Austerity architect George Osborne: UK faces ‘hard choices’ after borrowing surge May 22, 2020 Former chancellor George Osborne has said the government will in the next “two or three years” need to lay out a plan to “bring balance” to the budget, after data showed that borrowing soared in April. Osborne sharply divided opinion in the UK as the primary architect of post-2008 austerity, which slashed spending in an [...]
Wetherspoon to rely on app more than ever under plan to reopen all 875 pubs May 22, 2020 JD Wetherspoon has outlined plans to invest £11m in reopening its pubs, including installing screens and providing hand sanitiser and protective clothing for staff. The pub chain said it will reopen all of its 875 pubs in the UK and Ireland when it gets the go-ahead from governments, and all pubs will operate their usual [...]
Government borrowing hits record £62bn in April over coronavirus measures May 22, 2020 UK government borrowing rose by a record £62.1bn in April alone as the government paid people’s wages and loaned businesses cash to survive the coronavirus lockdown, statistics showed today. Coronavirus measures like the job retention scheme to pay people’s wages and coronavirus loans for businesses pushed UK borrowing to the all-time high last month. The [...]
Nissan weighing 20,000 job cuts as car sales struggle May 22, 2020 Japanese car company Nissan is reportedly considering cutting 20,000 jobs with a focus on Europe and developing countries as car sales plunge following coronavirus crisis. The potential cuts come as Nissan prepares to announce its updated mid-term strategy next week. Profits at Nissan have been struggling for the last three years and the coronavirus has [...]
Bank of England deputy warns of risks to BoE’s upbeat forecast May 22, 2020 Bank of England deputy governor Dave Ramsden has warned that there could be some “scarring” to the economy after coronavirus as he stressed that the path to recovery is hugely uncertain. Ramsden also said that the Bank still has “quite a lot of headroom” to buy more bonds and echoed governor Andrew Bailey in saying [...]
Mortgage payment holidays extended until October May 22, 2020 The financial watchdog has today extended payment holidays to support those struggling to pay their mortgage due to coronavirus. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said banks can extend the mortgage holidays for a further three months up to the end of October. It comes after chancellor Rishi Sunak extended the furlough scheme to October to [...]
Burberry cuts dividend as sales dive during coronavirus pandemic May 22, 2020 British fashion brand Burberry said this morning that it will not pay a full-year dividend as it revealed that fourth quarter sales plunged due to coronavirus lockdowns around the world. The luxury retailer said sales in the fourth quarter were down 27 per cent and 60 per cent of its stores were closed at the [...]
UK set to introduce £1,000 fines for travel quarantine breaches May 22, 2020 The UK is today set to introduce a 14-day quarantine for overseas travellers backed up with £1,000 fines to help stop the spread of coronavirus. The move comes despite opposition from airlines who have argued it will devastate their already struggling industry. The government is expected to announce that all international arrivals will be required [...]
Coronavirus: Is this the end for the North Sea oil industry? May 22, 2020 For the last couple of months, the headlines coming out of the North Sea oil fields have made for pretty grim reading. In the past decade or so, the industry, which employs around 150,000 people in the UK, has already been battered by two price implosions, in 2008 and 2013. However, the hit it has [...]
