Exclusive: Business owners on how the recovery is playing out on the ground March 15, 2021 This morning it was announced that the rapid rollout of Covid-19 vaccines has led to business confidence hitting its highest levels in three years. According to IHS Markit’s global business outlook survey, business confidence now stands at +32 per cent, up from +26 per cent in October. The increase has been driven by the success [...]
Great fire of Londoners: Capital feels more ‘burnt out’ than any other UK region March 15, 2021 In the era of ‘grind culture’, Londoners feel more ‘burnt out’ and stressed due to work pressures than people in any other region in the UK, according to research published this morning. The study by Delamere Health Cheshire said that the average person will spend one-third of their life at work, with Londoners giving the [...]
Bailey gives cautious endorsement of ‘coiled spring’ recovery and dampens inflation fears March 15, 2021 The Governor of the Bank of England has backed the economy to recover this year and cautiously endorsed his Chief Economist Andy Haldane’s prediction of a “coiled spring” recovery. Andrew Bailey told the BBC this morning that though current Bank forecasts predict a gradual recovery, there were welcome “risks to the upside.” Haldane has said [...]
EU considers turning to Russia’s Sputnik vaccine as Astrazeneca scepticism swells March 15, 2021 The EU is in discussions to place an order of Russia’s Sputnik vaccine, according to reports, as scepticism about the efficacy and possible side effects of Astrazeneca’s Covid jab considers to spread across the continent. The bloc is now turning to Moscow’s Sputnik V vaccine as it attempts to speed up its sluggish immunisation programme, [...]
Netherlands and Ireland suspend rollout of Astrazeneca jab March 15, 2021 The Netherlands and Ireland have joined a growing list of countries that have temporarily suspended the rollout of the Astrazeneca vaccine over possible side effects. Ireland announced the two-week ban yesterday after Norway reported that one person had died and three had been admitted to hospital after receiving the shot. Dr Karina Butler, head of [...]
UK manufacturers in cash scramble as Covid and Brexit dents profits March 15, 2021 UK manufacturers are suffering a triple whammy of lower sales, declining profits and a “painful cash squeeze”, according to new Insider Pro research. Insider Pro has analysed the accounts of almost 1,500 small and medium-sized manufacturers, which is around a quarter of the industry’s UK workforce. Read more: Brexit: UK food manufacturers to face millions [...]
Nearly 50,000 businesses register for rapid Covid tests for staff to return to work March 13, 2021 Almost 50,000 businesses in the UK have registered to take part in the government’s free workplace testing programme, which will see rapid Covid tests used to return staff to the workplace. The health secretary welcomed the “fantastic” news. adding that it marked “a huge step forward in getting businesses back on their feet and helping [...]
All adults to be vaccinated ‘by June’ as jab programme accelerates March 13, 2021 Every adult in Britain will be offered their first dose of a Covid vaccine by early June, according to reports, as the nation’s largest ever vaccination programme continues to accelerate. All adults will be offered at least one jab by around 10 June, beating the government’s target of the end of July, according to estimates [...]
EU regulator to investigate Covid vaccines after blood clot deaths March 12, 2021 The EU’s drugs regulator has launched an in investigation into whether any of the three vaccines approved in the bloc may be linked to a blood clotting deficiency, after several blood clot-related deaths were reported in various countries. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced today that several cases of immune thrombocytopenia — a lack of platelets [...]
London records drop in coronavirus prevalence as infection rate holds steady March 12, 2021 The percentage of Londoners testing positive for coronavirus has fallen in the past week, latest official figures showed, as Covid cases continue to decline across the country. 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 [...]