Business groups warn London lockdown would ‘crumble’ capital as mayor calls for support October 15, 2020 A London lockdown would “crumble” businesses and turn the capital into a “ghost town”, leading business bodies have warned City A.M, as fresh restrictions are likely to be imposed on the city in the next few days.
Finsbury Circus Gardens to become ‘City haven’ in major facelift October 13, 2020 The City’s largest open space is set to undergo a major revamp to transform it into a “haven for people and wildlife”, the City of London Corporation announced today. Finsbury Circus Gardens, London’s oldest public park, will see a new “secret garden”, urban forest and multi-purpose garden pavilion transform it into an “active cultural hub” [...]
London may be empty but community spirit must stay strong October 5, 2020 Just over six months since lockdown restrictions were first imposed, life today is very different for all of us with workplaces in the Square Mile. My workplace – Mansion House – would normally be buzzing with activity, hosting delegations from around the world and major set-piece events. The government’s recently revised guidance on working from [...]
Don’t let London become a Donut: Crowded on the outside, empty in the middle October 2, 2020 As a Londoner born and bred, I am acutely sensitive to the ebb and flow of people travelling in and out of London on a daily basis — the human tide of our capital. Despite various pleas and edicts, right now the centre of London is pretty much empty. The tide went out abruptly at [...]
The hotel industry needs to reinvent itself – and fast October 2, 2020 In the 1800s, several new hotels emerged that reimagined the standards for luxury accommodation. Over the course of the next two centuries, grand hotels withstood the Great Depression, two world wars, and countless market disruptors — always finding a way to reset their role in society. The global hotel industry has been through hard times [...]
Why the government must give more support to London’s hospitality sector October 1, 2020 Hospitality and tourism have felt the force of Covid-19 like no other sector. Green shoots started to emerge during the summer months, as Eat Out to Help Out, a staycation boom and the warm weather put much-needed cash in the registers of hotels and restaurants across the UK. While London remained quiet, there was some [...]
The government’s short-term ‘cures’ are doing far more damage than the virus itself September 29, 2020 For the best part of this year, our societies have been torn apart by this Covid-19 pandemic. It has thrown challenges to all businesses and all people in almost every country around the world. My home country, Italy, was the first in Europe to see how devastating this virus could be. We all remember those [...]
As well as protecting jobs, the government must enable a safe return to the workplace September 28, 2020 Fittingly, the weather has taken a turn for the worse over the last week just as the economic headwinds facing the UK risk turning into a perfect storm. After many months of lockdown, the number of people returning to their City workplace had visibly started to pick up in recent weeks – particularly as schools [...]
We must find a new way of funding Transport for London September 25, 2020 London without the tube would be like the Shard without any lifts. And, just like the lifts in the Shard, it costs pretty much the same amount of money to run the tube every day, regardless of how many people use it. But unlike the lifts in the Shard (and unlike any comparable metro system [...]
London is a great city – and much of it could be on your doorstep September 25, 2020 We live in cities because we want to be in the heart of the action. We are often willing to overlook the daily downfalls — expensive rent and overpriced pints to name a few — simply because there is no better place in the world to work, socialise and embrace opportunities than in this city. [...]