Rail passenger numbers will only hit 75 per cent of pre-pandemic levels in future November 18, 2020 Rail passenger numbers will only return to 75 per cent of pre-pandemic levels in the future, lawmakers were told today. Dominic Booth, the managing director of Abellio Group, told MPs from the Transport Select Committee that rail firms were “very confident about winning the majority of passengers back” when the crisis ends. However, he added [...]
Halfords doubles profit after lockdown cycling boom November 18, 2020 Retailer Halfords more than doubled its profit in the first half of the year after capitalising on the lockdown cycling boom. The FTSE 250 firm, which sells motoring and cycling products, reported pre-tax profit of £56m in the six months to 2 October, up from £25.9m in the same period last year. There has been [...]
European car sales fall in October as new restrictions kick in November 18, 2020 The European car market fell again in October having only recorded its first increase this year the month before, new figures today showed. Last month sales of new cars declined 7.8 per cent to 953,615 units as governments across the continent began to impose new lockdown restrictions. The figures, from trade body the European Automobile [...]
Nissan warns UK business hard to sustain without Brexit deal November 18, 2020 A top executive at Japanese car giant Nissan has warned that it would be hard to sustain its operations in the UK should the country leave the EU without a trade deal. Speaking to Reuters, chief operating officer Ashwani Gupta said: “If [the exit] happens without any sustainable business case obviously it is not a [...]
Boris Johnson to pump billions into climate change plan and confirms diesel vehicle ban from 2030 November 17, 2020 Boris Johnson has tonight unveiled his 10 point plan for the UK's "green industrial revolution", which he said would create 250,000 new jobs.
Exclusive: Tube use hit post-lockdown peak on day before new restrictions November 17, 2020 Tube use peaked on the day before the second national lockdown came into effect as Londoners rushed to offices and shops ahead of the new restrictions. New figures from Transport for London reveal that there were nearly 1.8m journeys on the London Underground on 4 November, around 400,000 more than the same day a week [...]
Anti-vaxxers may lose travel insurance over Covid vaccine refusal November 17, 2020 Anti-vaxxers may risk invalidating their travel insurance if they are medically able but decline to have the coronavirus vaccine, an insurance expert has warned. Medical underwriting specialist and travel insurance expert Tricia Tietema told City A.M she would expect that those who are medically able to have the coronavirus vaccine, should one become available, but [...]
Budget carrier Easyjet posts first ever full year loss November 17, 2020 Easyjet today fell to the first loss in its history as the full impact of the coronavirus pandemic was revealed. The low-budget carrier posted a reported loss before tax of £1.2bn for the year ending 30 September after the worst crisis in aviation history. Passenger numbers halved over the course of the year, falling from [...]
UK and US sign aviation agreement to protect vital travel links November 17, 2020 The government has today signed a deal with the US ensuring that aviation links can continue unchanged after 1 January. The new Air Services Agreement will replace the existing EU-US deal, which will cease to apply to the UK deal when the Brexit transition period ends. The transatlantic air travel market is one of the [...]
Swissport axes 3,000 jobs after ‘refusing’ to access furlough scheme November 17, 2020 Baggage handler Swissport is making 3,000 employees redundant after refusing to put them on furlough, according to a leading union. There was a wave of redundancies ahead of the 31 December deadline for the furlough scheme, which sees the government pay 80 per cent of employees’ wages. The Chancellor Rishi Sunak belatedly extended the scheme [...]