Virgin Money swings to profit on lower bad loan provisions May 5, 2021 Banking group Virgin Money today said it had improved half-year earnings after setting aside less cash to cover Covid-driven loan losses. The bank reported statutory pre-tax profit of £72m the six months ended 31 March, compared to a £7m loss a year earlier when it hade hefty provisions for potential bad loans. Virgin Money took [...]
Boohoo sales and profits surge after fast fashion retailer ups loungewear and activewear offering during pandemic May 5, 2021 Fast fashion retailer Boohoo reported a spike in sales and profit last year after refocusing its product offering on loungewear and activewear during the coronavirus pandemic. The e-commerce giant announced this morning that revenue surged 41 per cent in the year ended 28 February 2021, with sales jumping from £1.23bn to £1.75bn. Profit before tax [...]
High Court rules against hospitality bosses on indoor closures May 5, 2021 Hospitality bosses have lost their legal battle for a quicker reopening of indoor hospitality in England. Punch Taverns founder Hugh Osmond and Sacha Lord, the night-time economy adviser for Greater Manchester, brought a case against the government challenging the current rules. Lord and Osmond said there was no justification or scientific bias for pubs and [...]
Over 50s to be offered third Covid ‘booster’ jab to eradicate risk of virus before Christmas May 5, 2021 Over 50s could reportedly be offered a third Covid “booster” vaccination this autumn in a bid to eradicate the threat of the virus before Christmas. Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer for England, is currently supervising two trials, with one involving a jab modified to protect against new variants. The other trial involves a third [...]
Local elections: Labour has become a metropolitan party disconnected from its political roots May 5, 2021 For Keir Starmer the elections on May 6 have become more of a challenge than an opportunity. Having brought Labour back level with the Conservatives in the polls last autumn, they turned against him again from February this year. Despite the seemingly endless narrative of prime ministerial scandal and the public’s declared scepticism as to [...]
UK to scrap EU rule giving choice of clearer in derivatives May 5, 2021 Britain will scrap a rule inherited from the European Union that aimed to open the listed derivatives market to more competition, saying it was not appropriate to implement alone. The UK had championed the open access rule, which allows buyers and sellers of derivatives listed on exchanges across the EU to choose where they clear [...]
Ikea launches scheme to buy back used furniture after pandemic delays May 5, 2021 Ikea has launched a service allowing customers to sell furniture back to the store after the planned start date was delayed due to the pandemic. The Swedish homewares giant said the buy back scheme will be available to UK customers from today. Customers will be able to sell furniture they no longer need back to [...]
Amazon pays no European corporation tax despite record sales last year May 4, 2021 Amazon reportedly did not pay any corporation tax in Europe last year despite reporting record sales, raising fresh questions over the ecommerce giant’s tax planning. The US firm, which has its European headquarters in Luxembourg, recorded sales income of €44bn (£38bn) in the region last year but reportedly not have to pay any corporation tax [...]
Treasury minister trumpets City of London resilience post-Brexit May 4, 2021 City minister John Glen has trumpeted the City of London’s ability to adapt post-Brexit, saying there has only been a “modest” amount of jobs lost since the 2016 referendum. Glen said a great number of “journalists and academics” had been proved wrong about the expected mass movement of jobs from the City to other European [...]
‘I’m somebody who enjoys winning’: Sadiq Khan plots out a second mayoral term May 4, 2021 If the polls are to be believed Sadiq Khan will win Thursday’s mayor of London election by a record margin. Khan’s 20+ point lead has never slipped and his opponents have never laid a glove on him, despite having an extra year of campaigning thanks to Covid. The Labour incumbent has ran an energetic and [...]
