report made on 7 Dec 2007
Rupert Murdoch's global media empire now has its crown prince.
34-year-old James Murdoch, younger son of the media tycoon, has been named chairman and chief executive of News Corporation in Europe and Asia.
This move appears to mark him out as the obvious heir apparent of his mogul father.
Murdoch junior will step down from his current role as BSkyB chief executive, and replace his father as the UK satellite broadcaster's non-executive chairman.
Rupert Murdoch described his son as a "talented and proven executive". He said his son has a rare blend of international perspective and deep, hands-on experience in improving operational results.
In his new post, James Murdoch will also run News Corp's Wall Street Journal Europe, the British newspapers The Times and The Sun, as well as pay-TV firms Sky Italia and Star TV.
Rupert Murdoch, arguabaly the world's most powerful businessman, has recently instigated a series of moves to shake up his family-controlled media groups.
However, James Murdoch's elevation to the chairmanship has caused controversy in the UK. It's understood that British investment institutions dislike chief executives becoming chairman of their respective companies.
Wednesday 19 December 2007
Cameron holds talk with Bush
report made on 30 Nov 2007
A long-lasting feud between the Conservative Party and the US government seems to have come to an end. David Cameron held a private meeting with George Bush today in the White House.
It is the first time in five years that a leader of the Conservative Party has met the US President, or even set foot in Washington.
A feud erupted between the Tories and the White House three years ago when Michael Howard irritated President Bush after he called for Tony Blair to resign over Iraq's missing weapons of mass destruction.
Mr Bush and Mr Cameron discussed areas including Iran, Afghanistan, free trade and climate change, which were described as "issues that Britain and America really need to work together on" by the Tory leader.
The length of the meeting turned out to be somewhat mysterious. Despite the Tories repeatedly insisted that the discussion had been "just under 30 minutes", a senior American source declared that it had been "more like 15 to 20 minutes".
David Cameron took advantage of his current trip to boost his credentials as an international statesman.
In a speech afterwards, Mr Cameron called for a stronger military presence in the Balkans to prevent future trouble.
He also accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of being "less than helpful" by backing Serbia, who is firmly opposed to independence of Kosovo.
A long-lasting feud between the Conservative Party and the US government seems to have come to an end. David Cameron held a private meeting with George Bush today in the White House.It is the first time in five years that a leader of the Conservative Party has met the US President, or even set foot in Washington.
A feud erupted between the Tories and the White House three years ago when Michael Howard irritated President Bush after he called for Tony Blair to resign over Iraq's missing weapons of mass destruction.
Mr Bush and Mr Cameron discussed areas including Iran, Afghanistan, free trade and climate change, which were described as "issues that Britain and America really need to work together on" by the Tory leader.
The length of the meeting turned out to be somewhat mysterious. Despite the Tories repeatedly insisted that the discussion had been "just under 30 minutes", a senior American source declared that it had been "more like 15 to 20 minutes".
David Cameron took advantage of his current trip to boost his credentials as an international statesman.
In a speech afterwards, Mr Cameron called for a stronger military presence in the Balkans to prevent future trouble.
He also accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of being "less than helpful" by backing Serbia, who is firmly opposed to independence of Kosovo.
Emails on benefit record loss revealed
report made on 22 Nov 2007
New evidence suggests that HM Revenue & Customs officials might be concerned more about saving money rather than protecting data, as emails between National Audit Office and HM Revenue & Customs about data transmission have been released.
In one of the emails, an NAO officer asked HMRC to deliver only desensitized data records "as safely as possible". But the reply from HMRC appears to suggest that stripping sensitive data from the files costs too much.
In House of Commons, Chancellor Alistar Darling said the loss of 25 million records of personal data had been caused by an HMRC junior officer who breached the data transmitting procedure.
But the Conservatives claimed that government had failed to protect the public. And the crisis is down to, what they call, high level "systemic failures" in HMRC.
Now, people are seriously concerned about potential data fraud. The government declares that the information was password protected, and there was no evidence that it had been illegally used.
But the real issue is that how government should protect personal information. Significant improvement of the security system in data transmission is certainly needed.
New evidence suggests that HM Revenue & Customs officials might be concerned more about saving money rather than protecting data, as emails between National Audit Office and HM Revenue & Customs about data transmission have been released.
In one of the emails, an NAO officer asked HMRC to deliver only desensitized data records "as safely as possible". But the reply from HMRC appears to suggest that stripping sensitive data from the files costs too much.In House of Commons, Chancellor Alistar Darling said the loss of 25 million records of personal data had been caused by an HMRC junior officer who breached the data transmitting procedure.
But the Conservatives claimed that government had failed to protect the public. And the crisis is down to, what they call, high level "systemic failures" in HMRC.
Now, people are seriously concerned about potential data fraud. The government declares that the information was password protected, and there was no evidence that it had been illegally used.
But the real issue is that how government should protect personal information. Significant improvement of the security system in data transmission is certainly needed.
Tuesday 18 December 2007
McLaren wait for FIA decision
report made on 15 Nov 2007
McLaren urges Formula One governing body, the FIA, to stand by their appeal against the Brazilian Grand Prix result, as the tangle of champion title goes on.
McLaren objected to Williams and BMW not being penalized for using fuel that was too cool in the season finale.
If the FIA upholds the appeal, McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton could mathematically take the title away from Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen.
But it is widely expected that the FIA will not change the race classification even if it decides to punish Williams and BMW.
And Lewis Hamilton has already said that he does not want to win the championship in such dramatic fashion.
McLaren urges Formula One governing body, the FIA, to stand by their appeal against the Brazilian Grand Prix result, as the tangle of champion title goes on.
McLaren objected to Williams and BMW not being penalized for using fuel that was too cool in the season finale.If the FIA upholds the appeal, McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton could mathematically take the title away from Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen.
But it is widely expected that the FIA will not change the race classification even if it decides to punish Williams and BMW.
And Lewis Hamilton has already said that he does not want to win the championship in such dramatic fashion.
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