A parliamentary committee that scrutinizes government work said it wanted investment bank Lazard , an adviser on the privatization, and Business Secretary Vince Cable to appear before the panel to discuss the deal.  A spokesman for the Business, Innovation and Skills committee said the session was expected to take place in November.  On its first day of full trading, the Royal Mail stock hit a record high of 490p before closing up 2.9 percent on the day at 489p.  The shares initially rose nearly 40 percent last Friday when they began trading conditionally.  Before Tuesday, only institutional investors such as pension funds and individual investors who ordered stock through a broker offering conditional trading were able to sell, not those who bought through the government’s official website or by post.  Last week, before the sale had been priced, the committee quizzed Cable on whether Royal Mail could be undervalued after some analysts said its London property portfolio may be worth much more than the official estimates.  A poll by YouGov over the weekend showed while opposition to the privatization had fallen, with 56 percent believing it was wrong compared with 67 percent in July, 43 percent said they thought Royal Mail had been sold for less than it was worth.  Four percent said the price was too high and 17 percent said it was about right.  The government handed 10 percent of Royal Mail’s shares to staff in the largest share giveaway of any major British privatization, with just 368 of the 150,000 eligible UK-based workers declining to take up their free shares.  Royal Mail said each eligible employee would receive 725 shares, with an initial market value of 3,545.25 pounds, although they are required to hold on to them for three years.  As the value was based on Tuesday’s closing mid-price, the stock’s strong rise meant it was well above the 2,200 pounds per person estimated and exceeds the government limit on the maximum value of free shares that can be given to an employee in any tax year.  Royal Mail said as a result it would split the allocation across two years. 

UK unemployment rate steady, claimant count plunges

But it is not the lack of jobs in Romania that has caused the exodus – the employment rate is better than that in the UK.  It is how much people get paid.  Salaries are at least a quarter of equivalent positions in the UK.  A police officer’s monthly wage is a little over 250 after tax.  So while some in the UK fret about the implications of thousands of unskilled workers pouring into Britain’s still stuttering economy, the Romanian government has a different concern – a drain of its brightest talent.  We interviewed Labour Minister Mariana Campeanu in her office, the double glazing barely dampening the sounds of a demonstration by police officers outside, demanding better pay and conditions. “ Unfortunately, young qualified Romanians are the ones who move to these countries because they want to get better-paid jobs, not because they want to take advantage of their benefits,” she told Sky News. “ We have many people who study in universities across Europe and they usually find better paid jobs there.  We hope the Romanian economy improves so we can offer higher salaries for those who want to come back.”  And that, of course, is the central idea behind the EU, that free movement of goods and services, coupled with billions of euro in structural funds will help level the playing field and expand the single market both geographically and economically.  But the playing field is a long way from being level, and it is that central imbalance which has led hundreds of thousands to leave.  Since accession in 2007, Romania represents 8% of the emigration wave around the EU, second only to Poland.  AndreiIosep, one of Romania’s star water polo players, is planning to move to the UK in January after Team GB approached him for help in training the national team.  He says he intends to return home eventually, but wants to take advantage of the relaxation of immigration controls and improve the image of Romanians abroad.  Water Polo star Andrei Iosep is moving to the UK to coach Team GB “I was in a club in Italy a few years ago and tried to chat with a girl.  She asked me where I’m from and when I told her Romania, she just turned her back on me and left,” he recalled. 

UK lawmakers launch Royal Mail inquiry as share rise continues

In the hope of giving Britain’s economic recovery a boost, the Bank of England said in August it will not consider raising interest rates before unemployment falls to 7 percent.  The Bank of England forecasts that will not happen before the third quarter of 2016.  But investors largely expect unemployment to fall much faster and many have put money on the chance of a rate hike in early 2015.  Surveys of British services and manufacturing last month suggested employment was picking up along with a broader recovery in the economy.  Wednesday’s data showed the number of people claiming jobless benefits – a narrower and timelier measure of unemployment – fell by a much bigger-than-expected 41,700 in September.  That was the biggest monthly fall in claimant counts since June 1997.  August’s data was also revised to show a drop of 41,600, a fall of 9,000 more than first reported.  Even as Britain’s labour market picks up, many people in work are not seeing an improvement in their living standards.  Average weekly earnings growth including bonuses slowed sharply to 0.7 percent in the three months to August compared with a year earlier.  Excluding bonuses, pay grew 0.8 percent.  By contrast, inflation in September was 2.7 percent.  Forecasting the path of Britain’s unemployment is complicated by uncertainties over how big the labour market will be.  More older people are working than in recent years and the lifting of restrictions on migrant workers from Romania and Bulgaria from January could also push up the number of people in work or seeking a job.