Universal to release films online due to coronavirus spread March 17, 2020 Universal Pictures said it will make its films available online the same day they are released in the cinema, as the coronavirus keeps people worldwide in lockdown. The decision by Comcast-owned NBCUniversal, will take effect from 10 April with the release of Dreamworks Animations firm Trolls World Tour. The move ends the traditional approach of [...]
Nationwide suffers another glitch delaying all incoming payments March 17, 2020 Nationwide has delayed all incoming faster payments due to a fault in its system, just months after a glitch which held all payments in a queue. The building society has said that all incoming payments are delayed to due a fault, and are yet to confirm how long the delay will be. On Twitter, Nationwide [...]
UK budget watchdog: No time to be ‘squeamish’ about big coronavirus spending March 17, 2020 Britain’s economy faces a “wartime situation” and the government must not be “squeamish about one-off additions to public sector debt,” the head of Britain’s fiscal watchdog has said. Robert Chote, head of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), told MPs that a big fiscal package to support the UK’s businesses and households would be “money [...]
M&C Saatchi bolsters board as bidders line up after accountancy crisis March 17, 2020 M&C Saatchi today said it has appointed two independent non-executive directors amid reports that potential suitors are lining up bids for the troubled advertising agency. Lisa Gordon and Louise Jackson will join the board with immediate effect, the company said. Gordon currently holds non-executive director positions at foreign exchange specialist Apha FX and children’s TV [...]
Travelex owner Finablr planning for ‘potential insolvency’ March 17, 2020 Finablr, the owner of foreign exchange firm Travelex, has appointed advisers to prepare for a possible insolvency after the FTSE 250 company became mired in an accounting scandal. In an update to the stock exchange this morning, Finablr’s board said it had engaged an accounting firm “to undertake rapid contingency planning for a potential insolvency [...]
TfL to run reduced service during coronavirus outbreak March 17, 2020 Transport for London (TfL) will run a reduced service on its network during the coronavirus outbreak, mayor Sadiq Khan has said. Weekday public transport in the capital will be cut back to a “Saturday-type service” over the next few days, Khan told Sky News today. This means weekday Tube and bus services will run at [...]
Antofagasta to review expenditure for 2020 due to coronavirus March 17, 2020 Chilean mining giant Antofagasta is to review its expenditure for 2020, despite strong results for 2019. The London-listed company said this was due to the current international uncertainty due to coronavirus. Its shares rose as much as 13 per cent this morning following the announcement. “In view of the current global situation, the expenditure programme [...]
Centrica faces board shake-up as chief executive steps down March 17, 2020 British Gas owner Centrica is facing fresh chaos as its chairman resigned on medical grounds and its boss is leaving without a permanent successor. Centrica said its chairman, Charles Berry, who has been on medical leave since 12 February had tendered his resignation with immediate effect. Berry, who has chaired the group for just a [...]
MPs blast government ‘delay’ in virus fake news crackdown March 17, 2020 MPs have lambasted the government over its ‘delayed’ attempt to clamp down on disinformation relating to coronavirus. Earlier this month the government launched a new cyber unit aimed at preventing the spread of fake news about the Covid-19 outbreak on social media. The team, assembled from departments across Whitehall, will also hold discussions with tech [...]
Time to fight the power: How we should reform the Civil Service March 17, 2020 Coronavirus means that any prospect there was of an economic “Boris bounce” has gone. Instead we are looking at a dramatic downturn, both in Britain and across the wider world. Dealing with this pandemic is, rightly, the focus of the government’s attention at the moment. How effective the government is in dealing with the immediate [...]
