Newspaper round-up

(Reuters) - BT, ITV and 3i feature in our round-up of Friday's business press.

Financial Times

BANKS EYE 90 BILLION POUNDS IN SWAPS

Debt market sources have revealed that the UK's biggest banks are preparing to swap 80 billion to 90 billion pounds of mortgage-backed assets for Treasury bills with the Bank of England. The sum is almost twice as much as the central bank originally envisaged when it unveiled its special liquidity scheme three weeks ago. The banks are also believed to have approached credit rating agencies to discuss the structuring of triple A-rated deals. The agencies - Standard & Poor's, Moody's and Fitch - declined to comment.

UNION CALLS FOR PUBLIC SECTOR PAY OFFER TO RISE

Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services union, has called on Gordon Brown to find extra cash to improve below-inflation pay offers made to millions of public-sector workers if he is to use 2.7 billion pounds to resolve problems arising from the abolition of the 10 pence tax band. The government faces fresh threats of industrial action as public sector union Unison said it would ballot council workers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland after their rejection of a 2.45 percent offer. The prime minister has insisted that public-sector pay rises be kept in line with the Treasury's inflation target of two percent.

FISCAL RULES SHOW SIGNS OF TARNISH

Gordon Brown insisted on Thursday that he remained committed to keeping a tight rein on borrowing and dismissed claims made by the Conservative party that he plans an unfunded pre-election spending spree, aided by the further relaxation of his fiscal rules. The prime minister also said that, under the sustainable investment rule, the government aimed to maintain public sector net debt below 40 percent of gross domestic product in every fiscal year.

WEMBLEY MAKES 21.4 MILLION POUND LOSS  Continued...