Mis-trial call in Bratz suit

The maker of Bratz dolls, MGA Entertainment, has called for a mis-trial in its court action against rival Mattel, owner of Barbie, following the dismissal on Friday of one of the jurors in the case for allegedly making racial slurs about the ethnicity of MGA’s Iranian-born chief executive, Isaac Larian. Mattel won the first round in the dispute, but MGA requested that the court declare a mis-trial after the juror’s comments. The request will be debated early next month.

Investors are to be asked to put up £10m to fund detailed planning for an ambitious £4.2 billion proposal to bring high- speed rail to Heathrow.

Heathrow rail plan

Arup, the influential engineering consultancy, is promoting the scheme, which it presented to Ruth Kelly, transport secretary, last week. The Arup plan would extend the high-speed rail line to the Channel tunnel west of the capital to a “mega station” just north of Heathrow.

Firms win tax boost

Small and medium-sized UK firms will be £180m better off from the end of this week, when the Treasury grants them more generous research-and- development tax breaks. Businesses employing up to 500 people with sales of less than ¤100m (£79m) or a balance-sheet total of less than ¤86m, will qualify for more generous levels of relief. From August 1, the highest level of tax relief will rise to 175% on every £1 invested in R&D, up from 150%.

£33m for Providence Resources

The oil group run by Tony O’Reilly, son of newspaper baron Sir Anthony O’Reilly, has raised €42m (£33m) to finance its exploration programme. Providence Resources, which has a dual listing on London’s AIM and in Dublin, will use the new funds to finance exploration at Hook Head. A rig has been constructed at the spot — in the Atlantic off the coast of County Cork and Waterford — and appraisal drilling is expected to start shortly.

Compass catering wins

New contracts at Heathrow’s terminal five, Britain’s Magnox nuclear power stations and a Nokia factory in Romania are thought to have boosted trading at Compass, the world’s largest catering company, which spends £3.5 billion a year on food. Richard Cousins, the Compass chief executive, will release a third-quarter trading statement tomorrow, and analysts expect him to report continued strong growth. Turnover, profits and margins are all likely to have improved over the previous year. Despite rising food-price inflation, Compass has been able to keep its costs under control by using fewer suppliers and better menu planning.

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