Test and Trace trials ‘groundbreaking’ new technology to detect Covid mutations March 22, 2021 NHS Test and Trace has begun trials of a “groundbreaking” new variant test that can hunt down Covid mutations and return results within 48 hours, the health secretary has announced. The tests could potentially halve the time it takes to identify whether a positive coronavirus sample contains a variant of concern, which usually take around five days [...]
Boris Johnson to call EU leaders in bid to sop vaccine export ban March 22, 2021 Boris Johnson is preparing to speak to EU leaders this week as a row over coronavirus vaccine supplies rumbles on. The Prime Minister is expected to hold a meeting with his European counterparts to try and de-escalate tensions in the lead up to an EU’s leaders summit on Thursday. He will also speak to leaders [...]
Covid-19, a year on: The Corporation and the State March 22, 2021 In this series, City A.M. looks back at the last year of the pandemic and Covid restrictions and takes stock of its impact on industries and issues at the heart of British society. Read more: Read the full Covid-19, a year on series here. The state and the market have long been locked in a cautious dance. [...]
US trials show Astrazeneca vaccine safe from blood clot risk and highly effective March 22, 2021 The Astrazeneca Covid-19 vaccine made with Oxford University was 79 per cent effective in a large US trial at preventing symptomatic illness, and was 100 per cent effective against severe or critical disease and hospitalisation, the FTSE-listed drugmaker said this morning. The positive data comes after many countries resuming use of the vaccine after the European [...]
Corona Impact Series: How a Shoreditch expense-tech bounced back during lockdown March 20, 2021 In this series, City A.M. looks at the financial and economic impact of the ongoing pandemic on a range of small and medium-sized businesses across London. Today: How an expense-tech scale-up helped businesses keep track of their spending when spending dropped through the floor. Before the pandemic, Jeppe Rindom, co-founder and CEO of Pleo – [...]
Fiery Sri Lankan and 36 other restaurant-in-a-box delivery kits March 19, 2021 Almost a year since the first lockdown, the restaurant world has been forced to change in ways that would have seemed laughable in the pre-Covid times. Top chefs are now launching successful at-home delivery platforms that promise to change the face of fine dining for years to come. We have sampled some of the very [...]
UK R rate increases slightly to between 0.6 and 0.9 March 19, 2021 The UK’s R rate has increased slightly to sit between 0.6 and 0.9 but remains below the crucial 1 threshold, latest official data showed. The figure marks a marginal hike from last week, when scientists estimated that the R rate was between 0.6 and 0.8. The new R rate means that every 10 people infected [...]
Almost one in 10 Londoners to be unemployed by the end of the year March 19, 2021 Almost one in 10 Londoners are set to be unemployed by the end of the year as the pandemic continues to wreak havoc on the economy, grim new figures have revealed. The unemployment rate in the capital is set to hit 9.4 per cent — or 464,000 economically active residents — in December, according to [...]
Exclusive: ‘EU will remain our key trading partner’, says London’s Deputy Mayor for business March 19, 2021 Last week it was announced that the rapid rollout of Covid-19 vaccines has led to business confidence hitting its highest levels in three years. The increase has been driven by the success of the vaccine rollout, especially in the UK, which has left firms more confident that restrictions will soon be lifted. Despite the increased confidence, UK’s [...]
London Covid-19 prevalence plummets as vaccination picks up pace March 19, 2021 The percentage of Londoners testing positive for coronavirus has continued its downward trend in the past week, as the nation’s largest ever vaccination programme continues at pace. The Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) latest infection survey estimated that the proportion of people in the capital testing positive for coronavirus fell to 0.3 per cent last [...]