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

Climate activists lose case against Oil and Gas Authority

The High Court has thrown out a case brought by climate activists against the UK's Oil and Gas Authority (OGA).

City A.M. says the judiciary has rejected the argument brought forward by three environmental campaigners that the UK Government had been unlawfully subsiding the oil and gas industry through tax incentives.

The claimants are: Mikaela Loach, a climate activist and medical student at the University of Edinburgh; Kairin van Sweeden, an SNP Common Weal organiser and daughter of a Scottish oil worker; and Jeremy Cox, a former oil refinery worker.

The three activists further argued that the state-owned regulator's failure to clamp down on tax breaks for the oil and gas industry is counter to the nation's net zero by 2050 pledge.

The court ruled against this claim, and stated that OGA has a responsibility to help the UK achieve maximum economic recovery in its oil and gas sector, with the parameters of this process being defined by the OGA itself.

The ruling is a setback for climate activists who are increasingly taking to the courts to force a reduction in oil and gas production in order to control global warming.

Click here to read more

North Sea workers in Covid row

Mandatory vaccination rules for a North Sea energy firm's workers have been criticised by a union.

Canadian Natural Resources (CNR), which has a base in Aberdeen, will only allow staff and contractors vaccinated against Covid to be offshore, reports the BBC.

CNR said worker safety was key, but the Unite union criticised the move which has now come into force.

The Scottish Government said employers needed to consider their own specific circumstances.

The change could impact up to 20% of the workforce, with the remainder vaccinated, according to Unite.

CNR operates platforms in the Ninian field, off Shetland.

Click here to read more.

Multi-million pound support for Ace Winches

Alternative lender ThinCats has revealed its £13.5 million backing for north-east businessmen Alfie Cheyne buying back the company he founded, Ace Winches, from Balmoral Group.

ThinCats, which funds small and medium-sized enterprises with loans from £1million up to £15million, said its financial package for Mr Cheyne and his wife, Valerie, helped them to repurchase the shares.

The Press and Journal says ThinCats will also support the deck machinery specialist as it "continues to lead industry standards for quality and reliability".

Click here to read more.

Four-day week on test

Moving to a four-day week with no loss of pay may sound like a dream but for a small group of workers it's about to become reality.

A pilot programme to test the hypothesis that reducing working hours increases productivity for businesses and wellbeing for staff is to be run in Britain, according to The Times.

Six firms, including the British arm of the Japanese company Canon, have signed up, and the organisers expect another 20 or more to join before the trial starts in the summer.

The project is being brought to the UK by Andrew Barnes and Charlotte Lockhart, New Zealand entrepreneurs who made their money in finance and law before becoming among the first to prove that asking staff to work fewer hours increased productivity.

Click here to read more.

More like this…

View all