Tuesday newspaper round-up: Brexit, Superdry, Petrofac, FCA

Theresa May will summon her warring cabinet to Downing Street for a five-hour showdown on Tuesday after parliament once again failed to coalesce behind any alternative to her rejected Brexit deal. Three options – a common market, a customs union and a second referendum – were all narrowly rejected in the process of indicative votes, prompting renewed talk of a swift general election. - Guardian

MPs once again failed to agree on a way forward for Brexit on Monday as Theresa May prepared to use the threat of a long delay or a general election to persuade her party to back her deal. Parliament voted on four alternatives to Mrs May’s deal, including a customs union and a second referendum, without reaching consensus. - Telegraph

MPs were urged to leave their “prejudices” behind yesterday and seek a Brexit plan parliament could agree on. But there were acrimonious scenes as they fought to convince others that their preferred way through the deadlock was the right one. - The Times

Britain’s big four accountancy firms should face a full break-up to weaken their “stranglehold” on an audit market discredited by corporate failures including Carillion and BHS, MPs have suggested in a hard-hitting report. The business, energy and industrial strategy (Beis) committee said the competition watchdog – which is due to release its final recommendations for reform of the audit industry – should consider the break-up of the country’s biggest accountants by separating their audit and consulting arms. - Guardian

Julian Dunkerton’s fight to be reinstated to the board of Superdry took a new twist last night amid allegations of a dirty tricks campaign by the fashion retailer against its co-founder. With today’s shareholder vote on his reinstatement on a knife-edge, reports surfaced suggesting that Superdry, famous for its Japanese-style hoodies, had called into question his behaviour at the company in a last-ditch bid to swing the vote in the board’s favour. - The Times

The oil services group at the centre of a corruption inquiry has warned investors of increased risks to its future after one of its former employees was convicted of bribery. Petrofac said that developments in the investigation by the Serious Fraud Office had increased “the risk of a loss in share price value, prosecution, fines, penalties or other consequences, including reputational damage”. - The Times

The sharp increase in the use of e-cigarettes has not led more British children to take up cigarettes or regard smoking as normal, the first study of its kind has shown. Some health experts and anti-smoking groups have expressed concern that the growth of e-cigarettes might normalise the idea of smoking for young people. - Guardian

The Financial Conduct Authority has been ordered by the Government to conduct an independent investigation into its oversight of the collapsed firm London Capital and Finance. LC&F promised returns of 6.5pc to 8pc for people investing in its mini-bonds for more than three years, but collapsed in January after taking £236m from more than 11,500 savers. - Telegraph

Police are failing to investigate fraud cases even when there is compelling evidence because of a defeatist culture, according to a watchdog’s report. One force failed to pursue 96 per cent of the cases passed to it by a national intelligence bureau over one month. Officers are seeking reasons to drop inquiries because fraud does not “bang, bleed or shout”, the report said. - The Times

Two former Barclays bankers have been jailed for conspiring to manipulate a key European lending rate at the height of the financial crisis. Carlo Palombo, 40, formerly vice-president of euro rates and a trader at the bank, was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment. Colin Bermingham, 62, who worked as a senior rate submitter, received a five-year sentence. - The Times

Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil giant has been confirmed as the world’s most profitable company after opening its books for the first time to reveal earnings of $224bn (£171bn). The first glimpse of the Saudi behemoth’s full-year profits proved its towering dominance over the world’s largest oil companies. - Telegraph