Jan 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
Barclays drops gold as 1,000 go
Barclays Plc is to give up trading in gold and other precious metals in a series of cutbacks at its investment bank where more than 1,000 staff will lose their jobs. (http://thetim.es/1OABOgL)
The Guardian
VW rejects call to compensate European drivers over emissions scandal
Volkswagen AG has dismissed a call from the EU's industry chief to pay compensation to European drivers who bought cars with emissions test-cheating software. Elzbieta Bienkowska, the European commissioner for industry, urged the German carmaker to pay compensation to 8.5 million European drivers who had bought cars fitted with defeat devices when she met VW's chief executive, Matthias Muller, in Brussels on Thursday. (http://bit.ly/1SzZOnX)
Publisher Pearson to cut 4,000 jobs
Education book publisher Pearson Plc said it would cut 4,000 jobs, or 10 percent of its workforce, and undergo a restructuring to tackle problems with its business in the US, Brazil and South Africa. (http://bit.ly/1PHPnIY)
JPMorgan backs campaign to keep Britain in the EU
JPMorgan Chase & Co, the biggest bank in the United States, has hinted it could quit the United Kingdom if Britain votes to leave the European Union. The warning came as a number of U.S. investment banks lined up to offer financial support to the In campaign. The bank's chief executive, Jamie Dimon, said "Britain's been a great home for financial companies and (EU membership) has benefited London quite a bit. We'd like to stay there, but if we can't, we can't." (http://bit.ly/1nq7exD)
The Telegraph
Virgin Media to cut 900 jobs over the next two years
Virgin Media will cut 900 jobs from its British workforce over the next two years, it announced today. The telecoms firm, which was bought by American tycoon John Malone's Liberty Global in 2013 for 15 billion pounds, said it was reorganising its business to focus on network expansion, but did not say where the redundancies would fall. (http://bit.ly/1nbrjXQ)
Sky signs exclusivity deal with Twin Peaks maker Showtime
Sky Plc has sought to fortify its pay-TV business by signing up the US cable channel Showtime, the maker of The Affair and the forthcoming Twin Peaks revival, to a lengthy exclusivity deal. (http://bit.ly/1PlJbfl)
Sky News
HSBC Seeks Rice Advice As HQ Decision Looms
The former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been drafted in to advise HSBC Holdings Plc on the future location of its headquarters even as the bank's board has ruled out a move across the Atlantic. (http://bit.ly/1QokX35)