Restaurant delivery boxes are here to stay: We review 48 of them June 29, 2021 Before the pandemic, most top chefs would have turned their nose up at home delivery services. There’s the lack of control, the logistical nightmare, not to mention the wafer-thin margins. But necessity being the mother of invention has led to dozens of outstanding delivery services, and even with restaurants back open and looking forward to [...]
800,000 London jobs could be done elsewhere post-Covid June 29, 2021 Around two out of five people living and working in inner London could continue their roles remotely after the pandemic, according to new research. London risks losing more than 835,000 jobs as the pandemic sparks a permanent shift to more flexible working patterns, and city dwellers are able to move out of the capital to [...]
Scotland records highest number of Covid cases since the start of the pandemic June 28, 2021 Scotland recorded its highest number of coronavirus cases over 24 hours since the start of the pandemic. First minister Nicola Sturgeon has urged caution. Scottish Government figures for Monday show 3,285 people had reported positive Covid-19 tests overnight. This beats the previous record of 2,999 new cases on Thursday, which topped the largest number of [...]
Health secretary Javid says ‘no reason’ for restrictions to go beyond 19 July June 28, 2021 New health secretary Sajid Javid said he saw “no reason to go beyond July 19” with Covid restrictions, in a nod to a full reopening of society in three weeks. In his first statement as health secretary, Javid confirmed Step 4 of England’s roadmap out of lockdown would not be brought forward, but that he [...]
Irish govt throws weight behind home working June 28, 2021 Ireland must avoid a “drift back to the office” following the pandemic, according to the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar. His comments came as he launched #MakingRemoteWork, the Irish government’s new campaign for home working, in Dublin on Monday. Varadkar’s Department for Enterprise, Trade and Employment has encouraged employers in Ireland to examine their policies for remote [...]
Boris Johnson says full easing of Covid restrictions on July 19 is ‘very likely’ June 28, 2021 Lockdown restrictions are “very likely” to be lifted as planned on July 19 according to the PM, as new health secretary Sajid Javid said the decision will be “irreversible”. Speaking on a campaign visit on Monday, the prime minister said that the government and its scientific advisers are “very likely be in a position on [...]
Ibiza and Mallorca holidays under threat as Spain joins Portugal in demanding Brits prove vaccination status June 28, 2021 Holidaymakers saw their plans thrown into disarray today as Spain announced that British travellers to the Balearic islands would have to show either proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test. The move comes just days after Mallorca and Ibiza were placed on the government’s travel “green list”, prompting a rapid surge in bookings. But [...]
FSB calls for govt to bridge 18-day gap between Covid support and full reopening June 28, 2021 The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has made a last urgent appeal to the government to help small firms by bridging the gap between the end of Covid financial support this Thursday and the July 19 full reopening. Full furlough, business rates exemptions and deferred VAT payments will all end on Thursday July 1, eighteen [...]
Covid: £2.5bn business rates debt looms over local councils, new analysis says June 28, 2021 UK firms now owe local councils nearly £2.5bn in unpaid business rates, according to new analysis, as the national debt crisis swells. Countless firms have seen their debt climb higher over the pandemic period, with many businesses stifled by restrictions and forced to shut their doors for several months. As relief, the government has offered [...]
HMRC launches 13,000 investigations into potential Covid support scheme fraud June 28, 2021 The UK tax authority has opened almost 13,000 probes into businesses that may have abused the government’s coronavirus business support schemes. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is investigating potential fraud and other non-compliance with the rules for the use of the government’s furlough programme, self employment income support scheme, and the “eat out to help [...]