LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s top-notch credit rating is expected to survive the threat of a downgrade because of the government’s resolve to erase a huge budget deficit and the central bank’s ability to print money.

Together these are seen keeping the country credible with investors even though it faces large risks to growth.

LONDON, Feb 7 (Reuters) – Policymakers should not get
swept up in punishing well-paid company executives, British
finance minister George Osborne will argue on Tuesday, urging
that improvements to pay policies should come without
anti-business rhetoric.

With many workers experiencing effective pay cuts after
inflation, the prospect of another bumper bonus round for
executives at Britain’s biggest firms is stoking up widespread
resentment in Britain.

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain stripped the former head of Royal Bank of Scotland of his knighthood on Tuesday, putting a banker reviled by tabloids as “Fred the Shred” alongside Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe and Romania’s Nicolae Ceausescu as those who lost the high honour.

Fred Goodwin, elevated to the rank of knight of the realm by Queen Elizabeth in 2004, steered one of Britain’s largest banks to near collapse with the catastrophic buyout of a Dutch bank, a disaster that helped bring on the global financial crisis.

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain stripped the former head of Royal Bank of Scotland of his knighthood Tuesday, putting a banker reviled by tabloids as “Fred the Shred” alongside Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe and Romania’s Nicolae Ceausescu as those who lost the high honor.

Fred Goodwin, elevated to the rank of knight of the realm by Queen Elizabeth in 2004, steered one of Britain’s largest banks to near collapse with the catastrophic buyout of a Dutch bank, a disaster that helped bring on the global financial crisis.

LONDON (Reuters) – Prime Minister David Cameron sparked the wrath of eurosceptics in his Conservative party Monday, indicating he would not block the use of European Union institutions in an economic policy pact Britain opted out of in December.

Cameron said he had no wish to get in the way of Britain’s European partners resolving their debt crisis.

LONDON (Reuters) – The Liberal Democrats will Thursday call for the government to accelerate plans to exempt more low-paid workers from paying income tax, hoping to fund the move with an as yet unspecified raid on the wealthy.

In a speech in London which may irritate some on the right wing of the Conservative-led coalition, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg will warn that “household budgets are approaching a state of emergency, and the government needs a rapid response.”

LONDON (Reuters) – Shareholders should be given a binding vote over how large British companies manage executive pay and more companies should be able to claw back cash from highly-paid staff who fail to deliver, Business Secretary Vince Cable said on Monday.

Firms should also need 75 percent of shareholders to agree to any pay proposals, Cable told parliament, announcing measures to improve executive pay policy at Britain’s biggest companies.

LONDON, Jan 23 (Reuters) – Shareholders should be
given a binding vote over how large British companies manage
executive pay and more companies should be able to claw back
cash from highly-paid staff who fail to deliver, Business
Secretary Vince Cable said on Monday.

Firms should also need 75 percent of shareholders to agree
to any pay proposals, Cable told parliament, announcing measures
to improve executive pay policy at Britain’s biggest companies.

LONDON (Reuters) – Bonuses in Britain’s financial services sector have been “out of control” in recent years, Prime Minister David Cameron said on Thursday, unveiling plans to cap cash rewards again at state-backed banks.

Cameron said his coalition government would next week set out detailed proposals on curbing executive pay across all sectors, a sensitive issue in Britain where unemployment is increasing and pay rises for most people are lagging inflation.

LONDON (Reuters) – Bonuses in Britain’s financial services sector have “got out of control” in recent years, Prime Minister David Cameron said on Thursday, adding cash payments at state-backed banks would again be limited to 2,000 pounds.

Cameron also confirmed the coalition government would next week set out detailed proposals on curbing executive pay, a sensitive issue in Britain where unemployment is rising and pay rises for most are lagging inflation.