UK ‘to trial’ Covid-19 vaccine passports with new app January 13, 2021 The UK is said to be starting trials of a vaccine passport that could play a key role in efforts to inoculate the population against coronavirus. Thousands of Brits who have already received their Covid-19 jab will be offered a passport proving they have been vaccinated as part of a government-funded trial, the Telegraph reported. [...]
PwC bags £2.5m government contract to oversee PPE audit January 12, 2021 Accounting giant PwC has landed a £2.5m contract to oversee an audit of the government’s procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) during the pandemic, following a scathing report from the UK’s spending watchdog. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) yesterday published details of a £2.5m contract with the UK’s largest accounting and advisory [...]
Priti Patel pledges more police on streets to crack whip on Covid rulebreakers January 12, 2021 The government will place more police on the streets to hand out fines to “irresponsible” people breaking lockdown rules, the home secretary has announced. In a stern warning to the nation, Priti Patel said: “If you do not play your part, our police officers who are out there, risking their own lives everyday to keep [...]
Covid-19 drives employment tribunal claims up 17% January 12, 2021 The number of claims received by employment tribunals has jumped 17 per cent in the last year to 42,392, up from 36,336 in the previous 12 months. Employment law firm GQ Littler said the increase was “significantly faster” than the 7 per cent rise that occurred between 2017/18 and 2018/19 and ties in with the [...]
Business secretary slams firms not allowing staff to work from home January 12, 2021 New business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has urged employers to take “every possible step” to help employees work from home during the pandemic. His comments come after City A.M. revealed some firms have at points offered staff unpaid leave as an alternative to returning to the office. Kwarteng said: “The law is clear that you may [...]
PwC to examine possible fraud in govt coronavirus loan programme January 12, 2021 The government-owned British Business Bank (BBB) has brought on PwC to examine cases of possible fraud in its Covid-19 business loans programme. The loan programme was established to help smaller businesses impacted by coronavirus. According to website Consultancy.co.uk, BBB tapped PwC to look into possible fraud, having previously worked with the Big Four firm and [...]
QuadReal pumps nearly $1bn in London property January 12, 2021 Property group QuadReal has spent nearly $1bn to acquire a majority stake in seven London-based assets owned by Realstar UK. The Canadian asset manager partnered with Realstar to invest in four rental properties in New Cross, Stockwell and a 45-story tower in the heart of Elephant & Castle. Realstar CEO Ryan Prince said, “Far [...]
UK antibody trial to test early intervention in patients with mild to moderate Covid-19 January 12, 2021 Vir Biotechnology and global healthcare company GSK announced today an agreement with the UK-based AGILE initiative to evaluate a treatment in patients with mild to moderate Covid-19. Preclinical data suggests that the neutralising antibody VIR-7832 has distinguishing properties which enhance the ability to clear infected cells and boost the function of virus-specific T cells, which [...]
Exclusive: City fund managers on the winners and losers from the Brexit deal January 12, 2021 The Christmas Eve announcement of a UK-EU trade deal promised an end to four and a half years of uncertainty and speculation. Whilst there are areas of the relationship still to be finalised, it has brought some much-needed clarity to many UK businesses, even though uncertainty for the financial services space and the City remains. [...]
Smart politicians will be looking to cities as a springboard for greatness January 12, 2021 For much of the second half of the 20th century, powerful city politics was dying. As the great industrial centres went into decline, so too did their once-proud corporations and mayors. County boroughs like Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds were gathered together in 1972 and melded into metropolitan counties like “Merseyside” or “West Midlands”, and [...]