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One to watch on catch-up: Mr Bates vs the Post Office
Mr Bates vs the Post Office is the first big ITV drama of 2024 and is the prime example of what happens when people believe accounting systems can’t be wrong! It is also a story of terrible abuse of power, where people work in a system where they can’t tell the truth. And yes, we are talking about the Post Office here – you must stop thinking it’s all Postman Pat. The malfunctioning accounting software called Horizon (created by Fujitsu) was full of bugs, errors and defects, but that didn’t stop 736 prosecutions of sub-postmasters. Hard-working people were imprisoned, made homeless and forced into poverty. Divorce, depression and even suicide followed and no one has been brought to account. The CEO between 2012 and 2019, Paula Vennells, was awarded a CBE for ‘services to the Post Office’, but she has now promised to give it back. This followed a petition for it to be returned, and last time we looked 1,228,000 people had signed it prior to the announcement. See http://tinyurl.com/3jc6z6jr The public inquiry into the scandal starts again this month. Check out what we wrote about the scandal in February 2022: see http://tinyurl.com/mr4628d8
’ WEV E
Executives behaving badly What would you do if a blogger wrote critical reviews about your company? Well, US executives at eBay sent live spiders and cockroaches to David and Ina Steiner, who run the e-Commerce Bytes blog, when they wrote things they didn’t like. They were also sent a funeral wreath, a bloody pig mask and a book about surviving the loss of a spouse. eBay has now been ordered to pay the couple $3 million, and faces charges of stalking, witness tampering and obstruction
PQ PODCAST OF THE MONTH
Why do good people do bad things?
All the ‘Bs’
Boxing, basketball and badminton are among the most popular sports with Gen-Z adults (1824 year-olds) in the UK, according to the brandnew EY sports Engagement Index. According to the Index, football, Formula 1, running, rugby union and cricket have the UK’s largest engagement bases overall – but there are significant differences in the sports that most engage Gen-Z adults compared with the rest of the population. Boxing, badminton, basketball and Esports are among the activities all scoring highly for engagement with 18-24 year-olds. Although football and Formula 1 maintain topthree positions with this demographic, cricket, tennis and rugby are among the sports facing challenges when it comes to capturing the imaginations of young adults. The survey found that 59% of all respondents had engaged in sport in the past 12 months – this figure rises to 71% for men but falls to 45% for women. Adults aged 35-44 years old were the most engaged in UK sport, but participation levels were at their highest in the 18-24 year-old age group.
In this Insights in Focus episode, the ICAEW discuss professional ethics and seeks to answer the age-old question: why do good people do bad things? Host Philippa Lamb is joined by Laura Hough, ICAEW director of trust and ethics, and Christopher Cowton, emeritus professor at the University of Huddersfield and associate of the Institute of Business Ethics. You find out all about ‘ethical fading’ and why some people are more ethical than others. Do you know about the fraud triangle? Hough will explain all. And there is no way you should be calling a bribe a facilitation payment! Check out the podcast at http://tinyurl.com/5as6c9zd
GOT THE L OT
The future is wind!
The UK is home to the world’s largest offshore wind farms and Orsted has 12 operational offshore wind farms that it either owns or partly owns, with a further three in the pipeline. Did you know one rotation of a wind turbine blade can generate enough electricity to power a house for 29 hours? Well, we have three model Orsted windmills up for grabs for this month’s giveaway. They will sit perfectly on your desk at home or at work! Find out more about Orsted at http://tinyurl.com/drhpesj6 To win one of these windmills just send an email headed ‘I love wind’ to giveaways@pqmagazine.com along with your name and address.
PQ Book Club
We are giving away all the books we have reviewed for the PQ magazine Book Club over the past few months. Up for grabs are The Happiness Index by Matt Phelans; Mindfulness and the Wandering Mind by Pandit Dasa; Becoming a Strategic Business Leader by Adam Niazi; and this month’s book, The Bookkeeper Superhero by Natasha Everard. To be in with a chance to win one of these fab books simply email us at giveaways@pqmagazine.com with your name and address and we will put you in the hat to win a prize. Head up your email ‘Book Club’.
Terms and conditions: One entry per giveaway please. You must send your name and address to be entered for the draw. All giveaway entries must be received by Friday 16 February 2024. The main draw will take place on Monday 19 February 2024.
TO ENTER THESE GIVEAWAYS EMAIL GIVEAWAYS@PQMAGAZINE.COM
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PQ Magazine February 2024
