Opening of Luton’s new direct rail line delayed AGAIN as costs balloon to £300m January 2, 2023 A new railway to Luton airport will not open before Easter following a two-year delay. The direct air-transit link (Dart) will connect the Bedfordshire hub to Luton Parkway station, significantly cutting the time it takes to get to the airport from London. The Dart’s opening was pushed back to last October after its original 2021 [...]
New year, same strikes: Post-festive return to work disrupted by more rail walk-outs January 2, 2023 Rail passengers will face fresh travel disruption this week because of strikes by tens of thousands of workers in bitter disputes over pay, jobs and conditions. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) at Network Rail and 14 train operators will stage two 48-hour walkouts from Tuesday and Friday, while drivers in the [...]
Drivers urged to plan ahead for new year journeys as strikes hit highways January 1, 2023 National Highways is urging motorists to plan ahead for journeys in the new year amid another strike by some of its workers as traffic levels return to normal after the Christmas break. Members of the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) are planning a national walkout on January 3 and 4 – the first working [...]
BA aircraft returned to Heathrow after emergency technical issue December 29, 2022 A British Airways flight was forced to do a U-turn and come back to Heathrow due to technical problems this evening. Britain’s biggest airport told City A.M. that BA348 from London to Nice landed back at Heathrow just 40-minutes after take-off, and was put on stand-by. It added that emergency services were attending on scene [...]
Ben Wallace: UK approach to China travel ‘under review’ amid Covid concerns December 29, 2022 The possibility of the UK introducing restrictions for travellers from China is “under review”, as the nation prepares to open up overseas travel, the UK defence secretary has said. China has announced plans to ditch its Covid-zero policy and will reopen its borders in January. The US will require all arrivals from China to provide [...]
Strikes: Ministers will not be ‘held to ransom’ by unions, says Wallace December 29, 2022 The government will not be “held to ransom” by striking public sector workers, defence secretary Ben Wallace has said. As the wave of industrial action showed no sign of abating, Mr Wallace insisted there was “no magic wand” to produce the money for above-inflation pay awards. His warning came after new TUC general secretary Paul [...]
New strike: DLR cleaners among 1,000 train workers to walk out before New Year’s Eve December 29, 2022 Cleaners on the Dockland Light Railways (DLR) are among 1,000 workers to launch their first national strike in disputes over issues including pay. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union employed by a number of private contractors cleaning trains for several rail operators will be involved in the industrial action. ISS cleaners on [...]
Government ‘sabotaging’ efforts to resolve strike waves, new TUC boss claims December 29, 2022 The new general secretary of the TUC has accused the Government of “sabotaging” efforts to resolve the wave of strikes continuing to sweep across the country. Paul Nowak takes over the job amid the biggest outbreak of industrial unrest in a generation, with leaders of health, rail, civil service, teaching and postal unions increasingly angry [...]
The City in 2023: Real estate and infrastructure increasingly inflation-proof alternatives for investors December 29, 2022 Half of UK investors have either made alternative investments this year or are considering doing so in 2023 as they seek inflation-beating options. They primarily focus on investments in assets such infrastructure, real estate but also private equity and commodities. Two in five investors are more likely to consider alternative investments as a result of [...]
Under the pump: Priti Patel among 29 MPs to back call for fuel pricing watchdog December 28, 2022 Priti Patel has joined almost 30 other colleagues in calling for a pump pricing watchdog to tackle the soaring fuel costs for motorists. The former home secretary signed a letter backing FairFuelUK’s call for an oversight body and commissioner to keep prices down, which is also supported by Dame Andrea Leadsom. This comes as motoring [...]