Coronavirus: London’s Excel centre set to open 500 hospital beds next week March 26, 2020 A temporary hospital at East London’s Excel centre will have 500 beds open next week for coronavirus patients. Health secretary Matt Hancock announced on Tuesday that the Excel centre would be turned into the NHS Nightingale Hospital, to deal with the increasing number of Covid-19 cases, and will have 4,000 beds. An official Downing Street [...]
Coronavirus: Self-employed bailout won’t be perfect, says minister March 26, 2020 A health minister has warned self-employed workers in line for economic relief today that their package might not be “perfect”. Health minister Edward Argar said the government did not “want the perfect to be the enemy of the good” in formulating a package to assist the self-employed during the coronavirus outbreak. Rishi Sunak will unveil [...]
Sadiq Khan calls coronavirus rental protections ‘inadequate’ March 25, 2020 Sadiq Khan has demanded for more support to be given to the capital’s renters during the coronavirus crisis in an escalation of tensions between the government and City Hall. Boris Johnson rolled out protections for renters last week, including a three-month mortgage holiday for homeowners, increases to the housing allowance and measures to prevent landlords [...]
Self-employed bailout: What a freelancer coronavirus package could contain March 25, 2020 Rishi Sunak will tomorrow announce an economic relief package to assist Britain’s five million self-employed workers during the coronavirus outbreak. The package comes come a week after Sunak announced a raft of measures to help businesses and workers suffering from the fallout from Covid-19. Included among the measures was a guarantee to pay 80 per [...]
Coronavirus: Bring back retired Tube drivers, says Tory mayoral candidate March 25, 2020 Almost 150 recently retired Tube drivers should be brought back to reduce rush hour overcrowding during the coronavirus crisis, according to Tory mayoral hopeful Shaun Bailey. Bailey, a London Assembly member, said 139 drivers could be brought back to increase the number of Tube services, similar to what the NHS has done with retired doctors [...]
Coronavirus: London City Airport suspends all flights March 25, 2020 London City Airport has suspended all flights in and out of the airport for the foreseeable future. The airport will stop all commercial and private flights from this evening due to the fallout from the coronavirus. The airport only had a handful of flights today, with numbers sharply decreasing due to the travel restrictions imposed [...]
Coronavirus: City of London Corporation defers rent payments for tenants March 25, 2020 The City of London Corporation is deferring this quarter’s rental payments for commercial tenants worst affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The Corporation, a major landlord in the Square Mile and beyond, is deferring rent payments for the March quarter for all retail, hospitality, small office, and serviced office tenants. Supermarkets, banks, pharmacies and building societies [...]
Coronavirus: Parliament to shut down for four weeks March 25, 2020 Parliament will be suspended from tonight for at least four weeks in response to the government’s new coronavirus measures. The House of Commons is set to pass an emergency bill today that will bring forward the beginning of Easter recess by one week. It comes after some MPs were reportedly concerned that it was a [...]
Prince Charles tests positive for coronavirus March 25, 2020 Prince Charles has tested positive for coronavirus, but “remains in good health”. Clarence House released a statement this morning confirming the 71-year-old had tested positive for Covid-19. The Prince of Wales only has mild symptoms and the Duchess of Cornwall was tested, but does not have coronavirus. The statement read: “The Prince of Wales has [...]
Construction on 22 Bishopsgate stops due to coronavirus March 24, 2020 Construction workers on the site of upcoming City skyscraper 22 Bishopsgate have downed tools today in response to the latest coronavirus restrictions. Multiplex, the contractor building the new Square Mile high rise, shut all its work sites today, after Boris Johnson implemented an effective three-week lockdown last night. The government said open air construction could [...]
