Here are the stories making the business headlines across Scotland and the UK this morning.
Sheriff questions whether Just Stop Oil protestors were taken advantage of
Two Just Stop Oil protestors who threw orange paint over a building in Aberdeen city centre have escaped punishment after a sheriff questioned whether they were taken advantage of.
Alex Milne, 23, and Louis Fraser, 25, were part of a group that doused the Silver Fin office block on Union Street with bright orange paint to protest occupants Barclays Bank’s involvement with fossil fuel projects.
The pair had been due to stand trial accused of breach of the peace but tendered last-minute pleas of guilty to an alternative charge of malicious mischief.
The court was told both are “vulnerable” and now regret carrying out the protest.
Sheriff Margaret Hodge admonished both accused, meaning the conviction goes on their records but they are not given any punishment.
You can read more in today's Press and Journal.
New Police Scotland chief agrees force is institutionally racist
Police Scotland's new chief constable says she agrees that the force is guilty of institutional discrimination.
In her first day in the job, Jo Farrell backed the controversial statement made earlier this year by her predecessor Sir Iain Livingstone.
She said it was a "difficult message", but she was determined to drive forward "an anti-discriminatory agenda."
Ms Farrell also promised to prioritise "trust, confidence, high performance and officer and staff wellbeing."
In a statement issued after she was sworn in, the chief constable said: "Having considered Sir Iain's reasons, I agree Police Scotland is institutionally discriminatory.
Investors grow wary of ‘greenwashing’
“Responsible” investments appear to be losing favour with private investors.
A survey has found that only 53 per cent of respondents consider environmental, social and governance factors before investing, compared with 60 per cent last year and 65 per cent in 2021.
The results of the ESG attitudes tracker survey by the Association of Investment Companies comes after news last week that so-called responsible investments, or greener funds, experienced record net outflows of £448 million in August.
Although 68 per cent of respondents said sustainability was important to their everyday lives, they showed concern that funds were “greenwashing”, or overselling sustainable practices for marketing purposes.
Nearly two thirds, 63 per cent, were not convinced by funds’ ESG claims, up from 58 per cent last year and 48 per cent in 2021.
Richard Stone, chief executive of the association, said: “Our attitudes tracker suggests 2021 may have been a high point for enthusiasm about ESG investing. There is plenty of residual support for the concept, but concerns about greenwashing are increasingly dominating private investors’ mindsets.”
Pothole breakdowns surge by a third, says AA
Breakdowns caused by potholes have risen by almost a third in two years, according to the AA, as Britain’s worsening roads snag tyres and wreck cars’ suspension.
Jakob Pfaudler, the chief executive, said callouts linked to Britain’s broken roads had risen by 30pc in the past two years.
He welcomed Rishi Sunak’s plan to spend £8bn mending holes in roads, saying it would be appreciated by his customers.
Mr Pfaudler said: “We were pleased that there’s investment in road infrastructure, particularly potholes, that’s something our members are very concerned about.”
The Prime Minister recently set out plans to spend some of the billions that were earmarked for HS2 on fixing Britain’s broken roads, after axing the Northern leg of the rail project.