Bankers on the panel would advise the Government on developments in the banking industry and provide an official conduit for conversations between senior politicians and executives.

LONDON | Tue Jun 18, 2013 7:31am BST. LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Whitbread (WTB.L) posted a 3.1 percent rise in first quarter sales, as demand for hot drinks at its Costa Coffee chain helped ease the impact of cold weather on its restaurant business.

However, one important question remains: how did one of the UK's safest banks - and one which, only a matter of weeks ago, was supposedly on the brink of a massive expansion, taking on more than 600 Lloyds branches - get itself into such a mess?

You will not be surprised to learn that I wasn't exactly thrilled last Friday afternoon to be tasked with interviewing some of those worthy individuals who were awarded �gongs� in the Queen's Birthday Honours List.

An aircraft maintenance business co-founded by the lead singer of Iron Maiden is set to be pumped with a �5m investment in what will help the company have a �much wider impact across the entire South Wales aerospace industry�.