Government set to announce new hydrogen bus town trial June 24, 2020 The government is set to announce plans for the UK’s first hydrogen bus only town, transport secretary Grant Shapps revealed today. In February ministers unveiled a £50m fund for local authorities to apply to become the country’s first all-electric bus town as part of £170m in new funding for buses. Speaking to the transport select [...]
Sadiq Khan’s TfL fare freeze not ‘responsible’, says Grant Shapps June 24, 2020 Sadiq Khan’s decision to implement a four-year fare freeze on Transport for London services was not “responsible”, transport secretary Grant Shapps said today. Shapps made the comments when answering questions from the transport select committee about the decision to temporarily suspend free travel for under 18s as part of the government’s £1.6bn bailout of TfL. [...]
Coronavirus gives chance to move to ‘different type of railway’, Grant Shapps says June 24, 2020 Transport secretary Grant Shapps has confirmed that the government will use its emergency control of the UK’s railways to change the way the current franchise system operates. Speaking to the transport select committee this morning, Shapps said: “We were already going to be moving to a different type of railway and different types of contracts [...]
Sadiq Khan moots City Hall move to save £55m June 24, 2020 London Mayor Sadiq Khan has proposed moving the headquarters of the Greater London Assembly from City Hall in a bid to save £55m in the aftermath of the coronavirus crisis. Khan today announced a consultation on plans to move from the Norman Foster-designed building near Tower Bridge to the Crystal Building in the Royal Docks. [...]
Swimming pools and gyms could reopen later in July June 24, 2020 It might be possible for swimming pools and gyms to open later in July if the UK continues to meet certain health tests, business secretary Alok Sharma said this morning. Speaking to Sky News, Sharma said: “I hope that we can allow leisure facilities to open at some point later on in July but only [...]
Tata Steel nears emergency funding deal for Port Talbot plant June 24, 2020 Britain’s largest steelmaker is on the brink of securing an emergency government loan worth hundreds of millions of pounds under the government’s “Project Birch” scheme. The FT reported that Tata Steel was close to agreeing a deal to fund its UK operations, including its steelworks at Port Talbot in south Wales, potentially saving 8,000 jobs. [...]
National Express chief quits to lead housebuilder Persimmon June 24, 2020 Housebuilder Persimmon has this morning announced that Dean Finch will succeed David Jenkinson as the group’s chief executive at the end of this year. Finch joins the FTSE 100 company from transport firm National Express, where he has spent a decade as chief executive. Prior to that, he held a number of senior roles at [...]
Shell announces major restructuring to accelerate net zero push June 23, 2020 Oil supermajor Shell will undergo a large-scale restructuring by the end of the year as the firm seeks to shift its focus to zero-carbon activities. Reuters reported that chief executive Ben van Beurden revealed the plan in a video interview released on Shell’s internal website. In the video, van Beurden said that the restructuring would [...]
Amazon unveils $2bn net zero venture capital fund June 23, 2020 Tech giant Amazon today announced a $2bn (£1.6bn) venture capital fund to help the firm reach its commitment to be carbon neutral by 2040. The Climate Pledge Fund, as the initiative is known, will be used to back sustainable services and technologies that will allow Amazon and other countries to meet their climate targets. Last [...]
Ford UK chairman calls for government zero emissions strategy June 23, 2020 The chairman of Ford in the UK has today called on the government to join with the automotive industry in developing a long-term strategy to hit its target of only selling zero emissions vehicles by 2035. Speaking at today’s virtual Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) summit, Graham Hoare said: “A successful future for [...]
