Internet is an essential — so why is it still taxed as a luxury? October 6, 2020 One in nine people, the equivalent of six million across the UK, have reported falling behind on household bills because of coronavirus. While the chancellor has worked hard to protect jobs and offer targeted support, there can be no doubt that those already suffering financial hardship have faced disproportionate new challenges over the past six [...]
Business schools: Your country needs you… to save our SMEs October 6, 2020 With tighter restrictions coming into place across the country, local businesses would be forgiven for feeling fear and uncertainty about what is coming next as we go into a second wave of Covid-19. No business is immune — but those in the SME category are particularly at risk. Small business owners have been significantly impacted [...]
Business secretary Alok Sharma hits out at Extinction Rebellion for its ‘innefective’ methods October 5, 2020 Business secretary Alok Sharma has hit out at Extinction Rebellion for its methods, saying the environmental group’s actions will not lead to any real change. Sharma said at the Conservative party conference that the way to “achieve climate action” was not by “glueing yourself to trains, by glueing yourself to buildings [or] by disprupting peoples [...]
Coronavirus: Tory MP slams local lockdowns as ‘devastating’ October 5, 2020 A prominent Tory backbencher has slammed the government’s introduction of local lockdowns across the UK as “devastating”, claiming they infringe on the public’s freedom and should be swapped for a “risk-based” approach. Tory MP and former Brexit minister Steve Baker told the Conservative party conference today that local lockdowns “aren’t working”, while dwindling hopes for [...]
Odeon to go ‘weekend only’ at a quarter of its UK cinemas October 5, 2020 Odeon has announced it will shutter a quarter of its sites during the week, marking the latest in a series of shake-ups to the UK’s ailing cinema industry in the wake of the pandemic. Odeon, which owns 120 cinemas in the UK and Ireland, has informed members of its Limitless loyalty scheme that a portion [...]
UK eyeing closer financial services regulation alignment with non-EU countries, says Sunak October 5, 2020 The UK is looking to align its financial services regulation with major economic powers outside the EU, according to Rishi Sunak. The chancellor said today at a fringe event at the Conservative conference that the government will “review our regulatory framework” on financial services and that “not being inside the EU more generally gives us [...]
Deliveroo appoints Goldman Sachs to oversee London float October 5, 2020 Deliveroo has appointed Goldman Sachs to oversee its long-awaited London flotation, according to reports, in a move that would value the UK food delivery company at more than £2bn. The Amazon-backed startup is expected to debut on the London stock market next year following discussions with the investment banking firm, Sky News reported. Deliveroo declined [...]
Rishi Sunak vows to protect UK’s entrepreneurs in conference speech October 5, 2020 Rishi Sunak has vowed to create opportunities for the UK’s entrepreneurs after the Covid crisis, while also foreshadowing future “hard choices” on public spending. Sunak used his first conference speech as chancellor to say it was his “single priority” to to “create, support and extend opportunity to as many people as I can” and “to [...]
In full: Rishi Sunak’s virtual Conservative conference speech October 5, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak today addressed Conservative virtual conference, pledging to support entrepreneurs but warning of difficult times ahead. Here’s the full speech: “Politics is a team sport” “Being appointed Chancellor in February this year was an immense honour. Even though my first conference speech as Chancellor isn’t quite how I expected it to be, it [...]
Leading business figures call on Sunak to slash taxes to return to 90s growth October 5, 2020 Leading business figures have backed calls from the Institute for Economic Affairs (IEA) for the government to implement similar policies to those that contributed to the best period of economic growth in recent history. These include slashing and streamlining taxes in order to build a “bright future”. Wetherspoons founder Tim Martin, JP Morgan VP Laurence [...]