Thursday newspaper round-up: Public sector pay, North Sea, Qatar

Philip Hammond, the chancellor, faces a cabinet revolt over public sector pay as ministers demand an end to the 1% wage cap on five million workers. Sir Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, and Chris Grayling, the transport secretary, called for the easing of the central austerity measure yesterday. Jeremy Hunt, the health secretary, is to add to the pressure within days, using a meeting to urge Mr Hammond to agree a more generous deal for nurses. - The Times

British taxpayers face paying billions of pounds more than previously expected for dismantling the North Sea’s oil rigs in a further sign that the industry is becoming a burden on public finances. Decommissioning oil and gas facilities across the UK continental shelf will cost an estimated £59.7bn, according to a report by the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA). About half of that will be borne by oil companies, the rest by the public purse through tax relief. - The Guardian

Gulf states are considering forcing allies to choose between doing business with them or with Qatar if it refuses to meet their demands, including an end to its alleged support for terrorism. Omar Saif Ghobash, the UAE ambassador to Russia and a leading voice on the crisis, said that countries such as Britain could deal with either the Gulf Co-operation Council or the tiny peninsular state, but not both. - The Times

A compensation deadline for victims of fraudulent bankers is set to be missed by Lloyds. The scandal saw criminals at HBOS’s Reading branch destroy companies and strip their assets to pay for lives of luxury. Entrepreneurs lost their livelihoods, homes or marriages as a result. Lloyds, which bought HBOS during the financial crisis, has set aside £100m but says it has taken longer than expected for customers to provide the complex information needed. - The Daily Mail

Investors in the Co-op Bank’s bonds are facing the second big reduction in the value of their holdings within four years after the struggling lender revealed the terms of a £700m bailout. Retail bondholders will take at least a 55% cut in their investments under the terms of a third recapitalisation of Co-op Bank since the discovery in 2013 of a £1.5bn black hole in its finances. - The Times

The financial watchdog has launched an investigation into PricewaterhouseCoopers over an accounting scandal in BT's Italian arm. The Financial Reporting Council said it had begun a probe into audits by PwC of BT for three years of financial statements. The investigation concerns BT's reports in 2015, 2016 and 2017, and follows the telecoms giant's revelations of accounting issues in its Italian operations. - The Daily Telegraph