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Pleitverkiezing
Per 1 maart hebben de Hollandsche befjes een nieuwe landelijke deken, Jan Loorbach. Hij volgt Willem Bekkers op, die bekendstond om zijn eigengereide optreden en zijn kort lontje.
Kunstige megafraude in Upper East Side
De New Yorkse galeriehouder Lawrence Salander heeft donderdag schuld bekend in wat nu al New York’s grootste kunstfraudezaak in de geschiedenis wordt genoemd. Hij zou voor $120 miljoen aan kunst hebben ‘gestolen’.
Borrelen in Bergen
Wie deze lente besluit om in rijkenenclave Bergen een biertje te drinken, zal merken dat het horecalandschap in het duindorp flink op de schop is gegaan. Nero is verkocht en De Taverne gaat dicht.
Californië is geflipt
Je zou denken dat Amerikanen wel iets geleerd hebben van de huizencrash. Dat met geleend geld lukraak huizen kopen onverstandig is bijvoorbeeld. Of dat de huizenprijzen niet eeuwig blijven stijgen.
Weer geen blondje voor Bond
James Bond kan zich wederom opmaken voor een tegenspeelster met donkere lokken. Slumdog Millionaire-actrice Freida Pinto kruipt in de huid van Bondgirl.
Radio Show: Upheavals in the US, Afghanistan and Iceland
 Listen to the latest edition of Newsline
Londonist Stays In: 22-28 March

tv1.jpg

All the most Londony shows on TV and radio this week.

Monday
University Challenge (BBC2, 20.00-20.30) Semi-final time. Cheer on Imperial as they engage St John's, Oxford in the battle of trivial one-upmanship.

Tuesday
Mapping the Metropolis (Radio 4, 15.45-16.00) How absorbing the A-Z affects a cabbie's brain.

Wednesday
Live FA Cup Football (ITV1, 19.30-22.00) An all-London Sixth Round replay as Spurs take on Fulham.

Thursday
Museum of Life (BBC2, 20.00-21.00) First in a six-part series documenting the work of the Natural History Museum. Not to be missed!

Friday
28 Days Later (C4, 22.50-01.00) Yet another chance to see the zombies-take-over-London film from Danny Boyle. You've probably got better things to do.

Saturday
The Great Offices of State (BBC2, 19.30-20.30) Inside the Foreign Office on Whitehall, including candid interviews with high-ranking ministers who once bestrode these corridors of power.
Time Team Special: Londoninium, the Edge of Empire (C4, 19.30-21.00) Tony Robinson and Co dig up the City to retrieve Roman remains.

Sunday
The Politics Show (BBC1, 12.00-13.00) Jon Sopel fronts the weekend politics cavalcade, with a lengthy section on local politics.
28 Weeks Later (C4, 21.00-23.00) Mildly inferior zombie sequel to the diurnal namesake.



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Review: Quilts 1710-2010

Militaryquilt.jpg Though the Quilts 1710 - 2010 at the V&A seems exceptionally timely, it's been six years in the making, and curator Sue Pritchard initally had to prove the viability of an exhibition centred around the museum's vast collection of patchwork and quilted objects. It's certainly something for guild members and enthusiasts - it will be interesting to see if it draws in the new generation of fabric junkies and make-do-menders.

The works on show have been created in community projects, by inmates at Wandsworth prison, transported female convicts, contemporary artists, and unknown artisans. The exhibition opens with bed hangings made from 1730-50 and moves through thematic collections to finish with Tracey Emin's To Meet My Past. The museum has carefully placed the works in situ, so many are displayed on beds though this does sometimes make it difficult to see details and identify pattern repeats which are integral to the design.

The contemporary artists who've been chosen to represent the art today are firmly in that camp - artists rather than crafters or enthusiasts which is evident in Sue Stockwell and Caren Garfen's work, as well as Tracey Emin's To Meet My Past. It's quite different to the US or Australian scene but this is intended to focus on British work. Whether it will entice younger crafters to pick up the needle is yet to be seen but traditionalists will be thrilled by the glimpse into V&A archive, as well as the specially commissioned Liberty fabrics that accompany it. They're available in the gift shop, along with one of the best selection of quilting books in the city and some of the most expensive thread you'll ever find.



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BAE Systems hit by defence cuts

The US has already axed big budget projects as Obama seeks to curb military spending and analysts anticipate Britain will soon follow suit

These are dog days for BAE Systems, Britain biggest manufacturing company, as it faces swingeing defence spending cuts by the US and British governments in the wake of the global banking crisis.

The Americans have already acted – axing big budget projects as the administration seeks to curb military spending that doubled during the Bush years.

Among the projects to be scrapped are the costly F-22 fighter plane, a new communications satellite, ship-building programmes and missile development. Further retrenchment is inevitable. As BAE derives half its £20bn of annual revenue from the US, this is unwelcome news.

Britain is also gearing up for big cuts, with both the main political parties preparing plans to slash defence spending by up to £10bn with announcements expected after the election in May.

Analysts anticipate cuts to the existing BAE Harrier and Tornado fighter jet fleet, an early phasing out of Nimrod MR2 reconnaissance aircraft, and a reduction in orders for the new US fighter aircraft, the F-35. Such ruthless cost-cutting means BAE could lose tens of millions in lost revenue.

Peter Felstead of Jane's Defence Weekly says: "BAE faces a challenging period as government seeks to rein in public spending by paring back existing orders and cancelling plans for new weapons systems. Plans for new aircraft carriers, war planes and ships are vulnerable at a time when there is cross-party consensus that military spending is too extravagant."

The difficult backdrop hasn't been lost on the City: BAE's share price is down 20% over 18 months and Goldman Sachs has published a note claiming BAE's earnings could stagnateuntil the middle of this decade.

According to Goldmans' defence analyst David Perry, profits at BAE's land division look set to halve by 2012 after the US cut funding for several vehicle programmes in its 2011 budget. Perry also said he expected news about the group's F-35 joint strike fighter programme to get worse. Programme leader Lockheed warned recently that it would share the burden among partners, including BAE, after the Pentagon withheld $614m (£410m) in performance fees.

Ed Steed, an analyst at Execution Noble, says that "BAE is not so well positioned" to withstand an era of reduced defence spending, as it is heavily exposed to so-called platform products, "big ticket items such as ships, aircraft and submarines, where the spotlight tends to fall during a defence review".

He adds: "Projects where BAE is involved such as F-35 and Typhoon are far advanced but governments around the world are likely to reduce planned orders or abandon plans to place new ones at a time of budgetary restraint."

Deals fall by the wayside

BAE is facing pressure on a second front – competition for new weapons contracts – where it has suffered a number of setbacks. The latest to fall by the wayside is a multi billion pound deal to build the British army's next generation of light tanks and armoured vehicles where BAE has been beaten by General Dynamics of the US putting at risk hundreds of jobs at the company's armaments division, particularly in Newcastle. Last year, BAE failed to win the $281m US government contract for armoured battlefield vehicles, sending its stock tumbling by more than 5%.

The loss of the US armoured cars contract to its Wisconsin-based rival Oshkosh Defense was the first major setback since BAE Systems launched the latest phase of its American expansion strategy two years ago. BAE is now the fourth-biggest defence contractor in the US market.

To hedge against uncertainty in the US and UK, BAE is expanding in India, Australia and Saudi Arabia, where defence spending is expected to rise; and it aims to boost its presence in niche product areas such as cyber security and unmanned aircraft.

When the company's results were announced in February, Ian King, the chief executive, said he expected combat aircraft to take over from land vehicles as the main driver of growth. He said he expected land systems to decline by 30% over the next two years, following contract setbacks, and because of retrenchment as the US and Britain withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan

But Howard Wheeldon, head of strategy at BGC Partners, says he remains positive about BAE, as "it is a past master at being able to adapt to changed circumstances".

He adds: "These may be worrying times, but the company is well positioned, as it has a diversified product portfolio and international interests."

Analysts at Exane BNP Paribas say they expect "a flat performance over the next couple of years" but point out that about 30% of BAE's income depends on maintenance and support programmes for projects that still have many years to run.

BAE rebutted suggestions that it faces a rocky period ahead, saying: "We have a large order book and programmes such as Typhoon continue to deliver a strong performance. During the year £3bn of new support contracts were awarded.

"In the US, our high-technology capabilities within our electronics, intelligence and support business continue to be in demand."

BAE battles image problem

Elsewhere BAE is battling an image problem, after bribery and corruption investigations in the US and UK ended with the firm paying £255 in fines to the US department of justice (DoJ) after admitting to irregularities over the sale of fighter planes to Saudi Arabia and eastern Europe.

In a court filing, the DoJ claimed that BAE transferred millions to Swiss bank accounts controlled by an agent, with a high probability that a payment would go to a Saudi Arabian official in a position of influence.

In the past, there have been allegations that BAE maintained a £60m slush fund to underpin the Saudi al-Yamamah arms contractthat has been worth £43bn over the past 20 years. BAE has denied the allegations.

In Britain, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) dropped an investigation into BAE's Saudi business after intervention by the Blair government in 2006. But the company must pay £30m after agreeing to plead guilty to a lesser offence of failing to keep accurate accounting records for its activities in Tanzania.

Although the UK National Audit Office investigated al-Yamamah, the conclusions are shrouded in secrecy. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) says: "The report remains sensitive. Disclosure would harm both international relations and the UK's commercial interests." Anti-armaments campaigners have accused the government of a cover-up.

King has attempted to draw a line under the corruption investigations by stating: "The company regrets and accepts full responsibility for past shortcomings. The firm has systematically enhanced its compliance policies and processes."

Francis Tusa of Defence Analysis says: "If you ask people what they think of defence companies, they would be extremely cynical and assume that dodgy stuff is going on all the time. Of course, that doesn't make it right."

Rita Clifton, chair of the branding agency Interbrand, said: "No one expects a defence company to be a hearts-and-flowers organisation. Customers are primarily concerned about product quality and service, but reputation can be a factor when potential clients are shopping around in a highly competitive marketplace. And image matters in the wider public and political arena. BAE cannot afford to rest on its laurels."


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ICAP closes division with loss of 114 jobs

• World's biggest interdealer broker admits stockbroking foray has floundered
• Experts say move shows that Tory treasurer Michael Spencer is again taking firm hand

ICAP is cutting 114 jobs after admitting that its ambitious move into stockbroking has floundered.

The world's biggest interdealer broker is to close its cash equities sales and research business in Europe and Asia, which it expanded following the collapse of Lehman Brothers in the autumn of 2008.

The future of the division has been uncertain since ICAP said its poor performance had contributed to a shock profit warning in February. Sir Michael Spencer, chief executive, admitted that the decision to create an integrated stockbroking division, providing research as well as matching trades, had not paid off.

"ICAP is an innovative company and we have made a series of significant investments during the past 10 years, which have successfully expanded and diversified our business. However, while a number of our cash equities businesses are performing well, the expansion into full service agency cash equities in Europe and Asia has failed to match up to our expectations," Spencer said.

As well as affecting 114 employees in Europe and Asia, the decision will also cost ICAP £51m.

City experts said the decision showed that Spencer was again taking a firm hand at the company which he founded in 1986. The multi-millionaire reportedly admitted last month that his role as Conservative party treasurer had distracted him from affairs at ICAP. He will leave the role this autumn.

ICAP also revealed that the soon-to-be-discontinued full service cash equity arm has run up a loss of £25m in the last 12 months. That is around £7m more than analysts expected.

"Today's news may further result in the market questioning the future of ICAP's, historically successful, acquisition strategy," said Vivek Raja of Panmure Gordon in a research note.

ICAP plans to keep running an execution-only cash equities arm in London - which is mostly automated and does not have to carry the additional cost of producing research.

Back in 2008, ICAP scented a lucrative opportunity in the stockbroking arena after the collapse of Lehmans, which forced many City trading floors to cut staff. But the division did not manage to hit its own sales targets, partly due to a sharp fall in overall trading volumes. Collins Stewart, the UK stockbroker, said last week that its volumes are at almost half the level enjoyed before the banking sector went into near-meltdown.

Analysts at Merrill Lynch said that ICAP's attempt to innovate its business model was "strategically correct", even though the foray into stockbroking had not proved profitable. "An optimist would say that the cash equities experience has underlined to management the need for iron discipline in these undertakings," they said.

Shares in ICAP fell more than 3% today, losing 11.9p to 379.6p. The company is due to release its latest trading statement on Wednesday.


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