NatWest investors to scrutinise pay in last AGM before full privatisation

This week, NatWest will hold its last annual shareholder meeting before returning to full private ownership, with the government expected to sell its remaining stake in the bailed-out bank in the coming weeks.The bank, formerly known as Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), will host shareholders on Wednesday at its sprawling Gogarburn campus in Edinburgh, the £350m complex that became a symbol of the excesses that led to RBS’s £46bn bailout in 2008.Once known for cavernous offices featuring deep-pile carpets and expensive artwork under the disgraced former boss Fred Goodwin, Gogarburn is now a hub for executives proudly declaring a restrained approach to banking. Speaking to shareholders during a virtual event earlier this month, the chief executive, Paul Thwaite, said he was “not seeking to dramatically change the shape of our business or the amount of risk we are willing to take”.While the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, is pushing for more risk-taking across the City that could help kickstart growth, ministers will find some comfort in the fact that NatWest will be left in a much stronger position than it was 17 years ago

Can Trump fire Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell?

The US Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, is facing attacks from Donald Trump, who is now threatening to fire the head of the central bank.Such a move would be unprecedented. The president has historically respected the independence of the central bank, and kept out of its way – even if there was disagreement over Fed policy.But, of course, it looks like Trump is following his own playbook.“Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!” Trump said on social media last week

Scottish Water staff to strike for two days as pay standoff continues

Scottish Water staff will strike for two days from the early hours of Tuesday as a standoff over pay continues at the state-owned company.The striking workers’ union warned that emergency repairs and quality checks to water supplied to 5 million people across Scotland would not be carried out during the action on Tuesday and Wednesday.More than 1,000 workers in the Unison union will go on strike for the second time in a month in the pay dispute, after rejecting a deal that the union said was 2.6% and followed years of real-terms cuts to wages.The Unison Scottish Water branch secretary, Tricia McArthur, said: “Scottish Water workers are simply asking to be paid fairly for the essential services upon which everyone in Scotland relies

The Guardian view on City deregulation: a recipe for recklessness

In its desire to ensure the City of London remains attractive after Brexit, the Treasury seems to have forgotten one of the major lessons of the 2008 financial crisis: when regulation is lax, risks accumulate. This month, it launched a consultation about whether it was time to lighten the rules governing alternative asset managers, including private equity and hedge funds, in the belief that doing so will boost growth. There is little evidence to support this idea, and every reason to think it could exacerbate systemic risks.The proposal is consistent with Rachel Reeves’s belief that expanding the financial sector will deliver economic prosperity. The chancellor has suggested that post-crisis regulations went “too far”

Britain must steel itself for the future | Brief letters

At last, someone who articulates a clear plan for the steel we will need in future (Letters, 15 April). Prof Euan G Nisbet’s plan to keep Scunthorpe’s blast furnaces going for a few more years while Britain’s best brains devise a way to turn iron ore into hi-tech steels provides hope for the breakthroughs needed to guarantee long-term futures for Scunthorpe and Port Talbot, and to meet our net zero ambitions.Jenny RathboneLabour Senedd member for Cardiff Central The buccaneering story of how Scunthorpe’s furnaces were saved is enthralling (British Steel on a razor’s edge: inside Starmer’s Scunthorpe rescue mission, 18 April), but one aspect bothers me. If all the raw materials are imported (coke, iron ore) then what is the gain in supply security – the ostensible justification – over importing steel processed at source, which is surely more efficient?Dr Kimon RoussopoulosCambridge I find that singing the Canadian national anthem at full volume is very effective in stopping people playing music without headphones in public places, if polite requests fail (Letters, 13 April). I’m sure other anthems will suffice

Why the UK’s electricity costs are so high – and what can be done about it

One of Labour’s key election promises was to cut energy bills by £300 a year by 2030 while making Britain a “clean energy superpower”.The job is already halfway complete: renewable energy made up more than half the UK’s electricity for the first time last year. So why does Britain continue to have one of the most expensive electricity markets in the world? Industrial users complain those costs are driving companies out of business and discouraging investment in the UK.The reason behind Britain’s sky-high wholesale energy costs is simple, according to experts. It is down to Britain’s reliance on gas – the price of which was sent soaring by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – in power plants and home heating