LONDON (ShareCast) - In an unprecedented move, Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee member David Blanchflowe has criticised the Bank for complacency and "wishful thinking", predicting that two million people will be out of work by Christmas and that house prices will fall by more than 30 per cent, reports the Independent.

Speculation of a takeover bid for J Sainsbury sent shares in Britain's third-biggest supermarket chain up nearly 8 per cent yesterday as the FTSE 100 enjoyed its highest close for two months, according to the Times.

The maker of drug delivery systems, Skyepharma, is close to an agreement to renegotiate its bonds, as it announced a reduction in losses and increased revenues, said the FT.

Nestor Healthcare is in a race against time to find a buyer for one of its community care and out-of-hours GP businesses, reports the Times

A German regional court has upheld an injunction against Vtours.de, a German travel website that has been selling tickets of the Ryanair flights without permission, says the FT.

The beleaguered airline industry was rocked by more crises yesterday as the Italian government was forced to change the law to save its national carrier Alitalia and Aer Lingus reported losses for the first half and predicted worse to come, says the Independent.

Meanwhile, hundreds of passengers were stranded at airports in the UK yesterday after Zoom, the low-cost transatlantic airline, suspended all operations after failing to pay its bills, reports the Times.

A row is threatening to reignite between UK business and the Government as Charter and Henderson yesterday announced they are leaving domestic shores to slash their tax bills, reports the Independent.

The mobile phone business is coming of age, and the sector's regulator, Ofcom, is considering tearing up the regulatory rulebook to mark the occasion, according to the Independent.

Fears are mounting that Russia may restrict oil deliveries to Western Europe over coming days, in response to the threat of EU sanctions and Nato naval actions in the Black Sea, reports the Telegraph.

Toyota is cutting production at its car plant in Britain because of falling sales but has told the 4,100 workers at its Burnaston, Derbyshire factory there will be no lay-offs, says the Telegraph.

Fitch Ratings has downgraded six sets of Spanish mortgage securities issued by Banco Santander, heightening concerns that the damage from Spain's property crash is spreading to the country's strongest lenders, writes the Telegraph.

A David and Goliath confrontation broke out in the supermarket sector yesterday as Aldi, the chain with about 2 per cent of the market, picked a fight with Tesco, Britain's biggest retailer, says the Times.

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