BUSINESS WITH PERSONALITY MAN BEHIND THE WHEEL END OF THE ROAD? ENTREPRENEURS’ WE TALK ELECTRIC CARS RELIEF COULD BE WITH MCLAREN’S BOSS P13 AXED TODAY P20 WEDNESDAY 11 MARCH 2020 ISSUE 3,574 CITYAM.COM FREE LETTING OFF STEAM President TORY REBELS slams ‘pathetic’ Fed in rate row EYE HUAWEI CLIMBDOWNCATHERINE NEILAN defence secretary, ex-NI secretary and Duncan Smith, who at the start of ex-deputy PM... It is hard to see how the debate was seen in deep discussion @CatNeilan the government can fail to respond.” with Dowden, told the Commons he TORY grandee David Davis last night Culture secretary Oliver Dowden at- was “always flexible on the date” — demanded Boris Johnson take note of tempted to persuade wavering Tories giving clear wiggle room as long as a a Commons ambush that saw dozens before the vote by stressing the govern- firm commitment was made to ditch of Conservative MPs rebel against ment was committed to the 35 per Huawei by a certain point. plans to grant Huawei access to the cent cap on Huawei within the net- The government must begin to re- UK’s 5G infrastructure. work, which would be brought down move Huawei “at speed” and before The government was yesterday given over time. the end of parliament, he added. a bloody nose by its own backbenchers He also said Number 10 was working Earlier in the day Davis told City A.M. after a group of rebels led by former with allies in the Five Eyes intelligence the government would be “very Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith pushed alliance — the US, Canada, Australia unwise” to ignore the rebels, even if for Huawei to be banned from the and New Zealand — on using alterna- they lost this “emblematic” vote. country’s telecoms networks. tive suppliers, but cited a lack of op- He warned further pressure would MPs voted 306 to 282 against an tions as the reason for using Huawei. be applied by “going shopping” among HARRY ROBERTSON moving Federal Reserve, headed by amendment calling for Downing Dowden added that ministers would other backbenchers to present a Jay Powell, who raised rates too fast Street to stop using “high risk vendors” listen to concerns when they brought “much more robust game”. @harrygrobertson and lowered too late, should get our — a term that applies primarily to the forward a bill relating to Huawei’s in- “We’ve not done the kind of cam- US PRESIDENT Donald Trump Fed Rate down to the levels of our Chinese firm. volvement in the 5G network “so all paigning you would do if you wanted yesterday labelled his country’s competitor nations.” Although that fell short of the total honourable members will be able to to [orchestrate a] rebellion,” he said. central bank “pathetic” for not He added: “The Federal Reserve number needed to bring about a de- debate these points extensively”. “We have taken the view that this early cutting interest rates further in the must be a leader, not a very late feat, the group — which included For- But he insisted that he would be in a government’s life you would face of the coronavirus outbreak that follower, which it has been!” eign Affairs Select Committee chair “candid” about what he was not able prefer to avoid it.” crashed stock markets on Monday. Investors now believe the Fed will Tom Tugendhat — expect the result to to promise. Following the amendment’s defeat, Trump’s intervention piles pressure cut rates next week, according to be viewed as a warning shot. “I’m not setting out a timetable, a Huawei’s vice president Victor Zhang on the US Federal Reserve to cut rates analysis by CME Group. Many are Last night Davis tweeted: “Thirty- date to get to the point where we don’t pushed back against the “groundless again after slashing them by 50 basis pricing in a deep 75 basis point cut. eight Conservatives spontaneously re- have to rely on them at all,” he said, accusations” from the backbenchers points last week. belled on Huawei, including eight pointing to the next bill, expected in and said “an evidence-based ap- Trump tweeted: “Our pathetic, slow £ CONTINUES ON P5 ex-Cabinet ministers, including an ex- June, as the right time for that debate. proach” was needed. FTSE 100▼ 5,960.23 -5.54 FTSE 250▼ 17,547.05 -0.10 DOW▲ 25,018.16 +1,167.14 NASDAQ ▲ 8,344.25 +393.58 £/$▼ 1.292 -0.021 £/€▼ 1.142 -0.002 €/$▼ 1.131 -0.016 02 NEWS WEDNESDAY 11 MARCH 2020 CITYAM.COM SHIPSHAPE Workers enter final stages of restoration project on 19th century naval figureheads to mark Mayflower anniversary THE CITY VIEW Rebel platoon gives government a scare ESPITE the best efforts of the government, today’s Budget will be the Coronavirus Budget. As much as DDowning Street wants to refocus the conversation — even for a day — on its “levelling up” agenda, attention will inevitably fall on the chancellor’s economic antidote to the effects of the outbreak. But it isn’t just ministers determined to acknowledge that there’s a world beyond this virus. Yesterday a group of high-profile Tory MPs reminded us of one of other key issues in play: Huawei’s role in the country’s 5G network. Before the arrival of Covid-19, the Chinese tech giant’s involvement in our digital infrastructure flared up into a mighty transatlantic row, with Donald Trump said to be incandescent that we would allow the firm into our network. US congressmen wrote furious CONSERVATORS were yesterday putting the finishing touches on a two-year project to restore 14 naval figureheads dating back letters to Number 10 and the President’s chief of staff paid a visit to the 19th century. The figureheads, which weigh 20 tonnes, will be displayed at The Box Museum in Plymouth as part of the to express American concerns city’s plan to mark the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower. The Box will be the largest arts centre in south-west England. in person. Those concerns are shared by at least 38 Tory MPs including former cabinet ministers and grandees with Ministers have experience of defence, security and intelligence. After Boris their work cut out NMC Health finds almost Johnson’s thumping win in last if they want to year’s election, it was assumed avoid a defeat in his 80 seat majority would the summer grant him immunity from $3bn unknown debt pile trouble-making backbenchers, but although the government won the day the number of rebels is said to have taken whips by surprise. David Davis, a man who ANGHARAD CARRICK asked of the Abu Dhabi-based hospital operator was relegated from the FTSE enjoys a bit of bravado, said the rebellion was just a taste of operator’s management. 100 as part of its quarterly review. things to come. He claimed it was “spontaneous” (a bit of a @angharadcarrick The scandal-hit healthcare provider The company said it was asking its stretch) and that if they actually tried to orchestrate a THE SCANDAL-HIT health operator appointed investment bank Moelis to lenders for an informal standstill in NMC Health has identified an addi- help support discussions with lenders. relation to its existing facilities with government defeat they could do so. All of this means that tional $2.7bn (£2.09bn) in debt Big Four firm PwC was hired to help the aim of stabilising its financing. ministers will have their work cut out ahead of the next big unknown to the board, bringing its with “liquidity management and News of the FCA probe came Commons vote on Huawei in the summer. The government total debt position to around $5bn. operational issues”. The appointments just after the hospital operator fired cannot assume that it will win now that anti-Huawei MPs feel The company said it had been noti- were made after the Financial its chief executive and placed its fied by Moelis and PwC, who it Conduct Authority (FCA) announced it finance chief on extended sick leave the wind is in their sails. In the wake of yesterday’s defeat, appointed as advisers last week, that had launched an investigation into following an ongoing investigation of culture minister Matt Warman said the government had heard the group’s position had more than NMC last month. its finances. the rebels’ point “loud and clear” and pledged that “we will now doubled from the $2.1bn reported at The company’s shares have lost more NMC staff were reportedly not paid engage intensively with colleagues across the House to make 30 June 2019 to $5bn. than half of their value since the end last month, raising worries over the In a statement to the stock exchange, of last year when shortseller Muddy group’s cash position. The firm said it sure that we will make out case at every possible level”. NMC Health said it was “continuing to Waters questioned its financial state- expects to make the payments before However, it will take more than restating their case to win back work with its advisers to understand ments. NMC denied any wrongdoing 16 March, according to Reuters. this new rebel alliance. David Davis, Iain Duncan Smith, Tom the exact nature and quantum of the and launched a review into the allega- Yesterday NMC said: “NMC is fully undisclosed facilities”. tions, which is being led by former FBI focused on safeguarding its opera- Tugendhat and others who voted against the government all “The board believes that some pro- director Louis Freeh.