News

LONDON (Reuters) - Big domestic banks need to raise as much as 750 billion pounds in the next three years to support balance sheets and liquidity as the government prepares to wind down support for the sector, analysts said. The banks have shown they can stand on their own feet in the bond markets over the past year, raising billions of euros wi...

Northern travel organisation Nexus is set to overhaul its website as it looks to implement new technology to improve its services and schedules for customers. Orange Bus, the Newcastle and London digital company, has won two tenders to handle the overhaul of the site which could include the introduction of realtime data into its operation. Th...

HSBC has put its train leasing company up for sale with a £2 billion price tag. The bank’s decision to auction off its rail division now — after shelving a sale in 2008 — signals a significant improvement in the buyout market, which has been bolstered by new bank lending recently. Private equity insiders said that Brid...

As Toyota Motor Corp. embarks on what many experts believe will be a long journey toward rebuilding its reputation for top quality, the company's status as the model for lean manufacturing also has come into question. Did Toyota lose focus on core lean values such as continuous improvement? Did the company become too focused on lean? Is it possi...

MORE firms are expected to challenge the public procurement process under new rules being introduced to the tendering regime, according to a Scots lawyer. The new rules enhance the remedies potentially available to tenderers, greatly increasing the risks facing public-sector buyers who make mistakes. Michael Dean, partner in the EU and Competit...

The axe hangs over Business Link Shadow enterprise minister Mark Prisk has added his voice to the debate over the future of Business Link. Should the Tories get into power later this year, would-be small-business minister Prisk says that one of his first acts would be to scrap the organisation. “We believe that Business Link is f...

The Northern Wind Innovation Programme (NWIP) has announced the names of companies participating in newly formed consortia set to benefit from a share of £3 million,. Specifically aimed at stimulating innovation and technological developments for the offshore wind industry in the North of England. The Northern Wind Innovation Programme,...

Graduate job hunters will be interested to hear that the number of permanent staff placements grew for the sixth consecutive month in January 2010, while the figure for job vacancies was at its highest since July 2007. The statistics from the Report on Jobs from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation and KPMG showed the outlook for graduat...

Working in customer service is never easy. People can be difficult, nay, impossible at times. But if there is one small rule, especially in this day of rampant networks with nothing better to do than be social, it's the one that says "don't insult the customer." This rule seems not to have been followed by one customer service represen...

Rise in management recruitment   A survey has found that recruitment for managerial positions is on the rise across the world. International firm Antal found that in a poll of 6,151 companies in major employment markets, over half (53 per cent) were actively recruiting. In addition, the percentage of organisations planning to hire in t...