Rishi Sunak to extend business rates relief and furlough February 19, 2021 Rishi Sunak is set to extend business rates relief and the furlough scheme into the summer, offering further support to companies battered by coronavirus restrictions. In his Budget next month the chancellor is expected to announce that the year-long business rates holiday for the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will continue beyond the previous end-date [...]
One in four consumer-facing businesses may ditch staff if furlough ends in April February 18, 2021 A quarter of British businesses expect to fire staff if furlough is not extended beyond April, the British Chambers of Commerce said on Thursday. Results from the latest BCC survey on the impact of coronavirus shows how lockdowns have pushed businesses to the brink. Three in every five firms have seen revenue fall in the [...]
UK nightlife ‘faces extinction’ without government support February 18, 2021 The UK’s nightlife scene is at risk of extinction without urgent financial support, the government has been warned. A group of 40 cross-party MPs today urged the prime minister and chancellor Rishi Sunak to bring forward a sector-specific grant package and lay out a detailed roadmap for reopening venues to avoid “irreversible losses” for businesses. [...]
The future of cities: The age of urban miracles is not over February 18, 2021 Will the Covid-19 pandemic permanently derail our urban world and end the eminence of the greatest global cities, like London? The answer depends on whether the switch to working from home is permanent. Our city centres are ghostly quiet because so many of us have stopped commuting and are dialling into our jobs. But not [...]
Labour’s top priority is ‘financial responsibility’, says Starmer February 17, 2021 Sir Keir Starmer will tomorrow say Labour’s priority will “always be financial responsibility” in a speech expected to reveal the party’s future economic direction under his leadership. Starmer will also say there can be “no return to business as usual” post-Covid, while outlining policies that he says will provide “long-term security to the economy, support for [...]
UK to announce secretive £800m science research agency called Aria February 17, 2021 The government is set to announce a new £800m research facility that will invest in high-risk military projects. It will be called the Advanced Research and Invention Agency (Aria) and is based on the US’ Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa), which has overseen the creation of experimental military technologies. Darpa and its predecessor agency [...]
Rishi Sunak urged to charge-up green investments in UK’s Covid recovery February 17, 2021 From the net zero transition to air pollution and electric vehicles, Chancellor Rishi Sunak is being urged to ramp up green investment as part of the Covid recovery. MPs on Parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee have set out guidelines for how Sunak can introduce more ambitious environmental measures. In the report, Conservative and Labour MPs criticise [...]
Brexit gives us the chance to refit our financial regulation for the 21st century February 17, 2021 Britain’s departure from the European Union has created a unique opportunity to re-shape our regulatory framework for financial services; setting the sector up for continued success in the years to come and maintaining the UK’s position as a globally competitive financial centre. With Brexit complete – and many regulatory powers returning to the UK for [...]
Coronavirus: London suffers ‘heaviest job losses in UK’ during pandemic February 16, 2021 London suffered the largest number of job losses of any UK region during the pandemic last year, as the capital continues to feel the weight of a “geographically unequal crisis”, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). The number of London employees on payrolls dropped 5.5 per cent between February and December last year, [...]
Before the Bell: Rising recovery optimism keeps markets buoyant February 16, 2021 With US markets closed for President’s Day yesterday, they will have some significant catching up to do after yesterday’s stellar European session, when they return from their long weekend later today. Having seen the Nikkei225 push above 30,000 for the first time since 1990, a move that continued in Asia this morning, European markets [...]