Business news in brief
Financier Sir Evelyn de Rothschild dies aged 91
British financier Sir Evelyn de Rothschild has died at the age of 91, his family said in a statement. He is survived by his wife Lynn and three children, as well as two step-sons. He served as chief executive and chair of the bank NM Rothschild and Sons Ltd between 1976-2003, and he was chair of The Economist from 1972-1989. In 1989 he was knighted by the Queen for services to banking and finance. A scion of the Rothschild financial dynasty,
under his watch his family’s bank’s total assets grew from £40m to £4.6bn. PA
Primark pledges price freeze to pressure rivals
The boss of Primark’s parent company hopes a year-long prize freeze can put pressure on some of his rivals as shoppers come under strain during the cost of living crisis. George Weston said that rising prices would have been bad for both the company’s sales and its reputation. “It just wasn’t the right thing to do. We’re going to have these dollar rates for a couple of years, but we’re going to have Primark, I hope, being known to be the consumer’s friend, and the best-value retailer on the high street [for] years to come,” he said. Primark has already increased prices on 50 per cent of its products by the low single percentage digits. The firm is also preparing to launch trials for online click-and-collect sales in 25 shops. PA
‘Dysfunctional’ Companies House facilitating fraud, MPs told
A senior figure at banking body UK Finance says the government needs to fix “dysfunctional” Companies House because it is helping to facilitate business fraud. The remarks came during a Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee meeting examining fraudulent company registrations, in particular fraudsters’ using victims’ home addresses to register a fake firm. Nick Van Benschoten, director of international illicit finance, took aim at the online register of UK-based companies. He said: “Companies House is supposed to be a key part of the information infrastructure underpinning the business environment. At the moment it is a dysfunctional part, and other people cannot compensate for that.” PA
Online payment plans set up by thousands of taxpayers
Nearly 21,600 self-assessment taxpayers have set up a plan since 6 April this year to spread the cost of their tax bill, HM Revenue & Customs has said. These people were unable to pay what they
owed in full and so set up an online plan to make manageable monthly instalments. The total marked a 3,900 increase in customers setting up these arrangements when compared with the same period a year earlier. The deadline for customers to submit their tax returns for the 2021-22 tax year and pay any tax owed is 31 January 2023. PA
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