Open source should always have been the way for the Covid-19 contact tracing app September 17, 2020 The government should have gone with an open source contact tracing app from the beginning, argues Tom Bianchi. The long-awaited Covid-19 contact tracing app will launch in the UK next week, marking a “defining moment”, according to health secretary Matt Hancock, in our response to the virus. While this is encouraging, the app should have [...]
Big businesses have a ‘national duty’ to return to work, says ad boss September 16, 2020 The UK’s large businesses and public sector have a “national duty” to get back to work, the chief executive of ad firm Ocean Outdoor has said. Tim Bleakley told City A.M. that mid-cap firms were leading the charge in getting back to the office, but urged larger companies to follow suit. Management at Ocean Outdoor, [...]
Saving Christmas: Why I am taking the government to court over its Covid-19 response September 16, 2020 Once again, the public has had a royal telling-off by Boris and his motley crew. With gatherings of over six banned from Monday, it almost feels like Groundhog Day – but there is one crucial difference. This time, we have seven months of lockdown under our belts and with this, reams of repugnant evidence that [...]
Coronavirus fatality rates are way down – why has the government not taken this on board? September 16, 2020 King Canute has had a bad press. The monarch sat on the beach on his throne with the deliberate intention of demonstrating to his courtiers that he could not stop the waves from coming in. But in popular thinking, he is the deranged king who believed he could control the sea. In this spirit, step [...]
Coronavirus: Keir Starmer to call for furlough scheme replacement September 15, 2020 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer will today urge the government to replace the furlough scheme to avoid the “scarring effect” of mass unemployment. The government’s job retention scheme has been used by more than 10m workers since its launch in March, but is set to end on 31 October. Speaking to the Trades Union Congress [...]
Debate: Have young people been hardest hit by lockdown? September 15, 2020 Last week, politicians split opinion by suggesting that young people were partly to blame for the sharp rise in coronavirus cases. It led to cries that young people have been hit the hardest by the coronavirus lockdown – while others think this is not the case. For the City A.M. debate, Sean Farrington of tech [...]
Labour leader Keir Starmer in self-isolation ahead of key Brexit debate September 14, 2020 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has gone into self-isolation after a member of his household showed Covid-19 symptoms. “The member of his household has now had a test,” a Labour spokeswoman said. “In line with National Health Service guidelines, Keir will self-isolate while awaiting the results of the test and further advice from medical professionals.” [...]
Businesses have done a good job as emergency policy makers – but they must not get complacent September 14, 2020 Government policy and regulation must at times play catch-up with reality. In recent times, this has been especially prevalent with the social and digital media giants, who have enjoyed free rein while policy makers struggle to work out how to deal with the potential harms they bring. But if we thought that the rise and [...]
Coronavirus: Rule of six comes into effect as UK tightens lockdown September 14, 2020 New laws banning social gatherings of more than six people came into effect this morning as the government tightens lockdown measures amid a rise in coronavirus cases. The regulations — dubbed the rule of six — apply to indoors and outdoors gatherings in England and Scotland, but only indoors in Wales. In England the restrictions [...]
UK signs €1.4bn deal for Valneva coronavirus vaccine September 14, 2020 The UK government has inked a €1.4bn (£1.3bn) deal to secure up to 190m doses of a coronavirus vaccine being developed by French biotech firm Valneva. Under the terms of the deal, Valneva will supply the government with 60m doses in the second half of 2021 at a cost of €470m. The UK then has [...]