Latest news with #JohnThornton
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Free electrical and plumbing sessions for young people announced
A Pudsey-based vocational training provider is offering free hands-on electrical and plumbing sessions to young people. Building Futures Together (BFT) is running the programme this summer for 14 to 19-year-olds, with the aim of boosting the youngsters' employability and providing insight into a career in construction. John Thornton, managing director and co-founder at BFT, said: "Almost a million young people aged under 25 are categorised as NEETs, not in education, employment, or training, so it is more important than ever that we create pathways and provide opportunities to boost their employability. "The aim of our summer programme is to give students insight into a career in construction, unlock their potential through hands-on learning, and provide a productive way to spend their time during the holidays." Funded by Leeds City Council, the sessions will take place at BFT's training centre throughout July and August. Sessions will run on July 23, 25, 30, and 31, and August 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, and 28, from 10am to 2.30pm. Attendees can take part in one, two, or all 12 sessions. Each day is limited to 15 places. To register interest, contact John Thornton at More information about BFT is available at
Telegraph
12-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
MPs demand inquiry into ‘Chinese links' to Telegraph takeover
They were joined by Tory MPs Bob Blackman, Sir Desmond Swayne and Neil Shastri-Hurst, the SNP's Chris Law and Labour's Maria Rimmer. The four peers who signed the letter were Baroness D'Souza, Lord Shinkwin, Baroness Meyer and Lord Alton of Liverpool. The letter went on to call for a 'full and transparent investigation into the acquisition'. It concluded: 'The last attempt at a sale of the Telegraph was finally blocked by the UK government on the grounds of undue influence of foreign powers on an important UK news publication. 'To allow the sale to go through at this point when so much of the financing of the RedBird bid remains shrouded in mystery would make a mockery of the existing legislation. 'Those who have invested in RedBird should surely be known before any sale approval can be allowed.' The group said that John Thornton, the chairman of RedBird Capital, is a member of the China Investment Corporation (CIC), a sovereign wealth fund that manages part of Beijing's foreign exchange reserves. They claimed Mr Thornton also took part in meetings with senior figures from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) last year and earlier this year. British-backed rival attempting to disrupt sale The 71-year-old retired as president of Goldman Sachs in 2003 to become a professor at Tsinghua University, one of China's leading universities. Goldman Sachs said at the time that Mr Thornton would stay on as a senior adviser to the bank, with a particular focus on Chinese clients and strategy. Sources close to RedBird told The Guardian that no Chinese state funds were involved in the deal. A press release issued by the Chinese government in April said He Lifeng, a senior Chinese official, had met with Mr Thornton to 'exchange views on China-US economic and trade relations and [the] macroeconomic situation'. The release said Mr Thornton had '[noted] that US-China relations are very important', and that he would 'continue to play a role in […] promoting the stability of the relations between the two countries'. It was announced on May 23 that Gerry Cardinale, the founder of RedBird Capital, had signed an agreement in principle to acquire control of The Telegraph. However, no final agreements are in place, and a British-backed rival is attempting to disrupt the sale. A number of regulatory hurdles also await. 'New era for The Telegraph' Mr Cardinale said last month: 'This transaction marks the start of a new era for The Telegraph as we look to grow the brand in the UK and internationally, invest in its technology and expand its subscriber base. 'We believe the UK is a great place to invest, and this acquisition is an important part of RedBird's growing portfolio of media and entertainment companies in the UK.' RedBird has said it hopes that The Telegraph will be able to reinvest more of its profits and become a force in US and global journalism. Mr Cardinale is also understood to be in detailed talks with Lord Rothermere, the owner of the Daily Mail, as he seeks to complete the consortium. Foreign state ownership of newspapers was banned outright in 2024 following a cross-party outcry. While RedBird IMI does not currently control The Telegraph, it is the owner of debt secured against it.
The Guardian
12-06-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
MPs call for inquiry into how RedBird Capital is funding £500m Telegraph deal
A cross-party group of MPs and peers has called on ministers to investigate how a US private equity company is funding its £500m takeover of the Telegraph. In a letter sent to the culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, last week, the MPs said there was a risk of 'potential Chinese state influence' in RedBird Capital. They said the firm's chair, John Thornton, sat on the advisory council of China's sovereign wealth fund and had high-level meetings with Chinese Communist party figures in 2024 and this year. RedBird Capital announced last month it had agreed a deal to buy the Daily and Sunday Telegraph, ending two years of uncertainty over the future of the titles. The MPs' letter said there was 'a lack of transparency regarding the source of the funds behind this acquisition' and that it was 'conceivable, and increasingly likely, that funds could be sourced directly or indirectly from foreign state actors' including China. A source close to RedBird said there were no Chinese state funds involved in the deal. The letter to Nandy was signed by six Conservative MPs including Iain Duncan Smith and Tom Tugendhat, the Labour MPs Alex Sobel and Marie Rimmer, the Liberal Democrats' Christine Jardine and the Scottish National party's Chris Law. The Tory peers Kevin Shinkwin and Catherine Meyer and the crossbenchers Frances D'Souza and David Alton were also among the signatories. They called on Nandy to 'initiate a full and transparent investigation into the acquisition', consider its national security implications and review Thornton's 'suitability in owning and controlling a UK media outlet'. It is understood that although the proposed deal will eventually need regulatory approval, no proposal has been submitted to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) for review yet. Only a commercial agreement in principle has been reached. While RedBird Capital has been in talks with additional investors in the US and UK, the deal is fully funded and not contingent on them coming onboard. RedBird Capital will become the sole controlling owner. The US private equity group is buying the Telegraph titles from RedBird IMI, which took control of the newspapers in November 2023 after agreeing to pay debts owed by the previous owners the Barclay family. RedBird Capital contributed a quarter of the funding to RedBird IMI, with the other three-quarters funded by International Media Investments (IMI), a company owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the owner of Manchester City. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Sheikh Mansour is vice-president of the United Arab Emirates, and concerns over the consortium's links to Abu Dhabi prompted a campaign against the takeover that culminated in the UK government introducing a law in March last year blocking foreign states or associated individuals from owning British newspaper assets. This forced RedBird IMI to put the titles back up for sale. Under the legislation, which is still going through parliament, ministers said they would allow foreign states to own stakes of up to 15% in British newspapers. Subject to the legislation, under RedBird Capital's acquisition IMI would be reduced to a minority stake in line with the new cap. The MPs and peers' letter said allowing the sale to go through would make a mockery of the legislation, adding: 'Those who have invested in RedBird should surely be known before any final sale approval can be allowed.' The DCMS was contacted for comment.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Astrobotic Xodiac rocket crashes in the Mojave, CEO says won't impact lunar landing mission
North Shore-based aerospace company Astrobotic Technology Inc.'s Xodiac rocket crashed in the Mojave Desert. The terrestrial rocket has been used by the company for 10 years to conduct test flights. During flight 176, the vehicle detected an anomaly on descent, leading to it crashing and its ultimate destruction. No one was injured, and the test site itself is undamaged. RELATED COVERAGE >>> Channel 11 speaks with Astrobotic CEO after Peregrine mission 'We're disappointed, but we're also not terribly surprised, and we're really proud of what this vehicle was able to accomplish over its 10-year lifetime,' CEO John Thornton said. 'For any flying vehicle, that's a pretty darn good service record, I mean, there are even cars that sometimes don't last 10 years, so it certainly did what it needed to do during its service life.' Click here to read more from our partners at the Pittsburgh Business Times. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Barrick Gold proposes rebranding to reflect focus on copper
Barrick Gold has proposed dropping gold from its name and rebranding to Barrick Mining to reflect its push into copper operations. In the 2025 Information Circular, Barrick Gold chairman John Thornton said this move is aimed at reflecting its 'changing production profile'. For several years, CEO Mark Bristow has expressed his ambition to expand the company's copper operations, reported Bloomberg. Barrick Gold is currently progressing its portfolio of growth projects towards a planned 30% increase in gold equivalent ounces by the end of 2030. According to Thornton, despite facing a difficult operating environment, Barrick achieved the goals it established for 2024. The company met its production targets for both gold and copper, upheld its record of reserve replacement and significantly expanded its resource base. The company enhanced its financial performance despite rising costs, achieving a 69% increase in net earnings, said to be its highest in a decade. Furthermore, it saw a 20% growth in operating cash flow and a doubling of free cash flow in 2024 as against 2023. 'At the same time, we developed our portfolio to achieve sustainable production and profitable growth. We continued to ramp up Pueblo Viejo, started prefeasibility work at Fourmile and restarted the Porgera mining operation. We completed feasibility studies for Reko Diq [in Pakistan], one of the world's largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits, and the Lumwana Expansion project [in Zambia], which will become one of the world's largest copper mines,' said Thornton. Both the projects are expected to contribute to the company's objective of organically increasing its production volumes, especially in copper. Despite the increase in metal prices, mining equities, including Barrick's, have not performed as well as expected, Thornton said, adding: 'We viewed our equity as undervalued and consequently repurchased $498m of shares in 2024 and we will continue to pursue share buybacks whenever we believe our shares are trading below their intrinsic value.' 'We have an industry-leading balance sheet, substantial liquidity and a global portfolio of Tier One assets. These qualities, along with our fully funded pipeline of organic growth projects, put us on track to grow the company and increase per-share returns over the long term,' he added. Meanwhile, the board has appointed new chairs for the company's key committees, with Isela Costantini leading the Compensation Committee, Loreta Silva heading the Audit & Risk Committee and Brian Greenspun chairing the Environmental, Social, Governance & Nominating Committee. Last week, mining services company Capital secured a material mining services contract for the Reko Diq gold and copper mining project. "Barrick Gold proposes rebranding to reflect focus on copper" was originally created and published by Mining Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
