New £375m investment scheme for high-growth firms opens for application July 20, 2021 The government has today opened a new £375m pot of funding to invest in fast-growing firms across the sectors such as life sciences and clean tech. To be eligible for the so-called “Future Fund: Breakthrough” scheme, businesses looking to raise at least £30m must have 70 per cent of an investment round already committed by [...]
Global markets plummet as Delta variant fears intensify July 19, 2021 Intensifying fears over the rapid spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant of Covid triggered a sharp sell-off in global markets on Monday. All US benchmarks nursed heavy losses during today’s session. The blue-chip S&P 500 and Dow Jones plummeted 1.9 per cent and 2.4 per cent respectively, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1.4 per [...]
Northern Rail ticket machines hit by ransomware attack July 19, 2021 Northern Rail’s new self-service ticket machines have been the subject of a ransomware attack, the rail operator confirmed this evening. The machines were taken offline last week and the government-operated franchise has launched an investigation into the attack. It said that no customer or payment data had been accessed by the attack, which was limited [...]
Prince Harry to release memoir in late 2022 July 19, 2021 Prince Harry will publish a memoir late in 2022, publisher Penguin Random House announced in a statement this evening. The book will be the “definitive account of the experiences, adventures, losses, and life lessons that have helped shape him,” the firm said. The former Duke of Sussex is currently living in California with his wife, [...]
Vaccine passport compulsory for nightclubs and large events from September July 19, 2021 Vaccine passports are set to be made mandatory for nightclubs and mass events from September amidst low vaccine take-up among younger age groups. Boris Johnson said once all adults have been given the chance to get both jabs by September they will be forced to show proof they are fully vaccinated to enter mass events. [...]
Women on City board seats up by more than a third since 2016 July 19, 2021 Women hold 39 per cent more positions on boardrooms than they did five years ago, according to a report by New Financial. The think tank published its evaluation of the impact of a government effort to increase gender diversity in the City’s financial services firms. The proportion of women sitting on boards across the UK [...]
Katie Hopkins deported from Australia over controversial quarantine behaviour July 19, 2021 British right-wing commentator Katie Hopkins will be deported from Australia for bragging about her plans to disobey hotel quarantine measures. On Friday, she joked about opening the door “naked with no face mask” to workers delivering her meals in an Instagram Live recorded from her Sydney hotel room. The post has since been deleted. Ms [...]
Stellantis to axe shift at Vauxhall plant due to staff shortages July 19, 2021 Stellantis has become the latest carmaker to have its operations disrupted by the number of workers that are being forced to isolate due to Covid-19. The firm today confirmed that it would halt one of the three daily shifts at its Vauxhall van factory in Luton. In a statement, the car giant said: “The safety [...]
British and Irish Lions Tour: Warren Gatland’s three big selection headaches ahead of first Test July 19, 2021 After months of concerns over whether the series would go ahead, the British and Irish Lions will finally face South Africa in the first Test in Cape Town on Saturday. Lions coach Warren Gatland has given all of his tourists a chance to impress and must now pick 23 men to face the world champions. [...]
Hong Kong’s parliament expected to pass controversial ‘anti-doxxing’ law July 19, 2021 A new law proposed by Hong Kong’s government would give the city’s privacy watchdog the power to request malicious sharing of individuals’ information be removed from websites, even if the content is hosted outside Hong Kong. Hong Kong authorities revealed details of the bill on Friday, effectively criminalising doxxing activities – disclosing personal information without [...]
