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30th July Independent PRIVATE EQUITY
INQUIRY FAILS TO BITE
The Treasury Select Committee conducting an inquiry
into the private equity industry will ask HM Revenue
and Customs to give oral evidence explaining why buyout
barons enjoy favourable tax treatment, and whether it
should do more to police the industry. That is one of
the results of what the Independent calls "a largely
toothless 57-page report" to be released today
by the committee, led by Labour MP John McFall. The
interim report comes after contentious public hearings
and a fierce campaign waged by unions and some politicians,
calling for a regulatory and tax clampdown on the private
equity industry. It has grown from relative anonymity
to become a major force in the corporate landscape that
controls some of the country's most-well known brands,
like Alliance Boots. The committee said, however, that
it would not make final recommendations until it collected
more evidence at hearings in October. One of the most
controversial aspects of the industry - tax - will again
be a primary focus. Private equity professionals, who
raise large pools of money to buy, restructure and then
sell companies, make most of their money through "carry",
or the share of the profits generated when portfolio
companies are sold. Carry is treated as capital gain
and is taxed at 10 per cent, rather than the typical
40-per-cent income tax rate. This is due to regulations
first passed in 1987 to foment entrepreneurism by rewarding
individuals who risk capital to start a new business.
http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2816716.ece
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30th July
Financial Times THE NET'S NEW CATCH-ALL FOR CORRUPTION
Trace hopes that the rollcall of corporate embarrassments
will shorten thanks to its latest initiative. Bribeline
is an internet hotline aimed at building perhaps the most
complete picture of international bribery and how companies
can prevent it. Since its launch this month, the service
has received more than 1,000 reports relating to bribes
in almost 100 countries. The sums involved range from
less than $20 (£9.85) to more than $500,000 (£246,000).
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/93d4753e-3eb8-11dc-bfcf-0000779fd2ac.html
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30TH July
Business Week BOYS BEHAVING BADLY
Business Week highlights misjudgements by a range of CEOs
that have forced actions by boards of directors. These
actions underscore the rising attention being given by
boards to an expanding spectrum of ethical issues, especially
those likely to damage the corporation's reputation. http://images.businessweek.com/ss/07/07/0720_boys/index.htm?chan=search |
30th July
Business Week CHINA TO BAR 30 FIRMS FROM BANK LOANS
China's State Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) has
announced that it has identified the first 30 companies
that will be prevented from receiving bank loans because
of their environmental record. According to SEPA's announcement
the "blacklist of 30 companies that had violated
environmental rules" has already been submitted to
the relevant financial institutions. The companies include
food processors, producers of paper and alcoholic beverages
and steel makers. This is the first clear signal by SEPA
and the Peoples Central Bank of China (PBOC) that their
proposed environmental rating system or "green credit
policy" has been implemented. The green credit policy
will seek to disqualify companies who fail to pass environmental
tests from obtaining loans from any bank or financial
institution.http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8QMO8T80.htm
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31st July Guardian FOOD MANUFACTURERS TARGET CHILDREN
ON INTERNET AFTER REGULATOR'S TV ADVERTISING CLAMPDOWN
Leading food manufacturers have started to market to
children on social networking sites and internet chat
rooms. McDonald's, Starburst, Haribo and Skittles are
using the internet to target children now that new rules
from the media regulator Ofcom have made it difficult
to advertise during children's television. Such practices
have raised concerns among MPs, who said yesterday that
the government's clampdown on advertising to children
had failed because now the brands were diverting marketing
budgets online.
http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/food/story/0,,2138178,00.html
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31st July
Guardian HSBC LOANED CASH TO COMPANY ACCUSED OF SLAVE-LIKE
CONDITIONS
HSBC has come under fire in Brazil for allegedly loaning
money to a local ethanol producer accused of making employees
work for 13 hours a day in appalling conditions. 1,108
workers were freed by a Brazilian government anti-slavery
taskforce last month and it was shortly after this raid
that it emerged that the company had received loans from
several banks. The size of the loan was not revealed but
according to reports it was taken out in 2005 and runs
until 2010. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2138310,00.html |
31st July
International Herald Tribune CARREFOUR TRIES TO SELL ITS
FOOD AS SAFER IN CHINA
The Chinese government's warnings on diseased pork and
cooking oil made from restaurant waste has provided an
opportunity for Paris-based Carrefour to promote itself
as a safer place to buy food in China. The company has
also added in-store laboratories to test for pesticides,
and it holds food-safety weeks where outside experts help
educate shoppers. http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/07/31/business/carrefour.php |
1st August
Financial Times UN AND THE GOVERNMENT TO TACKLE POVERTY
The new PM, Gordon Brown, yesterday unveiled a 'moral'
alliance of leaders of governments and multinationals
to tackle global poverty. The heads of more than 20 companies
also signed a statement calling for 'urgent action' to
help the developing world. They included Riley Bechtel
of Bechtel Corporation, Lee Scott of Wal-Mart, Bill Gates
of Microsoft, Eric Schmidt of Google, Jeff Immelt of GE,
Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo and Arun Sarin of Vodafone. However,
some campaigners have questioned what the new partnership
will actually mean. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/53d72b8c-3fc8-11dc-b034-0000779fd2ac.html |
1st August
Financial Times MEDIA SHOULD BE ENLISTED TO KEEP BUY-OUT
FIRMS HONEST
An interview with Sir David Walker, former chairman of
Morgan Stanley International, and now a senior advisor
to the firm, in which he tells the Financial Times that
a code of conduct for the private equity industry will
provide more access to information about the sector. He
also believes that the 'media will do a very good job
of identifying X who is not conforming to the standards'.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/15ee0cfa-3fc8-11dc-b034-0000779fd2ac.html |
1st August
LA Times NEW BOSS UNPOPULAR IN JOURNAL NEWSROOM
As media mogul, Rupert Murdoch, gains control of Dow Jones
& Co, the LA Times reports that there are fears among
reporters at the Wall Street Journal that the takeover
will compromise the financial newspaper's reputation.
The Wall Street Journal is owned by Dow Jones & Co.
The reporters are worried that Murdoch will diminish the
newspaper's quality and imbue it with some of the glitzy
style of the New York Post, which he owns, and that he
will also slant the WSJ's news coverage to advance his
own business interests.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-journal1aug01,0,7889658.story?coll=la-home-center |
1st August
Times HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP VOICES ANGRY OPPOSITION TO THAKSIN
TAKEOVER
Human Rights Watch, the human rights campaign group, has
accused the Premier League of showing a 'shocking lack
of interest' in ethical standards for sanctioning the
former prime minister of Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra's,
controversial takeover of Manchester City football club.
HRW has branded Thaksin a 'human rights abuser of the
worst kind' and outlined its concerns in a letter to the
Premier League. The group's views were echoed by Amnesty
International. The Premier League as well as Manchester
City and Thaksin's lawyer have defended the takeover decision
by stating that the allegations of 'widespread, serious
and systematic' human rights abuses were unfounded.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premiership/manchester_city/article2176103.ece |
2nd August
BBC TOYS RECALLED OVER SAFETY FEARS
Fisher Price, the toymaker, is to recall almost one million
toys made in China over fears that their paint contains
too much lead. An internal investigation found that the
Chinese manufacturer had used a non-approved paint pigment,
violating safety standards. The recall affects toys that
have been on sale in the UK and the US since May this
year. Mattel, which owns Fisher Price, said that the recall
affected 967,000 toys, including popular characters such
as Sesame Street's Big Bird and Elmo, and Nickelodeon's
Dora the Explorer. Mattel said that it was removing products
from shops and would intercept incoming shipments. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/6927156.stm |
2nd August
Climate Change Corp CADBURY SCHWEPPES: A REAL CARBON REDUCTION
PLAN
The drinks and snacks company sets the emissions bar high,
as the first UK food manufacturer promising absolute carbon
reduction targets. Cadbury Schweppes, aims to reduce its
direct carbon emissions, those created by its own factories
and distribution fleet, via a combination of energy saving
and switching to renewable energy sources. It has left
a get out clause in the promise, however, allowing offsetting
emissions as a "last resort" if reduction targets
are not met. Aside from emissions reduction, Cadbury Schweppes
is also targeting its use of packaging and water. Sweet
wrappers are difficult to recycle, whilst Easter eggs
are notoriously over packaged, and the water used in Schweppes'
drinks operations is in increasingly short supply. The
company is trialling a new form of biodegradable wrapper
called Plantic in Australia, with the eventual aim of
using biodegradable wrapping on 60% of its products. http://www.climatechangecorp.com/content.asp?contentid=4884
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2nd August
Guardian BA FINED £270M AND AIRLINES NOW FACE £300M
LAWSUIT
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic face a £300m
lawsuit brought by millions of passengers, after their
roles in a price-fixing cartel were exposed yesterday.
The class action lawsuit will be fought in the US and
the UK and could mean that the airlines are expected to
pay back customers. BA was yesterday fined £270m
by the Office of Fair Trading and the US Department of
Justice for fixing the price of fuel surcharges for long-haul
passenger flights and its cargo business. http://www.guardian.co.uk/ba/story/0,,2139783,00.html |
2nd August
Guardian ANOTHER BLOW TO IMAGE OF 'WORLD'S FAVOURITE AIRLINE'
BA was facing a battle to restore its reputation among
passengers yesterday after the price-fixing affair cast
a shadow over its good name. The business, which once
advertised itself as the 'world's favourite airline' is
facing the threat of being labelled an enemy of consumers,
according to analysts. This follows a difficult year for
the airline - first it saw an alleged plot to blow up
planes flying out of Heathrow in August last year, which
caused severe disruption, then there were cancellations
in December due to blanket fog, and there has also been
ongoing friction between BA staff and executives, which
provoked a spat between union leaders and the airline's
management.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/airlines/story/0,,2139722,00.html
HOW ARCH RIVALS COLLUDED TO HIKE UP COST OF AIR TRAVEL
http://www.guardian.co.uk/airlines/story/0,,2139759,00.html
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2nd August
Financial Times ETHICAL FUTURE OF CHOCOLATE IS DIVINE
Divine Chocolate, a small company that brands itself 'heavenly
chocolate with a heart' believes that it has found a competitive
edge, which it hopes will put it in line with chocolate
giants such as Cadbury, Mars and Nestle: Divine gives
the growers of its cocoa beans a stake in its business
and connects them with customers. Sophi Tranchell, Divine's
managing director, claims that the company's business
model - some 45% is owned by the people who grow the cocoa
beans that make its chocolate - represents the 'next stage'in
the history of the UK chocolate industry. She said: 'We
would like to be the Cadbury's of the future but we'd
like to shift the way that business is done.'
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/20978fd0-4065-11dc-9d0c-0000779fd2ac.htm |
l3rd August
Guardian JUDGES SHOULD ENFORCE CLIMATE BILL TARGETS, SAY
MPS
Judges should have the power to compel the prime minister
to set out the remedial measures his government will take
if it fails to hit targets to reduce carbon emissions,
a cross-party committee of MPs and peers has recommended.
A bill is due to be introduced in the next session of
parliament, which will place a legal duty on the environment
secretary to reduce carbon emissions by 60% by 2050. The
bill sets out a series of milestones, including five yearly
'carbon budgets' setting out the projected carbon emissions.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/03/1 |
3rd August
Independent TESCO ATTACKED IN US FOR 'TAKING THE WAL-MART
WAY'
Retailer, Tesco, is facing the threat of a Wal-Mart style
backlash from environmentalists and union campaigners
in the US - even before it has opened a single store.
The company plans to open its first stores in the US in
November and already has 100 sites lined up for development.
However, a left-wing think-tank yesterday launched a pre-emptive
strike against Tesco for what it says will be a business
that exploits US workers, damages the environment and
destabilises local businesses and brings no benefit to
the local community. The Urban & Environment Policy
Unit in Los Angeles warned that Tesco's record on corporate
and social responsibility was not as rosy as its marketing
initiatives suggest and the activists challenged the company
to live up to its rhetoric. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2831145.ece |
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3rd August Guardian SUSTAINABLE FISH FINGERS FROM POLLOCK,
NOT COD
Birds Eye is to launch its first sustainable fish finger
product. The manufacturer aims to reduce its dependence
on cod by introducing a line of fish fingers made from
Alaskan pollock fillets. The fish will be sourced from
Marine Stewardship Council-certified fisheries, which
have passed stringent sustainability criteria. The company
controls nearly 80% of the UK's fish market and has
estimated that the use of pollock instead of cod will
reduce its yearly cod-catch by around two million fish.
It also estimates that 18% of its fish finger range
will be sustainable from September. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/03/conservation.food
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3rd August
Independent HARVEY NICHOLS TO BAN FOIE GRAS BEFORE PROTESTS
Harvey Nichols, the department store chain is halting
the sale of foie gras in advance of a planned national
protest from an animal rights group. The chain said that
for "commercial" reasons it would no longer
stock French foie gras after existing supplies ran out
in coming weeks. Animal rights groups welcomed the move,
which brings the company in line with others who avoid
stocking foie gras, because of the way it is produced.
The group Viva! had been planning to launch nationwide
action against Harvey Nichols during the peak Christmas
shopping season and had recently informed the store of
its intentions. http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article2831099.ece
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3rd August
Financial Times CHINA'S HANDOUTS TO JOURNALISTS SKEW MEDIA
COVERAGE
Payments to Chinese reporters to attend events - called
'transport money' by public relations firms - are a feature
of Chinese media events but one that critics says skews
coverage in an increasingly competitive news market. Ying
Chan, director of the Journalism and Media Studies Centre
at the University of Hong Kong, says: 'It is an embarrassment
for Chinese journalism and it is corruption.' The handouts
are so routine that they have become a source of income
for many Chinese reporters. The issue has been raised
after journalists were paid to attend an event hosted
by HSBC and the China Charity Foundation. However, HSBC
says that it was not involved in organising the event
and therefore maintains that its policy of never paying
journalists was upheld. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/20d886a2-415a-11dc-8f37-0000779fd2ac.html
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3rd August
Financial Times CHINA TRIES TO DEFEND GOODS AFTER RENEWED
SAFETY ALERT
China defended the quality of its exports yesterday and
said that it would work with the US to improve product
safety in the wake of another substantial withdrawal of
consumer goods made in China. This comes after reports
that toymaker, Mattel, is recalling over a million toys
worldwide because excess lead was found in the paint used
on the products.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/5714bb32-415a-11dc-8f37-0000779fd2ac.html |
3rd August
Independent CHEAP FASHION: THE TREND MAY BE OVER
The Independent's, Kate Attwood, writes that even though
the price of clothes has fallen dramatically over the
last 10 years, the products cannot carry on getting cheaper.
The article considers the growth of disposable fashion
as well as increasing consumer concern over the sourcing
of products.
http://news.independent.co.uk/business/analysis_and_features/article2831093.ece |
5th August Financial Times BOOM TIME
FOR SUSPICIOUS TRADES
According to the Financial Times' analysis suspicious
trading has increased significantly related to an increase
in mergers and acquisitions in the past five years.
The analysis reveal that casinos, hotels and banking
are most susceptible to suspicious trading activity
just before large M&A announcements, and suspicious
trading occurred ahead of 49 per cent of all North American
deals since 2003. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/61ee452c-437c-11dc-a065-0000779fd2ac.html
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6th
August Guardian PLAN TO LINK BSKYB SPLITS FRIENDS OF THE
EARTH
In seeking to become BSkyB's new favoured charity partner
Friends of the Earth (FoE) directors have sparked a 'bitter
internal row'. The three-year deal could be worth in excess
of £1.7m and would give the charity access to just
under 9 million homes in order to promote awareness of
climate change and global warming.
FoE's campaigns co-ordinator Roger Higman regards it as
a 'duty'to explore such a level of influence. BSkyB is
self branded as a carbon neutral company and has had success
in cutting its emissions by 20%. However, critics of the
deal point to the company's reliance on carbon offsetting
and the energy wasting standby mode on all its set-top
boxes as evidence of its lack of real commitment to combating
climate change. A petition including a signature of outgoing
director Julian Rosser as well as 77 other FoE staff has
called for the bid to be withdrawn. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/06/conservation.broadcasting |
6th August
Independent MINING GIANT FACES PROTEST FROM INDIAN TRIBE
A three-year campaign against the construction of a £400m
bauxite mine in India by UK-based mining company Vadanta
Resources is set to culminate this Thursday in what could
be a 'landmark ruling' by the Indian Supreme Court concerning
the mine's legality. Construction of the mine began in
2004 and in parallel so commenced the campaign to halt
the project, led by environmentalists and members of the
Indian tribe Dongria Kondh. The mine is located on the
Niyamgiri Mountain which is the Dongria Kondh's homeland
and a geographical feature they worship as a 'living god'.
Campaigners have described the mine as 'an ecological
disaster waiting to happen' and the Wildlife Institute
of India maintains that the impact on the environment
would be 'irreversible'. The FTSE-100 company denies all
accusations of non-compliance with environmental regulations
as well as accusations that the rehabilitation of the
tribal families would be unsuitable. http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia/article2838655.ece |
6th August
Financial Times FOOT-AND-MOUTH: INQUIRY FOCUSES ON VACCINES
PRODUCER
One of the biggest companies in the animal health industry
is under investigation in relation to this weekend's foot-and-mouth
outbreak. Merial, a US-French venture jointly owned by
pharmaceuticals companies Merck and Sanofi-Aventis, produces
foot-and-mouth vaccines at a facility in Pirbright - just
a few miles from where the virus was found. The company
states that it is fully co-operating with inspections
but is defending its hygiene practices and maintains that
it has 'no idea' how the virus could have spread from
its Pirbright site. Although it is too early to tell if
the facility is indeed the source of contamination, all
vaccine production on site was stopped on Friday. The
government backed Institute for Animal Health (IAH) is
also being investigated as it also has laboratories on
this site. The IAH dismisses claims from a report in 2002
that its facilities were in a 'poor state of repair'.
More details on the source of the outbreak are expected
from the Health and Safety Executive within two days.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/042f09fc-438c-11dc-a065-0000779fd2ac.html |
6th August
HR Review RECRUITERS OVERLOOK WOMEN IN LIGHT OF MATERNITY
LAWS
Some employers may be deliberately not employing women
as a result of the new maternity legislation, which provides
additional benefits for new mothers.
A new study, commissioned by Citrix Online, has revealed
that 53 per cent of employers think that managers are
now thinking twice about recruiting women as a result
of the new legislation. The government insists that the
recent family-friendly initiatives have helped to improve
employee retention rates, with fewer women changing their
jobs after having children. However, 30 per cent of respondents
to the latest survey said that it would be harder to retain
talented women and 26 per cent said that the legislation
would have a negative impact on business. http://www.hrreview.co.uk/articles/recruitment_and_training/recruiters_overlook_women_in_light_of_maternity_laws_253.html
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7th August
Financial Times AMEX FINED FOR MONEY LAUNDERING LAPSE
American Express Bank International is being fined $65
million after the US Department of Justice charged the
company for failing to institute proper anti-money laundering
programs, reported The Financial Times on August 7, 2007.
According to the justice department, investigators identified
AEBI accounts that they believed were used to launder
more than $55m in drug proceeds for the "black market
peso exchange", a money laundering system through
which South American "money brokers" facilitate
the exchange of US dollars for South American currency.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/f8f51e4c-4475-11dc-90ca-0000779fd2ac.html |
7th August
Financial Times SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT 'BETTER
FOR LONG TERM GOOD'
The London Pensions Fund Authority (LPFA) is beginning
to internalise the responsible investment agenda due in
large part to the efforts of its chief executive Mike
Taylor. Taking assurance from a report published in 2005
by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer for the UN Environment
Programme that states in some cases is it permissible
to include ESG issues in investment decision-making, LPFA
has signed up to the United Nations' Principals of Responsible
Investment. The LPFA has also engaged environmental research
organisation Trucost to conduct a carbon assessment of
its equity portfolios. Taking a long term view the LPFA
has stated that 'while out top priority is still to ensure
we have enough money to pay pensions, we can take the
view that it is possible to take ESG issues into account'without
worrying about short term losses. Despite a 'mixed reaction'
from fund managers, Mr Taylor stresses that the LPFA is
a big client and as such is taken seriously. Mr Taylor
hopes that other local authority schemes will decide to
follow a similar agenda and with £130bn in aggregate
if they all acted in unison they would be the biggest
institutional investor in the UK. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/04d400aa-4414-11dc-90ca-0000779fd2ac.html |
7th August
Guardian ERIN BROCKOVICH TAKES ON MINING GIANT ALCOA
The real life Erin Brockovich is examining the merits
of a class action law suit on behalf of about 160 residents
of a small Western Australian hamlet called Yarloop. Residents
blame emissions from a nearby bauxite processing refinery
in Wagerup for 11 years of illness including reported
symptoms such as nosebleeds, nausea and skin rashes. The
refinery is run by mining giant Alcoa, the worlds leading
producer of aluminum. Alcoa denies that the refinery is
unsafe with chief medical offer Micheal Donoghue citing
numerous independent scientific enquires as evidence that
refinery emissions 'are well within internationally accepted
guidelines'. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/07/pollution |
7th August
Guardian NOVARTIS CHALLENGE OVER DRUG PATENT DEFEATED
IN INDIAN COURTS
The challenge brought by Swiss pharmaceuticals company
Novartis against India's patent law, that denies patents
for minor improvements to established drugs, was yesterday
rejected by the high courts. Novartis had claimed that
India's refusal to issue to a patent for the drug Glivec,
Novartis's treatment for a strain of leukemia, did not
comply with World Trade Organisation rules. The high court
maintains that Glivec is a new form of an old drug but
has deferred to the WTO to resolve the issue of compliance.
The verdict was hailed by campaigners and high profile
NGO Oxfam as a victory in the battle for greater access
to cheaper drugs in the developing world. In contrast
Novartis stated that India's failure to recognise the
important medical progress made through incremental innovation
'would have negative consequences for patients and public
health in India'. The company is not expected to appeal
the verdict. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2143067,00.html |
8th August
Wall Street Journal BROCADE EX-CEO FOUND GUILTY IN BACKDATING
CASE
The former Brocade Communications Systems chief executive
officer was found guilty of fraud, falsified accounting,
conspiracy and filing false financial statements in the
first criminal trial over stock-options backdating. Around
140 American companies have come under investigation for
backdating and about 70 executives have lost their jobs
due to internal probes. One prosecutor involved in the
trial is in charge of whether to bring charges over backdated
options at Apple Inc. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118651238986990721.html?mod=hps_us_whats_news |
8th August
Guardian GORE CLAIMS OIL FIRMS FUND ANTI-CLIMATE CHANGE
STUDY
Former US vice president Al Gore has claimed that some
of the world's largest energy companies, including ExxonMobil,
are funding research aimed at disputing the scientific
consensus on global warming. At a forum in Singapore yesterday
Glore claimed that the research is part of a campaign
to mislead the public. ExxonMobil denies the allegations.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,2143698,00.html |
8th August
Financial Times YAHOO FACES FRESH SCRUTINY OVER JAILING
OF CHINESE JOURNALIST
The US Congressional Committee is investigating whether
Yahoo intentionally misled Congress over its role in exposing
the identity of a journalist who went to prison for 10
years. The investigation was prompted by a new report
that showed discrepancies in a testimony given by Yahoo
vice-president Micheal Callahan at a congressional hearing
in 2006. Three other cases have emerged since the initial
committee hearing 18 months ago also involving Yahoo in
the disclosure of information about 'suspected dissidents'
to the Chinese authorities. The Dui Hua Foundation, a
human rights group based in California, claims that the
way the Chinese government worded their request 'should
have raised a red flag'of suspicion at Yahoo to question
the nature of the government's enquiry. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/cfa21b40-4519-11dc-82f5-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=9c33700c-4c86-11da-89df-0000779e2340.html |
8th August
Financial Times RIO TINTO BOLSTERS CASE FOR DAM IN SARAWAK
The Anglo-Australian mining group Rio Tinto yesterday
announced plans to build its largest aluminum smelter
in Sarawak, Malaysia. The project would be dependant on
the completion of the controversial Bakun dam in order
to power the smelter. Plagued by delays and set backs
the Bakun dam was launched in the 1990s and remains uncompleted.
The dam, long condemned by environmentalists, if completed
would flood an area the size of Singapore and displace
thousands of people. Conversely the Rio Tinto smelter,
if completed, would provide about 4,700 jobs. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/11805ba0-44fa-11dc-82f5-0000779fd2ac.html |
8th August
Guardian ETHIOPIAN STRIFE TESTS US COMMITMENT
US support for the Addis Ababa government is being tested
by rising tensions in the Ogaden region of eastern Ethiopia
combined with region-wide instability. Red Cross workers
have been expelled from the area following claims that
they were aiding the rebel faction Ogaden National Liberation
Front separatists (ONLF). The ONLF has accused the government
of roadside attacks as well as placing a 'blockade' against
aid and commercial goods in Ogaden and has repeatedly
called for UN action. A report from Human Rights Watch
details how witnesses describe Ethiopian troops burning
homes and in some cases killing fleeing civilians but
states that the ONLF is also guilty of abuses.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,2143812,00.html |
9th August
Guardian SEVERN TRENT WILL NOT COMPENSATE FLOOD VICTIMS
FOR WEEKS WITHOUT DRINKING WATER
Severn Trent Water stated yesterday that customers who
were left without mains water for over a week due to flooding
would not receive compensation. The company explained
yesterday that the loss of supply was due to unprecedented
weather and as such the rules of the guaranteed standards
service - under which consumers are eligible for compensation
- do not apply. The company will however make £3.5m
available to support communities hit by flooding. The
Consumer Council for Water (CCW) Midlands said it would
be doing research into customer reaction to Severn Trent's
decision. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2144467,00.html |
9th August
Telegraph BAE DEFENDS CULTURE AS PROFITS JUMP
BAE Systems hit back at critics this morning over ongoing
allegations of corruption. While unveiling BAE's interim
results which show earnings up by 17% to £700m,
chief executive Mike Turner insisted that the company
has 'a very strong ethical culture'. In response to allegations
from the BBC and The Guardian that BAE had paid hefty
bribes in connection with the Al Yamamah contract with
Saudi Arabia, in June BAE commissioned the former Lord
Chief Justice - Lord Woolf - to head up an enquiry into
BAE's ethical business conduct.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml;jsessionid=UKJYSIF10GUT1QFIQMGCFFWAVCBQUIV0?xml=/money/2007/08/09/bcnbae109.xml |
9th August
Financial Times TOY STORY WITH A TOUGH MORAL FOR MANAGERS
The family run business, Mega Brands, continues to learn
lessons in crisis management after spending two years
trying to restore consumer confidence in the Mega Brands
Magnetix toy. In November 2005, a child died after swallowing
components of the toy and since then 27 more injuries
have been reported. The company has paid $13.5m to settle
14 injury claims. The director of Kids Risk points to
the fact that Mega Brands acquired the product as part
of a takeover in mid-2005 and stresses that this illustrates
the dangers of companies incorporating products to their
portfolio that are not 'organic'to their company. Despite
a mass product recall and redesign the company continues
to face questions with fears raised concerning product
safety at a US Senate hearing last month. The failure
to redesign the packaging of the new toy in an effort
to get the product back on the selves as quickly as possible
was a major factor in causing confusion and led to a second
recall. The recent furor over product safety in China
has far from helped. The company still faces 4 remaining
lawsuits and 11 other complaints.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2390f616-45c6-11dc-b359-0000779fd2ac.html
|
10th August
International Herald Tribunal INDIANS PROTEST WAL-MART'S
WHOLESALE ENTRY
Several hundred Indian shopkeepers gathered yesterday
in protest following this week's agreed joint venture
between Wal-Mart and Indian based Bharti Enterprises to
build as many as 15 large wholesale outlets over the next
seven years. Indian law currently forbids foreign multi-brand
retailers selling directly to consumers, but ordinary
Indians still fear that the new stores could undermine
small retailers and threaten the traditional Indian marketplace.
The protest coincided with similar demonstrations across
the country in a bid to show nationwide opposition to
the arrival of foreign multinationals such as Wal-Mart.
No Wal-Mart spokesperson was available for comment.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/08/09/business/walmart.php
|
10th August
Guardian HEART ATTACK SCARE HITS ASTRAZENECA'S TOP DRUG
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday
that it will be conducting a safety review of two AstraZeneca
drugs used to treat stomach ulcer drugs, Prilosec and
Nexium. The scare, which has seen AstraZeneca's share
price fall 3.5%, originates from data submitted by the
company in May that raised fears at the FDA that long
term use of the drugs may increase the risk of heart related
problems. Data produced since then has shown no connection
but a safety review would still be connected in the interests
of caution.
http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2145762,00.html |
10th August
Independent JOHNSON & JOHNSON SUES THE RED CROSS
In what could be a public relations disaster Johnson &
Johnson have launched a high profile lawsuit against one
of the worlds most recognised humanitarian aid agencies,
the American Red Cross, claiming that the Red Cross logo
is in fact its own trademark. While the two organisations
have co-existed peacefully for over a century with the
same logo, Johnson & Johnson are concerned about a
change in the charity's use of the logo. The Red Cross
has launched a range of health related products such as
first aid kits and toothbrushes which is, Johnson &
Johnson assert, in direct competition with their own product
line. The chief executive of the Red Cross has described
the lawsuit, which is in effect a battle over profit margins,
as 'obscene'. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2851498.ece |
11th August
Times BP FACES DEEPER INQUIRY INTO PRICE-FIXING CLAIMS
BP shares slid yesterday after it emerged that US regulators
have broadened the scope of their inquiry into alleged
manipulation of the crude oil price by another three years.
In filings to the Securities and Exchange Commission,
BP admitted that the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(CFTC) and the Department of Justice had demanded documents
from the company going back as far as 1999. Initially,
regulators had been examining the behaviour of the oil
group dating back to 2002.
The US regulators are seeking to ascertain whether the
oil company sought to control the over-the-counter crude
oil price and is investigating BP's trading behaviour
and its storage activities during the period. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/natural_resources/article2237759.ece
|
12th August
Sunday Times REVEALED: TOPSHOP CLOTHES MADE WITH 'SLAVE
LABOUR'
Claire Newell reports that factories supplying Sir Philip
Green, who is based in Monaco and is worth nearly £5
billion, employ hundreds of Sri Lankan, Indian and Bangladeshi
workers in Mauritius where they labour for up to 12 hours
a day, six days a week. Workers told The Sunday Times
that they were recruited in their home countries by self-employed
agents who promised wages up to five times what they receive.
They pay up to £725 to get the job, equivalent to
seven months' earnings. Once in Mauritius they receive
as little as 22p to 40p an hour, about 40% below the local
average wage. In at least one firm salaries are set according
to race, with those from Bangladesh paid substantially
less than Sri Lankans.
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/fashion/article2241665.ece |
12th August
Sunday Times Superstores 'drive small firms under'
BRITAIN's big supermarket chains are forcing their suppliers
out of business with their "unreasonable" behaviour,
according to Grant Thornton, the accountancy firm.
Grant Thornton admitted that in most cases supermarkets
behave as any reputable business should, but it criticised
supermarkets for putting financial pressure on their suppliers
through a combination of price demands and failure to
give them sufficient notice when ending or changing orders.
Supermarkets had in some instances dismissed companies
as their recognised suppliers with very little notice,
triggering job losses and in some cases financial collapse.
In a survey of 50 supermarket food suppliers conducted
by the firm, 83% said they expect to see more food suppliers
become insolvent in the coming year, with rising costs,
price squeezes, and other pressures from supermarkets
the key causes. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/retailing/article2240260.ece
|
12th August
Independent on Sunday IS THERE TROUBLE ON THE CARDS AT
CAMELOT?
Its licence has been renewed and sales are soaring, despite
fewer people playing and the main Lotto draw hitting an
all-time low. How come? The secret is scratchcards, says
Mark Slattery, but that leaves the lottery operator possibly
open to accusations of exploiting the vulnerable. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/analysis_and_features/article2856772.ece
|
12th August
Observer BP firm hit by deforestation damage claim
A BP-owned oil company is among 17 international corporations
facing demands to pay £385m for ecological damage
across a region in Patagonia six times the size of England.
The Argentine government claims Pan American Energy, in
which BP has 60 per cent control, has increased deforestation
by building roads and facilities for 10,000 rigs in the
900,000 sq km area. The wastage is allegedly spreading
disease through water contamination. Ombudsman Eduardo
Mondino, who has taken the oil companies to court, says:
'Many of these companies are well aware of the environmental
rules they must comply with, but in Argentina it is cheaper
for them to pay the fines.'
It is now up to the Supreme Court of Justice to decide
on what amount, if any, these companies should pay. It
will be months before a decision.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,2146849,00.html
|
13th
August Independent CLIMATE CHANGE PROTESTERS SET UP HEATHROW
CAMP
After weeks of secrecy over the location, climate change
activists have set up camp at Heathrow two days early
at a site in between the villages of Sipson and Harlington
in Middlesex. The protest against the expansion of Heathrow
will go ahead after activists won a victory at the High
Court last week where the terms of an injunction against
them, sought by BAA, was substantially cut down. Officially
beginning tomorrow, the camp is supposed to be a model
of environmentally sound communal living. Some 1,800 officers
have been drafted in from four forces to police the protest
and have been encouraged by the government to use powers
entrusted to them under the Terrorism Act 2000. BAA describes
any action that distracts the police, authorities or BAA
staff from dealing with the terror threat as 'irresponsible'.
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/transport/article2859081.ece
|
13th August
Guardian COVER-UP PLAN ON ENERGY TARGET
Ministers have been secretly briefed by government officials
that Britain will not meet the new EU renewable energy
target signed up to by Tony Blair in the spring. Having
obtained a copy of an internal briefing paper, The Guardian
reports that ministers have been urged to lobby for a
'get-out' in relation to meeting the target of 20% renewables
by 2020 rather than trying to find new ways to reach it.
Under current policies renewables, which currently account
for just 2% of energy, would only account for about 5%
by 2020. The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory
Reform (the former DTI) believe that the best Britain
can hope for is 9% - describing even this target as 'challenging'.
The leaked paper reveals an aversion to renewables of
the basis of perceived cost -getting to 9% by 2020 could
cost the economy £4bn a year. Environmentalists
reject this idea on the basis that £4bn a year amounts
to only a third of the 1% of GDP rich countries have been
recommended to spend on climate change. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/13/renewableenergy.energy |
13th
August Financial Times A CHANCE FOR SHOPPERS TO START
COUNTING THE CARBON
Walkers, owned by PepsiCo, is one of the first companies
in the world to include a 'carbon label' on its crisp
packets, informing the customer that not only is there
34.5g of crisps inside the bag but also 75g of carbon
dioxide. This is a 'virtual' calculation of the amount
of CO2 expelled into the atmosphere as a result of this
packet's production -from growing the potato to distributing
the finished crisps. The idea behind the label is that
today's increasingly environmentally conscious consumers
can better assess, and seek to reduce, their own carbon
footprint. Other companies putting carbon labels on their
products, such as Boots, are mostly based in the UK and
work in partnership with the Carbon Trust. The idea was
recently given a considerable boost by Tesco's pledge
that there would -eventually -be carbon labels on every
one of the 70,000 products on its shelves. The Carbon
Trust is working with BSI British Standards to create
a standard that can be used by other companies to create
carbon labels. It is thought that carbon labelling might
help change current consumer distrust of corporate environmental
claims. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/95dc46c2-4935-11dc-b326-0000779fd2ac.html
|
14th August
Financial Times CHINA TOY MAKER KILLS HIMSELF AFTER PRODUCT
RECALL
Chinese media has reported that the boss of Chinese toy
manufacturing company Lida Toy has committed suicide.
Lida Toy, a contract manufacturer for Mattel's Fisher
Price unit, is at the center of a large scale Mattel product
recall after toys were found to contain excessive lead
levels. In what some describe as an 'over-reaction' to
the widespread crisis of confidence in China's toy industry,
authorities are now enforcing toy safety reporting standards
stricter than those required by the EU.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/d51bbe50-49b0-11dc-9ffe-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=9c33700c-4c86-11da-89df-0000779e2340.html |
14TH August
Independent QANTAS SETS $40M ASIDE FOR FINES
Qantas is the latest casualty of recent airline competition
and price-fixing inquiries that have seen BA fined a record
£270m by the UK's Office of Fair Trading and Korean
Air fined £150m by US authorities. The Australian
airline has set aside $40m to cover possible fines and
litigation as it admits its activities have 'likely' breached
competition laws.
http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2861786.ece |
14th August
Independent WOLFOWITZ 'TRIED TO CENSOR WORLD BANK ON CLIMATE
CHANGE'
It has emerged that the Bush administration's 'pointman'
at the World Bank, the now disgraced Paul Wolfowitz, intervened
on numerous occasions to thwart efforts to include global
warming in calculations for new World Bank investments.
According to the Government Accountability Project (GAP),
such censorship included stopping the publication and/or
changing the focus of World Bank papers on climate change.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article2861732.ece |
14th August
Guardian BUILDERS ATTACK GREEN HOMES RULE
Housebuilders are lobbying the government intensely in
a bid to persuade them to drop the 'Merton rule', a key
climate change policy designed to cut carbon emissions
through the construction of green homes. The Merton rule
is a local strategy introduced by Merton borough council
in 2003, with over 150 other local authorities now committed
to it or to introducing it. It requires any new building
to reduce carbon emissions by 10% through the use of renewables.
The House Builders Federation (HBF), however, suggests
that to avoid confusion and higher costs the scheme should
be dropped in favour of one national policy. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/14/energy.renewableenergy1 |
14th August
Financial Times PERU STARTS TO UNPICK ITS COMPLEX PATCHWORK
OF RACIAL PREJUDICES
Peruvian nightclub Cafe; Del Mar has been closed and fined
$77,000 under racial discrimination charges, following
an undercover investigation by Peru's competition authority,
Indecopi. The nightclub was found guilty of denying customers
entry on the basis of race. Discrimination is mostly targeted
at Peruvians with darker skin and more indigenous characteristics.
A representative of the office of consumer protection
at Indecopi asserts that such punishment sends out 'a
message that we have laws to protect all consumers -and
we will enforce them'. However, six other nightclubs have
been fined in recent years but none of them have paid
up. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/b7e55046-49fe-11dc-9ffe-0000779fd2ac.html |
15th August
Independent SECRETARY USED BANK'S PETTY CASH TO FUND TRAVELS
A City secretary was spared jail after exploiting a "culture
of lacklustre accounting" at the investment bank
JP Morgan to fund a globetrotting lifestyle.
Nicola Fielding, 26, paid for trips around the world using
thousands of euros brought back unused by executives from
business trips to Italy. The court heard that while she
began stealing to pay off debts, she found it "too
easy" to continue and began spending the money on
trips with her boyfriend.
Sarah Clark, for the defence, said part of the reason
for the theft was the atmosphere in which she worked and
the pressure she was under. "This course of conduct
didn't begin through greed. It may be that subsequently
it was a little too easy," she added. "It seems
there was a culture of slightly lacklustre accounting
in general, which not only made it easy but meant it didn't
stand out as much as perhaps it would have done at another
organisation." http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/crime/article2864215.ece |
15th August
Guardian MATTEL RECALLS 1.9M POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS CHINESE-MADE
TOYS
Mattel yesterday issued an urgent recall of over 1.9m
Chinese made toys due to fears about unsafe levels of
lead in paint as well as loose magnets. This latest recall
comes only weeks after the company recalled almost 1.5m
Fisher Price products, also made in China, as a result
of similar concerns. Mattel issued an apology to parents
and refused to quantify the cost of the recall stating
that a child's safety is not a matter of economics. The
company has implemented a strengthened 'three point check
system' in a bid to ensure consumer safety and minimize
the chances of another recall. This scare is the latest
in a string of problems relating to Chinese manufactured
goods including more fears over levels of lead in paint
as well as over the safety of cat and dog food. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2148894,00.html
|
15th August
Financial Times NOKIA SET TO REPLACE UP TO 46M MATSUSHITA
BATTERIES
Nokia is to replace up to 46m handset batteries after
it emerged that components supplied by Japanese company
Matsushita, were found to overheat. While the recall may
have an effect on Nokia's brand and reputation, it should
not affect the company's forecast profitability as Matsushita
is expected to foot the bill.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2d7604d6-4ac7-11dc-95b5-0000779fd2ac.html |
15th August
Financial Times MORRISONS SUSPECTED AFTER E.COLI DEATH
The National Health Service in Greater Glasgow and Clyde
are investigating a food poisoning outbreak which is suspected
to have originated at two Morrisons supermarkets in Paisley
after one person died and six more were left ill. Morrisons
has withdrawn cold sliced meat products from the two stores
as a precaution after it emerged that customers had been
affected by the potentially fatal bacteria E coli 0157.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/3c858dba-4ac8-11dc-95b5-0000779fd2ac.html
|
15th August
Guardian HOW THE BIG FIVE BANKS ARE LEARNING TO REAP REWARDS
FROM GOING GREENER
According to research by Covalence, a Geneva based company
that tracks the ethical reputation of multinationals,
UK banks are doing better than several other sectors in
assuring customers of their ethical and environmental
credentials. The director of Covalence, Antoine Mach,
partly attributes the good results to the fierce competition
within the banking industry to differentiate themselves
on the basis of ethical standing. According to the survey
HSBC had the best 'eco-reputation' followed by Barclays
and the Royal Bank of Scotland, which were 4th and 9th
respectively. Lloyds TSB were also in the top 20. HSBC
has recently started to offer customers migration to a
'paperless current account' which also offers discounts
on environmentally friendly purchases. Representatives
from major NGO's such as Friends of the Earth and Global
Witness remain cynical however about banks new green initiatives,
pointing to elements of their global financial activity
as evidence of the industry's double standards.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/15/ethicalliving1 |
15th August
Guardian MISERY AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SUPERMARKET SUPPLY
CHAIN
Renewed pressure for supermarkets to thoroughly check
their supply chains comes after a Guardian investigation
revealed that 40 Bulgarians, found by the authorities
to be illegally employed and exploited by a gangmaster
in Cornwall, were picking and packing vegetables destined
for Morrisons and Tesco. The sub-contracting chain at
Southern England Farms (SEF), a leading vegetable farming
and packing company that appears on Tesco's website, was
involved in placing the workers. They were alleged to
'live like pigs on scraps' while their pay was withheld
and many other arbitrary changes leveled at them by the
gangmaster. The Gangmaster Licensing Authority (GLA) has
revoked the gangmaster's license and ordered his company,
Baltic Work Team, to cease trading immediately. SEF has
stated that it only uses GLA-licensed labour providers
and is fully cooperating with the GLA in their investigation.
Morrisons and Tesco have both stated that they only use
reputable suppliers and are taking the issues very seriously.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/supermarkets/story/0,,2148876,00.html |
17th August
Independent IMI INVESTIGATES POSSIBLE BRIBERY AT US UNIT
The engineering group IMI has suspended several employees
and called in the authorities after discovering possible
bribery at a division based in the US.
Shares in IMI dropped 9.7 per cent to 517.5p after it
announced to the stock exchange it had launched an investigation
"into possible irregular payments", which may
be in breach of the law and the company's policies and
practices. The role of commissioning agents will be under
the spotlight. These agents are paid commissions for introducing
customers to IMI and play a substantial role in helping
the company win new business in the Middle East and Asia.
The Severe Service division makes about £3m to £4m
in commission payments and IMI says these kind of payments
are standard practice in the industry. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2871544.ece
|
17th August
Independent S&N RECALLS HIP REPLACEMENT PARTS
The hip and knee maker Smith & Nephew has had to recall
more than 185 hip implants after incorrect labelling meant
at least two patients were given the wrong-sized hip device.
The patients are having to undergo a further operation
in order to get the right-sized device fitted after different
sizes of a part of the company's recently launched Birmingham
Hip Resurfacing System were mixed up during the packaging
process. The error occurred at a sub-contractor to Smith
& Nephew and when discovered the company immediately
voluntarily withdrew the implants, which it said were
manufactured in a small number of batches. S&N also
notified the Medicines & Healthcare Products Regulatory
Agency and the US Food & Drug Administration. The
devices were distributed to a number of countries including
to the United States.
http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2871532.ece
|
17th August
Financial Times IMI SLIDES 9% ON NEWS OF INTERNAL FRAUD
PROBE
Engineering firm IMI yesterday disclosed that it was conducting
an internal corruption investigation following suspicion
that some of its sales agents in South East Asia, East
Asia and the Middle East have been offering 'kickbacks'
to the company's customers there. IMI, which is one of
the UK's biggest engineering firms, suffered a 9% drop
in its market value after the disclosure. Californian
based IMI subsidiary CCI is at the centre of the investigation
with IMI suspecting that up to £30m of tainted funds
may have passed through the company. IMI's actions will
be focused on the ethics of local business practices in
the developing countries, the results of which may have
an impact on IMI's competitors if such corruption is found
to be common practice there. IMI maintains that it is
'committed to the highest ethical standards and has retained
external council' to conduct a thorough independent investigation'.
The US Department of Justice, the UK's Serious Organised
Crime Agency, Ernst & Young as well as law firm Allan
& Overy will be involved in the investigation. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/f780d614-4c2c-11dc-b67f-0000779fd2ac.html
|
|
|
17th August
Guardian BIOFUELS SWITCH A MISTAKE, SAY RESEARCHERS
Researchers from conservation charity the World Land Trust
have shown that increased biofuel production, thought
to be an environmentally friendly alternative to fossil
fuels, will in fact increase emissions levels rather than
lower them. After conducting the first comprehensive analysis
of the impact increased biofuel production would have,
they concluded that between two and nine times more carbon
gasses would be released over the next 30 years than if
we stuck to fossil fuels. They point out that Brazil,
Paraguay, and Indonesia already have mass deforestation
programs in order to produce biofuels for the world market.
While the National Farmers Union say that 20% of Britain's
agricultural land could be used for biofuels by 2010,
researchers think that reforesting the land would be a
better way to reduce emissions. Britain is currently committed
to substituting 10% of its transport fuel with biofuels
in a bid to reduce carbon emissions. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/17/climatechange.energy |
17th August
Independent ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS TARGET AXA AS PART
OF PROTEST AGAINST HUNTINGDON
The French Insurer, Axa, was yesterday targeted by activists
who held a protest outside its London office as part of
a campaign to shut down animal testing firm Huntingdon
Life Sciences. The reason for targeting Axa is that it
is a major investor in companies on the NYSE, where the
shares of Huntingdon are listed. The protesters aim to
get Axa, amongst others, to press the NYSE to delist Huntingdon's
shares. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2871494.ece |
17th August
International Herald Tribunal ECOLOGISTS AND IBM JOIN
HANDS TO MONITOR RIVER
IBM has entered into a partnership with scientific research
organisation the Beacon Institute for Rivers and Estuaries,
combining innovative technology with marine biology in
a bid to create a world class centre for river research.
The joint project will provide 24-hour-a-day monitoring
of conditions in the Hudson River in order to protect
it and its inhabitants from interference from the effects
of industry and pollution. IBM vice president, Sharon
Nunes, is leading the Big Green Innovations group, which
the company set up this year to develop new businesses
using IBM technology to address environmental problems.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/08/16/news/river.php |
17th August
BBC News SCEPTICISM OVER UK CLOTHES CLAIMS
A report has shown that shoppers are sceptical of clothes
retailer's claims of good working conditions in the factories
that supply UK shops. The TNS Worldpanel Fashion survey
comes after allegations of poor standards in South Asian
factories and shows that of 7,000 people interviewed,
45% said they did not believe supply chains were free
from worker abuse. The single biggest concern that arose
was over the possible use of child labour in factories
that supplied low coast outlets such as Asda, Tesco, and
Primark despite all these retailers denying such abuses
take place. Interestingly, shoppers over the age of 55
were more concerned about where the clothes came from
with shoppers under the age of 25 less likely to care
about ethical issues. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6950713.stm
|
18th August
Times COMPANIES FACE HUGE FINES OVER CORRODED PIPE THAT
KILLED NINE PEOPLE
The operators of the factory Stockline plastics factory
in Mary-hill, Glasgow, pleaded guilty in court to health
and safety charges yesterday after a gas leak caused a
huge explosion shortly before noon on May 11, 2004. ICL
Tech Ltd and ICL Plastics - small companies whose two
main shareholders are now in their seventies - face heavy
fines when the case goes back to Glasgow High Court this
month. Five men and four women, including a father of
three and a new mother, died when the blast tore apart
what had been a 19th-century mill; 40 people were seriously
injured. The blast, which was heard miles away, left only
one corner of the four-storey building standing, causing
it to collapse, witnesses said, "like a pack of cards".
Thousands of tonnes of rubble crashed down on the workforce.
A corroded pipe had leaked liquid petroleum gas, which
ignited.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2280641.ece
|
19th August
Independent C&W'S 'UNION BUSTERS' SPARK FURY
Cable & Wireless is this weekend refusing to comment
on accusations by the Communications Workers Union (CWU)
that it has been "irresponsible" in employing
the services of "the notorious American firm of 'union
busters', The Burke Group". The Burke Group describes
itself as specialising in "union avoidance and preventative
industrial labor relations". A CWU spokesman says
the British union fears that Cable & Wireless may
employ The Burke Group to use "scare tactics",
which would take the form of aggressive public relations
aimed at ordinary employees "that we would not have
the opportunity to redress". http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2876464.ece |
|
19th August Sunday Times FAKE SAFETY PERMITS THAT ALLOW
CHINA'S TOXIC TOYS INTO BRITAIN
THE forgery of British safety certificates is rife among
Chinese factories exporting toys to Britain, according
to businessmen involved in the trade. They say the frauds
include altering the date of tests on toys and using
computer graphics to change "fail" to "pass".
Thousands of Chinese toy factory workers have just lost
their jobs after the American giant Mattel recalled
18m toys, including Barbie dolls, because of lead paint
and small magnets that a child might choke on. It had
earlier pulled 1.5m toys from the shelves. The US distributors
of Thomas the Tank Engine were forced to recall more
than 1m wooden trains, all because of lead paint. It
added to a disastrous few weeks for the "made in
China" brand after the exposure of fake diabetic
test kits made for Johnson & Johnson and the discovery
of baby bibs contaminated with lead at Toys R Us.
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/families/article2284323.ece
|
19th August
Observer CLUSTER BOMBERS FACE CITY BOYCOTT
Leading UK institutions are about to withdraw hundreds
of millions of pounds from firms linked to the manufacture
of controversial cluster bombs.
The move will be seen as a major breakthrough for campaigners
such as Handicap International, the International Campaign
to Ban Landmines and Human Rights Watch.
Last month French insurer Axa announced it was pulling
its investments from companies that manufacture cluster
bombs, which can lie unexploded for decades and have a
devastating effect on civilians in war zones. Now a number
of fund managers in Britain have indicated that they view
the issue as a pressing ethical concern on a par with
investment in Sudan and Burma. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,2151537,00.html
|
20th
August BBC News TWO SUPERMARKETS IN E-MAIL PROBE
Asda and Tesco have been ordered to hand over millions
of e-mails and letters as part of a Competition Commission
investigation into claims that the supermarket giants
have been pressurizing suppliers to cut prices. It is
part of a wider inquiry launched last year into the sales
methods of Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons after
the Office of Fair Trading highlighted the immense power
the £120bn sector holds with smaller stores being
'squeezed out'. As part of its two-year inquiry, the Commission
has been examining the supply chain, planning and land
banks of the biggest supermarkets. Tesco and Asda deny
any wrongdoing and insist they follow strict codes of
conduct when dealing with suppliers. Both supermarkets
have granted the Commission access to the millions of
emails sent to suppliers over the period requested, maintaining
that they
'have nothing to hide'. Section 109 legal notices been
exacted in order to allow the Commission to conduct a
more thorough investigation.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6953474.stm |
20th August
BBC News DRUG WEBSITE SAFETY FEARS RAISED
Research carried out by industry fraud advisors MarkMonitor
has suggested that a lack of regulation of online pharmacies
is putting people at risk from counterfeit or out-of-date
medication. Through an analysis of more than 3,000 sites
MarkMonitor also found that medicines could be brought
without a prescription and that half of
the sites did not guard customer details. To help counter
these dangers the Royal Pharmaceutical Society has announced
plans to introduce a logo by the end of 2007 to help customers
identify genuine sites. Experts, however, still warn against
buying medicines online, pointing to a study that found
out of 3,160 US sites selling
one or more of a selected range of popular drugs, only
four had a Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Site accreditation
(a US scheme), although many claimed that they had. Each
of the sites had an average of 32,000 visitors daily,
which could equate to £2bn in annual sales for the
six drugs looked at. The UK-based Medicine and Healthcare
products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) states that it can only
close down those sites registered in Britain but will
advise customers not to buy medicines online. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6951254.stm |
20th August
Guardian MARCH OF THE MINES SEES ISLANDERS FACING LOSS
OF ANCESTRAL HOMELAND
Plans by British-based multinational mining company, Crew
Development, to strip-mine 37.5 sq miles of land on the
Philippine island of Mindoro have come under attack due
to human rights and environmental concerns. The native
Mangyan people, who have farmed the land for six centuries,
have mounted a campaign against the
company's plan to simply relocate them. In addition there
are environmental concerns that Crew's nickel and cobalt
mine could adversely affect the farmland that makes Mindoro
a nationally important area for rice. The land is also
part of the Philippines government's plans to win the
'war on poverty'. Applications for 2,000 mines await approval
after the Philippines liberalised its mining sector regulations
in 1995, with backing from the World Bank and the Asian
Development Bank. Not only will the mines provide an important
source of national income but Crew insists the project
will create 2,000 mining jobs and 20,000 jobs in supporting
industries. A Mindoro-based social development group maintains,
however, that the jobs will only be for those with mining
expertise from outside the province and that Mindoro will
suffer only the costs of the project, not the benefits.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/20/endangeredhabitats.conservation |
20th August
Financial Times PRIVATE EQUITY "HAS ETHICS"
A survey published today by the accountancy and consultancy
firm Grant Thornton has found that fewer than one in four
private equity firms have a formal code of ethics, yet
three-quarters feel they have high ethical standards.
In a survey that questioned 100 private equity executives
involved in deals worth at least £5m, it was also
found
that almost half are convinced the industry is unjustly
criticised by 'leftwing media' who are biased against
them. Executives identified the pornography industry and
the firearms/military industries as sectors they would
not consider investing in on ethical grounds, with about
half ruling out investment in the gambling sector.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e5f52442-4eb4-11dc-85e7-0000779fd2ac.html |
20th August
Financial Times SUGAR BEET SWEETENS INDIA'S OUTPUT PROSPECTS
A strain of sugar beet, developed by Swiss agrochemicals
group Syngenta, is being used as feedstock at a small
ethanol plant east of Mumbai in what the Financial Times
describes as a 'global first'. The factory, Harneshwar
Agro Products Power &Yeast (India) - or 'Happy India'
- is controlled by the local farmers in the Baramati district.
The stain of sugar beet they use has been engineered by
Syngenta to produce as much sugar as conventional sugar
cane in half the time with one third of the water, with
the hope that more land can be freed up for food production.
Over 12,000 local farmers have been persuaded to fund
the ethanol project in exchange for shares and a place
to process their new beet crops. The Indian Council for
Research on International Economic Relations believes
that 'turning agriculture into an organised business'
should be the key to the second green revolution'. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/f1147760-4eb4-11dc-85e7-0000779fd2ac.html |
21st August
Financial Times SENTINEL CHARGED WITH FRAUD
US money manager, Sentinel Management Group, was yesterday
charged with fraud and the misuse of clients assets by
the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Having been
at the centre of the recent market turmoil, the company
applied for bankruptcy late last week. The SEC lodged
a complaint with a district court in Chicago yesterday
alleging that Sentinel, which claims to have $1.2bn in
assets under management, had indulged in 'ongoing fraud
and misappropriation and misuse of client assets'. Regulators
claim that at the very least the company has not kept
accurate records, in compliance with federal law, that
allow the ve |
