EasyJet says Gatwick drone chaos cost it £15m. Airline says it is ‘well-prepared’ for Brexit and demand for flights remains solid. easyJet (EZJ) said the flight disruption caused by drone sightings at Gatwick before Christmas had cost it £15m, but insisted it had made a good start to the year and was “well-prepared” for Brexit. About 82,000 easyJet customers were affected and more than 400 flights cancelled after to the drone sightings, which brought the UK’s second-busiest airport to a standstill and caused three days of disruption. The chaos cost easyJet £10m in customer welfare costs and £5m in lost revenues, as more travellers cancelled their flights. Despite the extra costs, easyJet expects full-year profits to meet City forecasts. The low-cost carrier said demand for flights remained solid, despite the looming spectre of a no-deal Brexit. The chief executive, Johan Lundgren, said: “We are well-prepared for Brexit and we feel confident that flights will continue without disruption for EasyJet – I can’t speak for other airlines.” The airline took early precautions by setting up a sister company, EasyJet Europe, in Austria in 2017, where it has registered 130 aircraft. While the EU and the UK have committed to ensure flights will continue even if Britain leaves the EU without a deal on 29 March, EasyJet has also been relocating spare parts and staff paperwork to ensure all certification remains recognised by Europe in the worst-case scenarios.
Tesco, Mothercare and M&S use factory paying workers 35p an hour. Bangladeshi firm that made charity Spice Girls T-shirts also works with major UK retailers. Tesco (TSCO), Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) and Mothercare (MTC) use a factory in Bangladesh that paid the equivalent of 35p an hour to machinists making Spice Girls T-shirts sold to raise money for Comic Relief, it can be revealed. A Guardian investigation disclosed that the predominantly female employees claimed they experienced verbal abuse and harassment from management during shifts of up to 16 hours. Workers at the factory produced the £19.40 T-shirts, which were emblazoned with the message “#IWannaBeASpiceGirl”, to raise money for the charity’s “gender justice” campaign. But employees said they were called “daughters of prostitutes” by managers for not hitting “impossible” targets and claimed employees were forced to work despite being ill. The Spice Girls and Comic Relief said they had been kept in the dark about a change of manufacturer and were “shocked” by the findings. Now it has emerged that Interstoff Apparels, which makes millions of pounds in profits and is co-owned by a Bangladeshi government minister, also produces garments for major British retailers. Tesco and M&S launched investigations after the revelations, while Mothercare, which sells clothing for babies, children and expectant mothers, said it would be reviewing the findings. Labour’s Mary Creagh said the news was a “wake-up call” and urged retailers to do more to ensure workers producing clothes for them are not abused.
Patisserie Valerie shareholders frustrated by lack of information. Struggling cafe chain says update will be given when talks with banks conclude. Shareholders in Patisserie Holdings (CAKE) have expressed frustration at a lack of information from the cake and cafe business, which is struggling for survival as it tries to secure support from its banks. The company, which operates 200 cafes and employs nearly 3,000 staff, has been seeking to extend a standstill agreement on its bank facilities. The agreement protects the business from action to recover debts and it officially expired at midnight on Friday. Patisserie Valerie plunged into crisis in October after it admitted it had uncovered a £40m black hole in its finances. Last week it said the situation was worse than expected as it had found “significant manipulation” and its profits would be “materially below” the £12m it had predicted when the problems first emerged. Prior to the crisis it had been expected to make a £30m profit. On Monday morning the company issued a statement saying that talks with its banks were continuing and it would provide an update when they were concluded. The company’s shares have been suspended since October.
