Veritas will announce today it will spend £250m on a new European headquarters in Reading, Berkshire and a research and development facility in Watford, Hertfordshire.
But it warned that a decision to spend another £250m to expand the Reading offices would depend on whether the government rethought its plans to levy National Insurance charges on unapproved share option schemes, according to the Financial Times, The Times and The Independent. The Guardian says it has already decided not to spend the extra £250m.
The US software company said it would invest elsewhere in Europe if ministers did not change their minds. The Treasury said there was no question of the government altering its stance.
Financial Times 20/07/00 page 2
The Guardian 20/07/00 page 24
The Times 20/07/00 page 23, page 25 (Comment)
The Independent 20/07/00 page 19
