Feb 16 (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

- Europe's planemaker Airbus expects to deliver about 800 planes this year, 65 more than last year, it said as it reported an increase in profits and strengthened its position as the world's largest aircraft-maker.

The Guardian

- UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is considering making billions of pounds of spending cuts to fund pre-election tax cuts in the next budget, and is looking at "further spending restraint" after 2025 if official economic forecasts suggest he does not have enough headroom to pay for "smart tax cuts".

- UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been warned against launching a fresh austerity drive after official figures confirmed Britain's economy is in recession and living standards have suffered their longest sustained fall since records began almost 70 years ago.

The Telegraph

- UK's biggest nuclear waste dump Sellafield faces an inquiry by the National Audit Office (NAO) over its soaring costs and safety record an wants to examine whether Sellafield it is "managing and prioritising the risks and hazards of the site effectively in the short and long term".

- British lender Close Brothers has been forced to scrap a 100 million pounds ($125.85 million) dividend over a City watchdog investigation into the possible mis-selling of car finance.

Sky News

- The founders of British fashion retailer White Stuff, are exploring a potential sale of the business they founded in 1985. ($1 = 0.7946 pounds) (Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)