Revealed: Government faces mounting pile of complaints over contract issues November 11, 2019 Whitehall is facing a spiralling number of complaints from companies bidding for government work, as officials move to counter growing disquiet over a series of botched contract awards in recent years. The number of complaints rose by nearly half in 2018 to 235, up from 159 the previous year, according to data released under the [...]
Silvertown Tunnel campaigners threaten Sadiq Khan with a judicial review November 10, 2019 Campaigners against the Silvertown Tunnel have sent a letter to Sadiq Khan threatening to seek a judicial review of the project if it is approved. The No to Silvertown Tunnel coalition sent a letter to the mayor last week, saying that modelling from Transport for London (TfL) on the project is “insufficient to make a [...]
Boris Johnson ‘wary of putting HS2 on scrap heap’ November 10, 2019 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has yet to make his mind up on the High Speed 2 rail project but called it “incredibly expensive” late last week, as a government-commissioned review into its future enters its final stages. Speaking on the campaign trail in Nottingham near one of the railway’s planned stops, he said he was [...]
Silvertown Tunnel: Bringing London together or tearing it apart? November 9, 2019 London has just three road river crossings east of Tower Bridge. Two of these – the Rotherhithe Tunnel and the western portion of the Blackwall Tunnel – were built for the passage of horse-drawn carts and carriages around the turn of the century. Read more: TfL awards 1bn Silvertown Tunnel contract to Aberdeen Standard-backed firm [...]
Revealed: Ryanair named as dirtiest airline in UK by passengers, says Which November 9, 2019 Ryanair has been named as the filthiest flight operator in the UK by passengers, according to a Which survey. Having surveyed 7,901 people who had taken 12,459 flights between them, more than half rated the level of hygiene in Ryanair plane cabins negatively. Read more: Jet2 buys Thomas Cook’s slots at Stansted, Manchester and Birmingham [...]
Jet2 buys Thomas Cook’s slots at Stansted, Manchester and Birmingham airports November 8, 2019 Budget airline Jet2 has snapped up Thomas Cook’s airport slots at Stansted, Manchester and Birmingham, the collapsed travel company’s liquidators confirmed today. The official receivers did not reveal how much Jet2 paid for the landing and take off slots, which came hours after Easyjet bought Thomas Cook’s slots at Gatwick and Bristol. Read more: MPs [...]
Honda cuts operating profit outlook by 10 per cent due to strong yen and falling motorcycle sales November 8, 2019 Honda has cut its annual profit expectations by 10 per cent and said it would buy back $915m shares over the rest of the financial year. Japan’s third biggest car maker is now predicting an operating income of ¥690bn for the year ending March 2020. Read more: Crossrail will not open until 2021 and could [...]
Crossrail will not open until 2021 and could run £650m over budget, bosses admit November 8, 2019 Crossrail will not open until 2021 and will run up to £650m over budget, transport bosses admitted today. The long-awaited Elizabeth Line, which was originally due to open in December 2018, will not open until “as soon as practically possible in 2021”, Transport for London (TfL) said. Crossrail chief executive Mark Wild warned technical issues [...]
UK weather: ‘Danger to life’ flood warnings in place as river levels rise in northern England November 8, 2019 Severe weather warnings are in place across northern England signifying a “danger to life” as a result of rising river levels. Parts of northern England and the midlands had a month’s worth of rain fall in 24 hours on Thursday and overnight. There are five severe warnings in place along the River Don in Doncaster [...]
British Airways owner IAG cuts growth forecast November 8, 2019 British Airways’ owner International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG) cut its growth forecast for the next few years due to an expected slump in passenger capacity growth. The company said average earnings per share growth would be 10 per cent in the three years from 2020 to 2022, compared to a previous estimate of 12 per [...]