Woodford backs G4S chief Buckles over Olympic 'shambles'

Invesco Perpetual's Neil Woodford has given his backing to G4S chief executive Nick Buckles, saying the group's failure to deliver on its Olympic commitments is the fault of local management.

Woodford, who holds G4S in his £11.3bn High Income and £8.7bn Income funds, told Reuters that Buckles' strong track record means he remains the best choice to lead the company in future. G4S shares have fallen 6.2% to 239p today, on top of a 8.7% drop yesterday, after the company said it would be unable to deliver promised staff numbers for the London Olympic Games later this month. Facing the Home Affairs Select Committee this afternoon, Buckles acknowledged the company's reputation is "in tatters" and said he could not disagree with the suggestion the debacle has been a "humiliating...