Rail operators awarded new contracts for Great Western and Southeastern franchises March 30, 2020 First Group and Go Ahead Group have been awarded new contracts to run the Great Western and Southeastern rail franchises respectively with just a day to go before the existing deals run out. The new contracts will run concurrently with the emergency measures the government put in place last week to protect the rail industry [...]
Airlines ask grounded staff to answer NHS volunteer call March 30, 2020 Virgin Atlantic and Easyjet have written to grounded staff members asking them to help in the NHS’ new Nightingale hospitals in a bid to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. Easyjet has already contacted all 9,000 of its employees, including 4,000 or so cabin crew staff trained in CPR, whilst Virgin will begin writing to 4,000 of [...]
Coronavirus: Government urged to take ‘every possible step’ to bring UK tourists home March 29, 2020 Foreign affairs select committee chair Tom Tugendhat has written to foreign secretary Dominic Raab seeking assurances that the government has taken “every possible step” to return UK citizens stranded abroad to the UK. Although the exact number is unclear, there are currently hundreds of thousands of British tourists stuck overseas due to the coronavirus outbreak. [...]
Coronavirus: EDF to furlough Hinkley Point workers after reducing site numbers March 29, 2020 Hundreds of workers at EDF’s Hinkley Point C nuclear plant are being furloughed after the firm decided to cut the number of workers on site by more than half. In an attempt to cut costs, the Telegraph reported that many of the site’s workers are being moved onto the government’s employee retention scheme, which guarantees [...]
Government in talks over state takeover of Flybe – report March 29, 2020 Collapsed airline Flybe’s administrator EY has denied reports that it is in negotiations with the government to buy the regional carrier out of bankruptcy in order to protect the UK’s battered aviation sector. According to the Telegraph, the Big Four auditor has opened talks with government officials about nationalising the airline in order to serve [...]
MPs urge chancellor Rishi Sunak to act ‘urgently’ to save UK’s airlines March 29, 2020 A group of 38 MPs has written to chancellor Rishi Sunak asking him to “urgently review” the support that the UK’s airlines and airports have asked for in a bid to survive the coronavirus pandemic. Since the outbreak began, the global aviation industry has been decimated, with travel restrictions now covering 98 per cent of [...]
McLaren joins industrial push to manufacture 10,000 ventilators March 29, 2020 Supercar maker McLaren is one of a number of firms who have joined forces in a bid to massively increase the production of ventilators to help in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. Ventilator Challenge UK, as the consortium is known, comprises some of the UK’s largest industrial groups, bringing together companies such as BAE [...]
Qatar Airways says it will need state aid as cash begins to run out March 29, 2020 Qatar Airways has become the latest airline to warn that it will need state aid in order to continue flying, the carrier’s chief executive has told Reuters. The Gulf state’s flag carrier is one of few airlines to continue operating a relatively normal schedule of flights during the coronavirus crisis. In recent weeks it has [...]
Coronavirus: Car industry warns UK could produce 200,000 fewer cars this year March 27, 2020 The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has warned that the coronavirus outbreak could see the UK produce 200,000 fewer cars in 2020, a fall of 18 per cent on last year’s total output. All of the UK’s car manufacturing factories are now on shutdown as the country complies by stringent restrictions designed to [...]
Mitsubishi considers Renault investment to prop up Nissan alliance March 26, 2020 Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi is considering investing in Renault in one of a number of schemes being discussed to prop up the French carmaker’s alliance with Nissan. French media reported today that Mitsubishi was considering taking a 10 per cent stake in Renault, with other options including restructuring and cost savings plans. Sources told Les Echos [...]
