Labour has called on ministers to claw back £12m in dividends paid by Avanti West Coast to its shareholders last year, when it was subsidised by £343m by the taxpayer. Figures released by the rail watchdog on Tuesday showed that Avanti paid out £12m in 2021-22 from management and performance fees. – Guardian
Subsidising the railways has cost British households £1,800 each over the past six years, new figures show. Taxpayers have been forced to inject £50.4bn to prop up the railways since 2016/17 as fare income is not enough to balance the books. Figures released by regulator the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) on Tuesday showed Government funding was £13.3bn in the year to March 2022, compared with £17.6bn in the previous year. – Telegraph
Republican rising star Ron DeSantis has warned Apple that banning Twitter from the iPhone would be a “huge mistake” as a row rages over free speech on the social network. The Florida governor, seen as a leading contender for the presidency in 2024, on Tuesday praised changes pushed through at Twitter by Elon Musk, including the end of bans for right-wing politicians such as Donald Trump. – Telegraph
Three companies look set to be promoted to the FTSE 100 next month, including what would be a blue-chip debut for the insurer Beazley, although Abrdn now looks likely to miss out. The fund manager had seemed set for a swift re-entry to the top tier of the London Stock Exchange, having been demoted at the reshuffle in September. – The Times
The government has repeated its goal of making the UK a global cryptocurrency hub even as the fallout from the FTX collapse continues to reverberate around the world. Andrew Griffith, economic secretary to the Treasury and City minister, said he stood by that ambition, although he placed the emphasis on fiat-backed stable coins rather than the more volatile privately-created crypto assets. – The Times
