1. Year 12 Economics & Business/Applied Business
Deadline for Submission: 1st lesson in Septmeber
Read a quality newspaper/news website and pick out stories relating to the three issues identified
below. Complete the tables with information you find.
A takeover or a merger and its impact on customers
Source: BBC News Impact on customers?
Mobile phone networks; Orange and T-mobile Positive
merging together. - Customers will always have signal as the
Who? networks change when on loses signal.
Orange and T-mobile -Customers will get more choice of better deals,
When? which could turn out cheaper for them to use
16th August 2010 their phone.
Why?
It would result in 30 million customers Concerns
combined, which would result in better business, Customers may be forced into changing their
due to two well established phone companies price plan.
coming together. Customers may prefer one network better than
How? the other.
Started with text and voice calls in October 2010, Customers may have a concern to where their
then gradually hopped between the two money is going, due to the bills coming from
different networks, until finally they became one Orange or T-mobile.
at the beginning of 2011.
A change in the law that will affect businesses (positively or negatively)
Source: BBC News How it will affect businesses?
Details of the change in the law: Positive
Raising the education leaving age to 18. By 2013 -Less young people with no jobs which would
all pupils in England will have to stay in result in lower tax pay for the public.
education or training until the age of 18. -Better educated younger people to employ,
Why the law was changed? which would benefit businesses as they would
To ensure that all young people especially the have a smarter work force.
most vulnerable will benefit from the Negative
opportunities provided by continuing in learning. -Less young people to work which would mean
less fresh ideas being contributed towards
businesses, which is some cases could cause
lower quality of a business resulting in less
money made.
-Businesses will have to pay out more due to
younger people being too old to be paid
minimum wage.

2. Job losses and its impact on people in a particular area
Source: BBC News Impact on local area:
Names of company/ies involved: -Crime rates are greater due to less police
Metropolitan police presence.
Where jobs were lost: -More phone call emergencies resulting in a
-Most Police departments over the UK. build up of calls causing a longer response rate.
When and why: Help and support available to people losing their
-Started on the 10th September and still jobs
continuing to this day. It was due to government
cuts which are forcing police departments to Help and Support:
reduce their budgets, forcing major -Redundancy pay for all employees made
redundancies in the police forces. redundant.
-Offers to alternate jobs for employees who had
lost their jobs.