UK's Assura gets $2.08 billion offer from KKR consortium
March 10 (Reuters) - British healthcare real estate investment trust Assura plc (AGRP.L), opens new tab on Monday said it received an indicative, non-binding 1.61-billion-pound ($2.08 billion) proposal from KKR (KKR.N), opens new tab and Stonepeak Partners (UK).
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Powys County Times
2 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Letter: Britain must not be dragged back into the EU
There is a clear and compelling case for Britain to remain a self-governing, sovereign nation, under its own parliament, courts, and laws, pursuing global trade on its own terms. What Keir Starmer has agreed with Brussels stands in stark opposition to that principle. His new deal quietly re-submits the UK to the EU's law-making machinery through so-called 'dynamic alignment,' stripping away regulatory autonomy without voting rights or formal influence. This is not co-operation, it's rule-taking. Worse still, this violates the terms of our recently signed Asia-Pacific trade pact (CPTPP) and risks legal action that will damage Britain's global credibility. What message does this send to future trade partners? That Britain cannot be trusted to stick to its own treaties? That any agreement is temporary until Labour reopens the backdoor to Brussels? Starmer's move was done without a public mandate, with no clear economic benefit, and likely at great cost to key growth sectors like biosciences and agri-tech, now vulnerable to intrusive EU regulation. The EU did not demand such concessions from New Zealand or other sovereign nations. Why should we be the exception? British farmers have already warned that any SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary) deal must protect our right to make our own production rules. Yet Starmer's approach risks sacrificing that independence under the false promise of smoother trade. From live animal exports to cosmetic testing, will the UK now be forced to unwind hard-won ethical reforms to satisfy Brussels? Britain didn't vote for a satellite status. We must not be dragged back step by step into the EU's orbit through political sleight of hand.
Rhyl Journal
13 hours ago
- Rhyl Journal
McDonald's new food and drinks menu for June 2025- full list
The June menu will bring both sweet and savoury treats to the fast food chain's restaurants nationwide. Some items are new to McDonald's while others have been available before and are returning for summer. From the new and returning items to when you can buy them and customer reaction, here's everything we know about the new McDonald's menu. A new Big Arch burger is making its way to restaurants and will be available to buy for £7.99 on its own or £9.99 as a medium meal. A large meal will cost £10.79. The new burger consists of two 100% British and Irish beef patties, white cheddar cheese slices, crispy onions, fresh onions, shredded lettuce, crunchy pickles and a generous layer of signature Big Arch sauce. The new Big Arch sauce is rich and creamy, the fast food chain explains. If you'd like to treat yourself to something sweet, you can look out for the new Toffee Crisp McFlurry - soft dairy ice cream with Toffee Crisp pieces and toffee sauce (£2.39). Alternatively, you can choose the new Toffee Apple Pie, a crispy pastry filled with a rich toffee flavour (£2.09). The new menu will see some new Toffee Crisp items and some returning savoury treats (Image: McDonald's) Returning to the McDonald's menu for June is the Cheesy McCrispy which consists of a 100% chicken breast fillet in a crispy coating served with lettuce, crispy onions, pink pickled onion chutney, bacon, Emmental cheese and deluxe cheese sauce. A Cheesy McCrispy burger on its own will cost £6.69 or you can make it a medium meal for £8.49. A large meal will set you back £9.29. Halloumi Fries are also returning to the summer menu with a Sweet Chilli Dip included. A box of four will cost £2.99 while a Sharebox will cost you £7.59. The Katsu Chicken One wrap is staying on the menu at McDonald's. If you haven't tried it yet, you can expect a wrap with either crispy or grilled chicken (you choose), coated in katsu sauce with crispy onions, cucumber and fresh lettuce, wrapped in a warm, toasted tortilla. If you buy the Katsu wrap by itself, it will cost you £3.49 or £2.29 if it's the wrap of the day. Make it a medium meal and it'll set you back £5.29. Deliveroo Plus is now offering McDonald's food with some offers available - from Monday, June 2 until Sunday, June 15 you can get 6-piece Chicken McNuggets for free when you spend £15 (available daily from 11am–5am). From Monday, June 2 until – Sunday, June 8, you can spend £10+ via McDelivery and enjoy a free Breakfast Wrap, available from 11am daily. When you spend £15+, you can also bag a free Big Mac. On TikTok, people shared their reactions to others trying the burger early. With some countries already having it on their menu, some told other people their own experiences. One said: 'tried it in disneyland paris on the weekend & it was LUSHHHH'. Another person said the new burger 'looks unreal'. Recommended reading: New 'iconic' McDonald's burger with the 'most loaded bite we've ever served' What's on the McDonald's menu for breakfast (and when you can get it) McDonald's discontinues 'best' menu item leaving fans asking 'how can I complain' Reacting to someone trying the burger in Canada last year, one said: 'it looks so yummmmy!!!' while another commented: 'Ok brb (be right back) heading to McDonald's 😂'. McDonald's customers can buy items from the new June menu from Wednesday, June 18. The menu will be available for a limited time only, so be sure to try it out before it goes.
The Guardian
14 hours ago
- The Guardian
Bidders demand Thames Water granted immunity over environmental crimes
Lenders vying to take over Thames Water have demanded that the struggling company and its management be granted immunity from prosecution for serious environmental crimes as a condition of acquiring it, the Guardian can reveal. Creditors want the environment secretary, Steve Reed, to grant the water company extraordinary clemency from a series of strict rules covering everything from sewage spills to failure to upgrade its water treatment works. The demands, if successful, would render the Environment Agency (EA) largely powerless to take enforcement action against Britain's biggest water company for some of the most serious criminal breaches of its licences and permits. Thames Water has been a serial offender in recent years, paying tens of millions of pounds in fines and penalties, with multiple convictions for dumping raw sewage into rivers and streams and dozens more investigations under way. The fate of the heavily indebted utility was thrown into further doubt this week when the US private equity firm KKR quit an auction to buy it, citing concerns about politicisation and the poor state of its assets. That has left a disparate band of about 100 bondholders, who have collectively lent the company about £13bn, as the sole bidder. If the creditors' bid fails, Thames Water is likely to fall into state ownership via the special administration regime – a fate the Treasury is desperate to avoid. Sources described the creditors' list of demands as a 'ransom note' that underlined their powerful negotiating position as the 'last show in town'. Creditors argue that failure to secure leniency from fines and enforcement will mean Thames Water is caught in a 'doom loop' that prevents it from recovering and injecting enough money into its tired network. The company, which has 16 million customers in the London and Thames Valley regions and 8,000 employees, is labouring under about £20bn of debt and is running out of cash. The requests formed part of the creditors' turnaround plan that was put to the water regulator, Ofwat, in recent days. Among the proposals were that the EA stops enforcing personal liability for managers at Thames Water and does not pursue enforcement over the company's failure to deliver a huge number of infrastructure upgrades, known as the water industry national environment programme (Winep). The Guardian revealed in December that Thames Water intentionally diverted millions of pounds pledged for Winep environmental clean-ups towards bonuses and dividends, sparking an Ofwat investigation. Customers have already paid for those projects via their bills. Thames Water failed to deliver more than 100 of 812 Winep schemes it was due to between 2020 and 2025. Other creditor requests include not prosecuting Thames Water for sewage spills on dry days or for 'flow to full treatment' licence breaches – where the EA and Ofwat police how much wastewater its plants can treat at any time. They also want Thames Water to be exempt from prosecution for breaches of the industrial emissions directive, which governs pollution into rivers, streams, land and the atmosphere. To achieve these requests, the creditors want Reed to give a strategic decision statement ordering the EA to deprioritise enforcement. The Guardian revealed in March that Thames Water was demanding leniency for fines and penalties in order to attract bidders and stop cash they might inject from leaking out of the business. However, the extent of the creditor demands, and request for near-blanket immunity for serious environmental crimes, has surprised water industry insiders, who warned it could spark legal challenges from rivals or lead to more requests for special treatment. Sign up to Headlines UK Get the day's headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion Last month Ofwat fined the company£123m over sewage and dividend breaches. The regulator said its investigation had uncovered failings around Thames's handling of sewage and wastewater, which amounted to a 'significant breach' of its legal obligations. The EA is still pursuing parallel investigations into Thames Water over alleged failure to comply with environmental permits, and has powers to prosecute the company. Creditors are expected to write down a significant proportion of their debt in return for taking over the company. Time is running out to find a solution to keep it afloat as it burns through £3bn of high-interest rescue loans. A spokesperson for the creditors declined to comment on commercial discussions but confirmed their plan required 'regulatory support'. 'The creditors' proposal will fix the fundamentals, protect public health and prioritise improved customer and environmental outcomes,' they said. 'In addition to a detailed operational plan and billions in fresh investment proposed by the creditors, Thames Water requires a fundamental reset and regulatory support so that asset health and performance can be restored to the levels that customers and the environment deserve. 'The creditors are committed to working with the government and regulators to achieve that outcome as quickly as possible and expect Thames Water to be held to account to deliver a realistic but ambitious trajectory for the company's return to compliance.' A government spokesperson said: 'The company is stable and government is carefully monitoring the situation. We expect the company to continue to meet its obligations to both customers and the environment.' An Ofwat spokesperson said: 'Our focus is on ensuring that the company takes the right steps to deliver a turnaround in its operational performance and strengthen its financial resilience to the benefit of customers. We are assessing whether the [creditors'] plans are realistic, deliverable and will bring substantial benefits for customers and the environment.' Thames Water said: 'In order to be investable, we and prospective investors would need to engage in discussions with our regulators.'
