We consider the figure before amortisation and exceptional items to be the truest comparison - it is also the figure on which City analysts tend to focus. This slide shows the lines between operating profit and profit before tax. The Associates' contribution has fallen sharply because BUP, formerly an associate, is now a subsidiary, and because we have invested in some loss-making early stage ventures such as Zoom and Fish4. Net interest has risen because our debt is higher. The bottom part of the profit and loss account.
Taxation is explained on the next slide.
We calculate the tax rate on our underlying earnings, which excludes the effect of the one-off items. The rate on our UK profits is a little higher, but we have a lower effective rate in the US due to interest costs and tax-allowable amortisation. Our debt has risen during the year from 608 million to 785 million. On these slides we have listed our main acquisitions during the year. There have also been quite a few smaller deals not mentioned here.