Coronavirus: Governments face huge but necessary debt increases, says IMF April 15, 2020 The “unprecedented” government spending to tackle coronavirus and its economic effects will send deficits past their post-financial crisis levels and cause debt levels to balloon, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said today. The IMF backed huge levels of spending, however, saying “a sizable increase in deficits this year is necessary and appropriate”. It said government [...]
Jobs lost as Oasis and Warehouse fall into administration due to coronavirus April 15, 2020 High street retailers Oasis and Warehouse have today fallen into administration, resulting in the loss of 202 jobs. In total, 41 head office jobs will be retained to assist Deloitte, which has been appointed as administrator, while 1,801 employees will be furloughed. The Oasis, Warehouse and Idle Man brands will continue to trade online in [...]
Brexit trade talks set to resume next week with no deadline extension April 15, 2020 The UK’s chief Brexit negotiator David Frost and his Brussels counterpart will meet for their next round of official trade talks next week. Frost and chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier will hold week-long negotiating rounds via video conference on the weeks commencing 20 April, 11 May and 1 June. The pair met today to outline [...]
Coronavirus furlough scheme extended to allow for more wage subsidies April 15, 2020 The government’s coronavirus furlough scheme has been extended to ensure thousands of more employees are eligible for wage subsidies. The Treasury announced today that the eligibility date has been extended to 19 March from 28 February. The Job Retention Scheme sees the government pay out 80 per cent of wages, up to £2,500 a month, [...]
Citi profit halves as US banks brace for coronavirus impact April 15, 2020 Citigroup’s profit slumped almost 50 per cent in the first quarter as it became the latest US bank to beef up its loan reserves in a bid to mitigate the impact of coronavirus. The bank’s net income dropped 46 per cent year on year to $2.5bn (£2bn), or $1.05 per share. This was down from [...]
WHO launches coronavirus chatbot on Facebook Messenger April 15, 2020 The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched its coronavirus chatbot on Facebook Messenger as it expands its efforts to tackle online misinformation. The interactive Health Alert service will allow the messaging app’s 1.3bn users to ask questions and get the latest information about the Covid-19 outbreak. It follows the launch of a similar service on [...]
Coronavirus: 761 more deaths in the UK as confirmed cases near 100,000 April 15, 2020 A further 761 people have died of coronavirus in the UK, the Department of Health has announced, taking the total death toll to 12,868 as of yesterday evening. The figure is a tiny decrease on yesterday’s figure of 778 deaths. The total number of new confirmed cases rose by 4,605, taking the UK to the [...]
Scottish government does U-turn on coronavirus business grant scheme April 15, 2020 The Scottish government has changed its coronavirus business grant scheme to make it more generous for hospitality, retail and tourism chains after mounting criticism from the private sector. SNP finance minister Kate Forbes unveiled £220m of new grants today in a bid to close the gap between relief available for Scottish and English businesses. English [...]
Coronavirus: Hospital deaths in England rise by 651 April 15, 2020 A further 651 people have died from coronavirus in England’s hospitals, the NHS has announced, taking the total number of fatalities to 11,656. The new patients were aged between 20 and 101, and 20 of them had no underlying health conditions. The government will provide an update for the total number of deaths across the [...]
HS2 construction work set to begin despite coronavirus lockdown April 15, 2020 Construction work on controversial rail project HS2 has been given the green light to begin despite the current coronavirus lockdown restrictions. The high speed rail link was approved by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in February after uncertainty about whether it would go ahead at all. Work on the four work packages, which involve many of [...]