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 [...]
Preparing the City for a very different Christmas — and beyond November 30, 2020 Many businesses across London will be breathing a collective sigh of relief: subject to parliamentary approval, the decision to put the capital under Tier 2 restrictions means that they will be able to trade in the run-up to Christmas. Nonetheless, the festive period this year will be a very different occasion for all of us [...]
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 [...]
Without an eye on social value, Europe risks losing the global fintech race November 30, 2020 Europe has been left behind in Big Tech. The scene is overwhelmingly dominated by US companies, with China potentially coming up from the rear. The question is whether Europe has the potential to avoid the same fate in digital finance — a sector that is likely to play a big role in future economic development. [...]
The rush for Tech Nation visas is misguided — why limit recruitment by geography? November 30, 2020 Earlier this month, it was reported that applications for the Tech Nation visa into the UK spiked almost 50 per cent this year. Pandemic or no pandemic, Britain’s tech sector continues to attract talent from around the world. In the last two years alone, almost 2,000 people have applied for the visa, which grants tech [...]
Vaccine news leads to surge in London business confidence: Lloyds November 30, 2020 London business confidence increased following the news a Covid-19 vaccine may soon be a reality. According to the Lloyds Bank’s Business Barometer for 2020, overall confidence of firms in London rose five points in November to -19 per cent.Firms’ confidence with their own business prospects was -18 per cent, compared to -16 per cent in [...]
Antony Blinken and the tragedy of America’s foreign policy establishment November 30, 2020 I was recently speaking to an DC-insider friend of mine about the appointment of Antony Blinken as America’s next secretary of state. My old colleague — a veteran of my seminal struggles with the neo-conservatives around the time of the Iraq War, a passionate Republican Never-Trumper and card-carrying member of the Washington establishment — summed [...]
Today: UK to outline roadmap to removing Huawei equipment from its 5G networks November 30, 2020 The UK will today set out its plan to remove all “high risk” Huawei equipment from its 5G networks by 2027. The government announced earlier this year that it will be illegal to purchase Huawei equipment to use in UK 5G networks from the end of this year. All existing equipment procured from the Chinese [...]
UK strikes deal with France to beef up border protection November 29, 2020 The number of officers patrolling French beaches near Calais will double in a bid to stop increasing numbers of migrant boats crossing the channel in attempts to reach the UK border. The UK and French governments struck a deal yesterday to enforce the increased measures, with the Home Office saying it “will bolster the patrolling [...]
