Aberdeen Heat and Power to end deal with Gazprom
The company behind Aberdeen's low-cost district heating scheme is to terminate its contract with the Russian-state owned Gazprom, reports the Press and Journal.
Aberdeen Heat and Power said the decision to leave Gazprom UK had been made due to the "terrible invasion of Ukraine and the suffering of its people".
The contract had been due to end in October this year, but Aberdeen Heat and Power said they wanted to start the process of finding a new supplier now.
Aberdeen Heat and Power was set up by Aberdeen City Council in 2002 and aims to alleviate fuel poverty in the city by supplying 4,000 homes with heating and hot water.
As well as homes, many other public buildings have been connected to the network, including Marischal College, Aberdeen Sports Village and Aquatic Centre, Aberdeen Beach Leisure Centre and the Beach Ballroom.
Sacking employees without notice broke the law, admits P&O Ferries chief
P&O Ferries boss Peter Hebblethwaite has admitted to MPs that a decision to sack 800 workers last week without notice broke the law.
He said there was "absolutely no doubt" that under UK employment law the firm was required to consult unions before making the mass cuts.
However, he said no union would have accepted the plan and it was easier to compensate workers "in full" instead.
The P&O boss also said he would make the same decision again if he had to.
Huw Merriman, the Conservative chair of the Transport Committee, urged him to resign.
"It's untenable to come to Parliament and say you decided to break the law, you have no regrets," Mr Merriman told BBC Radio 4's World at One.
"We can't have companies run by people like that. So he needs to hand his card in."
The sackings of P&O staff sparked outrage after it emerged they will be replaced by foreign agency workers paid less than the minimum wage.
Chancellor a 'fiscal illusionist'
Rishi Sunak has been branded a "fiscal illusionist" by the Institute for Fiscal Studies as the claims made in the spring budget began to unravel.
The IFS said nearly all workers will end up paying more tax on their earnings despite the Chancellor's claim to be delivering the "biggest net cut to personal taxes in over a quarter of a century".
Amid a growing Tory backlash over the tax rises, the independent research institute said the gains from Mr Sunak's plan to raise the thresholds for paying National Insurance and the 1p income tax cut in 2024 would be wiped out by his previous tax rises.
The Telegraph says a median earner on £27,500 a year will be £360 worse off in the next financial year and someone earning £40,000 will be £800 worse off, according to the IFS. The analysis was backed by the Resolution Foundation, which suggested seven out of eight employees will pay more tax.
Roll-out of electric vehicle charging points 'not fast enough'
The number of electric vehicle charging points will reach 300,000 by 2030 under UK Government plans, but motoring groups say the roll-out is not fast enough.
But the RAC said the chargepoint target "might sound impressive", but it is concerned the number is "not going to be sufficient" for growing demand.
The BBC says the UK currently has 30,000 public electric vehicle charging points.
The Department for Transport said the number of chargepoints by the end of the decade would be the equivalent to almost five times the number of UK fuel pumps.
Scottish seed potatoes not going to Russia after all
A deal to send 2,000 tonnes of seed potatoes from Scotland to Russia has been cancelled by PepsiCo.
The Times says that the potatoes were due to be exported in the next few days as part of a contract with north-east company Saltire Seed.
After talks with its Scottish farmers, PepsiCo said it would not be proceeding with the deal and would find another use for the potatoes.
The contract was worth £600,000 but PepsiCo has confirmed that they will be compensating their Scottish farmers and that none of them will be out of pocket.