British Airways to sell art collection amid coronavirus cash squeeze July 14, 2020 Struggling British Airways (BA) is flogging 17 pieces from its art collection at auction house Sotheby’s, as the cash-strapped carrier continues to battle the coronavirus pandemic. In total, the combined pieces could be worth up to £1.4m, according to estimates, with the most expensive, Bridget Riley’s Cool Edge, slated to sell for £1.2m. The sale, [...]
Morgan Sindall lands £250m Lewisham Gateway development deal July 14, 2020 Construction firm Morgan Sindall has received £252m in funding from private landlord Get Living to complete the Lewisham Gateway redevelopment project. The development, which is expected to be completed in 2023, will 649 rentable properties, as well as a combined 50,000 square feet of shops, restaurants and office spaces. It will also contain Lewisham’s first [...]
Tesla shares surge again on hopes of S&P 500 listing July 13, 2020 Shares in electric vehicle firm Tesla continued their meteoric rise today, jumping another 14.6 per cent to hit $1,770.33 this afternoon. The new increase means that the firm’s shares have increased over 650 per cent in the last 12 months, when they were trading at $233. Since beating expectations for vehicle delivery numbers at the [...]
European Commission approves €3.4bn KLM bailout July 13, 2020 The European Commission has approved a €3.4bn (£3.1bn) bailout of the Dutch wing of Air France-KLM, despite objections from Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary. The rescue package, which was agreed last month, will see the Dutch government guarantee a €2.4bn loan from a consortium of banks, as well as providing €1bn in loans itself. When the [...]
Fares now reinstated on all London buses July 13, 2020 Fares have now been reinstated on all London buses, Transport for London announced today, with enhanced safety measures meaning that passengers can now enter through the front doors. Travellers will now be required to touch in with Oyster, contactless and concessionary cards on all buses in a return to traditional arrangements, following the suspension of [...]
UK airports renew business rates relief calls as job losses loom July 13, 2020 The UK’s airports have renewed their calls for the government to scrap business rates as the near-complete collapse in passenger numbers due to the coronavirus pandemic continued. The Airport Operators Association (AOA) today appealed to ministers to give airports a year of business rates relief in line with those received by members of the hospitality, [...]
G4S shares surge as it revises up earnings forecast July 13, 2020 Shares in security firm G4S have jumped nine per cent after it said a strong June has “significantly” boosted first-half earnings. In a short update, the international company said its “underlying earnings for the first six months of 2020 will be significantly above market consensus”. G4S put this down to “a resilient trading performance during [...]
Transport for London trials thermal cameras to spot Covid symptoms July 13, 2020 Buses operated by Transport for London (TfL) are being scanned with thermal imaging cameras in a new trial aimed at spotting fevers on public transport, as the capital begins to return to life after months of lockdown. Thermal imaging cameras detect small changes in temperature from a distance using infrared technology, and are used to [...]
Let’s transform our coastal communities into the beating heart of a green industrial revolution July 13, 2020 Covid-19 is set to do long-term damage to the communities of the three million people who live along the UK coastline. These communities often felt neglected even before the outbreak, and now they are especially vulnerable. Coastal constituencies overwhelmingly voted Conservative in the 2019 election on the promise of a “levelling up” agenda. Yet they [...]
Heathrow calls for help as passenger numbers crash 95 per cent July 13, 2020 Heathrow airport has called on the government to act faster to protect the aviation industry as it said passenger numbers crashed 95 per cent in June compared to a year earlier. The airport again hit out at the government’s travel quarantine policy, saying it has already hit capacity and linking it to the grounding of [...]