Other News In Brief

BBC Journalists Asked For Money-Making Ideas

BBC World Service journalists have been asked to come up with money-making ideas to help increase revenues for the corporation's international services, leading to fears over editorial independence.

Peter Horrocks, the director of BBC World News, has sent an email to the 2,400 staff working in the division, which includes the World Service, BBC World News channel and BBC.com, telling them they need to consider income and exploit new commercial opportunities to maximise the value they create with their journalism.

Horrocks' email lists income as one of the four objectives as staff must consider when they prepare for upcoming appraisal meetings with their managers.

"I would like each of you to contribute to the delivery of these objectives ... let us know if you have any ideas on how we can strengthen our commercial focus and grow income ... these objectives apply to all parts of Global News: editorial and non-editorial as no matter where you work you can help meet these objectives," Horrocks wrote.

Unite Attack RBS Boss For Ongoing Job Cuts

Unite national officer David Fleming said: "It is the workforce at Royal Bank of Scotland who are working around the clock to resolve the problems customers are facing. Yet RBS management has slashed 30,000 staff, imposed a pay cut and decimated the pensions of those dedicated staff who are now working hard to resolve the problems."

"Serious questions must be asked as to why constant job cuts are being made when there are clearly serious issues which need addressing by management. Customers and staff have the right to expect more from their bank.

"Unite, on behalf of the staff who have given up their evenings and weekend to address the problems, will demand answers as to why staffing levels are being cut at a time of considerable problems within the bank," Fleming said.

More UK Stores Face Failure

The figurehead of the UK's insolvency industry has warned that a new batch of retailers could be forced into administration as the high street attempts to trade through one of the most financially stressful weeks of the year.

The forecast by Lee Manning, the president of the insolvency industry's trade body, R3, comes as shopkeepers attempt to pay their landlords three months' advance rent on their stores, a bill that became due on Sunday in a deadline known as "rent quarter day".

"Rent quarter day is typically the time when [struggling] retailers go into administration," Manning said. "Retailers are committed to meeting three months of obligations on their stores, while they often have pressure on cashflow at the end of the month from the payroll and maybe a VAT bill too."