Joshua Wong and other leading activists arrested in Hong Kong protest crackdown August 30, 2019 Three leading pro-democracy activists have been arrested in Hong Kong as part of a clampdown by authorities on the ongoing political protests that have plunged the city into its worst crisis in decades. Joshua Wong and Agnes Chow, former student leaders of the pro-democracy protests Hong Kong saw in 2014, were arrested on Friday. Police [...]
Watchdog opens door to PPI deadline reprieve as customers battle technical issues August 28, 2019 The regulator responsible for overseeing PPI claims has hinted that providers could extend tomorrow’s deadline if technical difficulties prevent customers from complaining about mis-sold policies. Consumers have to lodge claims with the provider that sold them the PPI policy, but people have complained of being unable to make claims with providers due to problems with [...]
Natwest customers wrestle with IT issues as PPI deadline looms August 28, 2019 Natwest customers have complained of being unable to make PPI claims ahead of tomorrow’s deadline for lodging complaints about mis-sold plans. Customers took to Twitter to express their frustration at not being able to make claims. “The [Natwest] website is down, personal banking on-line system is down and the PPI call line system is malfunctioning! [...]
One day to go until the PPI deadline: How to make a PPI claim August 28, 2019 Consumers are rushing to make last-minute PPI claims as tomorrow’s deadline looms. Here’s how to get your claim submitted before the cut-off time of 11.59pm on 29 August. What is PPI? PPI – or Payment Protection Insurance – was intended to cover loan repayments if the person who took out the loan became unable to [...]
Profit slips at flooring specialist Headlam but sales in recovery August 28, 2019 Europe’s largest floor coverings distributor, Headlam, has reported a fall in pre-tax profit for the first half of the year, as it struggled with a subdued UK residential market and higher costs. The figures Headlam saw pre-tax profit drop to £15.97m for the first half, down from £16.42m for the same period last year. Total [...]
WH Smith boosted by ‘strong’ performance of travel stores August 28, 2019 WH Smith said today it is on track to meet full-year expectations, helped by a strong performance in its travel stores. Read more: Shoppers rank their least favourite UK high street stores The stationer and convenience store retailer said in a trading update that its travel business – stores at stations, airports, hospitals, and service [...]
Three in 10 FTSE 100 companies cut executive pensions as investor pressure mounts August 28, 2019 Three in 10 FTSE 100 companies have pledged to cut their executives’ pension payments in response to pressure from shareholders, as new data reveals that investor rebellions are on the rise. Research published today by the Investment Association shows that 30 companies on the index have made significant changes to executive pensions during this year’s [...]
Johnson & Johnson fined $572m in landmark ruling over opioid crisis August 27, 2019 Johnson & Johnson has been ordered to pay $572m (£467m) in compensation over its role in fueling Oklahoma’s opioid crisis by deceptively marketing addictive painkillers, a US court has ruled. Judge Thad Balkman ruled after a seven-week trial that the pharmaceutical giant had run a “false and dangerous” marketing campaign that fueled America’s opioid epidemic. [...]
Hey up, Siri: BBC to launch ‘Beeb’ voice assistant that recognises regional accents August 27, 2019 The BBC is preparing to launch a digital voice assistant next year that will be trained to recognise different regional accents from across the UK. The new assistant will not be a hardware device, but will be built into the BBC’s website and will also work across smart speakers, TVs and mobile phones. Read more: [...]
China says it is ‘resolutely opposed’ to G7 Hong Kong statement August 27, 2019 China’s foreign ministry has said that Beijing is “resolutely opposed” to a statement issued from the G7 summit that referred to the ongoing political protests in Hong Kong. The statement, issued by France at the end of the summit, said the G7 group of countries “reaffirms the existence and importance of the Sino-British Joint Declaration [...]