Wessex Water must pay £11m over wastewater failures, says regulator

Wessex Water has been ordered to pay £11m over wastewater failures and told to spend it on improvements to reduce sewage spills and other measures.Ofwat, the industry regulator for England and Wales, said that Wessex Water and its shareholders would fund a total enforcement package of £11m, none of which will be paid for by customers through bills.The watchdog found that Wessex Water failed to operate, maintain and upgrade its wastewater network adequately to ensure that it could cope with the flows of sewage and wastewater.The company, which this year increased its bills by an average of 20%, or £113, serves households across Bristol, Dorset and Somerset, as well as most of Wiltshire and parts of Gloucestershire and Hampshire.The measures Wessex Water has been ordered to take include helping private landowners to seal their sewer pipes, reducing spills at specific storm overflows by bringing forward investment, installing additional monitoring equipment and helping customers to sustainably manage rainwater at their properties

Troubled drinks giant Diageo names former Tesco boss to lead turnaround push

The executive credited with steering Tesco out of the worst financial crisis in its history has been handed the top job at the struggling Guinness maker Diageo.On 1 January, Sir Dave Lewis will become chief executive of the FTSE 100 drinks company, whose shares have fallen by a third this year.Lewis ran Tesco from 2014 to 2020 and previously spent nearly three decades at the Marmite maker Unilever. He revived Britain’s biggest supermarket chain after revealing an accounting scandal, which threatened the future of the business.His appointment marks a significant coup for the drinks maker, which owns more than 200 brands including Johnnie Walker whisky, Smirnoff vodka, Baileys Irish Cream and Don Julio tequila

Last Christmas, you gave us first class: Royal Mail turns Scrooge with gift to staff of second-class stamps

Royal Mail says that it has “delivered Christmas” for more than 500 years, but this year many workers have been left feeling less than festive after the company downgraded a small gift to workers to second class.The postal service, which traces its history back to the appointment of a “master of the posts” by Henry VIII in 1516, has given workers a collection of 50 Christmas stamps to recognise their work over the busiest time of year. In previous years, including in 2024, workers have received a book of 50 or 100 first-class stamps, but that has quietly been switched to second class this year.The downgraded perk has caused bemusement among Royal Mail’s workers. It is the first Christmas since Royal Mail’s parent company, International Distribution Services (IDS), was bought by Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský

UK banks still committed to climate goals, Bank of England executive insists

A Bank of England executive has insisted that UK banks are still showing a “vibrant” commitment to climate goals despite the recent demise of a global net zero target-setting group.David Bailey, the executive director of prudential policy at the Bank’s regulatory arm, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), played down concerns surrounding the fact that significant lenders including HSBC and Barclays had followed their US peers in dropping membership of the UN-backed Net Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA). Those exits led to the closure of the once-lauded NZBA last month.“We’ve been focused on our responsibilities on the financial risks arising from climate change, and firms remain very actively engaged with us on that,” Bailey told the Guardian. Their engagement, he said “remains as vibrant … as it has over the past couple of years”

The bond market is wrong. Reeves should not cut welfare to placate the City | Richard Partington

There are less than three weeks to go. In the lengthy wait for Rachel Reeves’s autumn budget, the chancellor will on Monday get the first verdict on her tax and spending plans from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).After the interminable weeks of speculation, kite flying and bad headlines, this moment matters. Has the widely anticipated fiscal gap of up to £30bn been filled? At what cost for growth, inflation, and living standards?Heading into this moment the chancellor can take some heart. Gilt markets have rallied in recent weeks, bringing down the cost of government borrowing

China poised to lift ban on chips exports to European carmakers after US deal

The vital flow of chips from China to the car industry in Europe looks poised to resume as part of the deal struck last week between Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.The Netherlands has signalled that its standoff with Beijing is close to a resolution amid signs China’s ban on exports of the key car industry components is easing.The dispute began when the Dutch government took control of the chipmaker Nexperia at the end of September after the US raised security concerns about the company’s Chinese owner, Wingtech. Beijing retaliated by halting all exports from Nexperia’s factories in the country, threatening to disrupt car production in Europe and Japan.The White House had put Wingtech on a list of companies that would have their exports to the US controlled under its “affiliate rule”