Embattled Post Office chief executive Nick Read resigns
Nick Read is to end his torrid tenure as chief executive of the Post Office as he prepares to give evidence to the inquiry into the Horizon IT scandal.
Sky News has learnt that Mr Read, who took over five years ago, has decided to resign from the government-owned company.
He initially stepped back temporarily from the post to focus on his evidence to the inquiry into the IT debacle that affected hundreds of sub-postmasters.
In a statement confirming his departure after Sky News reported that it was imminent, Mr Read said: “It has been a great privilege to work with colleagues and Postmasters during the past five years in what has been an extraordinarily challenging time for the business and for Postmasters.
“There remains much to be done for this great UK institution but the journey to reset the relationship with Postmasters is well underway and our work to support justice and redress for Postmasters will continue.”
Mr Read had been criticised for his leadership of the Post Office for some time, having been accused of being fixated with his pay package by its former chairman, Henry Staunton.
Mr Staunton was sacked earlier this year by the then business secretary, Kemi Badenoch.
Nigel Railton, a former Camelot executive, was installed as Mr Staunton’s successor.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Under his leadership, Mr Read had raised the idea of handing partial ownership to Post Office workers, although little progress has been made on such a scheme because of the company’s financial travails.
Mr Read will leave the Post Office next March, and his duties will be assumed while he focuses on the Horizon inquiry by Neil Brocklehurst, the company’s interim chief operating officer.
The outgoing chief executive will be paid during his notice period but will not receive any additional payoff, according to a government source.
A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade declined to comment.
Business
UK interest rates an outlier after decision to hold but Bank of England forecasts inflation rise to 2.5%
There has been no change to the UK interest rate despite the US and European central banks all moving to cut in the last week.
The Bank of England has kept the interest rate at 5% as official figures this week showed some measures of price rises grew.
It follows the first cut in more than four years.
The rate set by the Bank impacts how much lenders charge to borrow money, so it affects how expensive mortgages or credit card bills are.
But there was no consensus on the decision. One of the nine rate decision-makers voted for a cut.
There were signals of the Bank’s direction of travel from governor Andrew Bailey.
Where to next?
If the economy continues to progress in line with its expectations “we should be able to reduce rates gradually over time”, he said.
But, he said, “we need to be careful not to cut too fast or by too much”.
Money blog: UK’s cheapest and most expensive cities to rent
Market expectations are currently for a cut at the next meeting in November followed by a further one in December.
The latest forecasts from the Bank are for inflation to rise again, reaching 2.5% by the end of the year.
How did we get here?
Interest rates were brought to a high last seen during the 2008 global financial crash in an effort to bring down spiralling inflation.
More expensive borrowing can choke economic demand and slow price rises.
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Bank of England holds interest rates
The Bank is tasked with bringing inflation down to 2%. It currently stands at 2.2%.
The US central bank, the Federal Reserve, brought interest rates down by 0.5 percentage points to 4.75% to 5% on Wednesday and the European Central Bank (ECB) reduced borrowing costs last week to 3.5%.
Unlike the UK, the US interest rate is a range to guide lenders rather than a single percentage.
Reaction
Sterling strengthened, following the news and against a weakened dollar a pound bought $1.33, the highest amount in more than two years.
Business
Why Bank of England is in no rush to lower interest rates – even though some think decision to wait is dangerous
Slowly does it.
That’s the overarching message to take away from the Bank of England‘s latest monetary policy decision. Unlike the Federal Reserve, the US central bank, which decided yesterday to cut interest rates by half a percentage point – more than many had expected – the Bank wanted to signal today that it’s in no rush.
Money blog: UK’s cheapest and most expensive cities to rent
Alongside the decision to leave borrowing costs on hold at 5%, the Bank’s governor also signalled that he and the rest of the Monetary Policy Committee were in no rush to cut them again. Provided there aren’t any inflation surprises, he said, “we should be able to reduce rates gradually over time”. He added: “But it’s vital that inflation stays low, so we need to be careful not to cut too fast or by too much.”
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The Bank of England has held the base interest rate at 5%
Even so, the Bank is expected to carry on cutting rates in the coming months. Indeed, economists think the Bank will cut rates in November by at least a quarter percentage point, followed by more cuts next year, taking borrowing costs down towards 3% by next summer.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
That’s largely because inflation is now considerably lower than in recent years, and because there is evidence that high interest rates are starting to weigh down economic activity. The longer those rates stay high, the bigger the depressive impact they have on the UK.
But that raises another issue. For some economists, the Bank of England’s gradualist approach is dangerous. They worry that higher rates, which deter companies and individuals from spending and investing, are causing unnecessary damage.
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Tupperware files for bankruptcy
That helps explain why one of the MPC members, Swati Dhingra, voted to reduce rates at this meeting.
But the rest of the committee was of one mind – no point in rushing.
Whether they are right is something we’ll find out in the coming months.
There has been no change to the UK interest rate despite the US and European central banks all moving to cut in the last week.
The Bank of England has kept the interest rate at 5% as official figures this week showed some measures of price rises grew.
It follows the first cut in more than four years.
The rate set by the Bank impacts how much lenders charge to borrow money, so it affects how expensive mortgages or credit card bills are.
But there was no consensus on the decision. One of the nine rate decision-makers voted for a cut.
Where to next?
There were signals of the Bank’s direction of travel from governor Andrew Bailey.
If the economy continues to progress in line with its expectations “we should be able to reduce rates gradually over time”, he said.
But, he said, “we need to be careful not to cut too fast or by too much”.
Market expectations are currently for a cut at the next meeting in November followed by a further one in December.
How did we get here?
Interest rates were brought to a high last seen during the 2008 global financial crash in an effort to bring down spiralling inflation.
More expensive borrowing can choke economic demand and slow price rises.
The Banks is tasked with bringing inflation down to 2%. It currently stands at 2.2%.
The US central bank, the Federal Reserve, brought interest rates down by 0.5 percentage points to 4.75% to 5% on Wednesday and the European Central Bank (ECB) reduced borrowing costs last week to 3.5%.
Unlike the UK, the US interest rate is a range to guide lenders rather than a single percentage.
Reaction
Sterling strengthened, following the news and against a weakened dollar a pound bought $1.33, the highest amount in more than two years.
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