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Some of the U.K.'s biggest companies were dropped from the government's list of responsible small-business customers on Monday, a decision that could undermine their ability to win state contracts. A further 12 companies were suspended from the Code, but have committed to "pay suppliers promptly" in the future, according to the statement. [Extracted from the article]

London police fired at a vehicle that "deliberately rammed" into the parked car of the Ukrainian ambassador to the U.K., the Ukrainian embassy said in a statement. AttributionAndrew Davis: editor primaryPaul Jarvis: editor secondaryThomas Beardsworth: by reporterVivianne Rodrigues: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

The "Big Four" accounting firms should be forced to legally separate their "cash cow" consulting work from their auditing businesses, a U.K. Parliament committee said Tuesday. The regulator has been reviewing KPMG over potential failures with the Carillion audit. [Extracted from the article]

The financial health of Britain's companies is deteriorating toward a point where their debt risks being classed as junk, according to a measure of distress aggregated from data provided by the largest U.S. and U.K. banks. AttributionChris Vellacott: editor primaryHayley Warren: assistThomas Beardsworth: by reporterVivianne Rodrigues: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Amid warnings from politicians and central bankers of potential economic damage from Britain's exit from the European Union, a New York investor is betting all's well with the country's small businesses. Waterfall Asset Management, a credit-focused hedge fund with $7.3 billion in assets, plans to fund 1 billion pounds ($1.28 billion) of loans to small and medium-sized U.K. companies via Funding Circle Holdings Plc, according to a statement on Friday. [Extracted from the article]

Carillion Plc, the failed U.K. outsourcing company, has been criticized by lawmakers investigating its collapse for misclassifying borrowings. Small and medium-sized businesses working for Carillion could present their invoices at the bank and get paid at a discount, rather than waiting as long as 120 days for Carillion to pay them directly. [Extracted from the article]

Toys "R" Us U.K. Wins Restructuring Vote After Pensions Accord Retailer pledges to pay 9.8 million pounds into pensions pot Toys "R" Us Inc.'s U.K. arm won creditor approval for a restructuring plan, including at least 26 store closures, after striking a last-minute pensions deal. [Extracted from the article]

Retailer boosted pay for U.K. chief amid operating losses Pension bailout fund set to vote against turnaround plan The company rebuffed the bailout fund's own proposal, which entailed Toys R Us U.K. adding 8.9 million pounds to its corporate pension pot within a few months, according to the letter. [Extracted from the article]

Toys R Us Inc.'s plans to restructure its U.K. operations face defeat in a creditor vote, jeopardizing the local business's chances of avoiding insolvency. Pension Protection, which operates a bailout fund for U.K. corporate pensions, asked the retailer to pay 8.9 million pounds into its local pension fund over the next few months, Rubenstein said. The pension bailout fund could change its vote if the retailer makes a new pensions offer, Rubenstein said in the letter. [Extracted from the article]

Investors betting against Debenhams, House of Fraser, New Look Among those with the most at stake are department-store operators Debenhams Plc and House of Fraser Ltd., as well as fashion retailer New Look Retail Group Ltd., owned by embattled billionaire Christo Wiese. Debenhams, a midmarket department-store chain that traces its roots to an 18th-century London fabric store, isn't yet under the financial stress of New Look or House of Fraser. [Extracted from the article]

The U.K. Labour Party is consulting a hedge fund that is betting against Britain's currency and says the economy may need an International Monetary Fund bailout. "John McDonnell has made clear, as Labour prepare for Government, the Shadow Treasury team is happy to meet investors that have requested to meet with Labour", the Party said in a statement. [Extracted from the article]

British deficit may top $90 billion as productivity lags U.K.'s Fiscal Watchdog Plans to Cut Productivity Outlook Again. [Extracted from the article]

It's not just Coghlan, who spent five years making risky stock picks for $2.2 billion hedge fund Charlemagne Capital. Coghlan has been a member of both the Tories and Labour -- he unsuccessfully sought the local party's nomination before declaring as an independent -- and now says he prefers the Lib Dems to either. [Extracted from the article]

Fox says executives would rather play golf, Times reports The opposition Labour Party decried the comments, and a spokesman said Fox should apologize for insulting U.K. businesses. [Extracted from the article]

The U.K. lender won't issue residential mortgage-backed securities in 2016, "unless the market changes significantly", Peter Shorthouse, director of treasury and structured finance, said in an interview on Tuesday. Other lenders are still issuing mortgage-backed securities, with Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc currently arranging a deal backed by U.K. non-conforming home loans. [Extracted from the article]

The U.K. government will redeem 3 billion pounds ($3.9 billion) of bonds backed by mortgages from rescued lender Bradford & Bingley, paving the way for a potential sale of the loans. UK Asset Resolution, which manages state holdings from failed banks, "constantly" looks at potential asset sales, said Neil Vanham, a spokesman. [Extracted from the article]

Investors are underpricing risks to U.K. bank debt if house prices fall as the country moves toward leaving the European Union, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. That suggests "investors are not currently concerned about the capital position of the U.K. banks", the strategists wrote. [Extracted from the article]

Lenders may delay issuance as poll fans economic uncertainties U.K. banks may weather an EU exit because of strong capital bases and domestic-focused businesses, said Christoph Hittmair, who oversees new issuance for bank clients as head of HSBC's financial institutions group. [Extracted from the article]

The article reports on the start of independent government agency Serious Fraud Office's investigation into British grocery chain Tesco Plc's 424 million U.S. dollar profit-guidance overstatement as of October 2014. Topics include the suspension of eight senior managers since the company disclosed the accounting problems in September 2014, and the involvement of the British audit authority, the Financial Reporting Council, in the investigation.