Sunday newspaper round-up: Brexit, Barclays, Ocado, Imperial Brands

Labour is planning to seize control of the Brexit negotiations by forcing Theresa May to put her deal to a second decisive vote before the end of the month. Sir Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, reveals that Labour will try to stop a no-deal exit with an amendment that will compel the prime minister to hold another “meaningful vote” before February 26. - Sunday Times

Theresa May could win parliament’s approval for her controversial Brexit deal in return for guaranteeing another referendum, under a new plan being drawn up by a cross-party group of MPs. The new vote would give the British people a simple choice: to confirm the decision or stay in the EU. - Observer

Italy is drawing up emergency plans to safeguard financial stability and keep trade with the UK flowing even if there is a no-deal Brexit, if necessary through a bilateral deal between Rome and London. The country’s insurgent Lega-Five Star coalition is increasingly worried that a mishandling of the EU’s Brexit crisis could push Italy's fragile economy into a dangerous downward slide and risk a funding crisis for its sovereign debt at a treacherous moment. - Sunday Telegraph

The Dutch government has said it is in talks with more than 250 companies about moving their operations from the UK to the Netherlands before Brexit. The economic affairs ministry said it had lured 42 companies or branch offices and 1,923 jobs from the UK last year, as it increases its efforts to gain Brexit business. - Observer

Japan is seeking tougher concessions from Britain in trade talks than it secured from the EU, while negotiations between London and Tokyo are also being slowed by the looming risk of no-deal Brexit. Japanese trade negotiators are confident they can extract better terms, in a sign of the mounting difficulties facing UK officials as they attempt to line up post-Brexit trade deals around the world. - Observer

The boss of $5 trillion fund behemoth Vanguard has warned that stock market returns will halve over the next decade as volatility surges and the era of cheap money ends. Tim Buckley, the chief executive of the world’s second-largest asset manager, believes investors will face “muted returns” and more wild swings in stock prices after an extraordinary bull run. - Sunday Telegraph

Barclays’ incoming chairman is ­under immediate pressure to shake-up the bank’s board as major shareholders push for fresh faces at the top. Rothschild veteran Nigel Higgins, who replaces John McFarlane in May, has kicked off discussions with the bank’s top investors to discuss the FTSE 100 lender’s future. - Sunday Telegraph

Ocado boss Tim Steiner triggered a highly-ambitious plan to triple the value of his food delivery firm only days before its prized robot-run warehouse was engulfed in flames. The plan would see the company's stock market value soar to almost £20billion – putting it in the same league as corporate titans Rolls-Royce, Tesco and BT. - Mail on Sunday

Tobacco giant Imperial Brands has been shaken by a plot to oust chief executive Alison Cooper and chairman Mark Williamson. Shareholders in the Lambert & Butler and Gauloises owner have been left angered at the FTSE 100 titan’s performance with its share price roughly at the same level as five years ago. - Sunday Telegraph

Britain's largest energy broker has just weeks to avert collapse, ­prompting fears for its 1,000-strong workforce. Utilitywise is locked in talks with potential investors as it scrambles to raise fresh funds or a willing buyer for the company. - Sunday Telegraph

Metro Bank shareholders have asked the UK’s largest litigation-only law firm to consider representing them in a legal dispute after a loan blunder wiped £800m from its share price. Stewarts Law, which brought a shareholder claim against the Royal Bank of Scotland over a fundraising that took place before its bailout, is looking into the matter after being contacted by ­investors. - Sunday Telegraph

Growth in lending to small businesses slumped last year as fears mounted over a no-deal Brexit and company bosses chose to pay off debt and stockpile cash rather than take out loans. Net lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) shrank to £500m, compared with £700m in 2017, a report to be released tomorrow by the state-owned British Business Bank will show. - Sunday Times

Speculation is mounting that ­Interserve could seek a pre-pack ­administration should its largest ­shareholder succeed in derailing a mammoth £480m debt-for-equity swap rescue plan. The ailing government contractor has insisted it will push ahead with the deal, which would all but wipe out ­investors. - Sunday Telegraph

The chairman of Interserve has urged the hedge fund trying to overthrow its board to engage in talks or risk a “really bad” outcome for the embattled cleaning and building company. Glyn Barker said its biggest shareholder, Coltrane Asset Management — which last week called a vote to replace most of the board — had refused to discuss its intentions, risking an even worse outcome for investors than the debt-for-equity swap that has been proposed. - Sunday Times

Virgin Media is exploring what would be a historic takeover of KCOM, the monopoly telecoms provider in Hull, in an attempt to accelerate its network expansion programme. The cable operator, controlled by US billionaire John Malone, is considering a bid to add KCOM’s 200,000 “full-fibre” broadband lines to its network, according to multiple sources. - Sunday Telegraph

The bill for urgent repairs on Britain’s “crumbling” NHS hospitals has soared to more than £3bn after ministers repeatedly raided the health infrastructure budget. Patients and staff are being put at growing risk of harm, with more than 5,500 serious safety incidents last year, including deaths. Surgery often has to be delayed or cancelled because of infrastructure problems such as burst pipes and failing heating systems. - Sunday Times

AstraZeneca is under pressure to allay investor anxiety over its management after the departure of four top executives. Shares in the drugs giant have flagged in recent weeks since the announcement that chief medical officer Sean Bohen was stepping down as part of a research and development reshuffle that also included the departure of Mark Mallon, executive vice-president for global product and portfolio. - Sunday Times

More shops closed down in 2018 than in any year on record, as the crisis on the high street deepened and retailers went into full retreat. Analysis by the Local Data Company shows that 18,355 stores brought their shutters down for the final time. - Sunday Telegraph

The secretive billionaire John Whittaker has sold part of his stake in Hammerson, the owner of shopping centres including Birmingham’s Bullring, after losing millions of pounds on his investment. Whittaker’s investment vehicle, Peel Holdings, has cut its stake in Hammerson from 4.6% to just under 4%. - Sunday Times

HMV will be profitable by the end of the year despite having lost money for almost a decade, said its new owner. Doug Putman, the entrepreneur who heads up Sunrise Records, told Retail Week magazine it would return to profitability by overhauling its website, improving customer service and selling more vinyl records. - Mail on Sunday

Four bosses of failed energy suppliers have returned to the market to sell gas and electricity to households, it can be revealed. Customers are expected to rush to switch deals after the energy price cap was hiked by £117 last week. - Mail on Sunday

One of the UK’s largest gas producers is preparing to sell a swathe of North Sea fields in one of the basin’s ­biggest deals in recent years. French energy giant Perenco, which produces around 15pc of the UK’s ­domestic gas, has hired advisers to ­navigate its North Sea exit. - Sunday Telegraph

Road and rail giant FirstGroup enjoyed a multimillion-pound payday from Britain’s most complained about train network. Hull Trains, which recently topped a rail regulator list for grievances, handed FirstGroup a £5.1m dividend, according accounts filed last week with Companies House. - Sunday Telegraph

Staff at Royal Bank of Scotland are set to share a £335m bonus bonanza as the state-backed lender prepares to report a second straight year of profitability this week. Analysts expect RBS to post operating profits of £3.2bn, up from £2.2bn last year, when the bank presents full-year results on Friday. - Sunday Times

Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary was facing a backlash last night after his new £90million bonus scheme was branded 'ludicrous' by a major investor. O'Leary, who has been in charge for 25 years, will be in line for the bonus if profits or the share price double over the next five years. - Mail on Sunday

The boss of airport and station food retailer SSP faces an investor backlash over her £6.2m pay packet as she prepares to bow out after six years. Kate Swann, 54, has been paid a total of £22.4m since she led the owner of baguette chain Upper Crust to a float in 2014. She still holds shares worth about £40.3m. - Sunday Times

A surgical robot maker has poached a new finance officer from the healthcare giant Smith & Nephew, with every indication it is gearing up for a listing. CMR Surgical builds tiny robots that make the microscopic incisions required for hernia repairs, gall bladder removals and hysterectomies. - Sunday Times

A medicinal cannabis start-up is eyeing a London float in what could be the first in a wave of listings amid rapid deregulation. Emmac Life Sciences is believed to be working with broker Canaccord Genuity on a listing that could value it at £400m. - Sunday Times

The online gambling company behind Kitty Bingo and Bingo Extra has put itself up for sale. AIM-listed Stride Gaming, which was fined £4m last September for “compliance failures”, is understood to have instructed bankers at its stockbroker Investec to find a buyer. - Sunday Times

Sony Pictures has explored a deal to buy the television production company behind the BBC’s Question Time. The Hollywood film and TV giant held early-stage talks about buying Tinopolis last autumn, according to sources. - Sunday Times

The disgraced founder of Quindell claims to have raised £25million to grow his new insurance business – despite his former company still being under criminal investigation. Rob Terry quit the AIM firm after a share-selling scandal just months before it emerged its profits had been massively overstated during his reign. - Mail on Sunday

The troubled City broker Daniel Stewart has collapsed into administration after its Singaporean backers decided to pull the plug. The company made most of its more than 30 staff redundant earlier this month and its website has been replaced by a message saying it “will not be accepting any new client instructions for the foreseeable future”. - Sunday Times

Goldman Sachs’s decision to potentially cut bonuses for top executives over the 1MDB scandal reflects an acknowledgement of shareholder and public outrage over the debacle. The prestigious investment bank has announced that it could withhold millions of dollars in bonuses to former chief executive Lloyd Blankfein and two other retired executives depending on the outcome of ongoing inquiries into the Malaysian fund. - Observer

The Premier League has come close to launching a Netflix-style service for live football that would sidestep traditional broadcasters. The streaming service was due to be tested in Singapore. However, the league pulled back from the project late last year and instead sold three seasons of television rights to Singtel, the Singaporean telecoms giant. - Sunday Times

Facebook is struggling to attract teenagers to its platform, so it has doubled down on children instead. Last week, the social media giant ditched a meme app for teens, called LOL, after disappointing trials. Staff working on the project have been moved to Messenger Kids, which is aimed at children as young as six. - Sunday Times

Foreign buyers will be forced to pay a higher rate of stamp duty to buy a home in England or Northern Ireland, ministers will say today. In a move aimed at helping to solve the country’s homelessness crisis, the higher tax will hit anybody who has spent less than six of the past 12 months living in the UK. - Sunday Times

The steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta has delayed publishing the accounts of more than 20 companies, raising new questions about the financial health and transparency of his fast-growing empire. Analysis of more than 40 of Gupta’s UK subsidiaries shows that about half have used an accounting tactic to postpone the filing of accounts at Companies House. - Sunday Times