New report from Echo Research shows the reputation value of the UK’s leading companies reaching £719bn, up nearly 4% from 2023, while investors now rate ESG initiatives as a negative contributor to value.

Andrew Thomas caught up with WPP’s CEO Mark Read at Cannes Lions to talk about its wins, its investment in AI, the WPP employer brand, the arrival of Burson and that stageshow with Elon Musk.

Trust in business, government, NGOs and the media has declined over the past year, according to the UK supplement of the Edelman Trust Barometer, the annual survey on trust, produced by global communications firm Edelman. Despite the overall decline, business is the most trusted pillar of society and employer media is seen as the most believable news source.

A campaign against unfair taxation on tampons by the German Government has scooped the PR Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

This year’s Cannes Lions opened with high of 30 degrees, and the sense of expectation creeping over the beach front’s historic promenade. Bigger than ever, the annual festival of creativity covered branding, communications and advertising in a style unique to the iconic French coastline. Communicate magazine, with the ICCO, worked to bring readers daily updates about the public relations representation at the 65th festival of creativity.

Broker Profile, the specialist investor relations consultancy, has been bought by newly established Capital Access Group in a £4m+ deal structured by international communications holding firm Porta Communications.

Cravenhill Publishing, publishers of Communicate magazine, this week launched Transform, a new global magazine focusing on rebranding and brand development.

A new cloud-based archive and sharing platform has been launched to help brands manage their digital assets, including print, digital and tv.

Questions at yesterday's Marks & Spencer Annual General Meeting seemed to catch out board members as the annual meeting was used as a forum to voice allegations of sexual impropriety.