Close to home: Demand for city centre offices drops as hybrid working picks up June 16, 2021 Suburban office markets outperformed city centres for the first time in ten years, with six out of nine major cities seeing a drop in workstation rates. Research published today found demand was driven by workers rejecting both working from home and returning to crowded cities. The shift to smaller towns was also influenced by companies [...]
‘Confident’ in vaccine supplies: Health department denies reports of Pfizer shortage June 16, 2021 The Department of Health has denied reports of supply shortages of the Pfizer vaccine as the Covid jab rollout extends to over-21s, after the government delayed “Freedom Day” by four weeks to vaccinate more people. “We are confident in our vaccine supplies as we rollout to younger age groups,” a spokesperson for the Department of [...]
England commercial eviction ban extended until March 2022 June 16, 2021 The government has extended the commercial eviction ban until March 2022 in the wake of Monday’s decision to push back so-called freedom day to 19 July. The news, delivered in the House of Commons today by chief secretary of the Treasury Steve Barclay, will offer business some breathing space in light of Covid restrictions continuing [...]
UK steers clear of cash during pandemic, choosing Covid-friendly contactless June 16, 2021 The pandemic has accelerated the decline of cash, as new analysis reveals that the number of UK consumers paying with cash plummeted 35 per cent in 2020. Amid coronavirus restrictions to reduce contact between people, the number of UK payments made using cash plummeted by 35 per cent in 2020 compared with the previous year, [...]
Covid jab rollout slows due to Pfizer shortage, as reopening delayed to vaccinate more people June 16, 2021 Supply shortages of the Pfizer vaccine have forced the NHS to slow down its Covid jab rollout, despite the government delaying “Freedom Day” by four weeks in order to accelerate the vaccination programme. Just 1.2 million first doses were dispensed in the last week, compared with more than three million a week in March. The [...]
Covid vaccines to become compulsory for care home staff in England June 16, 2021 Boris Johnson is backing compulsory vaccine measures, while ministers consider extending them to all NHS staff. Coronavirus vaccinations are to be legally required for care home staff who work with elderly and vulnerable people, under plans to be announced by ministers today. The government is also considering extending the policy to all NHS staff – [...]
Breakthrough: UK researchers find new Covid-19 treatment that injects ‘artificial’ antibodies June 16, 2021 Oxford-based medical researchers have found a new treatment that has managed to reduce death among patients admitted to hospital with severe Covid-19. The idea is to inject these artificial antibodies so they bind to the virus in a bid to stop the infection in its tracks. The therapy uses two artificial antibodies, these are generated [...]
Prime minister calls harassment of BBC journalist Nick Watt ‘disgraceful’ June 15, 2021 Footage posted on social media showed anti-lockdown protesters verbally abusing and chasing Nick Watt, the political editor of BBC Newsnight, near Downing Street on Monday. On Twitter, the prime minister said: “Disgraceful to see the hounding of Nick Watt doing his job.” “The media must be able to report the facts without fear or favour – [...]
All adults in England will be able to book Covid-19 vaccine ‘by end of this week’ June 15, 2021 NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens has revealed that all over-18s should be able to book their Covid-19 jab “by the end of this week.” “I expect that by the end of this week, we’ll be able to open up the National Booking Service to all adults age 18 and above,” Stevens said, adding that [...]
Coronavirus lockdowns turn UK’s Mindful Chef profitable June 15, 2021 The healthy recipe box service has been a pandemic winner, with locked-down customers driving sales up threefold to £53m last year. Mindful Chef today reported it is profitable for the first time, with 2020 sales figures up 230 per cent on 2019, buoyed by the pandemic shift to online food delivery. Customers for the Nestle [...]