Inflation races to new 40-year high – but worst is yet to come July 20, 2022 UK inflation raced to a fresh 40-year high last month, but economists have warned the cost of living squeeze is set to get even worse. Prices surged 9.4 per cent over the year to June, the quickest acceleration since 1982 and up from an already historic level of 9.1 per cent in May, according to [...]
Rail operators and freight firms create coalition to transform UK railways July 20, 2022 A consortium of rail and freight operating firms have clubbed together with a prospectus to transform Britain’s railways. The launch of Rail Partners was welcomed by rail minister Wendy Morton, as the industry sets out five key priorities for reform – including the sector’s decarbonisation and the role of Great British Railways moving forward. Made [...]
Planned redundancies down by a fifth as firms spooked by pandemic’s impact on labour shortages July 20, 2022 Firms are putting off planned redundancies despite rising business rates and inflation, after being spooked by the pandemic’s impact creating severe staff shortages. The number of redundancies has fallen by 21 per cent from in the last quarter according to law firm GQ|Littler. The figures show it dropped from 50,382 to 39,669 up to the [...]
Sale of swimming pools and paddleboards skyrocket by 200 per cent as heatwave intensifies July 20, 2022 There has been an increase in sales of swimming pools by more than 210 per cent due to the heatwave. Lee Bagnall, CEO of GO Outdoors, shared with City A.M. this morning that over the past week his company has seen sales of outdoor living equipment soar, in response to the current heatwave that’s sweeping [...]
Paypoint posts jump in revenues to £29.9m in first quarter July 20, 2022 PayPoint boss Nick Wiles said the firm was building on “strong momentum” today as the payments firm reported a jump in revenues to £29.9m for the first quarter.
Impact of infernos on the capital: 2,600 calls to Fire Brigade, 41 properties lost, 16 firefighters injured July 20, 2022 The impact of fires that raged over the last two days has been laid bare, with services stretched, emergency responders injured and multiple houses and businesses lost. The London Fire Brigade received an almost nine-fold increase in the number of calls for incidents they had to respond to yesterday, was the “busiest day we’ve had [...]
Patients expect more home deliveries for healthcare post-pandemic July 20, 2022 Patients in the UK now expect more home deliveries for prescriptions and tests, after the pandemic prompted a spike in demand for healthcare logistics companies. Same-day delivery business CitySprint, which makes deliveries for the NHS, found nearly half of healthcare decision makers said that expectations for service delivery have increased as a result of [...]
Last orders? Bittersweet summer for pubs as rising costs out-shadow post-pandemic demand July 20, 2022 Packed beer gardens herald the arrival of summer in Britain. For publicans, this summer presents a chance to rebuild after two years’ of Covid-19 restrictions battering trade. Yet, with inflation surpassing 40-year highs and strike action threatening to severe revellers’ passages into city centres, will publicans be able to make up for those long, lost [...]
Bloomsbury says increased reading here to stay as Harry Potter publisher eyes £240m yearly sales July 20, 2022 London publishing house Bloomsbury has said it is confident a new cohort of book lovers are here to stay, posting elevated growth for the year so far. The Covid-19 pandemic inspired many consumers to pick up paperbacks, with lockdown giving rise to TikTok reading trends. According to the Harry Potter publisher, increased reading is “here [...]
Underground back to normal after days of heatwave-induced delays July 20, 2022 London Underground returned to normal as temperatures in the capital dropped more than 10 degrees overnight. All lines were fully operational on Wednesday morning, with the Jubilee the only one to be experiencing major delays due to signal failures. Overnight, temperatures plummeted from the mid-30s to the mid-20s, as warnings about flash floods in the [...]