German business morale picks up as recovery continues July 27, 2020 German companies became more optimistic in July after morale rose at a record rate in June as the economy continued to recover from coronavirus and as spirits were lifted by the EU’s €750bn (£680bn) recovery fund. The business climate index from respected think tank Ifo rose to 90.5 this month from 86.3 in June. It [...]
Sainsbury’s trials queuing app for local lockdowns July 27, 2020 Sainsbury’s has launched a virtual queuing app to prepare for potential local lockdowns, with trials beginning at five UK stores today. Customers will be able to use the Ufirst app to queue at stores in Pimlico and Uxbridge in London from today. The supermarket will also test the app at stores in Newham Royal Wharf, [...]
Sadiq Khan calls on government to extend furlough scheme July 27, 2020 Sadiq Khan has once again called on the government to extend its furlough scheme for struggling sectors ahead of changes this weekend which could lead to a surge in unemployment. From Saturday employers will have to pay national insurance and pension contributions for furloughed employees. However, for many sectors such as hospitality and leisure, the [...]
City Harvest redistributes 1.5m meals to hungry Londoners July 27, 2020 Though Covid-19 may have been labelled by some as The Great Equaliser it has only enhanced London’s social inequalities, according to a charity dedicated to redistributing excess meals to the hungry. Food poverty has increased in the wake of rising unemployment and school shutdowns, with more than 3m Brits going hungry due to the coronavirus [...]
CBILS: Three ways SMEs can avoid a coronavirus loan rejection July 27, 2020 It has been nearly four months since the Treasury introduced the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) in a bid to help firms through the pandemic. The scheme did not arrive without criticisms, coming under fire for what its critics called its unclear eligibility criteria and demanding personal guarantees. While some issues have since been [...]
Rishi Sunak mulls online sales tax for e-commerce retailers July 27, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak is mulling a new tax on online retail sales to ease pressure on the struggling UK high street. In a call for evidence published last week the Treasury sought industry views on a potential online sales tax for e-commerce retailers to help physical stores compete. The tax, which would exist alongside business [...]
Why the UK should rethink its restrictive rules on dual-class shares July 27, 2020 The ability to have a dual-class voting structure can be an important consideration for high-growth, innovative companies (especially those in the technology sector) when deciding on an IPO venue. These structures are not possible for a premium listing in London, whereas they are available on other major stock exchanges, meaning that the UK risks missing [...]
Woodford investors have lost £1bn since fund was frozen July 27, 2020 Investors in Woodford Equity Income fund have seen the total value of their assets slide more than a quarter – around £1bn – over the past year. There is a £122m shortfall in the fund’s total value but administrator Link said this reflected the asset and currency movements during the period. A Sunday Times investigation [...]
UK economy could take four years to recover, says EY July 27, 2020 The UK economy will take four years to return to its 2019 size as consumer caution and high levels of unemployment weigh on growth, economic forecaster EY Item Club has predicted. EY Item Club said it expects the UK economy to shrink by an enormous 11.5 per cent this year and then grow by just [...]
