Aug 22 (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 Times

Woodford Investment Management founder Neil Woodford, one of the most prominent figures in the City, has taken the unprecedented step of permanently abolishing all staff bonuses at his firm. http://bit.ly/2byvuez

The UK government has turned the spending tap on after the vote for Brexit with a stunning increase of more than 50 percent in the value of public sector contracts going out to tender. Research for the Times shows that in the first half of August 26.3 billion pounds ($34.36 billion) of contracts were put out to tender. http://bit.ly/2byvMSH

The Guardian

The Guardian has learned that financial company Amicus initiated legal proceedings against the Chappell family to repossess the family home of Dominic Chappell, unless their debts were repaid. The debt was settled when the parent company of BHS paid out 1.5 million pounds. The money came from BHS and was paid out as an interest-free loan. It has not been repaid. http://bit.ly/2bywnDM

New mothers are facing increasing discrimination when they take maternity leave including being made redundant and switched to zero-hours contracts. Citizens Advice has recorded a nearly 60 percent rise in the number of women seeking advice about maternity leave issues this year. http://bit.ly/2byxxPF

The Telegraph

Tata Steel UK's giant Port Talbot steel plant has clawed itself back into profit as staff strain to boost efficiency despite having no idea whether their jobs are safe. Sources familiar with finances at the sprawling operation in South Wales revealed it made a 5 million pounds profit in June, reversing the 1 million pounds a day loss it was making six months ago. http://bit.ly/2bycxZa

House prices will fall next year as the uncertainty surrounding Brexit takes hold, but far less than the Treasury's gloomy warning before the EU referendum. In its first post-Brexit forecast, estate agency Countrywide said that house prices will fall one percent across the country in 2017, before rising by two percent in 2018. http://bit.ly/2byyNCA

Sky News

State-backed Chinese group China Everbright is plotting to buy a stake in Liverpool Football Club in a deal valuing the Premier League outfit at more than 700 million pounds - even as its American owners insist they have no intention of relinquishing control. http://bit.ly/2byxeEp

The Independent

Rebel Labour MPs are already starting to plan how they will stand up to a victorious Jeremy Corbyn, as the party's leadership contest enters what may be its most crucial week. Despite calls for the party to unite behind whoever wins the contest, some of Corbyn's opponents said fellow MPs will not take a lead from him in key policy areas like Brexit or defence. http://ind.pn/2byycRc

The number of serving and ex-forces personnel being awarded compensation for mental disorders has hit record levels, leading to fears that we are now starting to see the true cost of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars in the form of the mental scars left on those who had to fight them, according to an analysis of Armed Forces Compensation Scheme statistics by the Independent. http://ind.pn/2byyIOW

($1 = 0.7654 pounds) (Compiled by Ismail Shakil in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Cooney)