John Lewis Boss Sorry For 'Hopeless' France Jibe

The boss of the John Lewis Partnership has apologised to France, after saying the country was "finished".

Managing director Andy Street held up an olive branch after a series of negative comments about the country were published on the front page of The Times.

He had made critical comments at an event for entrepreneurs in London that included a competition for start-up businesses.

Mr Street described France as "sclerotic, hopeless and downbeat," and urged British business people with investments in the country "to get them out quickly".

He had said: "I have never been to a country more ill at ease … nothing works and worse, nobody cares about it."

Mr Street is the most senior executive in the partnership, which shares an equal percentage of profits amongst all workers.

He joked to the audience that an award given to the company at the World Retail Congress in Paris was "made of plastic and is frankly revolting".

"If I needed any further evidence of a country in in decline, here it is. Every time I (see it), I shall think, 'God help France.'"

However, on Friday, Mr Street said in a statement to Sky News that his comments "were supposed to be lighthearted views, and tongue in cheek".

He added that "on reflection I clearly went too far. I regret the comments, and apologise unreservedly".

But the Gallic wrath may already be building, despite there being no John Lewis or Waitrose store presence in France.

After informing readers that Mr Street called the Eurostar terminal of Gard du Nord the "squalor pit of Europe", Les Echos called his comments "bitter and angry".

It then warned readers that John Lewis has plans to roll-out a website catering for French customers, with pricing in euros.

Les Echos then quipped: "The fuss is already assured."

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US Jobless Rate Now At Lowest Since July 2008

The unemployment rate in the United States has dropped to 5.9%, the lowest level since July 2008.

The jobless rate dropped by 0.2% from the August figure.

Official data showed that the US economy created 248,000 non-farm jobs in September.

The Labor Department said employers added 69,000 more jobs in July and August, higher than the government had previously estimated.

It said job creation was strongest in the restaurant industry, health care, food and beverage stores and administrative services.

More modest additions were recorded in construction and government hiring.

The improved figures come after President Barack Obama touted his administration's economic achievements in a speech on Thursday.

The economy is one of the top issues in voters' minds as the November mid-term elections near.

The lower jobless rate, combined with the surge in hiring, could ratchet up pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise its benchmark interest rate earlier than expected.

Most economists have predicted that the Fed would start raising rates in mid-2015.

"This number will continue to support the notion that the economy is growing ... (but) isn't so strong that the Fed will raise rates anytime soon," Kingsview Asset Management portfolio manager Paul Nolte said.

With rate hike expectations mounting, the dollar pushed higher on foreign exchanges after the figures were published at 1.30pm BST.

Markets across Europe except Germany's DAX, which was closed for the day, jumped on release of the new data.

In broader economic news, officials said the US trade gap narrowed in August to $40.1bn (£25bn).

The Commerce Department said the revised figure was $200m (£125m) down on the first estimate.

Economists had expected the trade gap to have grown to $40.9bn.

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Labour Peer McFall Joins Digital Bank Atom

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

Lord McFall, a former chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, is joining the board of Atom, the first British digital-only bank that hopes to launch next year.

Sky News understands that the Labour peer is among a crop of directors being appointed by the new venture, which is being set up by the co-founder of Metro Bank and former boss of First Direct.

Lord McFall, who will become Atom's senior independent director, was also previously a director of NBNK Investments, which was set up after the banking crisis to buy assets from the UK's bailed-out banks.

NBNK was trumped in the auction of 630 Lloyds Banking Group branches by the Co-operative Group, a deal which collapsed as the mutually-owned lender came close to implosion amid the scandal over Paul Flowers, its former chairman.

Lord McFall's appointment will be announced shortly, according to an insider, alongside those of Jon Hogan, a former executive at ANZ Bank and First Direct; and Bridget Rosewell, a director of Ulster Bank and Network Rail.

Atom is awaiting regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority but hopes to launch next year.

The new business will not have any physical branches and will be primarily accessible through the internet and digital apps.

Anthony Thomson, Atom's chairman, and Mark Mullen, its chief executive, are understood to be planning to offer a full range of products aimed at personal and small business customers.

These will include current and savings accounts, as well as loan products.

It is not clear whether the pair have secured external financial backing for Atom, which headquartered in northeast England, close to the Newcastle base of Virgin Money, which this week announced plans to float on the stock market.

The plans for Atom come amid an explosion in the demand for digital banking services and a commensurate decline in footfall at thousands of retail bank branches.

Earlier this year, the British Bankers' Association (BBA) published research showing that UK-based customers conducted almost 40 million mobile and internet banking transactions each week last year.

The BBA insisted that branches would "remain at the heart of banking in the 21st century", but it emerged just days later that the taxpayer-backed Royal Bank of Scotland was closing 44 branches, sparking a fresh political row.

Under revised rules aimed at bolstering competition, the FCA has pledged to decide on banking licence applications within six months.

The process historically took several years, frustrating Treasury officials in the aftermath of the 2008 banking crisis, which sparked the merger of Lloyds TSB and HBOS, and the disappearance of several other UK banks.

Some applicants, such as Home & Savings Bank, a telephone and internet-based lender, were effectively forced to abandon their plans because of difficulties securing regulatory approval.

Metro Bank's launch in 2010 as the first new high street bank for more than a century came after a similarly tortuous process.

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EasyJet Helped By Lengthy Air France Strike

EasyJet has lifted its annual profit forecast, as a result of lower fuel costs and a lengthy strike at competitor Air France-KLM.

The budget carrier said its full-year pre-tax profit is now expected to be around £577.5m, up from guidance given during July's third quarter of around £557.5m.

The new full-year estimate is above analysts' expectations.

"EasyJet has continued to execute its strategy," chief executive Carolyn McCall said.

"This has enabled easyJet to deliver record profits for the fourth year in a row."

The company now intends to reward shareholders as a result.

"This will also lead to our largest every ordinary dividend payment as we are also proposing to increase the proportion of our profits after tax paid in dividends from 33% to 40%," Ms McCall said.

EasyJet said it expect the two-week strike by Air France in September would add around £5m to its revenue.

The strike cost easyJet's rival hundreds of million of euros in lost revenue.

The travel industry has long been squeezed by rising fuel costs, however in recent months benefits have been seen.

Crude oil prices have dropped around 20% since June, which has helped those with shorter hedging strategies.

On Thursday, Tui Travel cited dropping fuel prices as a factor in its improved results.

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Morrisons To Price Match Aldi And Lidl

Morrisons has announced a new price match system, which is set to exacerbate Britain's brutal supermarket war.

The fourth biggest grocery chain said that in addition to price matching Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's, it would now do the same with discounters Aldi and Lidl.

The new price comparison and points system will see users automatically refunded card points, along with extra points for selected products and fuel.

A Sky News investigation has shown it is the only store currently matching both main chains and discounters.

But shoppers will only accrue points if a supermarket product can be bought cheaper elsewhere or on special promotion, or on fuel purchases.

Morrisons chief executive Dalton Philips said: "In May, we announced that we were lowering our prices permanently.

Morrisons boss Dalton Philips insists shoppers will benefit from the system

"Now we're launching Match & More the most comprehensive price match and points scheme in the UK.

"Because it price matches the discounters, the Match & More card will provide the ultimate guarantee about Morrisons' value-for-money."

However, sources close to one of the discount rivals dismissed the new system, saying its prices would remain up to 50% cheaper than at Morrisons.

This year's ongoing price war has seen the country's big four chain under pressure, from Germany's Aldi and Lidl at one end, and premium providers Waitrose and M&S at the other.

On Wednesday, the boss of rival Sainsbury's, said its own drop in quarterly sales was at risk of continuing, due to food price deflation and undercutting by rivals.

The main chains have been undercut by 'hard discounters' Aldi and Lidl

On average, 10 Morrisons points will be accrued for every penny spent. The scheme will begin on Friday and will be nationwide by Christmas.

It said a database of thousands of comparable items would be automatically checked, and if a rival's product was 60p cheaper then 600 points would be added to a shopper's account.

When 5,000 points are reached a customer is entitled to a £5 voucher at the checkout till.

The price war has caused significant harm to the share price of the big chains over the past year.

Morrisons has lost more than 42%, Sainsbury's has dropped 40% and Tesco has lost 50%.

The new system from Morrison's comes as it tries to claw market share, as it has been slow to embrace both online shopping and urban convenience stores.

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BP Appeals 'Gross Negligence' Oil Spill Ruling

Oil giant BP has asked for a court ruling that it was "grossly negligent" for the Gulf of Mexico spill to be overturned.

BP made the request to a US court to reconsider a judgment handed down last month, which increases its potential liabilities by about $18bn (£11.1bn).

It said Louisiana district court Judge Carl Barbier's ruling was based on evidence he had agreed to exclude from the ongoing trial.

The company said he should therefore review his decision or give it a new trial over the 2010 spill, which saw millions of barrels of oil spread in the gulf.

The evidence in question surrounds expert testimony about how the Macondo well's casing was weakened and breached, part of a series of eight alleged errors linked to the blowout.

"BP respectfully requests that the court eliminate its theory that this series of acts amounted to gross negligence," the company said in its motion.

"In the alternative, BP would be entitled to a new trial."

The ruling last month assigned BP 67% of responsibility for the spill, while drilling rig owner Transocean Ltd was assigned 30% of blame, and cementing contractor Halliburton 3%.

The legal action is the latest motion by BP to curb fines stemming from the case, however Judge Barbier has rejected most of them.

The company has already set aside more than $42bn (£26bn) in provisions for the worst offshore spill in US history, which killed 11 workers.

The additional $18bn fines may come when the judge assigns damages under the federal Clean Water Act, next year.

BP's shares are now trading at around 30% lower than before the accident, and have never fully recovered.

On Thursday, Brent crude was trading at a 27-month low, putting more pressure on the industry with price cutting.

The company's shares are now trading at virtually the same price as this time last year.

The oil major is an important part of many UK pension fund portfolios.

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Domino's Pizza Rolls Out More New Stores

Domino's Pizza has seen quarterly sales rise by 13%, amid reconfirmation of a plan to open up to 50 new stores before 2015.

It said Q3 British like-for-like sales in the 13 weeks to 28 September reached 12.9%.

The firm said the rise in the summer period was down to an improving economy and increased appetite for its promotion deals.

It was the fourth quarter of double digit growth. UK sales for the year were up 11.8%.

Domino's continues to ride the digital wave, with almost 71% of orders placed online in the quarter, up from 62.4% a year ago.

It has revamped its website and boosted use of its smartphone app.

The company, which is valued at almost £1bn, said it also expects to stay on target to open between 40 to 50 new UK outlets before the end of the year.

Chief executive David Wild said: "We are delighted with the like-for-like performance in our core UK business.

"We face more challenging comparatives for the final quarter, but we remain confident of a satisfactory outcome for the year."

Although sales rose in Britain, Ireland and Switzerland, they dropped by 9.9% in Germany.

It has slowed German expansion while it tries to improve store formats and menus, cut overheads and boost sales at its self-managed outlets, ahead of a franchisee rollout similar to that in the UK.

It has nearly 900 stores in operation across Britain.

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Ted Baker Looks Smart With 24% Profit Rise

Fashion chain Ted Baker has seen a 24% jump in pre-tax profit for the first six months of the trading year.

It said pre-tax profit before tax and exceptional items reached £14.4m.

This was achieved as revenue in the period climbed 17.4% to £182.2m.

Chairman David Bernstein said its ongoing international expansion and improved income from brand licensing boosted the result.

Ted Baker started as a menswear store in Glasgow in 1987.

It was a fashion favourite, known for its quirky style, during the Britpop days of the 1990s.

It has since expanded into womenswear, fragrance and accessories such as watches.

The company operates shops in the UK and US, and concessions in department stores.

The fashion firm has also expanded through licensed outlets in a number of Asian countries.

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Virgin Money Confirms Stock Market Flotation

Virgin Money has confirmed a planned stock market flotation, with trading due to begin later this month.

Sky News City Editor Mark Kleinman first reported the float, with an expected valuation of up to £2bn.

Sir Richard Branson: "This is a huge day for Virgin Money. We started this company 20 years ago with Jayne-Anne Gadhia when we set out to challenge the financial services industry.

"Our wonderful team have come a long way since then and have built a strong and valuable business, which offers great value products and services and a real challenge to the established players.

"There is still plenty to do and I am really excited about the future.

"Our intention to float is not the end of our journey, but the beginning of the next one. I really look forward to being on that journey with our customers and our staff in years to come".

Some £50m will be returned to the taxpayer as a result of the float, after the company took on the 'good bank' assets of ailing Northern Rock in 2011.

More follows…

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EU Probe Slams Ireland Over Apple Tax Deals

A preliminary finding by the European Commission has found that Ireland provided potentially illegal state aid to tech giant Apple for more than 20 years.

It said it has doubts that two "sweetheart" tax deals agreed in 1991 and 2007 between Apple and Ireland are compatible with the internal market of the European Union.

In a statement, the European Commission said: "Accordingly, the commission is of the opinion that through those rulings the Irish authorities confer an advantage on Apple.

"That advantage is obtained every year and ongoing.

"At this stage, the commission has no indication that the contested measure can be considered compatible with the internal market".

Video: EU Gets Tough On Apple And Ireland

It added: "The commission's preliminary view is that the tax ruling of 1991 and of 2007 in favour of the Apple group constitute state aid."

The Irish government has already responded and said: "As this is an ongoing legal process, Ireland will not be commenting further on any individual aspects of this case."

Apple has had a base in Ireland since 1980 and has expanded in recent years, while authorities in Brussels have powers under state aid rules to impose large fines.

The commission can fine companies up to 10% of turnover and the ability to fine Ireland up to €1bn (£780m).

The inquiry found that in effect Apple ensured it had greater profitability in the areas in which their tax charge would be the most modest.

Baker Tilly senior tax partner George Bull told Sky News if the EU findings are upheld, Apple's tax liability may be recoverable from 2003 onwards.

According to reports, US-based Apple has built up an offshore cash pile of $137.7bn (£84.8bn) in Ireland.

The money cannot be repatriated to the US without being taxed, and instead the company has sought to buy back some shares held by investors.

Apple has denied any wrongdoing over tax rulings agreed with Irish officials in 1991 and 2007.

In a statement Apple said: "Apple has received no selective treatment from Irish officials over the years.

"We're subject to the same tax laws as the countless other companies who do business in Ireland.

"To continue that growth and the benefits it brings to the communities where we work and live, we believe comprehensive corporate tax reform is badly needed."

The commission is also investigating arrangements between coffee chain Starbucks and the Netherlands, and any deal between Luxembourg and car company Fiat.

On Monday, Chancellor George Osborne warned tech firms "that go to extraordinary lengths" to cut their UK tax bills will be hit with new anti-avoidance legislation.

He hinted of plans to raise "hundreds of millions" in revenue from the likes of Microsoft, Google and Twitter.

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Tesco Investigation Launched By City Watchdog

The Financial Conduct Authority has launched a "full investigation" into a Tesco accounting error, which saw the supermarket chain overstate its profit by £250m.

Tesco, which is Britain's biggest retailer, said it is co-operating fully with the watchdog.

Four senior executives of Tesco have been suspended

The chain said it would update the City on its own internal investigation into the error when its full-year results are released on 23 October.

The company commissioned accounting firm Deloitte to undertake its independent review.

Video: Tesco Investigating Profits Mistake

Four senior executives have been suspended, including UK managing director Chris Bush, pending the outcome of the probes.

Last week Tesco announced the accounting error, after it issued a profit warning in August.

It also emerged the company had not had a finance chief in place for months.

The £250m figure relates to how it logs suppliers' rebates and if they were reported in the correct accounting period.

Video: Tesco Trading Troubles Compounded

A whistleblower revealed the tactic to the company's most senior legal representative and its new chief executive Dave Lewis was alerted to the error.

He then launched the internal investigation, ahead of its third profit warning in as many months.

Mr Lewis said the four staff suspensions allowed it to carry out a "full and frank" inquiry and the decision was neither a disciplinary action nor an indication of guilt.

Although Tesco is roughly the size of Sainsbury's and Morrisons combined, it has suffered amid the rise of German discounters Aldi and Lidl, and more discerning consumer palates.

Video: Tesco's Business Culture Questioned

It was also embroiled in last year's horsemeat food contamination scandal, putting its supply chain under scrutiny.

In a strategic move to bolster its position in case of a credit rating agency downgrade Tesco has secured a £2.5bn 'warchest', as first revealed by Sky News City Editor Mark Kleinman.

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Sainsbury's Sales Down 2.8% In Three Months

Sainsbury's has seen its sales drop in the last quarter, as it warns the bitter supermarket price war will "persist".

It said like-for-like sales, excluding fuel and VAT, dropped by 2.8% in the three months to 27 September.

Including fuel, the drop was 4.1%.

The company said changing shopping habits, smaller purchases, and deflationary pressure on prices have all added to the fall in sales.

British supermarkets are under pressure from the German discounters

Chief executive Mike Coupe said: "The market remains dynamic and fiercely competitive.

"The long-running trend of more frequent, convenient shopping has accelerated, resulting in smaller basket sizes.

"An increase in price investment and short-term competitor promotional activity, combined with favourable commodity markets, has resulted in deflation in many areas of our food business."

The company has seen growth in its smaller convenience stores rise at 17%, as urban shoppers move away from large weekly purchases at large stores.

It said the group opened 23 new convenience stores in the quarter and refurbished another 10 stores.

It will also open five new stores in conjunction with Danish discounter Netto, in a strategy to go head-to-head with German discounters Aldi and Lidl.

It now expects food price deflation and the bitter price war among rivals to continue "for the foreseeable future".

Mr Coupe added the supermarket would provide a detailed update when its interim results are announced on 12 November.

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Vauxhall Recall: Warning Over Corsa Steering

Recalls By Carmakers On The Rise

Updated: 11:25am UK, Saturday 27 September 2014

The recall by Vauxhall of around 3,000 vehicles because of a steering problem is just the latest in a series of headaches for motor manufacturers.

Last year, manufacturers recalled 868,605 vehicles to dealerships to fix potentially life-threatening defects - up from 665,000 in 2009.

However, the increase does not necessarily mean cars are more prone to faults, but that firms are acting more quickly to deal with problems - anxious to avoid damage to their brands.

Here are just some of the major recalls seen in the past year or so.

:: Only this week US car giant Ford put out a recall on around 850,000 cars in the US over a "potential issue" with airbags.

:: Ferrari has recalled more than 3,000 of its £200,000 luxury sports cars because a fault with a latch means anyone trapped in the boot would not be able to get out.

:: General Motors recalled more than 220,000 cars to correct a brake defect that could increase the risk of fire.

:: Earlier this year, Toyota issued a recall affecting 6.4 million vehicles worldwide and 35,124 in the UK. The carmaker has learned the lessons from the past when it suffered a backlash, after being seen to have responded too slowly to a fault that caused models to accelerate without warning in 2010.

:: Aston Martin recalled 17,590 sports cars in February due to a problem with the accelerator pedal.

:: In 2013, Mercedes recalled 2,540 M-class SUV models in the UK when it discovered a particular floor mat could impede the accelerator pedal.

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Budget Chain Aldi Sees Profit Boom In Britain

Aldi And Lidl 'Victors In Supermarket War'

Updated: 2:18pm UK, Tuesday 29 July 2014

Discounters Aldi and Lidl have seen their market share surge as Britain's four biggest outlets suffer in the ongoing bitter supermarket war.

Research firm Kantar Worldpanel said in the three months to June 20, both of the German-based retailers saw significant growth compared to the same period last year.

It said Aldi's share rose from 3.7% to 4.8%, while Lidl expanded from 3.1% to 3.6%.

Meanwhile, supermarket giant Tesco saw its share of the sector fall from 30.3% last year to 28.9% in the period ending in July.

Asda, Britain's second biggest chain, remained flat at 17%, while Sainsbury's also remained static at 16.6%.

Struggling supermarket Morrisons was the second biggest faller out of the major retailers, seeing its share fall from 11.5% last year to 11% this year.

Both Tesco and Morrisons recorded sales losses of 3.8% compared to the same period last year, researchers said.

Kantar Worldpanel director Edward Garner said: "Aldi's 32% growth rate has lifted its market share to 4.8%, and this is a new record for the retailer and means it has nearly caught up with Waitrose on 4.9%.

"Similarly, Lidl sales have grown by nearly 20% and it has held onto its record share of 3.6%."

Britain's big outlets have become increasingly embroiled in a price war during 2014 that has harmed their margins.

They have also invested heavily in convenience store and online delivery services.

The hard discounters have avoided entering the online delivery sub-sector, which is seen by analysts as costing the majors more than £100m a year.

Grocery price inflation has also fallen for the 10th consecutive periods and now stands at 0.4%.

Price slashing and deflation in staple items like milk, vegetables and bread have driven food price inflation down to its lowest level since late 2006, when the research first started.
 

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Chancellor To Abolish 'Death Tax' On Pensions

UKIP Defections: PM Did Too Little, Too Late

Updated: 10:09pm UK, Saturday 27 September 2014

By Anushka Asthana, Political Correspondent

During the 2010 election, I travelled to Rochester and Strood in Kent, where I met the Tory candidate Mark Reckless.

One thing that struck me as I watched him take to the doorsteps, was the number of constituents raising the issue of immigration.

One awkward incident involved an elderly man ranting about why he supported the far-right National Front. Mr Reckless backed off, embarrassed.

He certainly didn't share those extreme views. But it was clear then that he was a politician who was worried about immigration and angry about Europe.

I remember another conversation with Mr Reckless last year in the Commons.

Tory backbenchers were nervous about immigration, he told me. They felt David Cameron hadn't done enough, and the looming prospect of transitional controls lifted on Bulgarians and Romanians was of particular concern. 

Things could get tetchy in January 2015, he said.

Mr Cameron knew about these misgivings among his MPs and tried to act on them.

Late last year he unveiled a toughening up in the rhetoric on immigration – bringing in new rules to crack down on the access that new EU migrants would get to benefits. Then came the pledge of an EU referendum.

The hope was to appease the concerns of people like Mr Reckless, and you might have thought it was working.

After all, following the defection to UKIP of Douglas Carswell many asked the MP if he would be next. He insisted not.

When I texted Tracey Crouch, a neighbouring MP in Kent, about his decision to leave the Tories, she replied: "Nothing I can say right now would be becoming of a lady. I'm so angry. He looked me in the eye and promised he wasn't going to defect."

Others pointed out that he was openly supportive of the Conservatives as recently as yesterday.

Then he tweeted: "Good to lead coach for Team2015 campaigning in Birmingham Northfield on Sunday + will be followed by our Clacton action next Thursday."

That is why Tory sources say they are "surprised". Other MPs told me they felt "let down", "frustrated" and "fed up".

"Another battle when we should be fighting Labour," said one.

Others argued that although he had behaved irresponsibly, giving a leg-up to Ed Miliband, that a number of backbenchers were angry with the party's position on Europe.

They believe that Mr Cameron hasn't done enough to prove he can loosen Britain's ties to the EU. They want to see the issue addressed at his conference speech this week.

The problem for men like Mr Reckless is they don't share the Prime Minister's views on Europe.

Mr Cameron wants to reform the UK's relationship with the continent and then – ideally – campaign for us to stay IN.

And that is the sticking point with Mr Reckless.

The former Tory MP was clear today that he believes in an independent Britain, and wants to follow the Scotland Yes campaign with what he said was a positive, patriotic message for voters.

He wants OUT – and UKIP is the only party that is fully with him.

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First-Time Buyers To Get 20% Off Under Tories

Young first-time buyers will get a 20% discount on their new homes, under plans announced by the Conservatives.

David Cameron has set out plans to build tens of thousands of new homes on commercial "brownfield" land, reserved for first-time buyers, under 40.

As Tories begin gathering in Birmingham for their annual conference, the PM said a Conservative government would implement the plan if they were re-elected in 2015.

Homes built under the proposed Help to Buy: Starter Homes scheme would be exempt from a range of taxes, lowering their price by 20%, say Tories.

First-time buyers have been priced out of many areas, especially in London

In an interview with The Sun, Mr Cameron said the programme would deliver 100,000 starter homes over the lifetime of the next parliament.

"We want to help more young people achieve the dream of home ownership so today as part of our long-term economic plan I can pledge we will build 100,000 homes for young, first-time buyers," he said.

"We will make these starter homes 20% cheaper by exempting them from a raft of taxes and by using brownfield land.

"I don't want to see young people locked out of home ownership.

David Cameron says the new homes would be exempt from some taxes

"We've already started to tackle the problem with Help to Buy mortgages - and these new plans will help tens of thousands more people to buy their first home."

The Conservatives said the homes would be built on brownfield land already zoned for development but no longer needed for industrial or commercial use.

Such land is not normally made available for housebuilding and can be bought more cheaply than other land, and the savings will be passed on to the buyer.

Public sector land which is surplus to requirements will also be brought into the scheme.

At the same time, the Conservatives said that the properties would be exempt from most of the taxes imposed on new homes.

These taxes include the social housing requirement and the community infrastructure levy.

Some future regulations such as the zero carbon homes standard will also not apply to properties built under the scheme.

The announcement is intended to set the tone for the party's final annual conference before the country goes to the polls next May.

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Vast Food: Restaurants Urged To Cut Portions

By Poppy Trowbridge, Consumer Affairs Correspondent

Restaurants should cut portion sizes or charge more for large servings to help reduce food waste and fight obesity, experts have said.

The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health said the measures would also mean significant savings for food outlets and catering firms.

Jenny Morris, policy officer at the professional body for environmental and public health, told Sky News: "Many of us eat too much.

"The portions we expect to see are too big.

"It seems obvious to me, that an easy solution is to only produce the amount of food that is going to be consumed or that is needed."

She also added that there was some rationale for restaurants to charge a premium for large servings, in a bid to combat rising obesity rates.

Campaigns have sought to encourage consumers to cut back on food waste for years, but the CIEH says the industry itself must drive the changes.

Anthony Worrall Thompson says 97p per customer is lost in food waste

"I think that it is business that needs to lead on it because it is business that is in control," Ms Morris said.

"It hasn't always been the focus up until now."

While big business has begun to measure appropriate portion sizes and reduce food waste, the majority of Britain's food businesses are missing out.

Ms Morris said small and medium-sized restaurants could save hundreds of pounds a week by simply reducing how much meat and produce is wasted.

Celebrity chef Anthony Worrall Thompson estimates that 97p per customer is lost in food waste.

"When you add that amongst the thousands of customers we have every year, it's a huge amount of money," he said.

Recycling body WRAP estimates the cost of food being wasted in the UK from the hospitality and food service sector will reach £3bn per year by 2016.

Ms Morris said: "We are in a very privileged situation at the moment where food is relatively cheap. It won't be in the future.

"It doesn't matter whether a business is small or large, it can save a lot of money." 

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Vauxhall Recall: Warning Over Corsa Steering

Recalls By Carmakers On The Rise

Updated: 11:25am UK, Saturday 27 September 2014

The recall by Vauxhall of around 3,000 vehicles because of a steering problem is just the latest in a series of headaches for motor manufacturers.

Last year, manufacturers recalled 868,605 vehicles to dealerships to fix potentially life-threatening defects - up from 665,000 in 2009.

However, the increase does not necessarily mean cars are more prone to faults, but that firms are acting more quickly to deal with problems - anxious to avoid damage to their brands.

Here are just some of the major recalls seen in the past year or so.

:: Only this week US car giant Ford put out a recall on around 850,000 cars in the US over a "potential issue" with airbags.

:: Ferrari has recalled more than 3,000 of its £200,000 luxury sports cars because a fault with a latch means anyone trapped in the boot would not be able to get out.

:: General Motors recalled more than 220,000 cars to correct a brake defect that could increase the risk of fire.

:: Earlier this year, Toyota issued a recall affecting 6.4 million vehicles worldwide and 35,124 in the UK. The carmaker has learned the lessons from the past when it suffered a backlash, after being seen to have responded too slowly to a fault that caused models to accelerate without warning in 2010.

:: Aston Martin recalled 17,590 sports cars in February due to a problem with the accelerator pedal.

:: In 2013, Mercedes recalled 2,540 M-class SUV models in the UK when it discovered a particular floor mat could impede the accelerator pedal.

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