges Mr Mateen stripped her of her co-founder title, saying having a "24-year-old girl" as a co-founder made the company "seem like a joke".

It is also alleged Mr Mateen called her a "whore" in front of chief executive Sean Rad.

Ms Wolfe says she was forced out of the "misogynist, alpha-male stereotype" of a tech company when she complained.

In a statement she said: "I had hoped this would be resolved confidentially, but after months of failed attempts, I have decided to pursue this suit."

Tinder's parent companies, IAC and Match.com, are also named as defendants.

IAC said in a statement: "Immediately upon receipt of the allegations contained in Ms Wolfe's complaint, Mr Mateen was suspended pending an ongoing internal investigation.

"Through that process, it has become clear that Mr Mateen sent private messages to Ms Wolfe containing inappropriate content.

"We unequivocally condemn these messages, but believe that Ms Wolfe's allegations with respect to Tinder and its management are unfounded."

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

BNP Paribas Fined $9bn For Sanctions Busting

French bank BNP Paribas has agreed to pay a fine of $8.83bn (£5.16bn) after pleading guilty to sanction-busting charges in a New York court.

According to prosecutors, the bank evaded sanctions imposed by the US by facilitating transactions involving Sudan, Cuba, and Iran between 2004 and 2012.

The fine is almost as much as the bank's full-year pre-tax income of $11.2bn (£6.6bn).

BNP - France's biggest bank - is also likely to receive a year-long suspension from making dollar payments on behalf of clients in some businesses; an untested and potentially severe penalty.

The New York State Department of Financial Service proposed the ban as one of the conditions for not revoking the bank's licence to operate in New York.

US authorities have been examining whether BNP Paribas evaded sanctions by stripping identifying information from wire transfers so they could pass through the financial system unnoticed.

The bank evaded sanctions banning transactions with Sudan, Cuba and Iran

"BNP Paribas went to elaborate lengths to conceal prohibited transactions, cover its tracks and deceive US authorities," Attorney General Eric Holder said.

"These actions represent a series breach of US law."

 Assistant District Attorney Ted Starishevsky: "This conduct, this conspiracy was known and condoned at the highest levels of BNP."

Lawyers for BNP briefly appeared in court and pleaded guilty to one count of falsifying business records and one count of conspiracy.

French President Francois Hollande appealed directly to US President Barack Obama to demand that any penalties were fair and proportionate, however Mr Obama said it was a matter for the courts.

The bank is expected to be given six months to pay up, to allow it to implement restructure plans which could include lowering its dividend and raising funds by selling billions of euros of bonds next week, according to reports.

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

Sainsbury's Energy Hit By Mis-Selling Scandal

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

British Gas is being forced to compensate thousands of customers for providing inaccurate savings estimates in the latest mis-selling episode to blight the utility sector.

Sky News has learnt that the UK's biggest energy provider, which is part of the FTSE-100 group Centrica, is paying out around £500,000 to approximately 4,300 people who signed up to Sainsbury's Energy tariffs between February 2011 and March 2013.

Insiders said on Tuesday that British Gas had overstated the potential savings for consumers by providing inaccurate quotes for the following year's gas and electricity bills.

Details of the compensation package are understood to have been agreed with Ofgem, the industry regulator, and are expected to be confirmed in a public statement in the coming days.

A source said that British Gas had notified Ofgem of the mistake itself, and that the watchdog was satisfied with the proposed remedy, which has seen customers' accounts credited with average repayments of around £130.

The news comes days after the gas and electricity sector was referred by Ofgem to the Competition and Markets Authority for a full investigation.

The inquiry, which came in the wake of intense pressure from Ed Davey, the energy and climate change secretary, and Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, is unlikely to be completed until towards the end of next year.

Mr Miliband has sought to depict rising household energy bills as a central theme of the "cost of living crisis" that is likely to form the defining narrative of Labour's General Election campaign.

Sainsbury's Energy has operated in partnership with British Gas for several years, and has been in trouble with regulators before.

In 2012, dozens of British Gas employees were suspended for reportedly trying to persuade Sainsbury's customers to sign up to more expensive energy tariffs through an aggressive sales push inside its stores.

The supermarket chain ceased selling energy policies through British Gas staff in its stores last year, but retains a relationship with the Centrica subsidiary.

The latest payout comes after a series of fines and compensation packages imposed upon the major utilities.

In April, British Gas was fined £5.6m for unfairly blocking business customers from switching to rivals.

Npower, EDF Energy and Scottish Power, which have German, French and Spanish owners respectively, have also been hit by stiff penalties for mis-selling or misleading customers.

British Gas is also expected to face a record fine from Ofgem for failing to meet targets set under a household insulation scheme called Cert, which was funded from levies on consumers' bills.

Sources said that that penalty, which may not be finalised for several months, could run to tens of millions of pounds.

EnergyUK, the industry lobbying group, has responded to the string of scandals by pledging to reduce the time it takes for customers to switch providers.

Ofgem said, however, that growing consumer mistrust of the Big Six gas and electricity providers was a factor in its decision to refer the industry for a full competition probe.

British Gas, Sainsbury's and Ofgem all declined to comment on Tuesday.

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

Russian Hackers 'Target Western Power Plants'

A group of Russian hackers known as Energetic Bear are systematically targeting hundreds of Western energy companies with malware that could disrupt power supplies, it has been claimed.

Private cybersecurity researchers say the primary motive behind the attacks appears to be industrial espionage, but the software also allows the hackers to seize control of control systems from afar.

This could allow the culprits to sabotage facilities or disrupt power supplies to homes and businesses.

The attacks have affected more than 1,000 organisations in more than 84 countries, according to researchers at CrowdStrike, and were first discovered in August 2012.

The California-based company has since observed unusually sophisticated attacks on healthcare bodies, defence contractors and government agencies.

Now computer security company Symantec has revealed that the hacking group - which it nicknames Dragonfly - has remote-control capability over some power systems.

A statement from Symantec said: "Among the targets of Dragonfly were energy grid operators, major electricity generation firms, petroleum pipeline operators, and energy industry industrial equipment providers.

"The majority of the victims were located in the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Turkey, and Poland."

It is understood the hackers covered their tracks by using advanced encryption techniques.

Finnish security firm F-Secure has said that in the past six months the group has become more sophisticated and aggressive.

The campaign is similar to alleged cyberwarfare attacks mounted by the US and Israel that used a virus called Stuxnet to damage the Iranian nuclear industry in July 2010.

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

Flexible Isas Offer £15,000 Tax-Free Saving

Some of the barriers to saving with Individual Saving Accounts (Isas) have been stripped away from today as they become more flexible and the annual allowance rises.

Savers will be able to stash up to £15,000 each year - money they can hold in stocks and shares, cash or any combination of the two.

The New Isas - or 'Nisas' as they are being called - were demanded by campaigners who had long complained about only being previously allowed to save up to half of their annual Isa allowance in cash and the remainder in stocks and shares.

The new flexibility rules apply to all existing Isas as well as new accounts opened from today.

At the same time the annual subscription limits for Child Trust Funds (CTFs) and Junior Isas are increasing to £4,000 to enable families to save more for their children in a tax-advantaged way.

The Chancellor George Osborne, who announced the changes in his Budget statement, said today: "We want to support savers at all stages of their life and make sure they have greater flexibility and choice over how they access their savings.

"That's why as part of our long-term economic plan we announced a radical package of measures at Budget - reducing taxes for the lowest income savers, reforming Isas and giving people flexibility over their pensions.

"Today's introduction of the New Isas is a big boost for millions of people, giving them greater economic security by putting aside money in savings."

Over 23 million adults - roughly half of the UK adult population - currently have an Isa.

But despite the greater freedom for savers, comparison websites have warned that the typical potential returns on offer for Nisas have deteriorated since the Budget - with cash elements particularly weak.

Rachel Springall, spokeswoman for Moneyfacts.co.uk, said that since March, the average rate on offer on a one-year fixed-rate Isa had fallen from 1.58% to 1.48%.

She said: "The falls in rates will likely cause much disappointment for savers who did not see a fruitful Isa season this year and have pinned hopes on the new limits to provide new deals so they can boost their income.

"Challenger banks appear to be leading the way with decent Isa deals lately."

Kevin Mountford, head of banking at MoneySupermarket.com, added: "The current rates on offer are stagnant and uncompetitive."

He said savers would need to be prepared to shop around to get the best deals.

Figures released by the British Bankers' Association (BBA) last week showed a plunge in people ploughing their savings into Isas compared with a year ago.

The BBA's report said: "There has been a lower take-up of Isas this year, with £5.3bn being deposited with high street banks during March to May, compared with £9bn in the same months of 2013."

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

Data Roaming Charges Cut By More Than Half

By Tom Cheshire, Technology Correspondent

The cost of accessing the internet on your phone abroad in EU countries falls by more than half today, with a new cap on data roaming charges.

The tariff, introduced by the European Commission, limits the price of one megabyte of data to 20 cents (16p) – a 55% decrease from this time last year.

Mobile providers must also offer travellers reduced text messages at 5p, incoming calls at 4p per minute and outgoing calls at 15p  per minute.

However, British travellers will still pay considerably more abroad than at home.

In the UK, data costs around £10 per gigabyte. Under the new cap, a gigabyte downloaded abroad would cost £42.

The price cut comes before a major telecoms reform, due to take effect from December 15 next year.

Under the reforms, data roaming will be scrapped altogether in the EU and accessing internet data on a smartphone will cost as much abroad in the EU as in the UK.

The changes have been agreed by the commission and now must be ratified by EU member states.

Neeli Kroes, vice-president of the European Commission, said: "This huge drop in data roaming prices will make a big difference to all of us this summer.

"But it is not enough. Why should we have roaming charges at all in a single market? By the end of this year I hope we see the complete end of roaming charges agreed."

Some operators have warned that scrapping roaming could cost the telecoms industry £5.6bn before 2020.

But other mobile operators including Three have pressed ahead, offering free roaming in many EU countries, well in advance of the new rules.

The new rates apply only to EU member states – countries like Switzerland and Turkey are not affected, nor are countries outside Europe.

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pound Strengthens As Rate Speculation Rises

The pound reached a new six-year high against the dollar on Tuesday as new economic figures boosted expectations of a rise in interest rates.

Sterling rose in the moments after a closely-watched survey of manufacturers was released confirming better than expected output and new order growth.

The CIPS/Markit Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) study said strong domestic demand boosted new business sales, while export orders also edged higher despite the recent strength of the pound which has made British-manufactured goods more expensive overseas.

Manufacturing employment rose for the fourteenth successive month in June, the survey found, with rising job numbers seen across all sectors and led by small and medium-sized businesses.

The Chancellor is under pressure to help boost manufacturing output

It was, CIPS said, the second-highest reading for the study as a whole in 40 months.

Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit, said the performance added to hopes that the UK's economic recovery was becoming more balanced and broad-based.

"UK manufacturing continued to flourish in June, rounding off one of the best quarters for the sector over the past two decades.

"As a broader expansion is also a more sustainable expansion, the ongoing surging growth of output and new orders ... is exactly what is required."

The numbers are likely to reassure policymakers who have wanted to see a more broad-based recovery based on greater exports, manufacturing and business investment.

The update meant sterling climbed to a new six-year high of more than $1.71 as the economic recovery makes it increasingly likely that the Bank of England will take the lead on raising interest rates later this year.

While a move to raise bank rate would increase borrowing costs, a strengthening pound provides holiday-makers to the US with an immediate boost as they will get more dollars for their pound.

Tourist rates are hovering around $1.68.6 to the pound

Sterling also rose in value - by more than a third of a cent - against the euro on Tuesday to €1.25 but the single European currency remains fairly strong despite lacklustre growth in the euro area.

The upbeat assessment of UK manufacturing was not shared by unions who pledged to fight an announcement by Tata Steel that it planned to shed 400 jobs at its Port Talbot plant in South Wales.

The company said it had to reduce costs to compete better in the strip products business in Britain.

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

La Senza Slips Into Administration Again

The UK stores of lingerie chain La Senza have been placed in administration for the second time in as many years, leaving 750 jobs at risk.

The business, which was bought by the UK arm of Kuwait-based Alshaya and renamed Marnixheath following its collapse in 2012, is still trading and will continue to pay staff while the administrator seeks a buyer for the 55 stores.

PricewaterhouseCoopers said Marnixheath also operates three Pinkberry frozen yoghurt outlets in the South East.

However, visitors to La Senza's UK website were unable to buy goods when news of the collapse broke.

A message posted on its home page read: "Oops! You caught us with our panties down. We're performing some essential website maintenance. Please check back soon".

Robert Moran, who has been appointed joint administrator of Marnixheath, said: "Like many other retailers, La Senza has been hit hard by the difficult economic environment and a slowdown in consumer spending.

"There are no immediate plans to close any stores and the administrators shall continue to assess the trading strategy over the coming days and weeks."

The company made the name of former Dragons' Den star Theo Paphitis, who sold his stake in 2006.

The business remained profitable until 2010 but when La Senza went into administration in 2012, amid diving consumer spending, there were 1,300 redundancies and more than 100 outlets closed.

At the time Mr Paphitis ruled out making a rescue bid.

The North American operations of La Senza and others worldwide are unaffected by the latest collapse of the UK stores business.

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ex-Barclays Director To Chair Investor Body

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

A former member of Barclays' boardroom pay committee is to chair a new body that will try to counter accusations that the City is obsessed by short-term gains rather than the long-term health of the UK economy.

Sky News has learnt that Simon Fraser, who recently stepped down as a non-executive director of the bank, which has endured a fractious recent relationship with shareholders, is to chair a new panel for major investors.

The new body, which is expected to be endorsed by Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, this week, is being established in the wake of a review completed last year by Professor John Kay, the economist.

The Investor Forum, as it has been informally named, will for the first time include representation from both UK and overseas investors such as major sovereign wealth funds and pension funds.

It will aim to provide a platform for investors to address governance and other obstacles to long-term wealth creation amid concerns, for example, that too many British-based companies have fallen into foreign ownership with little regard for the consequences for the UK economy.

It will also aim to wrest back the debate over the stewardship of British companies from corporate governance specialists, who frequently dominate decision-making processes at fund managers at the expense of those responsible for the actual shareholdings.

Sources said that Mr Fraser would be named as the Forum's inaugural chairman in an announcement to be made on Wednesday.

Andy Griffiths, a former executive at Capital International, the asset management group, will be appointed as the Forum's executive director, sources said on Tuesday.

Mr Fraser stepped down from the Barclays board at its annual meeting in April after completing five years on the board.

He is a well-known figure in the City, having spent more than 25 years at Fidelity, the fund management giant, including a stint as its global chief investment officer.

His role in helping to set pay levels at Barclays may raise some eyebrows, however, given the bruising series of revolts against bonuses suffered by the bank in recent years.

Sources said the appointments underlined the intention of estbalishing the new organisation as the most important new voice for investors in the UK economy for decades.

"For the first time there will be a body that draws in UK and overseas investors in UK companies: a body that will be able to speak with a single voice on areas of significant concern," said one leading fund manager.

"Leadership is provided by genuine investors with an interest in stewardship and cannot be dismissed as being dominated by 'governance' specialists who may not speak for real money."

City figures involved in the selection of Mr Fraser and Mr Griffiths declined to comment ahead of Wednesday's announcement, but pointed to a statement in March, which outlined the objectives of the Investor Forum, saying that its purpose would be to "invest in and support companies with credible strategies for sustainable competitive advantage leading to long-term wealth creation".

The debate about City short-termism reared its head recently with the £69bn bid for AstraZeneca, the UK drugs company, by Pfizer of the US.

The offer was rebuffed, although many investors expect a revised offer later in the year, with possible implications for British research and development jobs.

The Investor Forum's launch comes amid a broader shake-up of City stewardship.

The influential investment affairs division of the Association of British Insurers is being merged with the Investment Management Association to create a new body, The Investment Association.

00.25 | 0 komentar | Read More