Covid infections fall 30 per cent nationally in lockdown November 30, 2020 Coronavirus infections fell 30 per cent nationally between 13 and 24 November, with 96 people per 10,000 infected. The recent national lockdown successfully lowered infection rates across the country. More than 105,000 volunteers were tested in England during the second half of November as part of a study by Imperial College and Ipsos Mori to [...]
Business as usual: Mid-tier firms predict rapid recovery after vaccine rollout November 30, 2020 The vast majority (94%) of mid-sized businesses in the UK believe they will fully recover from Covid-19 within a year if a vaccine is made available. More than two-thirds of mid-tier businesses – those with revenue of between £10m and £300m – think they will be fully recovered in just six months, according to new [...]
Prue Leith among line-up of Radio 4’s Christmas guest editors November 30, 2020 Five guest editors, including Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith, will take over BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme during the festive period. Other guests this year include Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid’s Tale, Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust, Britain’s first black female bishop Rose Hudson-Wilkin, and Evan Spiegel, co-founder and [...]
Soho House founder: ‘If we were desperate for cash we’d let in our 50,000 waiting list’ November 29, 2020 Nick Jones, founder of Soho House, has said if the business needed more money post-pandemic, it would let in its “huge” waiting list of 50,000 people. Speaking in an interview with the Telegraph, Jones was confident Soho House customers would return to the private members club when they could, and if the business needed extra [...]
HSBC mulls exit from US retail banking November 29, 2020 HSBC is considering a total exit from retail banking in the US after narrowing the options for how to improve performance at its struggling North America business. Senior management at HSBC aim to present the plan to the bank’s board in the coming weeks, as HSBC seeks to move resources from the US and toward [...]
Philip Green’s Arcadia collapse to push Debenhams to the brink November 29, 2020 The imminent collapse of retail group Arcadia will push Debenhams to the brink of liquidation, as potential buyer JD Sports considers backing out of the deal. JD’s board was supposed to decide whether to go through with the Debenhams acquisition by the end of last week, but has had second thoughts after learning that Arcadia [...]
Troubled Moss Bros launches CVA proposal to tackle ‘perilous’ situation November 27, 2020 Struggling retailer Moss Bros has launched a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) proposal to give it the best chance of emerging for the challenges brought on by the coronavirus. A CVA allows companies to settle debts by paying creditors over a fixed period, and it could see the closure of some of Moss Bros’ 125 UK [...]
Don’t make us pay national insurance for furloughed staff, say struggling businesses November 27, 2020 Business groups representing hospitality, retail and leisure businesses have united to urge the government to provide sector specific support for fear of going bust due to higher tier restrictions. The groups, which have launched a ‘Bounce Back Better’ campaign to urge the government to provide them support, have asked for National Insurance payments to be [...]
Philip Green’s Arcadia ‘faces collapse’ in the coming days November 27, 2020 Sir Philip Green’s retail empire Arcadia, owner of Topshop, could appoint administrators early next week. Sky News reported the move could put 13,000 jobs at risk. The appointment of administrators could happen as early as Monday, although one source close to the story told Sky News the plan had not been finalised and could be [...]
First digital-only Black Friday set for bumper year as Covid-19 moves shoppers online November 27, 2020 England’s first ever digital-only Black Friday will not deter customers, with figures suggesting sales could be as much as 43 per cent higher than in 2019, with customers now familiar with the convenience of shopping online thanks to coronavirus. Figures from IMRG, the UK’s industry association for online retail, found this year’s Black Friday sales [...]
