English coronavirus cases jump to highest level since end of May September 3, 2020 Coronavirus cases in England have jumped to the highest level since the end of May, increasing fears of a second wave. According to the latest government figures, 6,732 new people tested positive for Covid-19 in England between 20 August and 26 August. The jump is an increase of six per cent compared to the previous [...]
GSK and Sanofi begin human trials of coronavirus vaccine September 3, 2020 Glaxosmithkline (GSK) has today announced that it is beginning human trials of the coronavirus vaccine it is developing with French pharma firm Sanofi. The two joined forces back in April to develop the potential vaccine, testing of which is now ready to move to the next stage after promising initial results. The combined phase 1 [...]
UK trials mass Covid-19 testing programme September 3, 2020 The UK is putting £500m into trials of rapid Covid-19 tests and into population-testing for the disease, the Department of Health said today. Health minister Matt Hancock has said he hopes mass testing using faster Covid-19 tests can be rolled out towards the end of the year, adding that they are key to restoring freedoms [...]
DEBATE: Is there a future for tech hubs post-Covid? September 3, 2020 Is there a future for tech hubs after Covid-19? Gavin Poole, chief executive of Here East, says YES. For centuries, the success of London’s business landscape has been steeped in the clusters of industry across the city. Companies and entrepreneurs exist side by side, driven by a shared mission and passion, and an exchange of [...]
How managed services can help your business accelerate into the future September 2, 2020 | City Talk As businesses across the UK pursue economic recovery the ability to think differently is critical. Managed services can be part of the solution. The health and economic impacts of COVID-19 continue to be felt all over the world. The pandemic has disrupted business-as-usual, with challenges for supply chains, government-mandated shutdowns and changing consumer behaviour. While no-one [...]
Eat Out to Help Out: Diner numbers soar on bumper Bank Holiday Monday September 2, 2020 The number of consumers dining out soared on Bank Holiday Monday as Brits rushed to make the most of the last day of the Eat Out to Help Out discount scheme. Figures showed that the number of seated diners in the UK was up 216.3 per cent on 31 August compared to the same day [...]
Australia plunges into recession as Covid-19 sparks record slump September 2, 2020 Australia has plunged into its first recession in nearly three decades after the coronavirus crisis sparked the country’s worst economic slump on record. Australia’s gross domestic product (GDP) shrank seven per cent in the three months to the end of June — the largest fall since records began. It follows a 0.3 per cent fall [...]
Can office workers save the day for local businesses ravaged by Covid-19? September 2, 2020 The sudden shift to remote working put in place by the majority of UK businesses may herald the end of the office, at least as we know it. Five months and multiple government campaigns later, and the shift to the kitchen table continues, seemingly unabated. According to a survey from US bank Morgan Stanley, just [...]
Science and tech has proved a damp squib in the fight against Covid-19 September 2, 2020 Few of us alive today have lived through a year so tumultuous, historic, and (yes, that word again) unprecedented as 2020. We are seeing the biggest health pandemic since 1918’s Spanish Flu; the biggest threat to the world economy since 1929’s Great Crash; and the biggest civil unrest in the US since 1967 — all [...]
Coronavirus: Government begins to wind down furlough scheme September 1, 2020 Companies using the coronavirus furlough scheme will now have to contribute to workers’ wages as the government begins to wind down its emergency support. The job retention scheme, introduced in March, has paid 80 per cent of salaries for workers on temporary leave, capped at £2,500 per month. From today this will be reduced to [...]