Nov 4 (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

GlaxoSmithKline has set out its stall as an independent company by revealing a surge in the number of new drugs close to approval. Andrew Witty, chief executive of Britain's biggest pharmaceuticals group, claimed the company could have up to 20 new medicines awaiting final approval from regulators by 2020, seven of which have the potential to be on the market before then. (http://thetim.es/1Wxpa3y)

Royal Bank of Scotland has been accused of using secret, flawed documents that could have influenced some compensation payouts to victims of the interest rate swaps mis-selling scandal. An investigation by The Times has discovered documents that indicate the bank supplied erroneous customer records that could have flattered its own position in the more than 2 billion pound Financial Conduct Authority redress scheme. (http://thetim.es/1WxpbnU)

The Guardian

Burberry is to invest at least 50 million pounds ($77.10 million) in a new factory to produce its trademark trenchcoats, creating 200 extra jobs in Yorkshire. (http://bit.ly/1WxpLlL)

Standard Chartered is asking shareholders to stump up 3.3 billion pounds while axing 15,000 jobs after reporting its first quarterly loss in 15 years. The bank also warned it faced further potential penalties on top of the 415 million pounds fine imposed in 2012 by U.S. authorities for breaching sanctions against Iran. (http://bit.ly/1WxpNtY)

The Telegraph

The merger with BG Group will save Shell an extra $1 billion a year, the company has said, as it shores up its case for pressing ahead with the $70 billion combination. Reductions in operating costs plus a cut in the exploration budget would deliver savings of $3.5 billion a year by 2018, Shell said. (http://bit.ly/1WxpC1D)

Activision Blizzard, the American developer behind hit video game franchises World of Warcraft and Call of Duty, has bought Candy Crush Saga creator King Digital Entertainment for $5.9 billion. Under the terms of the deal, King will operate as an independent unit of Activision Blizzard, and will continue to be led by Chief Executive Riccardo Zacconi. The deal is expected to close by spring 2016. (http://bit.ly/1WtqDgn)

Sky News

Volkswagen says it has found "inconsistencies" in carbon dioxide emission levels which could affect around 800,000 cars. The German car giant said the "unexplained" anomalies found by an internal probe raised a new problem that could cost it around 2 billion euros ($2.19 billion).(http://bit.ly/1WxpGhV)

Paul Walsh, former chief executive of Diageo, is being lined up to join the board of Europe's largest bank as it finalises a decision about whether to move its headquarters from the UK. Walsh, who currently serves as chairman of Compass, is expected to be named by HSBC Holdings as a non-executive director within weeks. (http://bit.ly/1WxpHlU)

The Independent

Michelin has told staff at its tyre factory in Ballymena that the plant will close by 2018 with the loss of 860 jobs. The company said the machines at the plant were outdated and that it could not afford to invest in upgrading the equipment given current demand, according to local reports. (http://ind.pn/1Wxq4gg)

The quality of customer service at the tax office - which currently answers only half of the calls from the public - is so dismal that it could be costing the country money, MPs have warned. In a damning report, the Public Accounts Committee said HM Revenue and Customs responded to just 72.5 percent of telephone calls in 2014-15, with the rate falling to 50 percent in the first half of this year. (http://ind.pn/1Wxq6EQ) ($1 = 0.6486 pounds) ($1 = 0.9129 euros) (Compiled by Mansi Goenka in Bengaluru)