Boohoo set to swoop for bankrupt Oasis and Warehouse June 16, 2020 Online fashion giant Boohoo is set to announce the purchase of high street brands Oasis and Warehouse, which went bankrupt at the end of April. Sky News reported that the deal could be announced tomorrow when Boohoo releases its first quarter results. When the two brands collapsed into administration on 30 April, with 1,803 redundancies, [...]
China-India border dispute: 20 Indian soldiers dead June 16, 2020 Twenty Indian soldiers have lost their lives in a “violent physical confrontation” with the Chinese army over a disputed border in the western Himalayas. For weeks, the two superpowers have faced off in the border area, but yesterday’s clash marked the first major violence between the neighbours since 1967. The world’s two most populous countries [...]
UK Finance boss quits over Amanda Staveley remarks June 16, 2020 UK Finance chief Stephen Jones has resigned just days after apologising to staff for sexist remarks made in 2008 about financier Amanda Staveley. Sky News first reported that Jones had offered his resignation, which UK Finance confirmed had been accepted. Jones said: “I have apologised to Ms Staveley and to my colleagues for the comments [...]
National Grid secures £580m loan for Viking Link power cable June 16, 2020 The National Grid has today secured a $734m (£580m) loan to help build a new €2bn power link between the UK and Denmark. The Viking Link, which is expected to be completed in 2023, will be able to provide renewable power to 1.4m households. The 1400 megawatt cable is being developed in a joint venture [...]
Government gives NHS immediate authorisation for coronavirus drug June 16, 2020 The government has given the NHS immediate authorisation to use the first drug shown to reduce the coronavirus death rate on patients. Earlier today the results of a clinical trial carried out by Oxford University showed that dexamethasone, a common steroid, been proven to reduce the risk of death significantly in patients with severe forms [...]
David Cameron hits out at Boris Johnson’s DFID-Foreign Office merger plan June 16, 2020 Former Prime Minister David Cameron has hit out against Boris Johnson’s plans to merge the Department for International Development with the Foreign Office, calling the decision a “mistake”. Writing on Twitter, Cameron said: “The Prime Minister is right to maintain the commitment to 0.7 (the percentage of national income spent on global aid) – it [...]
Coronavirus deaths rise 233 to reach 41,969 June 16, 2020 The UK’s coronavirus death toll has risen by 233 to reach 41,969, the Department of Health announced this afternoon. A further 1,279 people have tested positive for the virus, taking the total number of confirmed cases in the UK to 298,136. The figure quoted by the Department of Health is however lower than that reported [...]
Businesses call on chancellor to support UK hydrogen strategy June 16, 2020 More than 40 companies have written to Rishi Sunak calling on the chancellor to lay the foundations for a UK-wide hydrogen strategy to power the country’s post-coronavirus recovery. The companies, which include industrial giants such as Anglo American, Bosch, Equinor, Siemens and EDF, said they were ready to invest £1.5bn in hydrogen fuel projects around [...]
UK scientists make ‘major breakthrough’ as common steroid found to cut coronavirus death rate June 16, 2020 A common steroid has been labelled a “major breakthrough” in the fight against coronavirus by researchers after trials showed it cut the risk of death for those patients on ventilators by a third. The drug, which is called dexamethasone, is widely available, and scientists said it would be “instantly affordable” worldwide. The results of the [...]
Coronavirus: Imperial College vaccine set to begin human trials June 15, 2020 Clinical researchers will this week begin human trials of Imperial College London’s coronavirus vaccine, the first time the treatment has been tested on a human subject. The trial will test whether the vaccine can produce an effective immune response against the new disease. The government has already put £41m towards the treatment, while an additional [...]
