DEBATE: Is a virtual office Christmas party a disastrous idea? December 4, 2020 Is a virtual office Christmas party a disastrous idea? John Oxley, a Conservative commentator, says YES. The only thing worse than enforced fun is enforced virtual fun. Real office parties are barely enjoyable. Spending an evening with colleagues you are largely indifferent to is an obligation you endure, because if you don’t they put “Poor [...]
Vaccine or no vaccine, Britain must relearn how to live with risk December 4, 2020 The approval this week of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in the UK heralds the beginning of the end of this hellish pandemic. People are rejoicing — and rightly so. A vaccine was the light at the end of the Covid tunnel, and with the first doses due to be administered in a matter of days, there [...]
Swift vaccine approval is a British success story December 4, 2020 It was wonderful to wake up on Wednesday to some good news. Yes, the UK Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for Covid-19. The first doses of the vaccine could be delivered as early as next week. The MHRA’s swift approval makes it the first agency in a western [...]
Putting the ‘great’ back into Great British brands December 3, 2020 UK businesses are failing to realise a return on investment from their biggest asset to help drive sales growth: brands. Unless urgent action is taken, there will be irreversible damage to the ability of British businesses to compete on a global scale. The declining brand values of British companies are reflected in 2020’s BrandZ Top [...]
DEBATE: Should museums and galleries consider auctioning off items to stay afloat? December 3, 2020 Anita Choudhrie, philanthropist and founder of Stellar International Art Foundation, says YES UK museums have long been reticent about deaccessioning. Ethical codes for British museums and galleries state that items should be retained within the public domain, but that in exceptional circumstances sales can occur, provided that proceeds are used to benefit the collection. No [...]
Nicola Sturgeon is no Mother Christmas December 3, 2020 If there is one political certainty I would bet my house on, it’s that when politicians are in serious trouble they will suddenly make a major announcement to push the damaging story off the news agenda. There is no better exponent of this trait than the media operation of Nicola Sturgeon and her Scottish government, [...]
Boost the UK’s space power now — or risk a catastrophic cyber strike December 3, 2020 At the start of this year, the coronavirus pandemic took the world by surprise, and the UK was ill-prepared to deal with it. Now, as we head towards 2021, the end of Covid-19 appears to be in sight. But there are other threats on the horizon that Britain is not ready for. As the defence [...]
Pride and paradox: How to celebrate business success in the midst of a pandemic December 2, 2020 Though we have all read countless stories of under-pressure businesses this year, we should not forget the many companies that have benefitted from 2020’s radical shift in human behaviour. 12 months ago, the average person on the street had no idea about “Zoom”, for example. Since then, the video conferencing brand has become a household [...]
Tis the season for retailers to rethink the Christmas chaos December 2, 2020 Today, Wednesday 2 December 2020, is likely to be like no other for retail. A month after many retailers were obliged to close at the very moment they would be expecting to enjoy their busiest time of year, and with just three weeks to go before the big day — Christmas — itself, they are [...]
There can be no ‘new chapter’ with China while Hong Kong’s freedoms are trampled December 2, 2020 Hong Kong is a unique region in the world. The “one country, two systems” policy is meant to ensure that the territory represents a bridge between the west and China, and flourishes as a symbol of freedom, hope and possibilities. Sadly, this is not the Hong Kong that we see today. Since the National Security [...]