Virgin Atlantic flies above aviation’s staff shortages in post-Covid re-hiring spree June 5, 2022 The boss of Virgin Atlantic has suggested the reason it has been left out of recent airport chaos is because it has been re-hiring at ease amid industry-wide staff shortages. Virgin Atlantic has been absent from half-term holiday headlines detailing long queues and cancelled flights, which chief executive Shai Weiss put down to its success [...]
Schroders opposes £1.2bn takeover of railway giant FirstGroup by US private equity firm June 5, 2022 Transport giant FirstGroup is facing a shareholder rebellion from Schroders over a proposed £1.2bn takeover bid from a US private equity firm. Schroders, FirstGroup’s biggest shareholder with a nearly 18 per cent stake, called I Squared Capital’s offer “unattractive”, adding that the figure failed to reflect FirstGroup’s weight in the UK’s railway sector. FirstGroup [...]
RMT strikes again: London transport faces ‘severe disruption’ tomorrow June 5, 2022 Transport for London (TfL) has warned of “severe disruption” beginning tomorrow, as 4,000 Tube staff walk out and commercial leaders warn of “damaging” impacts to London’s recovery. Tube services are expected to be crippled well into Tuesday morning, TfL has cautioned, amid planned industrial action from the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT). Many stations [...]
Warning of £1.5bn funding gap to meet electric charging targets June 3, 2022 Electric car charging firm Liberty Charge has called on the sector to step in and help finance the nationwide rollout of charge points as it warned of a more than £1.5 billion shortfall in Government funding. Liberty Charge – a joint venture between Virgin Media owner Liberty Global and private equity firm Zouk Capital – [...]
Send in the army to help airports, says Ryanair boss June 2, 2022 The UK Government should send in the army to relieve pressure from airports as the travel mayhem rages on, according to Ryanair’s boss Michael O’Leary. “Bringing in the army, which they do and many other European airports, would, at a stroke, relieve the pressure on airport security and would mean that people have a much [...]
Waze UK: People’s driving habits are a moving feast post-Covid June 2, 2022 The UK’s driving habits have become a “moving feast” post-Covid, said Waze UK’s managing director Ru Roberts. According to the satellite navigation software, following the easing of restrictions and the UK Governmen’t strategy for living with Covid, traffic numbers have exceeded pre-pandemic levels. “We’re now in excess of number of cars on the road,” Roberts [...]
Airlines axe hundreds of flights while ‘blame game’ between government and industry continues June 1, 2022 Passengers have seen another day of disruption as airlines continue to axe hundreds of flights while the “blame game” between government and industry shows no signs of stopping. British Airways (BA) today cancelled 124 flights from Heathrow and easyJet axed an additional 31 at Gatwick. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, easyJet was the most [...]
Bus cuts: Westminster Council ‘deeply concerned’ as savings drive forces TfL into drastic service reduction June 1, 2022 Westminster Council has expressed “deep concern” after Transport for London (TfL) announced it was planning a raft of bus cuts following the government’s refusal to offer the public body long-term backing. “I am deeply concerned that the government’s failure to properly fund Transport for London while we recover from the pandemic may have a real [...]
Car production will improve this fiscal year, says battery maker Panasonic June 1, 2022 Car production is expected to improve this fiscal year, according to battery maker Panasonic. The Osaka-based giant – who makes batteries for marquees such as Tesla – said its total revenue derived from the automotive market will increase from 14 to 19 per cent, with operating profit growing by 16.6m yen (£101.9m). “We will be [...]
SoftBank and Goldman Sachs back EV supercar maker Rimac in €500m funding round June 1, 2022 Giants SoftBank, Goldman Sachs and Porsche have backed electric vehicle (EV) supercar maker Rimac in a €500m funding round. The Croatian company’s valuation soared to €2bn following the backing. According to chief executive Mate Rimac, the investment will be used to scale up its driving robotaxi venture, which has been in the works for the [...]