The first presidential debate portends the coming train wreck for American democracy October 5, 2020 The great playwright, George Bernard Shaw, perfectly summed up the dynamic underlying the shambolic first US presidential debate: “Never wrestle with pigs. You both get muddy but the pig likes it.” Instead, the just-concluded first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden — surely the ugliest in the nation’s history — saw both its [...]
Why a second lockdown could turn the lights out on the UK economy October 5, 2020 We have reached a crucial flexion point in the fight against Covid-19, and with this comes new, tighter rules to curb a possible second wave. There is now rising concern that a second wave may result in a second national lockdown, and businesses are urgently seeking reassurance from the government that they will be able [...]
How can businesses empower women in technology in a post Covid-19 world? October 5, 2020 Everyone has felt the wrath of Covid-19. The pandemic blindsided businesses earlier this year and has forced organisations to rapidly step into the unknown. But what have we learnt? And can we apply these learnings to tackle existing issues in technology, like diversity and inclusion? Research from McKinsey Global Institute estimates that women make up [...]
City powerhouses will need to adjust to the “new normal” October 4, 2020 In the past week, London’s leading financial services companies have quickly had to reassess their plans to get employees back to the office. While many industry leaders will have come to a painful realisation that arriving at a “new normal” will be a more iterative process than previously imagined, they should take stock in the [...]
Bounce Back Loans helped SMEs, but we must plan for what comes next October 4, 2020 The launch of the Bounce Back Loan scheme was a watershed moment for hundreds of thousands of SMEs across the country. It gave them what they craved — small loans straight into their bank account, with maximum speed and minimum fuss. For many SMEs, this was the first time they had managed to get financial [...]
Government policy must change if travel companies are to survive the Covid-19 pandemic October 3, 2020 The government’s announcement on 25 July of a quarantine for anyone returning from Spain torpedoed the nascent recovery of the travel industry. Bookings immediately dried up. Since then it’s gone from bad to worse. This week, the government removed Turkey, Poland, and Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba from its Travel Corridor list, meaning that travellers [...]
The government must adopt airport testing to help rebuild the economy October 2, 2020 Last month, the Prime Minister announced new curbs to control the rising number of coronavirus cases for at least six months – and the prospect of tighter restrictions or a second lockdown still looms large. The outcry was predictable: the measures are confusing, sometimes contradictory, and of course, there are concerns about the impact on [...]
Employers have a crucial role to play in tackling domestic abuse October 2, 2020 Domestic abuse has been referred to as a “shadow pandemic” by the UN, with the number of cases increasing significantly across the world throughout lockdown. For many people suffering abuse, the respite of the weekday commute and being able to go to office were lost overnight. Recognising the signs of abuse and having the confidence [...]
Don’t let London become a Donut: Crowded on the outside, empty in the middle October 2, 2020 As a Londoner born and bred, I am acutely sensitive to the ebb and flow of people travelling in and out of London on a daily basis — the human tide of our capital. Despite various pleas and edicts, right now the centre of London is pretty much empty. The tide went out abruptly at [...]
Andrew Neil’s GB News will test whether there is appetite for a Fox News-style news channel in the UK October 2, 2020 The announcement this week that Andrew Neil, the doyen of political broadcasters since David Dimbleby quit the stage, was to be chairman of GB News and anchor its flagship evening show four times a week breathed new life into a story that had become a little stale. It was momentous for a number of reasons: [...]