Coronavirus: Germany to close major land borders March 15, 2020 Germany is said to be preparing to close its borders with Austria, France and Switzerland in a bid to contain the spread of coronavirus. Chancellor Angela Merkel and her interior ministers have agreed the closures with the leaders of the three countries, Germany’s Bild newspaper reported. The borders will be shut down from 8am local [...]
Coronavirus: UK death toll jumps as cases top 1,300 March 15, 2020 The UK death toll from coronavirus has risen to 35, Public Health England has said, up from 21 yesterday. The public health body also said the number of confirmed cases rose 20 per cent to 1,372 as of 9am this morning. Coronavirus, which emerged in China in December, has now infected at least 156,000 people [...]
Heathrow Airport expansion in a ‘deep freeze’ after court decision and coronavirus March 15, 2020 Heathrow Airport’s planned expansion is now in a “deep freeze”, with the aviation industry expecting the project to fall off the agenda during the coronavirus pandemic. Airlines have been told an impending coronavirus recession will likely delay the third runway a further two years to 2030 at the earliest and could require job cuts, according [...]
Virgin Atlantic calls on government for £7.5bn airline bailout package March 15, 2020 Virgin Atlantic’s chiefs are preparing to send a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson calling for the government to provide a £7.5bn package to support airlines, which have been decimated by the coronavirus outbreak. Sky News reported that Virgin Group chairman Peter Norris will write to Johnson on Monday warning him of the potentially devastating [...]
UK backs facial recognition project that helps Beijing catch masked protesters March 15, 2020 The government has partnered with Beijing to back a project aimed at developing facial recognition technology that can identify people wearing masks. The Home Office and the Metropolitan Police are both involved in a programme that carries out research jointly funded by the Chinese state — despite the country’s reported use of surveillance technology to [...]
Economists warn of global recession as coronavirus spreads March 15, 2020 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says a global recession comes when annual international growth slips below 2.5 per cent. More charitable economists say it has to fall below two per cent. Either way, economists around have warned in recent days, the coronavirus outbreak means the world is heading for one. Covid-19 last week spread rapidly [...]
Coronavirus: Foreign Office advises against travel to the US March 15, 2020 The Foreign Office has advised against “all but essential travel” to the US, after Donald Trump extended the country’s travel ban to include the UK and Ireland. Travel from the UK to the US will be banned from 4am on Tuesday amidst increasing numbers of confirmed coronavirus cases. Responding to the ban, the Foreign and [...]
Saudi Aramco cuts spending as profit drops 21 per cent following record float March 15, 2020 Saudi Aramco today said it will cut capital spending this year as the oil giant braces for a slump in oil prices caused by the coronavirus outbreak and a price war with Russia. The state-run company broke the record for the largest ever initial public offering (IPO) in December after it raised $25.6bn (£21bn), securing [...]
Coronavirus: Supermarkets urge customers to stop stockpiling March 15, 2020 UK supermarkets have called on the UK public to stop stockpiling in response to coronavirus as fears mount that some people could be left without essential products. In an open letter to customers, the country’s biggest food retailers, including Sainsbury’s, Tesco Asda and Morrisons, called on consumers to “be considerate in the way they shop” [...]
Ofcom draws up new rules to protect reality TV stars March 15, 2020 Ofcom has laid out a revised set of rules aimed at protecting participants in TV and radio programmes. The regulator’s intervention comes after the deaths of two former Love Island contestants and host Caroline Flack, as well as a former guest on the now-cancelled Jeremy Kyle Show. Ofcom said it had also seen a “steady [...]
