Here are the top business stories making the headlines in the morning newspapers.

Petrol-station staff getting more verbal abuse

Staff are seeing a "huge increase" of verbal abuse from motorists angry at the price at the pump, according to forecourt operator Ascona Group.

Petrol-debt recovery firm Forecourt Eye said staff were dealing with "very combative attitudes" from customers.

Soaring oil prices have pushed up the cost of petrol and diesel. It now costs more than £100 to fill the average car.

Fuel prices in the UK have remained at record levels for weeks, as many countries reduce their dependency on Russian oil in response to its invasion of Ukraine.

Nick Fisher, chief executive of Forecourt Eye, told the BBC that petrol station staff were being confronted by customers talking about being "ripped off" and asking questions like "how do you expect me to pay?"

He said customers were "becoming frustrated" at the high prices because they had remained high and kept creeping higher.

Many petrol stations rely on additional incomes made from sales of groceries, bakery items and coffee, he said.

But he added that shoppers will not buy other products from a store where they feel they are being overcharged.


Losses increase at tidal-energy firm

Tidal energy developer Simec Atlantis Energy (SAE) has announced pre-tax losses of £74million for last year.

SAE published its full-year accounts for 2021 on Wednesday, and they showing a marked increase in losses from the £19.4million lost in 2020.

Energy Voice says shares in the tidal developer plummeted by as much as 50% on the news, from £2.05 at opening to £1.03 around 2pm, before later rebounding to close at £1.90.

Chairman Duncan Black described the past year as "a very challenging period" for the company, in which it faced a battle over the control of shares held by major shareholder GFG Alliance and poor financial performance as a result of outages at its MeyGen tidal project.

SAE attributed much of the headline losses to £32million of impairments taken following its decision in April 2022 not to proceed with a plan to convert the Uskmouth coal power station to run on waste fuel pellets.


Oil protestors at Glasgow art gallery

Protestors from the Just Stop Oil group have glued themselves to artwork in the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow.

Energy Voice says three supporters of the group spray-painted messages around the gallery, while two glued themselves to the frame of a 19th Century painting.

Emma Brown, a graduate from Glasgow School of Art, said she was taking action in part because "art institutions are failing us".

"They seem to think it's enough to put on an exhibition about climate change rather than challenge the Government."


Scottish police to withdraw 'all goodwill'

Police officers in Scotland will withdraw "all goodwill" after they were offered a "derisory" £565 pay rise, the force's chief constable has been told.

The Scottish Police Federation said members would claim payment for any overtime they were ordered to work.

"The many thousands of police hours that are currently provided for nothing will simply come to an end," its general secretary told BBC Scotland.

By law, police officers cannot take industrial action.

Police Scotland said it was committed to seeking a pay settlement through the Police Negotiating Board.


Britain could cut off gas to Europe

Britain will cut off gas supplies to Europe under an emergency plan that threatens to splinter the West's response to the escalating energy crisis.

The Telegraph says shutting down the so-called interconnector pipelines to the Netherlands and Belgium would be among the early measures under the plan, which could be triggered by National Grid if supplies fall further in the coming months.

But European gas companies warned such a move would undermine a push for international cooperation in the face of President Vladimir Putin's aggression and would exacerbate the energy crisis on the continent.


Flights from Heathrow reduced

Heathrow Airport asked airlines to remove 30 flights from this morning's schedule because it is expecting more passenger numbers than it can currently cope with.

In total, 1,200 flights were scheduled to leave throughout the day.

The BBC says the airport claims the cancellations are necessary for both safety and to ensure as many passengers as possible catch their flights.

It said individual airlines would contact people who are affected.


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