UK inflation hits 2.5 per cent in June July 14, 2021 UK inflation jumped again in June, outpacing economists’ expectations to accelerate away from the Bank of England’s target, the Office of National Statistics (ONS) revealed this morning. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose to 2.5 per cent last month, its highest level since August 2018, up from 2.1 per cent in May. Analysts had forecast [...]
Holiday hotspots Majorca and Ibiza ‘set to go back on amber list’ July 14, 2021 Holiday hotspots Majorca, Menorca, and Ibiza are reportedly set to be put back on the UK’s travel “amber list” after a surge in Covid-19 cases. It has been just three weeks since the Balearic Islands were added to the quarantine-free “green list”, prompting a surge in holiday bookings. It is understood that ministers will update [...]
Face masks to remain compulsory on London Tube and buses July 14, 2021 Face masks will remain compulsory on London Tube and bus services despite the wider easing of lockdown measures under new plans unveiled by mayor Sadiq Khan. While the legal requirement to wear face masks will end on 19 July, the mayor said he was “not prepared to stand by and put Londoners, and our city’s [...]
‘The longest wait of my life’: Carlos Ghosn recounts Japan escape July 14, 2021 Former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn has given his first account of his stunning escape from Japan by hiding in a box for storing musical equipment. In an interview with the BBC, Ghosn, who was arrested in 2018 for financial misconduct and spent most of a year under house arrest before escaping, recounted his flight. “The [...]
Upper Crust owner SSP’s boss to step down at end of the year July 14, 2021 Upper Crust and Ritazza owner SSP today said that chief executive Simon Smith would leave the firm at the end of the year. The firm said that Smith was departing to join a private equity-backed firm. SSP has started the search for a successor for Smith, who joined the business in 2014 and became chief [...]
Government ‘greenprint’ promises 2040 ban on polluting lorries July 14, 2021 Sales of new petrol and diesel lorries will be banned by 2040, the government said today as it revealed its new “greenprint” for decarbonising the UK’s transport network. In combination with plans to end the sales of polluting cars by 2030, that means that all UK road transport should be zero carbon by the end [...]
Go-Ahead to make all buses and trains net zero by 2035 July 14, 2021 Go Ahead Group will run all 5000 of its buses and all of its trains on electric or hydrogen power by 2035, the firm announced this morning. Under the new plan, the FTSE 250 firm will cut emissions from its operations 75 per cent by 2035, and to net zero by 2045, five years ahead [...]
Exclusive: First Group ‘snubs passengers’ over complaints, Liberal Democrats say July 13, 2021 The Liberal Democrats have written to the government to complain over rail operator First Group’s handling of customer complaints. Sarah Olney MP, the party’s transport spokesman, said that the FTSE 250 firm’s “track record leaves a lot to be desired”. It comes after new data from the Office of Road and Rail (ORR) showed that [...]
Check your hub: All of the Northern Line station closures in 2022 July 13, 2021 The Kennington to Moorgate branch of the Northern Line will be shut for 17 weeks from next January so TfL can finish its redevelopment of Bank station. The £700m upgrade will see the station, one of London’s busiest, made 40 per cent larger. Four of the eight stations on the Bank branch of the service will be [...]
British Land hails ‘notable improvement’ as restrictions ease July 13, 2021 British Land said that it had collected 99 per cent of the rent due for its offices in June as the FTSE 100 firm welcomed a “notable improvement in activity” across its markets. The property developer also said that in the seven weeks since the first lifting of restrictions, it had seen footfall and sales [...]