Rishi Sunak: ‘Incredibly complicated’ to help self-employed during coronavirus outbreak March 24, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said the government will unveil measures to support the self-employed but said it was very difficult to design support schemes for those not employed by companies. Sunak said he could not commit to a timeframe for the measures, however, as pressure rises on the chancellor to do more to support those [...]
Public urged to be vigilant amid rise in online coronavirus scams March 24, 2020 Members of the public have been urged to be vigilant due to a rise in online scams related to the coronavirus outbreak. Consumer groups warned that unscrupulous criminals were exploiting fears about the pandemic to prey on unsuspecting victims — particularly older and vulnerable people isolated from family and friends. National Trading Standards reported an [...]
Crossrail construction suspended over coronavirus lockdown March 24, 2020 Construction on Crossrail and all Transport for London (TfL) projects has been stopped due to the coronavirus lockdown. TfL commissioner Mike Brown MVO made the call today, after Boris Johnson effectively placed the country in lockdown last night. The halt to work on Crossrail means the new £18.25bn train line will almost certainly not be [...]
Swedbank money laundering report uncovers €37bn ‘high risk’ payments March 24, 2020 Swedbank carried out €37bn (£34bn) of transactions with a high risk of money laundering over a five-year period, according to a damning report into the beleaguered Swedish lender’s compliance controls. The report, published by law firm Clifford Chance, showed that Swedbank actively pursued high-risk individuals in the Batlic region, some of whom had been rejected [...]
Redrow scraps interim dividend as coronavirus restrictions tighten March 24, 2020 Housebuilder Redrow is cancelling its interim dividend, anticipating a sharp drop in sales as the government tightens restrictions amid the coronavirus outbreak. The FTSE 250 company said it is cancelling its 10.5p interim dividend, amounting to £37m, which was due to be paid next month. Shares in Redrow are up five per cent. Redrow said: [...]
Coronavirus: Chemicals giant Ineos to build hand sanitiser factory in 10 days March 24, 2020 Chemicals giant Ineos will build a hand sanitiser factory in 10 days that will produce 1m bottles a month as more UK firms join efforts to curb the spread of coronavirus. Ineos, which is owned by the UK’s third richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe, is already Europe’s largest producer of the two chemicals needed to [...]
Coronavirus: Taylor Wimpey cancels dividend and draws down £550m March 24, 2020 Taylor Wimpey has cancelled its dividends for the year and drawn down £550m in credit facilities to protect its balance sheet against the impact of Covid-19. The housebuilder said it had felt the effect of government shutdowns in its UK and Spanish businesses over the past few days. Taylor Wimpey said it had put contingency [...]
BT in talks to sell French business to Computacenter March 24, 2020 BT today said it is in exclusive discussions to sell its French business to British IT services and consulting firm Computacenter. The telecoms giant’s French division, which manages and maintains IT and network infrastructure, pulled in revenue of roughly £104m last year. The companies did not disclose the value of the deal. The move marks [...]
Coronavirus: Could previously announced M&A deals fall over? March 24, 2020 Coronavirus: Could previously announced M&A deals fall over?
Coronavirus: Tube could shut amid overcrowding, union warns March 24, 2020 Transport for London’s (TfL) biggest train drivers’ union has warned the Tube could shut if people continue to overcrowd carriages at rush hour. Chaotic scenes were witnessed on the Tube once again this morning, despite Boris Johnson effectively putting the country on coronavirus lockdown last night. TfL also heavily reduced its public transport services last [...]