Insurers accused of not ‘sharing the pain’ with businesses during coronavirus pandemic April 19, 2020 Insurers have been accused of not “sharing the pain” of UK businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. Research by insurance consultancy Mactavish found at least five commercial insurers have recently removed cover from their policies because of Coronavirus. Mactavish chief executive Bruce Hepburn said: “We have customers getting less cover and paying more for this, whilst [...]
Coronavirus: Debenhams and Arcadia in talks with landlords over store closures April 19, 2020 Major high street retailers including Debenhams and Topshop owner Arcadia are negotiating with landlords over whether stores will reopen after the coronavirus lockdown ends. All non-essential retailers were ordered to close when the government implemented restrictions to slow the spread of coronavirus last month. However, some stores will not reopen when the lockdown is relaxed [...]
Coronavirus: Asda cancels clothing orders with suppliers April 19, 2020 Asda has cancelled around a quarter of clothing orders with suppliers due to plummeting demand during the coronavirus crisis. The supermarket has said it will pay 50 per cent for the completed cancelled orders, rising to 60 per cent for Bangladeshi suppliers. Asda said it will honour more than 75 per cent of its orders [...]
Read all about it: Newspapers feel the strain of Covid-19 April 18, 2020 Newspaper editors will have been no doubt heartened to see Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, chivvying Brits to “buy a paper” this weekend. Dowden called newspapers the “fourth emergency service.” Like the others, they are under strain. For weeks on end British newspapers have reported on the coronavirus crisis, covering the spread of the pandemic, [...]
Coronavirus: Government launches taskforce to develop vaccine April 17, 2020 The government has launched a taskforce, including both industry and academics, to develop a coronavirus vaccine. Business secretary Alok Sharma announced this afternoon that the taskforce, which will include Sir John Bell, Astrazeneca, and the Wellcome Trust, will focus on developing a vaccine as fast as possible to make it available to the public. “We [...]
UK ‘too slow to act’ on coronavirus, and 40,000 Brits could die April 17, 2020 The UK government was “too slow” in dealing with the coronavirus outbreak and 40,000 people could die, a leading public health professor warned MPs today. “Where were the system errors that led us to have probably the highest death rates in Europe?” Anthony Costello, professor of International Child Health and director of the UCL Institute [...]
Coronavirus: When are supermarket opening times for NHS and pensioners? April 17, 2020 As the UK heads into lockdown because of the coronavirus outbreak, supermarkets have enforced tighter restrictions and changed opening hours. Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday ordered all “non-essential” shops to close, leaving supermarkets one of the few stores to remain open. In recent weeks supermarkets have struggled to keep shelves replenished as consumers embarked on [...]
Uber abandons 2020 guidance amid Covid-19 lockdown April 17, 2020 Uber has withdrawn its 2020 financial guidance and plans to write down around $2bn in investments amid the Covid-19 lockdown. The ride-hailing firm had expected to book adjusted net revenue of up to $17bn and an adjusted loss of between $1.45bn and $1.25bn. But Uber yesterday said Covid-19 made it “impossible” to predict future financial [...]
Coronavirus: The Gym Group and Hollywood Bowl latest to tap investors for cash April 17, 2020 UK businesses are racing to raise equity and shore up their finances during the coronavirus crisis, with The Gym Group and Hollywood Bowl among the latest firms to tap investors for cash. According to research by Peel Hunt, there have been 32 equity raises of at least £5m in the UK since the middle of [...]
Exclusive: Lloyds staff facing redundancy fear being left jobless by bank amid pandemic April 17, 2020 Staff at Lloyds Banking Group who are being made redundant fear the bank will leave them jobless amid the savage economic downturn triggered by the coronavirus pandemic. The bank publicly committed last month to pause plans to cut 780 jobs amid surging customer demand and the economic uncertainty leavers would face. However, it has not [...]