Coronavirus loans: UK companies borrow £38.4bn to survive lockdown June 16, 2020 British companies have borrowed £38.4bn under the government’s three emergency credit programmes since the coronavirus pandemic struck. However, the approval rate for coronavirus business interruption loans (CBILS) remains just over half, with 51 per cent of the loans being allowed. Meanwhile, the bounce back loan scheme, which supports small businesses with 100 per cent state-backed [...]
Ride hailing app Grab cuts 300 jobs amid coronavirus hit June 16, 2020 Ride hailing company Grab has announced it will lay off more than 300 employees due to the effects of the coronavirus. The company, backed by Softbank, said it would cut about five per cent of its workforce after the ride hailing industry has taken a significant hit from the pandemic. Grab is Southeast Asia’s most [...]
Ashtead Group shares leap after ‘resilient’ lockdown performance June 16, 2020 Ashtead Group shares shot up this morning, as it announced it has has maintained its dividend to shareholders, despite profit having halved in the most recent quarter as the company battled the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Shares in the construction equipment rental group rose 12 per cent this morning as it hailed a “resilient” [...]
Beijing tightens controls amid ‘extremely severe’ second wave fears June 16, 2020 The Chinese capital of Beijing has put neighbourhoods under lockdown and upped testing in a bid to stop clusters of new coronavirus infection developing into a second wave. Parts of Beijing were fenced off last night, with security checkpoints set up to prevent people from leaving the city as more than 100 new cases were [...]
Cineworld to reopen UK cinemas with social distancing measures on 10 July June 16, 2020 Cinema chain Cineworld today revealed it will reopen UK cinemas from 10 July as it hopes blockbuster releases including Christopher Nolan’s Tenet and Disney’s live action Mulan will attract wary punters to its screens. Cineworld’s UK cinemas will reopen after more than three months of lockdown after Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered all non-essential British [...]
Greggs to reopen 800 shops this week as baker rolls out lockdown exit plan June 16, 2020 It has been a long time since you could get your hands on Greggs’ famous vegan sausage rolls – but the wait will finally come to an end this week. Greggs is to reopen 800 shops on Thursday, having successfully trialled social distancing measures in a small number of stores, with the remaining 1,250 shops early [...]
How AI technology is leading the charge against Covid-19 June 16, 2020 The application of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare has, until now, often been limited to specialised areas such as medical imaging and electronic health records. But with the Covid-19 pandemic introducing new, unexpected complexities for health systems to address, the benefits of AI are finally being realised in the mainstream. From helping us better understand [...]
Restaurant bosses call for VAT cut as dining out sector braces for difficult return to business June 16, 2020 Restaurant industry bosses have today urged Boris Johnson to take drastic action, including slashing VAT on the food they serve, to help the struggling sector survive the effects of coronavirus. In a letter signed by the bosses of 90 major chains, Deliveroo founder Will Shu said that the government should also extend its job retention [...]
British public supports calls for online gambling restrictions June 16, 2020 The British public overwhelmingly supports calls by MPs for restrictions to online gambling, new research has shown, as the betting industry this week gears up for the return of televised sporting events. Data released today by polling firm Survation revealed that 82 per cent out of 1,525 people surveyed support limits to online gambling spending. [...]
Coronavirus: Imperial College vaccine set to begin human trials June 15, 2020 Clinical researchers will this week begin human trials of Imperial College London’s coronavirus vaccine, the first time the treatment has been tested on a human subject. The trial will test whether the vaccine can produce an effective immune response against the new disease. The government has already put £41m towards the treatment, while an additional [...]