Empty planes: Omicron onslaught and travel restrictions hit Ryanair’s passenger number January 5, 2022 The number of passengers flown around Europe by budget airline Ryanair was down 7 per cent between November and December as travel restrictions were imposed amid the spread of the Omicron variant. The carrier said the number of passengers dropped to 9.5 million last month – the lowest since July and down from 10.2 million [...]
France discovers new Covid variant IHU with 46 mutations amid 271,000 coronavirus infections, biggest one-day jump on record January 5, 2022 French media are reporting that a new Covid variant with 46 mutations has been discovered in the country. The new strain, named IHU, has been discovered in the southwest of France and, according to multiple news outlets, intensive care and hospital admissions have been increasing in that region in recent days. So far, there are [...]
Tech Special: The jobs, sectors and countries most at risk of automation and robotics in 2022 January 5, 2022 Digital change and automation are driving enormous productivity gains in the world of work. However, the rapid changes mean many individuals, businesses and even entire nations will be hugely impacted by automation and tech, with some roles and jobs to be replaced by robots altogether. Many of the industries that are most at risk of [...]
Dropping earnings threshold and extending pensions auto-enrolment to younger and part-time workers could boost Brits’ savings by £2.7 trillion January 5, 2022 Abolishing the earnings treshold and extending pension auto-enrolment to working 18-year-olds and for part-time workers could add around £2.77 trillion to British pension savings, a think tank has said. The current auto-enrolment rules mean bosses must provide a workplace pension for staff aged 22 and over earning £10,000. But Onward, which describes itself as a [...]
Desperate travel sector demands all international Covid testing requirements are scrapped immediately January 5, 2022 All testing requirements for international travellers should be abolished immediately, the travel industry said this morning. Manchester Airports Group (MAG) and Airlines UK said research they commissioned into travel restrictions found domestic, not international, restrictions would be the only way to reduce the spread of Omicron. Pre-departure and day two PCR testing were reintroduced in [...]
Rejected: Promising prostate cancer drug that AstraZeneca claims can extend men’s lives as it is ‘not good use of NHS funds’ January 5, 2022 A promising, much-talked about drug that has the potential to extend the lives of some men with prostate cancer has been rejected for use on the NHS. In draft guidance, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said the evidence around olaparib (also called Lynparza) was uncertain and approving it would not be [...]
Four in five Brits see cost of living such as grocery and energy bills rise with many having to dip into savings January 5, 2022 More than four in five (82 per cent) people have seen their living costs such as grocery or energy bills and day-to-day essentials increase in the past few months, a survey has found. As a result, nearly a quarter (23 per cent) have dipped into savings, a fifth (19 per cent) said they have changed [...]
Brits have to pay for entry to the EU from this year: Cash and pre-authorisation needed for post-Brexit trips to Europe January 5, 2022 Brits will have to start paying €7 per person and pre-register their details in order to enter the European Union from this year. Reports had surfaced in various European media in recent weeks that access to all Schengen EU countries would come at a cost from 2022, and when approached by City A.M. this morning, [...]
Shock and astonishment after Boris Johnson plans to ‘ride out’ Omicron wave without new Covid restrictions January 5, 2022 Covid experts have responded with shock and astonishment that the government has said it plans to “ride out” the Omicron wave without any new lockdowns or additional restrictions. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will face scrutiny over his decision despite the NHS coming under significant strain from coronavirus. Johnson will argue to his Cabinet on Wednesday [...]
High volumes of transactions force Nationwide to ‘queue’ inbound payments after 10m transfers overnight January 4, 2022 Following news that customers of Nationwide were unable to carry out any payments, the third time this month, thousands of angry Brits took to social media to demand an explanation. This afternoon, the bank explained to City A.M. that it took the decision to “queue” inbound faster payments, where money is sent to and from [...]
