The Business Matrix: Monday 4 May 2014

Hunter boots to come to West End

Hunter, the Wellington boot maker, is to open a flagship store in Regent Street, central London. The firm has struck a deal with the Crown estate, which will see it join other retailers like Burberry, Superdry and J Crew on the West End street. It fell into administration in 2006 but has since enjoyed a renaissance.

Barclays to sell off EU businesses

Barclays will this week put its businesses in Spain, France, Italy and Portugal up for sale when it unveils the findings of its latest strategic review on Thursday. The lender is under pressure following a series of pay controversies. It will also update investors on its first-quarter trading just days after the head of its US business, Hugh “Skip” McGee, quit.

What the Sunday papers said

Sellafield workers cautioned for risk

Two workers at the Sellafield nuclear facility have been cautioned by regulators for the unauthorised removal of a contaminated thermometer in December. Their actions exposed them to elevated levels of radiation and exposed an area of the site that was not designed to prevent a spread of nuclear contamination.

The Independent on Sunday

Firms and jobs heading for UK

Hundreds of multinational companies are lining up to establish operations in the UK, a survey suggests, paving the way for thousands of new jobs and billions of pounds in extra tax revenues. KPMG said that changes to the tax system aimed at improving the UK’s competitiveness were “paying dividends”.

The Sunday Telegraph

One-third of UK’s trains up for sale

One-third of Britain’s trains are up for sale after Porterbrook, one of the three giant leasing companies that own the rolling stock, put itself on the market. The auction is likely to cause a stampede among interested pension funds, sovereign wealth investors and infrastructure specialists.

The Sunday Times

M&S in Ireland faces strike action

Marks & Spencer faces potential strike action at its Irish business after staff opposed pay and pension cuts. Representatives at the Mandate trade union said the proposals included a 20 per cent pay cut and that employees’ living standards would “seriously deteriorate”.

The Mail on Sunday