Private Healthcare: Patients 'Paying Too Much'

An investigation by the Competition Commission (CC) has found most patients pay too much for private healthcare.

The provisional findings of the inquiry into the £5.5bn sector - dominated by three firms - could lead to the sell-off of up to 20 individual hospitals to boost competition, the CC said.

It found that a lack of choice in local areas across the UK meant private patients were having to pay higher private medical insurance premiums than would otherwise be the case.

The CC said the three major players' dominance caused "consumer detriment" of £173m to £193m annually between 2009 and 2011.

It identified 101 hospitals which it said faced little local competition, some of them clusters of hospitals under the common ownership of one of the major groups - BMI, Spire and HCA - which were found to have earned high profits in recent years.

It said competition was being hampered by high costs, the response from existing operators and flat demand and the lack of choice meant insurers had little choice but to use the incumbent operator - meaning higher premiums for all patients.

Patients who funded their own care were also hit with higher charges in areas with little competition, the CC concluded.

The regulator found HCA charges significantly higher prices to insurers than other operators, with BMI the next most expensive for insurers.

The Competition Commission found high barriers to private market entry

The CC's findings - which now go out to consultation - followed a market referral by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).

It had discovered that some parts of the country, such as Edinburgh, Exeter and Hull, only had one private hospital or healthcare facility.

The OFT said it believed the industry "could work better for patients" and reduced choice could also have an impact on the quality of patient care.

The Commission ruled that incentives to doctors could also be slashed and private hospitals barred from further tie-ups with NHS hospitals in areas where there is little competition.

CC Chairman and Chairman of the Private Healthcare Inquiry Group Roger Witcomb said: "Curing these ills and trying to get a better deal for patients is not going to be straightforward.

"High costs and other factors mean that new competing facilities are not going to spring up so we may look to increase competition and require sales of hospitals to other operators where we can.

"We will also look at ways that will stop hospital operators using local strength in one area as leverage in their negotiations nationally.

"Although many patients don't pay directly for the services as they do in other markets, we think that greater comparable information of the sort that is available elsewhere would help drive greater competition on price and quality, potentially improving both.

"We now want to discuss which of these measures and in what form will be most effective in bringing about the change this market needs," he added.

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Forward Guidance: BoE's Carney Defends Policy

The governor of the Bank of England has defended giving "forward guidance" on UK monetary policy, saying it will help secure the scale and duration of economic recovery.

In a highly anticipated first public speech since taking the role, Mark Carney set out to reassure the City on the wisdom of his move to keep the base rate of interest at its current record low of 0.5% until unemployment falls to 7% or below.

He told an audience of business leaders in Nottingham: "Rates won't go up until jobs and incomes are really growing.

Mark Carney confirmed plans to unlock bank lending in future

"The knowledge that interest rates will stay low until the recovery is well established should give greater confidence to households to spend responsibly and businesses to invest wisely."

The guidance, set out earlier this month, also contained a series of caveats that caught investors by surprise.

It prompted fears that the base rate might rise sooner than expected, sending bond yields up and share prices lower.

But Mr Carney said: "We do not intend even to consider raising it before unemployment falls to 7%."

He also unveiled new plans to bolster bank lending by another £90bn.

Facing mounting criticism over stringent demands for lenders to bolster their financial reserves, Mr Carney said all banks and building societies that meet new capital requirements would be allowed to reduce asset holdings elsewhere on their balance sheets.

The governor said the bank was watching for evidence of a property bubble

This would, the governor said, reduce holdings by £90bn once all eight major banks and building societies met the capital rules.

"That will help to underpin the supply of credit, since every pound currently held in liquid assets is a pound that could be lent to the real economy," he insisted.

Mr Carney reiterated assurances he had previously given Sky News about the housing market recovery, saying that policymakers were "acutely aware" of the risk of another price bubble and he vowed to step in and take action to rein in Britain's resurgent property market if needed.

He said lenders could be asked to restrict borrowing terms or even be forced to hold more cash on their balance sheets to dampen down an overheated property market, which some fear is beginning to emerge as a result of schemes such as Help To Buy and improved credit conditions alongside low mortgage rates.

Simon Walker, director general of the Institute of Directors said: "The Governor's speech was detailed, measured and, most of all, it was reassuring.

"Businesses will take comfort from his commitment to low interest rates and his confidence in the nature of the economic recovery."

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Struggling G4S Lures Misys Finance Chief

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The troubled security contractor G4S will on Wednesday mount a fightback against its escalating problems when its chief executive unveils the first clues about his strategy for the company and announces the appointment of a new finance director.

Sky News has learnt that G4S plans to name Himanshu Raja, a troubleshooter who helped to overhaul the balance sheets of BT Global Services and Logica during periods of corporate difficulty, as its next chief financial officer.

The announcement will come alongside half-year results which the City anticipates will underline the scale of the challenges facing the group.

Mr Raja will join from Misys, the financial software provider that was taken private by Vista Equity Partners last year, just six months after his appointment.

He is understood to have decided that the challenge of helping to reshape G4S, one of the world's largest private sector employers, was too big to turn down, and is expected to join within months.

The new finance chief will report to G4S's new chief executive, Ashley Almanza, who was himself only drafted into his current role in June.

Mr Almanza's arrival, initially as the finance director, followed a series of episodes which had damaged the company's reputation, the most notable of which was the failure to fulfil the terms of a contract to provide security staff at last year's London Olympic Games.

The fiasco resulted in Mr Almanza's predecessor Nick Buckles enduring a humiliating session in front of MPs on the home affairs select committee, and a £70m loss for G4S.

More recently, the group has been attacked by the Justice Secretary Chris Grayling over its alleged overcharging of the taxpayer for the provision of electronic tagging services.

Mr Grayling said this month that both G4S and Serco, another company implicated in the situation, would have to undertake a process of "corporate renewal" if they wished to be considered for future public sector contracts. G4S, which is being probed by the Serious Fraud Office over the issue, eventually withdrew from the bidding to renew its deal.

City analysts believe that Mr Almanza may indicate plans to launch a cash call that would see investors tapped for hundreds of millions of pounds of new capital, as well as a slimming-down of G4S through a string of disposals.

"The key question to our minds is how the company plans to deleverage, with disposals likely to be the preferred route albeit we do not think an equity rights issue can be fully discounted at this stage," said Mike Allen, an analyst at Panmure Gordon

One person close to the company said on Tuesday that Mr Almanza's more detailed outlook for G4S would not emerge until later this year but leading investors have pledged to support him on the basis of his strong track record in previous jobs.

The new boss has also had to contend in recent weeks with the arrival of Cevian Capital, one of Europe's most notorious activist investment funds, on G4S's share register.

Cevian Capital's UK operation is chaired by Lord Myners, the former City Minister who has been critical of the "absentee landlord" status of City fund managers. The Sunday Times reported at the weekend that Cevian was seeking to double its 5% stake in G4S.

The security giant, whose shares closed down 0.2% on Tuesday, declined to comment on Mr Raja's appointment.

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HS2 'A Grand Folly' Says Business Group

HS2 Network 'Could Cost £80bn'

Updated: 10:51am UK, Sunday 18 August 2013

The cost of the new High Speed 2 rail network will be £80bn, double the current estimate, according to a new report.

The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) says the plan "defies economic logic" and is calling for the project to be cancelled.

The Department for Transport's official estimate currently stands at £43bn  - a rise from its original figure of £33bn.

The think tank argues that the £80bn price tag could deliver £320bn of value if spent on road and other rail and transport projects.

Work on the first leg between London and Birmingham is due to begin in 2017.

The report's author Dr Richard Welling said: "It's time the Government abandoned its plans to proceed with HS2.

"The evidence is now overwhelming that this will be unbelievably costly to the taxpayer while delivering incredibly poor value for money."

A spokesman for the DfT said: "HS2 is absolutely vital for this country, providing a huge economic boost which will generate a return on investment that will continue paying back for generations to come.

"Without it the key rail routes connecting London, the Midlands and the North will be overwhelmed. HS2 will provide the capacity needed in a way that will generate hundreds of thousands of jobs and billions of pounds worth of economic benefits.

"The Government is committed to managing the cost within the budget we have set for the project and to securing maximum value for money for the taxpayer, while also ensuring that preparations are properly made for the most significant infrastructure investment the UK has seen in modern times."

The IEA's 58-page report on the cost will be published on Monday.

Meanwhile campaigners are claiming that more than half a million people across Middle England will have their lives affected by the construction of the project.

The Campaign for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) is warning that life in towns and villages up to 25 miles from the rail route will be disrupted by the movement of construction vehicles while the line is being built.

The organisation is publishing its analysis of the impact of the project, in the form of a series of maps, based on information it has obtained from HS2.

According to advance details released to The Mail on Sunday, towns along a 40-mile wide corridor - such as Thame in Oxfordshire, Princes Risborough and Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire, and Leamington Spa in Warwickshire - will be affected by the millions of extra lorry journeys.

When it is built, some of the country's most tranquil areas will be blighted by train noise of up to 95 decibels near the track - the equivalent of a Tube train - from up to 16 trains an hour travelling at 225mph, the paper said.

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Britain Is Boom Destination For Tourists

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

A record number of visitors are choosing the UK as a holiday destination following the success of the 2012 London Olympics.

There were almost 2.9 million tourists in June, a record for the month, according to the latest figures from VisitBritain.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed they spent a record £1.84bn in June, an increase of 13% on 2012, which was another record.

There has been a significant rise in the number of people coming from China, the US and various parts of Europe.

Visitors from overseas spent £8.72bn in Britain in the six months to June, up 11% on the same period last year.

But it is not just overseas visitors who have been swelling the numbers.

VisitBritain predicts that over the Bank Holiday 4.5 million Britons will be taking an overnight holiday trip in the UK, a factor helped by a spell of good weather.

In Stratford-on-Avon, the draw of Shakespeare has never been so popular.

Rachel Hudson, from The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, said: "We have seen a boost due to the success of the Olympics and I think people around the world realise that we have something really special to offer.

"Shakespeare is a worldwide brand and more people want to enjoy the experience in his home town."

Patricia Yates, VisitBritain's director of strategy and communications, said: "The Olympic bounce has well and truly sprung with the best start to a year since 2008.

"This has seen us achieve record-breaking spend figures for 2013 to date and record visitor numbers.

"We are surpassing our spend forecast for 2013, which is testament to the fact that our great campaign has capitalised on the showcasing of Britain through 2012 to turn viewers into visitors.

"Our marketing and promotion of Britain as a great place to visit will ensure we are well positioned to deliver continued growth through 2013 and beyond, achieving positive results for the UK tourism industry and increasing the 2.6 million job supported by the sector."

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Former RSA Boss Fronts Bid For Co-Op Arm

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

A former chief executive of the company behind the More Than brand is spearheading a private equity tilt to buy the general insurance arm of the struggling Co-operative Group.

Sky News understands that Andy Haste, who stepped down as the boss of RSA Insurance in 2011, is fronting an offer being assembled by Advent International, a buyout firm with a lengthy track record of investing in the financial services sector.

Talks about the bid by Advent are at an early stage and may not result in a formal offer, according to insiders.

Mr Haste, who now serves as deputy chairman of the Lloyd's of London reinsurance market, is also thought to be working with Advent on its interest in Hastings, the motor insurer which is seeking to sell a stake in itself to raise funds for expansion.

He has worked with the private equity group, which this month sold Domestic & General, a major warranty provider for household goods, in the past, including on a tentative offer for Direct Line before it was floated on the stock market last year by Royal Bank of Scotland.

The emergence of Mr Haste's involvement in an offer for the Co-op division comes during an important week for the mutual, which is poised to embark on a controversial financial restructuring.

On Thursday, the group - which includes a funeral services operation, pharmacy and supermarket chains, and a large banking business - will report half-year results in which it will announce that it has written off the value of hundreds of millions of pounds of impaired commercial property loans.

Its proposals to fill a consequent £1.5bn black hole in the balance sheet of the Co-Op Bank, which were approved by the industry regulator in June, have angered bondholders who will be forced to take a significant hit on the value of their investments.

The Co-Op's new chief executive, Euan Sutherland, has insisted that he will not sell any of the mutual's other assets, including the Funeralcare arm, which has also attracted interest from buyout firms.

His ability to resist such offers may, however, depend to a degree on the price he is able to command for the general insurance unit, with analysts' estimates varying over its value from £250m to as much as £600m.

The Co-Op's life insurance operation has already been sold to Royal London for nearly £220m.

Advent declined to comment on its interest in the Co-Op's general insurance arm or on Mr Haste's involvement.

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Post Office Staff In Fresh Wave Of Strikes

Workers at Crown post offices are staging a fresh wave of strikes in a five-month row over jobs, pay and closures.

A UK-wide stoppage is being held today, staff in Scotland will strike on Monday, and union members in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will stop work on Tuesday.

The Communication Workers Union said the dispute involves up to 4,000 staff and shows no sign of being resolved.

The industrial action is linked to plans to franchise or close more than 70 Crown sites - the larger branches usually found on high streets.

The 373 Crown offices, which are usually the larger ones, represent just 3% of the total post office network.

But the CWU says its staff deal with a fifth of all customers and handle 40% of financial transactions involving things like banking and credit cards.

Dave Ward, CWU deputy general secretary, said: "This is the first time we have announced two days of strikes at the same time and the first time we have announced back-to-back days of strike action.

"Coupled with the 90% yes vote by members for industrial action short of strike, the message can't be much stronger to Post Office management.

"Crown post office workers do not agree with management's slash-and-burn approach and are prepared to take prolonged industrial action to defend jobs and services and win a fair pay rise.

"This is a company which made £94m profit last year and paid out £15.4m in bonuses to senior managers.

"It's a clear case of double standards and trampling those at the bottom for the benefit of those at the top. Enough is enough. It's time to resolve this."

Kevin Gilliland, network and sales director at the Post Office, said he was "extremely disappointed" at the CWU's decision to call further strike action.

"This action can only cause disruption to customers, cost our people money and place further pressure on the Crown network which is currently losing £37m a year.

"We must continue with our plans to turn around the Crown network to ensure we keep these branches on high streets and in city centres across the UK.

"We remain open to discussions with the CWU on pay options which do not add to the current loss of public money."

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Britain Is Boom Destination For Tourists

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

A record number of visitors are choosing the UK as a holiday destination following the success of the 2012 London Olympics.

There were almost 2.9 million tourists in June, a record for the month, according to the latest figures from VisitBritain.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed they spent a record £1.84bn in June, an increase of 13% on 2012, which was another record.

There has been a significant rise in the number of people coming from China, the US and various parts of Europe.

Visitors from overseas spent £8.72bn in Britain in the six months to June, up 11% on the same period last year.

But it is not just overseas visitors who have been swelling the numbers.

VisitBritain predicts that over the Bank Holiday 4.5 million Britons will be taking an overnight holiday trip in the UK, a factor helped by a spell of good weather.

In Stratford-on-Avon, the draw of Shakespeare has never been so popular.

Rachel Hudson, from The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, said: "We have seen a boost due to the success of the Olympics and I think people around the world realise that we have something really special to offer.

"Shakespeare is a worldwide brand and more people want to enjoy the experience in his home town."

Patricia Yates, VisitBritain's director of strategy and communications, said: "The Olympic bounce has well and truly sprung with the best start to a year since 2008.

"This has seen us achieve record-breaking spend figures for 2013 to date and record visitor numbers.

"We are surpassing our spend forecast for 2013, which is testament to the fact that our great campaign has capitalised on the showcasing of Britain through 2012 to turn viewers into visitors.

"Our marketing and promotion of Britain as a great place to visit will ensure we are well positioned to deliver continued growth through 2013 and beyond, achieving positive results for the UK tourism industry and increasing the 2.6 million job supported by the sector."

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Post Office Staff In Fresh Wave Of Strikes

Workers at Crown post offices are staging a fresh wave of strikes in a five-month row over jobs, pay and closures.

A UK-wide stoppage is being held today, staff in Scotland will strike on Monday, and union members in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will stop work on Tuesday.

The Communication Workers Union said the dispute involves up to 4,000 staff and shows no sign of being resolved.

The industrial action is linked to plans to franchise or close more than 70 Crown sites - the larger branches usually found on high streets.

The 373 Crown offices, which are usually the larger ones, represent just 3% of the total post office network.

But the CWU says its staff deal with a fifth of all customers and handle 40% of financial transactions involving things like banking and credit cards.

Dave Ward, CWU deputy general secretary, said: "This is the first time we have announced two days of strikes at the same time and the first time we have announced back-to-back days of strike action.

"Coupled with the 90% yes vote by members for industrial action short of strike, the message can't be much stronger to Post Office management.

"Crown post office workers do not agree with management's slash-and-burn approach and are prepared to take prolonged industrial action to defend jobs and services and win a fair pay rise.

"This is a company which made £94m profit last year and paid out £15.4m in bonuses to senior managers.

"It's a clear case of double standards and trampling those at the bottom for the benefit of those at the top. Enough is enough. It's time to resolve this."

Kevin Gilliland, network and sales director at the Post Office, said he was "extremely disappointed" at the CWU's decision to call further strike action.

"This action can only cause disruption to customers, cost our people money and place further pressure on the Crown network which is currently losing £37m a year.

"We must continue with our plans to turn around the Crown network to ensure we keep these branches on high streets and in city centres across the UK.

"We remain open to discussions with the CWU on pay options which do not add to the current loss of public money."

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Britain Is Boom Destination For Tourists

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

A record number of visitors are choosing the UK as a holiday destination following the success of the 2012 London Olympics.

There were almost 2.9 million tourists in June, a record for the month, according to the latest figures from VisitBritain.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed they spent a record £1.84bn in June, an increase of 13% on 2012, which was another record.

There has been a significant rise in the number of people coming from China, the US and various parts of Europe.

Visitors from overseas spent £8.72bn in Britain in the six months to June, up 11% on the same period last year.

But it is not just overseas visitors who have been swelling the numbers.

VisitBritain predicts that over the Bank Holiday 4.5 million Britons will be taking an overnight holiday trip in the UK, a factor helped by a spell of good weather.

In Stratford-on-Avon, the draw of Shakespeare has never been so popular.

Rachel Hudson, from The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, said: "We have seen a boost due to the success of the Olympics and I think people around the world realise that we have something really special to offer.

"Shakespeare is a worldwide brand and more people want to enjoy the experience in his home town."

Patricia Yates, VisitBritain's director of strategy and communications, said: "The Olympic bounce has well and truly sprung with the best start to a year since 2008.

"This has seen us achieve record-breaking spend figures for 2013 to date and record visitor numbers.

"We are surpassing our spend forecast for 2013, which is testament to the fact that our great campaign has capitalised on the showcasing of Britain through 2012 to turn viewers into visitors.

"Our marketing and promotion of Britain as a great place to visit will ensure we are well positioned to deliver continued growth through 2013 and beyond, achieving positive results for the UK tourism industry and increasing the 2.6 million job supported by the sector."

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