PRESS DIGEST- British Business - Feb 27

Feb 27 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

The Telegraph

ANDREW BAILEY POURS DOUBT ON SALMOND'S PLANS FOR SHARED FINANCIAL REGULATOR

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Andrew Bailey has told MPs that Alex Salmond's plan for the Bank of England to continue to regulate Scottish financial institutions after independence was "not a system in place anywhere else."

RSA SET TO ANNOUNCE 800 MLN STG RIGHTS ISSUE

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RSA Group is set to announce a discounted rights issue of around 800 million pounds ($1.33 billion) to bolster its capital position as the insurer suffered a 200 million pound fraud in its Irish business in the run-up to Christmas.

The Guardian

BRITAIN SHOULD KEEP OPEN POSSIBILITY OF JOINING EURO, SAYS LABOUR FRONTBENCHER

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Britain should keep open the possibility of eventual membership of the European single currency, according to a Labour frontbencher Lord Liddle who says it would be "ludicrous" for the UK to cut itself off from the EU mainstream for ideological reasons.

SCOTTISH ENGINEERING FIRM WEIR ORDERS INDEPENDENCE REPORT

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One of Scotland's biggest companies, engineering group Weir , has commissioned a report into the implications of Scottish independence on businesses after warning that "very serious questions" need to be answered.

The Times

CHANCELLOR ARRIVES ON CRUTCHES TO DEFEND THE EUROPEAN DREAM

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Angela Merkel will set out the case for Britain to stay in the European Union in her address to both Houses of Parliament today, while warning that there are limits to the powers that can be won back from Brussels.

CO-OP TO SELL FARMS AND PHARMACIES IN SURVIVAL PLAN

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Britain's struggling Co-operative Group said on Wednesday it had kick started the sale of its farms and was looking at selling part or all of its pharmacy business.

Sky News

RBS Slashes Costs As Markets Chief Bows Out

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Royal Bank of Scotland will unveil plans to slash billions of pounds from its cost-base on Thursday in an overhaul aimed at facilitating its eventual return to private sector ownership.

Cameron Criticised On Flood Defence Spending

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The boss of the country's biggest insurance firm, Legal & General, has told Sky News he is concerned about a lack of spending on flood defences.