Thursday newspaper round-up: BHS pensions, food industry, Brexit

Regulators have fired the opening shot in a battle that could force Sir Philip Green to hand over a chunk of his fortune to pay the pensions of former workers at the retail chain that made him a billionaire. Sir Philip promised in June to “sort” the £571m pension deficit left behind by BHS, which collapsed in April barely a year after the Topshop tycoon sold the department store for £1. He said on Wednesday night he had offered regulators a deal, along with bank documents proving he had access to the required cash. – Financial Times

The UK’s food industry is facing the worst labour shortage for at least 12 years as farmers, manufacturers and processors struggle to find enough workers to prepare for the Christmas rush. The warning comes amid fears of a shortage of truck and van drivers to deliver goods to shops and homes. – Guardian

Germany’s leading economists have urged the EU and Germany to try to halt Brexit or at least contain its fallout, saying the best outcome of the divorce talks would be for it not to happen. The German government’s independent council of economic advisers said in its annual report the worst of the impact of Brexit on both Germany and the EU would be political rather than economic. – Guardian

The John Lewis Partnership, one of the UK’s most progressive companies, has led criticism of Theresa May’s plan to put workers on boards. The Prime Minister used a keynote speech at last month’s Conservative Party conference to pledge that employees will join directors in boardrooms and be given a say in how businesses operate. - Telegraph

Britain may revert to a closed economy that shuts itself off from the world because the battle has yet to be won for an open trading policy after Brexit, George Osborne has warned. Speaking at the launch of the London School of Economics’ growth commission, he said there would be a “real contest” between free traders in government and those who want to assert sovereignty at the expense of a more dynamic economy. – The Times

Britain is turning into a digital couch potato economy, with four in five of us subscribing to at least one streaming service. One of the biggest dramas on television this year is expected to be The Crown, a £100 million production about the young Queen Elizabeth that begins tomorrow and comes not from the producers of Downton Abbey or Poldark but Netflix. – The Times