EU Budget: 'Long Way To Go' Before Deal

David Cameron has demanded billions in pay and pension cuts from the EU's civil service in support of austerity-hit workers across Europe.

Ahead of a crucial budget summit last night, he presented EU heads with a paper setting out how Brussels could slash at least six billion euro (£4.8bn) off its staff costs at a stroke by upping retirement ages, lowering pensions and trimming lavish salaries.

President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy and President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso were caught by surprise during the private talks with the Prime Minister.

Mr Cameron's position was to impose a real-terms freeze in spending in common with national public sector cuts, including a solidarity gesture by targeting the 60bn euro-a-year (£48bn) administrative budget which pays the 40,000-plus civil service behind the Commission, Council and European Parliament.

Following the meeting Downing Street said there was "a long way to go" before EU leaders could agree a long-term budget.

A Downing Street spokesman said: "The Prime Minister set out our position that while the latest proposals were a step in the right direction, they did not go far enough and that we think more can be done to rein in spending."

Mr Cameron said he would be fighting "very hard" to secure a good deal for British taxpayers and to keep the rebate negotiated by Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s.

Cameron meets Barroso and van Rompuy prior to the summit

"These are very important negotiations. Clearly at a time when we are making difficult decisions at home over public spending it would be quite wrong - it is quite wrong - for there to be proposals for this increased extra spending in the EU," he said.

He has welcomed proposals from Mr Van Rompuy which would deliver a small real-terms cut in EU spending commitments, but has made clear he is unhappy with other details of the package, which demands a reduction in the £2.9bn UK rebate.

The start of the meeting was delayed until mid-evening as the rest of the EU's leaders held their own "confessionals" throughout the day, setting out their positions on how much cash the EU should be given to pay for policies between 2014 and 2020.

A pre-summit compromise is already on offer - a seven-year budget "envelope" of 973bn euro (£785bn) for 2014/2020, a cut of nearly 5bn euro (£3.8bn) compared with the 2007/2013 ceiling.

The move was seen in Downing Street as being in the right direction - although the "cut" is in a spending ceiling which officials say has not been reached.

It is also above the 886bn euro (£712bn) originally pitched by the Treasury as in line with the real-terms freeze Mr Cameron wants.

The EU headquarters in Belgium

But in the complex world of EU budget economics, with financial "commitments" different from "payments", a range of calculation options, rebates for some countries, and contributor and beneficiary member states, Mr Cameron and his colleagues have plenty of scope for claiming summit success.

The Prime Minister's allies for budget belt-tightening, including Sweden and the Netherlands, have demanded hefty financial cuts.

Germany, France, Finland and Austria want to freeze the maximum Brussels can draw from member states every year - leaving plenty of scope to argue over the actual spending figures within the ceiling.

And 15 countries, led by Poland, are backing budget increases, not least to preserve the scale of cash aid they receive as "net beneficiaries" from the EU kitty.

Britain is arguing for a shake-up in EU spending priorities, cuts in agriculture spending and subsidies - fiercely defended by France - and cuts in EU staff levels and pay and perks, in line with national civil servants.

But the European Commission still insists that a spending increase is necessary, not least to pay for policies already agreed by member states.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

'Black Friday' Discount Day Reaches UK

Some of the UK's biggest retailers are cashing in on a US tradition, slashing their prices ahead of Christmas.

Amazon, Asda and Apple are among the companies that have launched so-called Black Friday sales in Britain - despite many consumers being unaware of the custom.

In the US, thousands of stores discount their prices the day after Thanksgiving, and many open for longer hours.

Last year a record number of shoppers visited stores over the Black Friday weekend, spending a total of $52bn (£32.6bn) - an average of around $400 (£250) each, according to the National Retail Federation.

Whereas many retailers open stores at midnight, this year the trend to open at 8pm on Thursday has started to spread.

While the shift was denounced by some store employees and traditionalists as pulling people away from families on Thanksgiving, many shoppers welcomed the chance to shop before midnight.

"I think it's better earlier. People are crazier later at midnight," hotel worker Renee Ruhl, 52, said as she shopped at a Target store in Orlando, Florida.

Amazon launched its sale on Monday

Online retailer Amazon was one of the first companies to bring the trend to the UK.

It launched a week-long Black Friday sale on Monday, which it claims "offers millions of pounds of savings on hundreds of Christmas gifts".

Tech giant Apple and Asda, owned by Walmart, are also hoping to make the most of the Christmas shopping rush by offering one-day discounts of their own. 

"There are more retailers launching sales this year than ever before - and many British consumers are becoming aware of the tradition for the first time," Retail Week's Gemma Goldfingle told Sky News.

"In the US it an absolute phenomenon, with people queuing up all night to snap up the best deals.

"In Orlando at least one family camped outside a Best Buy shop for a full week, sleeping in two tents.

"It has not reached that level here and whether it ever will is another matter."

She said that Americans have Thanksgiving to kick-start the event – whereas in the UK it is just a normal day. Boxing Day, when UK sales traditionally begin, is a normal work day for Americans.

"A lot of British retailers would prefer not to have it," Ms Goldfingle said.

"They want to be selling items at full price ahead of Christmas, especially given the tough economic conditions."

Black Friday, which is thought to refer to the first day of the year that retailers go "into the black", comes just ahead of Cyber Monday - which the marketing industry claims is the busiest day in the online shopping calendar.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Online Retailer Makes Bid To Buy Comet

The entrepreneur behind Appliances Online has tabled a bid for Comet in a move that could see the failed electrical chain disappear from retail parks and high streets.

More follows...

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Renters Warned: Beware Of 'Rogue' Letting Agents

The lettings sector needs more regulation, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has said, after revealing a rise in the number of so-called rogue agents.

Those renting properties are at risk of being taken advantage of by unscrupulous agents amid "a total lack of effective regulation", RICS warned after surveying 2,000 people.

The organisation said that renters had come to expect "worryingly low standards", with two thirds of those questioned saying they had not been given an inventory when they moved into a rented property in the last two years.

Lettings agencies do not have to conform to codes of conduct, RICS highlighted, and can be set up by people without relevant qualifications, knowledge or understanding of the rental process.

A clampdown is needed to prevent the sector turning into "the property industry's Wild West", RICS added.

Peter Bolton King, global residential director at the organisation, said rogue agents were taking advantage of the UK's booming rental market.

Demand for rental properties has shot up as people struggle to afford the deposit required to buy their own homes, or fail to meet banks'  tough borrowing conditions.

"A good lettings agent can be worth their weight in gold for both landlord and tenant," Mr King said.

"However, there are too many corrupt agents that do not belong to any professional body who are taking advantage of the current gap in regulation, putting consumers at risk."

He added that a rogue agent could land a tenant with problems including lost deposits, broken agreements and excessive charges.

"What we would like to see is the Government taking direct action on this and introducing a single regulatory and redress system for both sales and lettings agents to make sure they are fully accountable," he said.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Mothercare Reports A Loss As UK Sales Fall

Mothercare's chief executive insists the business is "on track", despite reporting another fall in UK sales.

Like-for-like sales in Britain fell 3.4% in the UK in first half of the year - although this is an improvement on the 7% slide seen a year ago.

Sales overseas, where the retailer plans to open 150 stores this year, grew by 4.4% in the six months to October 13.

Although sluggish demand in the eurozone - its biggest international market - hit the rate of international growth.

After one-off charges, Mothercare, which sells prams, car seats and childrens' clothing, reported a loss before tax of £27.4m.

Its underlying performance - if the one-off items are stripped out - was stronger, with its pre-tax loss rising from £4.4m to £0.6m.

New chief executive Simon Calver has been charged with cutting prices and improving Mothercare's delivery service to help it better compete with rivals, including supermarkets.

His three-year turnaround strategy saw the group close 31 stores in the UK in the first six months, with plans to close 19 more this year.

He told Sky News the results showed progress at the company, which has failed to keep up with its competitors over recent years.

"We've done a lot on the management team, we've done a lot on our products and the value we offer to the consumer," he said.

But he added that the group had expected sales to "take a while" to turnaround.

"Early signs are encouraging but we're definitely on track," he said.

Mothercare has over 1,300 stores across the world, including 280 in the UK.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Cameron To Insist On Austerity In EU Budget

By Robert Nisbet, Europe Correspondent

David Cameron travels to Brussels later insisting that austerity being enforced around Europe is reflected in the EU's budget.

He will join leaders from all 27 countries at a special summit to set the European Union's spending limits from 2014 to 2020.

It is a complex and deeply divisive process, with the UK balking at the European Commission's opening gambit - to increase the overall spending ceiling to a maximum one trillion euro.

This was flatly rejected by Britain and nearly all the net contributors to the European Union.

The European Council, which represents the interest of the member states, chimed in with its own plan, which represents a real-terms 2% cut from the spending ceiling approved for the current seven-year period.

But the proposal, penned by the Council President Herman van Rompuy, would reduce Britain's rebate and only contains a 1% reduction under so-called "Heading 4", which details the EU's spending on administration costs.

Mr Cameron, and other leaders, believe Brussels should accept some symbolic reductions in red tape and make deeper cuts to the legions of Eurocrats who work in the EU institutions.

The British Prime Minister believes Mr van Rompuy's proposals are moving in the right direction, but he needs to go further.

He has also insisted that the UK's £3bn a year rebate, which was negotiated to compensate Britain for money disbursed to other nations, is not up for discussion.

He told MPs yesterday he would be "fighting incredibly hard" to get the best deal for the UK, but he could use the veto to protect British interests.

The budget has to be agreed by all 27 members and by a majority in the European Parliament.

Other countries also have reservations with the proposals on the table: France and Ireland want to protect agricultural payments to their farmers, Italy is unhappy that other countries' rebates due to expire in 2013 might be renewed while Denmark wants to negotiate its own rebate.

Earlier this month Mr Cameron was blindsided by a Tory rebellion calling for a budget cut, not just a freeze. He may yet face their wrath.

The budget being discussed is about setting an absolute limit on EU spending, but the money spent is always considerably less.

So while the PM might be able to claim a victory in securing a freeze in total EU spending limits, UK taxpayers may still have to fork out more cash to Brussels.

If no agreement is reached, more summits will be held in the new year.

If there are still problems, the annual budget will roll over with an extra 2% added to take account of inflation.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Supermarkets 'Over-Promote' Unhealthy Food

Supermarkets are over-promoting fatty and sugary products using special offers and price reductions, according to a study.

Professor Paul Dobson, from the University of East Anglia (UEA), led a three-year study of consumer behaviour towards food and the impact on overeating and food waste.

He concluded that unhealthy foods receive too much promotion from supermarkets, and said the food industry must do more to promote healthy living.

"It is simply irresponsible for supermarkets to overly promote foods with high sugar and fat content," he said.

"The food industry must play a much greater role in promoting healthy diets.

"Food producers can do more by reducing the fat, sugar and salt content of processed foods, while food retailers can ensure that healthy and nutritious choices are available and affordable to all consumers and that they practice responsible marketing."

Prof Dobson said that if retailers and producers did not take responsibility, regulation might be needed.

Supermarket giants including Tesco and Asda were the focus of the study

Special offers are worth more than £50bn in sales to supermarkets and account for over a third of all consumer spending.

The research team analysed weekly price and nutrition data of a full range of food and drinks products sold over a year by four UK supermarkets - Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's and Ocado.

They found a bias towards sugary products for price promotions, while straight price discounts were on average more skewed towards unhealthy products.

Special offers also tended to be slanted towards more unhealthy products, especially those with high sugar content.

However, multi-buys were on average more biased towards healthier items.

"While price promotions can offer savings for consumers they may not be so good for our waistlines and health," he added.

"With almost a quarter of the population classed as obese, overeating and food waste are serious concerns for modern society."

Prof Dobson is outlining his findings at a lecture in London.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Tax Avoidance: UK Missing Out On Billions

The Treasury is losing billions in revenue because officials are failing to clamp down effectively on agressive tax avoidance, according to Whitehall's spending watchdog.

The National Audit Office (NAO) revealed that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has a backlog of 41,000 cases worth £10.2bn in tax revenue.

They relate to schemes aimed at small businesses and individuals in what has been described by MPs as "eye-watering" potential avoidance.

The NAO said officials are struggling to cope with the volume of schemes being "mass-marketed", often by small specialist tax advisers.

HMRC believes most of the schemes are not valid and would be "defeated" if tested in court but closing them down can take years of legal wrangling.

Margaret Hodge, the chair of the Commons Public Accounts Committee which oversees the NAO's work, called on HMRC to get a grip on the problem.

"People who pay their taxes promptly and in full will be dismayed to discover that the enormous level of tax avoidance taking place is overwhelming HMRC's efforts to combat it. The scale of the problem is staggering," she said.

"Without a credible plan to resolve these cases and to stamp out future avoidance, the public will lose confidence in the tax system's ability to collect even-handedly what is due from all individuals and companies."

She urged officials to step up enforcement and impose more fines so that they act as a deterrent.

Experts who design and sell such schemes have to notify HMRC under a regime known as Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes (Dotas).

The NAO said this had helped target legal loopholes but that it had little effect on the overall scale of tax avoidance activity.

"There is little evidence that HMRC is making progress in addressing this problem and it must now be vigorous in seeking more effective counter-measures, proposing legislative change where necessary," it said.

Between 2004 and 2011, around 2,300 avoidance schemes were disclosed to HMRC, with over 100 new schemes emerging in each of the past four years.

Since April 2010, litigation has been opened in 110 avoidance cases. Of the 60 cases where judgments have been reached, HMRC was successful in 51.

The NAO said there was no evidence that this level of litigation was proving an effective deterrent.

Its chief, Amyas Morse, said: "HMRC must push harder to find an effective way to tackle the promoters and users of the most aggressive tax avoidance schemes.

"It is inherently difficult to stop tax avoidance as it is not illegal. But HMRC needs to demonstrate how it is going to reduce the 41,000 avoidance cases it currently has open."

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Greece Made To Sweat On Bailout Funds

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras has rounded on the country's lenders over the latest failure to deliver bailout funds to Athens.

12 hours of emergency talks among eurozone finance ministers and representatives of the troika of lenders in Brussels ended without agreement but they pledged to meet again next Monday "for further technical work on some elements of the package".

Greece is sweating on 31.2 billion euros (£25bn) in aid - suspended in the summer over concerns it was not meeting the conditions of its bailout programme.

In reaction, Mr Samaras said on Wednesday: "Greece did what it had committed it would do . Our partners, together with the IMF, also have to do what they have taken on to do."

The statement continued: "Any technical difficulties in finding a technical solution do not justify any negligence or delays."

While the strict spending plans imposed on Athens are now seen as back on track, one of its lenders - the International Monetary Fund - has demanded no let up in the commitments agreed by the Greeks in return for aid.

A major bone of contention is whether to give Greece, which faces a sixth year in recession, an extra two years until 2022 to arrive at a point where it can raise its own funds.

The Eurogroup statement released after the Brussels meeting said it had "made progress in identifying a consistent package of credible initiatives aimed at making a further substantial contribution to the sustainability of Greek government debt".

Head of the IMF, Christine Lagarde added: "It was progress but we have to do a little bit more."

The IMF, which along with the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission (EC) form the troika overseeing the Greek bail-out, has argued that if Greek debt is to be sustainable in the long run, it must be reduced to 120% of GDP by 2020.

Greece's debt burden is currently nearly 180% of GDP.

Options being considered to help Athens include recycling ECB profits on Greek bonds and lowering the interest rate Greece has to pay.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hovis-Owner To Cut 900 Bread Jobs

The owner of Hovis has announced plans to cut 900 jobs in its struggling bread business as profits become harder to come by.

In a statement, Premier Foods said it was to close two bakeries and reform its delivery network.

The biggest impact will be felt in Birmingham, where 511 jobs are to be lost with the closure of a factory and distribution operation.

Hovis operations at Greenford in west London will also shut costing 196 jobs while Premier said it was also preparing to close distribution sites at Plymouth and Mendlesham in Suffolk resulting in 95 job cuts.

The closures are subject to consultation with employees but are scheduled to take place during the course of 2013.

St Albans-based Premier, which also makes Mr Kipling cakes and Bisto gravy, has seen its Hovis division hit by intense competition in the bread market and a surge in wheat price inflation caused by poor weather.

As a result it is set to lose a £75m-a-year contract with a major grocery chain from the middle of next year after Premier was unable to agree a new deal on sufficiently attractive terms.

It is cutting 130 distribution routes and closing the supply centres to take into account the expected reduction in volumes.

Premier chief executive Michael Clarke said: "We recognise the impact these actions will have for our employees at the sites affected.

"Decisions will not be taken lightly but they are necessary if we are to build a strong and successful future for the bread division and those who remain with our business."

Sky's City Editor Mark Kleinman revealed last month how the business had recruited Goldman Sachs to find a buyer for Hovis.

Premier has offloaded several well known brands in recent times, including Sun-Pat Peanut Butter and Branston Pickle, as it looks to concentrate on a portfolio of what it sees as core brands.

16.01 | 0 komentar | Read More