January

Friends Provident, Britain’s fourth-largest insurer, will reveal its plans for the future after digesting the details of its strategic review, which was launched after the company was ditched as a merger partner by Resolution, the closed life specialist.

Ofcom, the telecoms and media regulator, will begin its first review of the mobile phone sector.

Jaguar and Land Rover will have new owners after their sale by Ford. Tata, Mahindra & Mahindra and One Equity are the three bidders still in the running.

The Government is expected to introduce its Energy Bill to the House of Commons.

The new Employment Bill will begin its process through Parliament.

The British Retail Consortium heralds two weeks of vital Christmas trading updates with its own figures.

The deadline arrives for Carlsberg and Heineken to lodge a formal offer for Scottish & Newcastle.

February

Opec ministers will gather for a special meeting in Vienna to discuss oil prices.

Quintain Estates & Development, the Wembley and Greenwich developer, will be vulnerable from mid-month to a bid approach from HBOS, its 14 per cent shareholder. The bank shelved plans for a bid in August as the credit crunch set in and, under Takeover Panel rules, HBOS has to wait six months before making a fresh approach.

March

Sir Ken Morrison steps down as executive chairman of Wm Morrison. Sir Ken, 76, has been in charge of the Bradford-based supermarket group, founded by his father William, since 1967.

Production of the MG TF sports car is expected to start in the spring, the first vehicles to be made at the Long-bridge factory since the collapse of the MG Rover Group three years ago.

Heathrow’s Terminal 5 is due to open on March 27.

April

Road hauliers will step up campaigns for a reduction in fuel duty as another rise of 2p per litre is due to be implemented. The industry says that many small businesses are struggling because of fuel costs and that Britain has the highest fuel taxes in Europe.

The Association of Train Operating Companies is to simplify rail fares into three categories in a plan to make it easier for passengers to compare prices with other ways of travelling.

May

Standard Life will hold its annual meeting in May amid increasing speculation about the potential appointment of a new chief executive.

Ben Verwaayen, chief executive of BT, is expected to stand down, with Ian Livingston, the company’s head of retail, expected to replace him.

JP Garnier, chief executive of GlaxoSmithKline, will be replaced by Andrew Whitty, the company’s European pharmaceuticals chief.

Cadbury will complete the demerger of its beverages arm from its core confectionery business.

June

By the end of the month, 4.5 million with-profits policyholders at Prudential will find out whether they can claim a share in its £8.7 billion surplus assets, or “inherited estate”. About one million Norwich Union customers will find out whether they qualify for some of its £5.4 billion surplus.

The Department for Business will outline this month or next a new strategy for manufacturing in the wake of moves by many companies to shift production to lower-cost countries.

July

Cable & Wireless is expected to face another bruising encounter with investors and unions following a management shake-up which saw the amount payable to its UK head under a controversial pay and perks scheme increased by a further £5 million and its ousted international head leave the company with a £5 million payout.

September

A prospectus for the proposed sale of London & Continental Railway’s high-speed line from London to the Channel Tunnel is expected to be prepared for circulation in the autumn. Infrastructure investors are understood to be interested.

December

A new-style Gatwick Express service is set to launch. Trains will continue to run nonstop between Gatwick and London Victoria every 15 minutes, but services will also run beyond Gatwick to Brighton at the busiest times.

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