France could block vaccine shipments over shortages, health minister says March 5, 2021 France has suggested the country could block exports of Covid-19 vaccines, the French health minister said this morning, echoing Italy’s move which stopped 250,000 vaccines from reaching Australia yesterday. Health minister Olivier Veran said France “could” follow Italy’s steps when ask by French broadcaster BFM TV. The minister added that France received 800,000 doses of [...]
British Gas engineers ignite fresh wave of protests after rejecting revised contract March 5, 2021 British Gas engineers have relaunched strike action today after rejecting a revised offer that aimed to resolve the continuing fire-and-rehire dispute. The GMB union said its members had voted by almost four to one against the offer which failed to take fire-and-rehire tactics off the table. After two rounds of talks, workers have now walked [...]
BA to offer £33 Covid tests to passengers ahead of summer travel March 4, 2021 British Airways has formed a partnership with a Covid-19 testing supplier to provide tests to passengers ahead of their flight, the airline said today. In preparation for the expected summer travel boom, passengers can buy a testing kit for £33, which they can use abroad with the help of an advisor on video call. The [...]
M&S Bank to shut 29 branches as it moves services online March 4, 2021 M&S Bank will close 29 in-store branches from this summer after shifting services to online, as the pandemic has made the consumer preference of online banking more apparent. The bank will continue to offer general insurance, savings and loans online and by phone, but will now offer a new card-less payment option. M&S Bank CEO [...]
L’Oreal to only use renewable ingredients by 2030 March 4, 2021 Cosmetics giant L’Oreal will transition all of its ingredients to renewable plant sources and abundant minerals by 2030, the company said today, as the demand for organic and environmentally conscious cosmetics grows. L’Oreal said that over the next decade, 95 per cent of ingredients across all its brands and ranges will come from plants that [...]
Rathbones ends ‘challenging’ year with a dividend hike March 4, 2021 Investment management giant Rathbones finished a ‘challenging’ 2020 with £54.7bn funds under management, the firm said this morning, after enjoying growth of 8.5 per cent last year. The firm’s underlying profit before tax increased by 4.3 per cent to £92.5m, meanwhile its funds business soared 32.4 per cent to £9.8bn. Chief executive Paul Stockton said: [...]
Deloitte to pay Malaysia $80m for role in 1MDB corruption scandal March 3, 2021 Audit giant Deloitte is set to pay $80m to the Malaysian government to settle claims of corruption tied to the auditing of scandal-linked state accounts, the finance ministry has said today. Deloitte’s fee will conclude its role in the corruption saga that involved former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak who allegedly used the state fund [...]
City Moves: Who is switching jobs in the Square Mile this week? March 3, 2021 Snakes and Ladders provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every Wednesday afternoon. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. This week we have seen a flurry of new hires across the capital. From a Ritz chairman joining an intelligence firm, to a former Knight Frank executive taking on a leading residential role [...]
Rio Tinto chairman to step down over destruction of sacred site March 3, 2021 The chairman of Rio Tinto will step down as the mining giant has come under fire for destroying a sacred cave system in Australia. The global outcry over the destruction of the 46,000-year old Aboriginal site, known as Jukkan Gorge, has led the US government to rethink its plan for Rio Tinto and BHP to [...]
Alibaba billionaire Jack Ma dethroned as China’s richest man March 2, 2021 Alibaba founder Jack Ma has been dethroned as China’s richest man after disappearing from the public eye late last year, according to multiple media reports in China. The billionaire and Ant Group founder lost the title after his empire was placed under heavy scrutiny by Chinese authorities following challenges to fintech regulators he made in [...]
