Britain’s next prime minister must accelerate the pursuit of trade deals to prevent a further sharp rise in costs as global supply chains are overhauled, according to the country’s leading business group.
Category: News
The latest news affecting small and medium sized (SME) businesses in the UK
Inflation raises cost of servicing national debt to 25-year high
The cost of servicing government debt has hit its highest point in 25 years because of rising inflation.
June tax receipts up £90.5 billion on last year
Total tax receipts are up by £90.5 billion in the 12 months to June, over the prior year. Say leading tax and advisory firm Blick Rothenberg.
London takes world’s number 1 spot as global hub for remote workers
London is the top city in the world for global, remote workers, followed by Toronto and Buenos Aires.
Jubilee weekend boom failed to lift June’s retail sector
An uptick in sales of food during the Jubilee weekend was offset by slower sales across the rest of the retail sector to see June retail volumes drop 0.1 per cent compared to previous month.
![Lisa Osofsky is director of the Serious Fraud Office Lisa Osofsky is director of the Serious Fraud Office CHRIS J RATCLIFFE/BLOOMBERG/GETTY IMAGES Share Save Lisa Osofsky’s position as Britain’s chief fraud fighter was spared after a critical report on prosecution failures called for an overhaul of processes at the Serious Fraud Office but not for her head. The analysis by Sir David Calvert-Smith — a former director of public prosecutions and a retired judge — found that there was “a damaging culture of distrust” between investigators and senior managers at the SFO involved in the botched prosecution for fraud of executives at an energy company. His findings were published just hours before the Court of Appeal in London quashed the conviction of a third former executive at the Monaco consultancy Unaoil, Stephen Whiteley, 66. The latest quashed conviction combined with the report’s findings prompted one senior white-collar crime lawyer to describe the SFO as an organisation of “lions led by donkeys”. In December, Suella Braverman QC, the attorney-general, commissioned a report from Calvert-Smith after the Court of Appeal quashed the first conviction in the Unaoil case, which involved allegations of bribery payments of $17 million. In March a second conviction in the case was quashed. ADVERTISEMENT In their rulings quashing the first two convictions, the appeal judges criticised the SFO for failing to disclose important evidence to defence lawyers. Osofsky, the SFO’s director, was also criticised for her contact with a former US Drug Enforcement Administration investigator, who was described as a “third-party fixer”. Calvert-Smith, in his report, blamed senior SFO officials involved in the Unaoil investigation for creating a situation where “no-one … was in command of all of the moving parts in what was a large and complex case”. Calvert-Smith went on to find that there had been “serious tension between SFO officials and US Federal Bureau of Investigation and DoJ [Department of Justice] officials” over the Unaoil investigation. His report said that “no one person was able to understand the extent of the different aspects of the case and the risks that these posed”. SPONSORED Calvert-Smith said that the SFO case team investigating the Unaoil case “was insufficiently staffed”, adding that “many of those working on Unaoil had other cases to deal with”. The report criticised Osofsky specifically for having used “her personal mobile phone” when contacting the so-called American fixer David Tinsley. She was also blamed for having “failed to take contemporaneous notes of meetings and conversations”. Eoin O’Shea, a senior fraud lawyer at the law firm CMS, said that “the lions led by donkeys metaphor is tempting” but it “does not capture the full picture” of the report. He said that the SFO had “suffered from very severe neglect in terms of resources and supervision. The result is a lack of institutional prestige, and an insufficiently robust culture as regards the SFO’s core role. Such a culture tends to magnify any poor judgments of the leadership.” ADVERTISEMENT Osofsky declined to respond to questions over her future after the report. Business BriefingIn-depth analysis and comment on the latest financial and economic news.One-click sign up. She said that “a new senior leadership team has prioritised investment in technology, introduced a stringent case prioritisation system and we have embedded a change programme to overhaul the SFO’s working practices and culture”. Braverman said she would update parliament on progress in November and February. Emily Thornberry, the shadow attorney-general, called on Braverman to implement in full the report’s recommendations. She said it was “vital” that the attorney-general “asks herself whether the senior managers at the SFO whose failures are exposed in this report are really the individuals best placed to repair the damage”.](https://b3935509.assetcdn.net/2.0/3935509/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/shutterstock_2175297377-scaled-e1658474066182-230x146.jpg?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1)
Report calls for shake-up at Serious Fraud Office
Lisa Osofsky’s position as Britain’s chief fraud fighter was spared after a critical report on prosecution failures called for an overhaul of processes at the Serious Fraud Office but not for her head.
Supermarkets accused of exploiting fuel prices for ‘blatant profiteering’
The cost of petrol will stay at £1.80 a litre or more unless supermarkets cut their artificially high prices, a fuel campaign group has warned.
British Business Investments commits €50m to Wilshire through its Managed Funds Programme
British Business Investments, a wholly-owned commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank, today announces a commitment of up to €25 million to Wilshire’s European Venture Capital Fund II through its Managed Funds Programme.
Lord Sugar faces call to clarify UK tax status after £160M dividend payment
Alan Sugar is under pressure to clarify his tax status in the UK after he took a leave of absence from the House of Lords and paid himself a £390m dividend.
Starling Bank hits first full year profits at £32m
Starling Bank revealed it has hit its first full year profits today as the digital lender swings into the black from a £30m loss last year.
Rise in insurance fraud fuelled by cost of living crisis
A growing number of financially squeezed households are “turning to crime” by submitting bogus insurance claims, with data revealing a sharp rise in cases over the past year.
Inheritance Tax Receipts reach £1.8 billion in three months to June
The latest figures from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) show that the inheritance tax receipts they received increased by £300 million to £1.8bn in the three months period of April 2022 to June 2022.
Borrowers at risk of Morses payout cut
Morses Club has signalled that it could cut compensation payouts to borrowers after it became the latest sub-prime lender to warn that its future is threatened by customer complaints over mis-sold loans.
Security fears as government bans Chinese firm buying Manchester University vision sensors
The government has blocked Manchester University from selling vision-sensing technology to a Chinese firm over national security fears.
Covid cases triple and hospital cases double as hyper-infectious Omicron drive new wave
The World Health Organisation said this afternoon that Coronavirus cases have tripled across Europe in the past six weeks, accounting for nearly half of infections globally.
