The recovery of missing British Museum artefacts is under way, George Osborne, the institution’s chair of trustees, has said as he apologised over the scandal that has engulfed the museum, and admitted that its reputation had been damaged.
About 2,000 items are believed to be missing, Osborne told the BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the day after the organisation’s head resigned and his deputy stepped back.
Hartwig Fischer said on Friday he accepted responsibility for the museum’s failure to properly respond to warnings about the suspected thefts of thousands of objects in 2021. A police investigation has been launched.
Osborne said he doubted a “cover-up” had taken place over the suspected thefts, but acknowledged that an inquiry might still reach that conclusion. “I don’t myself believe there was a deliberate cover-up, although the review may find that to be the case,” he said. “But was there some potential groupthink in the museum at the time, at the very top of the museum, that couldn’t believe an insider was stealing things, couldn’t believe a member of staff was doing this? Yes, that’s very possible, and we won’t be the only institution that has fallen foul to that.”
Admitting that the museum did not have a complete catalogue of its collection, he said that a new storage facility in the Thames Valley was planned, but acknowledged this issue put the museum’s security at risk. “Someone with knowledge has an advantage in removing some of those items,” he said.
Following Fischer’s resignation, Osborne said the director had “acted honourably” and that “no one has ever doubted Hartwig’s integrity, his dedication to his job, or his love for the museum”.
The museum said Fischer would step down “with immediate effect”, but later clarified he would step down once an interim leadership arrangement was in place. It was then announced that the museum’s deputy director, Jonathan Williams, had agreed to voluntarily step back until the independent review into the suspected thefts had concluded.
The chair of trustees defended the British Museum after the scandal led to an outcry from nations that have been campaigning for the institution to return its artefacts. The development has led Greek officials to renew their demands for the return of the Parthenon marbles, while Nigerian officials have also called for the return of looted treasures.
Asked about whether the suspected thefts, and the museum’s response to them, invalidated its argument that other countries’ institutions could not be trusted to care for their treasures properly, Osborne said it was a “statement of the obvious” that the saga had been damaging to the institution’s reputation.
But he added that many large museums were “potential victims to this kind of theft”. “Our responsibility now is to make sure we really have learned the lessons so that this kind of thing is much harder, much less likely to happen in the future,” he said.
He defended its collection of ancient artefacts from around the world, describing the museum as a “source of great national pride” despite the scandal. The museum has long faced criticism for refusing to return looted objects, including the Rosetta Stone, the Benin bronzes and the Gweagal shield. “It’s a place where you can see all the civilisations together, and there are very few places like that in the world.
“Just because it would have been impossible to assemble that collection today, doesn’t make it illegitimate – I would say it makes it invaluable. In an age where we’re always being reminded of what divides us, it’s a place that reminds us of what we have in common.”
The average cost of an annual household energy bill in Great Britain has dropped below £2,000 for the first time in 18 months, but that average masks the fact that some people – and particularly the poorest – will see the amount they pay for energy rise compared to last winter.
Everybody acknowledges the price cap system is broken. Chris Hayes, a senior analyst at Common Wealth, a left-of-centre thinktank, said:
The Ofgem price cap regulates the selection of deckchairs on offer to the passengers of the Titanic. Its original purposes was to prevent retailers from exploiting consumer inertia by companies stealthily raising their default tariffs.
Today it simply caps how much of the pain from elevated wholesale prices retailers can pass onto consumers versus energy suppliers absorbing the shock themselves. Meanwhile, the wholesale energy market is governed by catastrophic dysfunction — not least by electricity prices being set by the price of gas. This system needlessly copy-pastes the soaring prices in the 40% of our electricity mix coming from gas, onto the remaining 60%. This will plunge us back into crisis the next time gas prices spike.
But what will replace the price cap – and when – is totally unclear, as the Guardian’s Alex Lawson writes.
Even the energy regulator presiding over the cap, Ofgem’s Jonathan Brearley, has admitted the mechanism is “very broad and crude” and has called on ministers to implement a “more rigorous framework” to protect consumers. But the next step looks far from simple and the government does not appear to be giving the problem much thought.
The cap, originally introduced to prevent loyal customers who did not switch supplier from paying more, appears to be the wrong tool for today’s crisis. As energy prices increased, it held prices down, and was blamed for sending 29 suppliers bust, leaving consumers with a £2.7bn tab. At the same time, it is set too high to help the estimated 6m households who simply cannot afford to properly heat their homes.
It is rare to have debt campaigners and thinktanks associated with the Tory right singing from the same hymn sheet, but they have found common cause in calling for social tariffs: subsidised tariffs for households who cannot afford to pay the full whack.
But that comes with political problems as well. You can read Alex’s full analysis here:
In other business and economics news today:
The UK and India hope to be able to complete a free trade agreement as soon as this year, according to India’s finance minister.
Union leaders have called for Wilko’s 12,500 employees to be prioritised, after a deal that could have rescued jobs at the ailing budget chain was rejected because its debt holders could recoup more from a break-up of the business.
A “significant minority” of landlords and letting agents may not be following consumer protection rules, according to the UK’s competition watchdog, which raised concerns including complaints about onerous guarantees, discrimination against certain types of tenants and fees charged to older people entering retirement housing.
Farmers in England are being left without crucial nature recovery payments and unsure of what to plant after delays to a post-Brexit scheme.
Germany’s economy may be heading for the third quarterly contraction in 12 months after weak economic sentiment data.
You can continue to follow the Guardian’s live coverage from around the world:
In our coverage of the Russian war on Ukraine, the Kremlin says it is an “absolute lie” it was behind plane crash and refuses to confirm Prigozhin’s death
In the US, Donald Trump is defiant after surrendering on election interference charges
In the UK, Tory frustration with Nadine Dorries grows as a former party whip calls for clarity
Thank you for following our live coverage of business, economics and financial markets this week. Please do join us bright and early on Tuesday (after the UK’s bank holiday) for more. JJ
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Union leaders have called for Wilko’s 12,500 employees to be prioritised, after a deal that could have rescued jobs at the ailing budget chain was rejected because its debt holders could recoup more from a break-up of the business.
Doug Putman, the Canadian entrepreneur who rescued HMV from administration in 2019 and returned it to profit, is understood to have been attempting to take on at least 200 of the group’s 400 outlets and continue operating them under the Wilko brand, saving jobs and helping keep orders flowing for suppliers.
Sources said that Putman had been in talks with Wilko’s administrators at PwC for at least two weeks but his offer could not match the cash raised from liquidating the chain’s assets, including its leaseholds and stock. Wilko’s biggest creditor is restructuring specialist Hilco, which loaned the company £40m shortly before it went bust.
There is an interesting move on the FTSE 250 today: retailer Watches of Switzerland has lost a fifth of its value after Swiss watch brand Rolex bought a rival retailer Bucherer.
Bucherer said it was selling because of owner Jörg Bucherer’s choice to sell the business, given he has no direct descendants to carry on the company. However, analysts said it could pose problems for the UK-based retailer, Watches of Switzerland, for whom Rolex is a key supplier.
Jonathan Pritchard of Peel Hunt, an investment bank, wrote:
Rolex suggests that its relationship with Bucherer will not change and it will remain independent. That is almost impossible to believe: for example, there are 48 stores that do not sell Rolex: that may change.
If our suspicion is right and the shape of global Rolex allocations evolves, it is unlikely to be a positive for WOS: around 50% of its sales are Rolex, so other brands will have to step up but sentiment will be harmed.
Eleonora Dani, an analyst at Shore Capital, another investment bank, said it was a “significant shift in the landscape as Rolex takes ownership of a company with which it has maintained a close and mutually beneficial relationship for nearly a century.
However, the deal could raise competition regulators’ interest, she added.
It looks like stock markets on Wall Street are going to gain ground to end the week, ahead of an important speech by Federal Reserve governor Jerome Powell.
Futures trades indicate the Nasdaq will gain 0.4%, and the Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 will gain 0.5% apiece.
The Chinese property industry has been in crisis mode for more than a year, to the point that some analysts think the bursting of the bubble will derail growth. For the companies who grew rapidly during the boom years, the pain keeps on coming.
The latest development is that the second-largest private property developer is on the verge of losing its coveted investment-grade rating from credit ratings agency Moody’s.
Reuters reports:
Moody’s downgraded China’s second-largest private property firm Longfor’s credit ratings to Baa3, the lowest rung of investment grade, on Friday and put it “on review” for a further downgrade.
“The rating downgrade reflects our expectation that Longfor’s credit metrics and liquidity buffer will decline amid slowing contracted sales, continual margin pressure and still constrained funding access to the debt capital markets,” said Kaven Tsang, a Moody’s senior vice president.
“The review for (another) downgrade reflects high uncertainties over the company’s ability to improve its operating performance and recover its access to funding amid uncertain market prospects and volatile funding conditions”.
Other companies who are struggling include Evergrande, whose US arm filed for bankruptcy protection last week, and a host of smaller developers who are hoping against hope that the Chinese government will step in to bail them out.
The UK and India hope to be able to complete a free trade agreement as soon as this year, according to India’s finance minister.
Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said further talks will be carried out as the two sides try to reach an agreement, Reuters reported. Speaking at an industry conference in New Delhi, Sitharaman said:
I won’t be wrong in saying a free trade agreement with UK is very close.
India was once a British colony but the world’s most populous country has a fast-growing economy that has drawn the attention of some British politicians hoping to provide an economic boost after the Brexit vote.
UK business and trade secretary Kemi Badenoch is in India for a meeting of G20 trade ministers, and is expected to continue talks over a deal.
However, those talks are likely to be problematic for some of Badenoch’s colleagues in the Conservative party if they include liberalisation of immigration rules. Home secretary Suella Braverman last year expressed “reservations” about Britain’s trade deal with India because it could increase immigration to the UK.
The ups and downs of global energy prices have an obvious impact on household budgets but, as a new piece of research shows, they also affect the big picture macro economy.
A point made consistently by the Bank of England last year was that Britain had became a poorer country as a result of the sky-rocketing cost of gas and that we all had to suck it up.
The message from the Bank of England to workers as they contemplated putting in wage demands to protect their living standards was that the UK’s terms of trade had worsened because import prices were rising faster than export prices. There was no point in seeking compensatory pay awards because they would simply lead to a wage-price spiral.
Threadneedle Street’s governor, Andrew Bailey, and its chief economist, Huw Pill, both got into hot water for making this point.
That was then. As an interesting piece of research by Gerald Holtham and Michael Roberts of the consultancy Independent Economics points out, the adverse terms of trade shock was short-lived and – due to falling global energy prices – has now been more than reversed. As a result, they say, there is no need for workers to continue seeing their living standards eroded. It is not only possible but desirable for wages to rise more quickly than prices.
Real wages are down 4.5%, but there has been no enduring terms of trade loss. By all accounts labour markets are tight, so there is no reason to expect the share of wages to fall to such an extent.
It must be expected, therefore, that increases in average earnings will run ahead of price increases for some time. Calling for wage restraint to lower inflation at this juncture is simply a demand for wage cuts.
Octopus Energy is reportedly in “detailed talks” to buy Shell’s UK household energy supply business, as the oil company seeks to end its short-lived foray into the sector.
Shell started supplying energy directly to UK households for the first time after a 2017 takeover, but it put the business up for sale in January after a period in which retail suppliers have struggled to make money amid a global energy crisis.
Octopus has become the frontrunner in talks to take over the business, but other companies are still in contention, Sky News reported on Friday.
A takeover would further entrench Octopus’s position as one of the biggest suppliers after a rapid expansion that has included taking on customers of Bulb, a rival that collapsed during the crisis.
Octopus declined to comment. Shell declined to comment to Sky News.
This chart shows just how unusual the last two years have been in the energy market.
Ofgem’s price cap for British households would have risen to more than £4,000 last winter, had the government not finally stepped in with the energy price guarantee. It has finally dipped back below £2,000. Yet it still remains far above the average before the crisis.
But for many it does not represent much of a let-up in the pressures on them. These data from Citizens Advice show how the problems pile up: as the crisis has continued energy debt levels from those who asked for advice on debt have risen to more than £1,700 – £500 more than before the pandemic.
The UK is not the only economy struggling with inflation: Germany’s economy is showing signs of weakening as well, according to new data.
The Ifo business climate index, which has long tracked the fortunes of Europe’s largest economy, fell to 85.7 for August, down from 87.4 in July. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast an August reading of 86.7.
The data “strongly suggests that the German economy will contract again in the third quarter after stabilising in the second”, said Andrew Kenningham, chief Europe economist at Capital Economics.
The downturn is broad-based, encompassing all the major sectors, i.e., manufacturing, services, retail and construction.
This chart from Melanie Debono, senior Europe economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, shows how the Ifo index is a good predictor of German GDP – which in this case is bad news for the Germany economy.
Clemens Fuest, president of the Ifo Institute, said:
Sentiment among German managers has darkened further. This is [the] fourth consecutive fall. Assessments of the current situation fell to their lowest level since August 2020.
Moreover, companies are increasingly pessimistic about the months ahead. The German economy is not out of the woods yet.
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A woman filmed kicking and striking a pony during a hunt has been cleared of animal cruelty charges.
The RSPCA brought a private prosecution after Sarah Moulds, 39, disciplined the animal in Lincolnshire in 2021.
Ms Moulds and supporters wept as she was cleared of two charges at Lincoln Crown Court.
Afterwards, she criticised the RSPCA, saying it had been "pressured" to act by "online bullies and ill-informed high-profile individuals".
Ms Moulds faced two charges under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, namely causing unnecessary suffering to the pony and not taking reasonable steps to protect the animal from pain, suffering, injury or disease.
The court heard differing veterinary opinions about how much pain and fear the pony might have suffered.
Ms Moulds, from Somerby, near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, said she intended to "briefly shock" the animal but denied losing her temper and insisted the force used was appropriate.
She told the court her life had been "torn to pieces" by the case, having lost her job as a teacher, and that she had received death threats.
After a three-day trial and just over five hours of deliberation, the jury of 11 men and one woman cleared Ms Moulds.
Recorder Graham Huston, addressing the jury, said: "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much. I know it was not an easy case, no case is easy, but some cases are more difficult than others.
"What is obvious is you gave this case the utmost attention and you proceeded with your deliberations carefully and thoroughly and I am very grateful to you."
'Immediately chastised'
The court had heard Ms Moulds had made "minimal contact" with the pony, which she still owned, and that there were no signs of external or internal injury following the incident, which took place in The Drift, Gunby, on 6 November 2021.
Ms Moulds had been riding with children as part of the Cottesmore Hunt - one of Britain's oldest foxhound packs.
One of her own animals, called Bruce Almighty, pulled away from a child but quickly returned.
As the pony returned, the court was told Ms Moulds "immediately chastised him".
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A hunt saboteur filmed Ms Moulds kicking the horse in the chest and slapping him four times in the face before returning him to the horse box.
Ms Moulds said: "In that moment [Bruce] has done something incredibly dangerous and, in that exact moment, I decided that the right thing to do was discipline him quickly.
"In reality, in that moment, it was four seconds. My intention was then, and always was, to discipline Bruce in the moment so that he does not do it again.
"There was minimal contact and it was so quick and so short."
A police officer is in a critical condition in hospital after being hit by a train as he attempted to save a distressed man on the tracks.
Nottinghamshire Police were called to a residential area in Balderton at about 19:00 BST on Thursday over concerns for a man's safety.
The force said one of its officers was hit by the train during the incident, while a man suffered non life-threatening electrocution injuries.
They both remain in hospital.
'Extremely traumatic'
British Transport Police (BTP), which is leading the investigation, said it happened on the line near Newark Northgate station.
"Officers attended alongside paramedics, where one man was found to have sustained non life-threatening electrocution injuries, and another man, a Nottinghamshire police officer, had sustained life-changing injuries and sadly remains in a critical condition," a BTP spokesperson said.
"British Transport Police is continuing to make inquiries into the incident."
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Nottinghamshire Police said the injured officer had been taken to the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham.
Chief Constable Kate Meynell said: "This is a truly devastating incident that has left one of our officers very poorly in hospital. We are supporting his family and ensuring that he gets all the care and support he needs.
"This was also extremely traumatic for all those who attended the scene, some of whom provided immediate medical assistance while the ambulance was on its way.
"I would like to personally thank them for their quick and dedicated response to this incident."
Simon Riley, chair of the Nottinghamshire Police Federation, said the organisation's thoughts were "very much with our injured colleague and his family".
He added: "We are supporting a number of officers involved in the incident and will continue to do everything we can to support all of our members at this time."
Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service also expressed sympathy for the officer.
In a post on X - formerly Twitter - a spokesperson said: "Our thoughts are with the family, friends, and colleagues of our fellow emergency responder."
Newark MP Robert Jenrick added: "My thoughts and prayers are with the police officer critically injured in the line of duty at Newark station.
"Terrible incidents such as this remind us of the bravery of those serving in Nottinghamshire Police and police forces across the country.
"Risking your life to try to save someone else is the epitome of public service."
Three men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after a man was found dead in a "targeted attack".
Donald Patience was found at a house on Ainsworth Road in Radcliffe, Bury, at about 10:30 BST on Tuesday, by police responding to reports of a dog being stolen.
The 45-year old was declared dead at the scene, police said.
Two men, aged 27 and 41, have been bailed pending further inquires and a 39-year-old man is in police custody.
Greater Manchester Police said a post-mortem examination concluded Mr Patience's death was suspicious.
His family said he was "a much-loved son, brother and father" who will be "sorely missed by many" and was "affectionately known as Prentice".
'Beloved labradoodle'
Officers have appealed to the public who may have seen or heard anything "unusual" earlier in the week in and around the area.
Det Ch Insp Rachel Smith said: "I would like to reassure the local public, as I understand there will be alarm when finding out about this, but we are confident it is a targeted attack.
"We are also looking for people who may know Donald, have seen him walking his beloved white labradoodle in the local area or have any knowledge of any activity at or near his address."
A toddler has died after being found injured and unresponsive at a house.
The two-year-old boy was found by emergency services at a house on Central Drive in Blackpool at about 11:00 BST on Saturday, police said.
He was taken to hospital where he died two days later.
A man in his 30s was arrested at the house and appeared before Blackpool Magistrates' Court on Monday charged with wounding. He was remanded into custody.
Police, who have only just revealed details of the incident, said they would speak to the Crown Prosecution Service about potential further charges as the investigation continues.
A couple who “acted as judge, jury and executioner” have received life sentences for the murder of a Wigan man they accused of rape.
Liam Smith, 38, was shot in the face at point-blank range on 24 November last year by a Sheffield drug dealer, Michael Hillier, 39, who then poured sulfuric acid on his victim in order to “seek justice” for his partner, who claimed Smith had raped her in 2019.
Rachel Fulstow, 37, from York, denied knowing about the attack on Smith until afterwards, when she was too scared to come forward, she said.
Hillier and Fulstow were sentenced at Manchester’s Minshull Street crown court on Thursday to a minimum of 33 and 30 years respectively for plotting and carrying out the murder.
Judge Greene described it as a “brutal and cold-blooded” murder. “It was decided between you; you would exact your own vengeance,” he told them. “The two of you decided to act as judge, jury and executioner.”
Addressing Fulstow, Greene said it was “almost incomprehensible” that she acted the way she did. “Whatever happened between you and Liam Smith can never be justification for what you and Michael Hillier did.”
As they were led from the dock, shouts of “monsters” and “scum” could be heard from the public gallery. Smith’s family said they had been devastated by his murder and the accusation levelled against him.
His sister Gemma read a victim impact statement before the sentencing. She said: “To ever refer to Liam as my brother does not do him justice. He was my rock, the one constant person in life who had my back. We always looked out for each other no matter what. The one person I could depend on.
“This murder has absolutely broken me. He was such a kind-hearted soul and would literally do anything for anyone. He would literally give the shirt off his back.”
She added: “It’s inhumane. No family should have to go through this. Liam was robbed not only of his life, but his dignity. On every single level, our lives have been destroyed.
“I love you so much, Liam, and always will. You did not deserve this. I’m so, so sorry.”
During the trial, the court heard how Hillier and Fulstow went on holiday to Jamaica together in the days after the killing, leaving police to piece together what had happened to Smith in a case involving what they described at the time as a “sickening display of violence”.
After two dozen house searches and numerous public appeals, the couple were tracked down and arrested in January this year.
DCI Gina Brennand, of Greater Manchester police’s major incident team, described the case as “a proper whodunnit from the start”.
“I had a victim that we knew nothing about,” she explained. “No witnesses, no suspects, no weapon, no motive, and very little evidence to go on.”
She said her thoughts were with Smith’s family. “They will never ever get over this tragedy, nor should they be expected to, and the actions of Michael and Rachel were nothing short of despicable.”
