Tiers are here to stay until vaccine rollout, says minister November 27, 2020 England’s three-tier system is designed to stay in place until a vaccine becomes available to the general population, housing minister Robert Jenrick said this morning. “The point of the tiered approach is, can we get tiers that are sufficiently robust to steer the country through the last few months before we manage to get the [...]
Mirror publisher reports 14 per cent slump in revenue as print sales plummet November 27, 2020 Daily Mirror publisher Reach has reported a 14 per cent in revenue for the five months to November, after lockdowns across the UK hammered print sales. Reach, which owns 240 regional news titles, booked a 19.6 per cent decline in print revenue for the period. The group is now consulting on proposals to permanently close [...]
Nicola Sturgeon calls for Scottish independence referendum next year November 27, 2020 Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has called for a second Scottish independence referendum “in the earlier part” of her next term. She told BBC Scotland: “I’ve not put a date on it yet. I have not ruled it out nor I have ruled it in. I think that is right not least because of the [...]
Coronavirus cases ‘levelling off’ across England ahead of three-tier system November 26, 2020 Coronavirus cases have begun to level off across most of England, with London reporting a decrease in new infections over the past week, according to the latest official data. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed cases in the west Midlands, east of England, London and the south are now decreasing. The highest [...]
NHS Test and Trace missed almost 140,000 Covid contacts last week November 26, 2020 England’s beleaguered Test and Trace system failed to reach 40 per cent of people who came into contact with coronavirus last week, meaning almost 140,000 people required to self-isolate did not do so. Figures released today by the Department for Health and Social Care showed that NHS Test and Trace only managed to tell 60.3 [...]
London Tier 2: City leaders breathe ‘sigh of relief’ but push for return to the office November 26, 2020 City leaders have welcomed the announcement that London will be placed into Tier 2 when lockdown lifts, but warned that the capital will only fully recover when the government outlines a clear policy on returning to work. Health secretary Matt Hancock today said London will join regions such as Liverpool and Suffolk on “high” alert [...]
London to enter Tier 2 next Wednesday November 26, 2020 London will return to Tier 2 when England’s national lockdown lifts next Wednesday, the government has announced. Liverpool will join the capital on “high alert” on 2 December, while Manchester, Lancashire, Blackpool, Kent and Birmingham will enter Tier 3. Just three regions — the Isle of Wight, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly — will [...]
Covid crisis could slash wages by ‘£1,200 a year’ by 2025 November 26, 2020 The coronavirus pandemic will prolong Britain’s 15-year squeeze on household incomes and cut pay by £1,200 a year by 2025, according to a major think tank. In a stark report released today, the Resolution Foundation warned that despite politicians proclaiming an end to austerity, “its legacy will continue for many public services” throughout the course [...]
Rishi Sunak admits current UK borrowing is “not sustainable” November 26, 2020 Rishi Sunak has conceded that the current projections for UK borrowing are “obviously not sustainable”, after the chancellor yesterday unveiled huge economic interventions as part of his winter Spending Review. Sunak yesterday lifted total government spending on the Covid response to £280bn, as he vouched his commitment to “jobs, businesses and public services”. The chancellor [...]
Aviva hands out dividends as inflows rocket to £1.2bn during pandemic November 26, 2020 Aviva has maintained its interim dividend during the pandemic, after the company saw strong new business wins in the UK and North America that boosted third-party net fund inflows to £1.2bn. The figure marks a huge jump from the £500m of inflows in the same period during 2019, despite tough market conditions during the coronavirus [...]