Friday newspaper round-up: Jes Staley, offshore wind farm, Mexico

(Sharecast News) - The former chief executive of Barclays Jes Staley allegedly stayed in contact with Jeffrey Epstein long after joining the UK bank, according to legal documents that reportedly contradict claims he cut ties with the convicted child sex offender and disgraced financier in 2015. Documents from a now-settled lawsuit, seen by Bloomberg News, allegedly suggest that the two men used an unnamed third person, who "acted as an intermediary for messages between Staley and Epstein", to stay in contact after Staley took over as chief executive of Barclays in December 2015. - Guardian

A leading business lobby group has urged Jeremy Hunt to resist calls for large-scale tax cuts in his budget next month, saying the government needs to avoid "short-termism" and devote spending to projects that boost the economy. Adding its voice to a growing clamour for green investment, the Confederation of British Industry said pre-election giveaways at the budget should be kept to a minimum to allow for a surge in spending to achieve net zero. - Guardian

Britain's biggest offshore wind farm is facing a year-long delay to its completion because of a chronic shortage of construction ships. The Dogger Bank site has suffered from significant disruption because of bad weather, storms and a lack of vessels able to build it according to its developer, the power company SSE. - Telegraph

Britain's working-age benefits bill will hit £100bn for the first time this year amid a surge in disability claims since lockdown. The cost of welfare payments including universal credit, housing subsidies and disability benefit is expected to jump by almost 30pc in real terms to £130bn by the end of the decade, according to forecasts published by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). - Telegraph

Mexico has overtaken China as the biggest exporter to America for the first time in 20 years as geopolitics and "friend-shoring" redraw global trade patterns. Mexico exported $475 billion of goods to the US in 2023, a 5 per cent increase on the year, while the value of Chinese exports fell 20 per cent to $427 billion, according to the US Department of Commerce. - The Times

The billionaire family behind Primark and Fortnum & Mason has paid itself £36.9 million in dividend payments after profits across its portfolio grew last year. Wittington Investments, the Weston family's investment vehicle, handed out £128 million in dividends last year, beating the previous payout of £104 million. - The Times