Russians tried to swing UK election with US trade papers used by Corbyn July 16, 2020 Russian actors attempted to interfere in the 2019 UK Election by disseminating a leaked confidential document later released by the Labour party, according to foreign secretary Dominic Raab. Raab released a statement today, confirming it is “almost certain that Russian actors sought to interfere in the 2019 general election through the online amplification” of confidential [...]
Report into Russian interference in UK politics to be published next week July 16, 2020 A long-awaited report into Russian interference in British politics will be published by Westminster’s Intelligence and Security Committee within the next week. The committee announced this morning that the report would be released before the summer parliamentary recess, which begins next Thursday. It comes just a day after Julian Lewis prompted a mini-coup to win [...]
Fees plunge at Hays as coronavirus hammers hiring July 16, 2020 Net fees at recruitment firm Hays plummeted by a third in the latest quarter, as coronavirus pressed paused on hiring and caused a huge spike in unemployment around the world. The FTSE 250 company, which provides recruitment services in 33 countries globally, reported a dent in hiring in every region in the world, with the [...]
European private equity deals plunge to seven-year low July 16, 2020 European private equity deal volume plunged to its lowest point in seven years during the second quarter, with the UK suffering the greatest drop. Deal count and value dropped to their lowest quarterly figures since third quarter 203 and the fourth quarter of 2016, respectively due to uncertainty surrounding the virus. Pitchbook data shows 650 [...]
UK unveils plans for frictionless post-Brexit trade between UK nations July 15, 2020 The government will tomorrow outline plans to ensure post-Brexit regulatory alignment on trade across the four UK nations in a bid to ensure frictionless internal trade. The white paper will propose a principle of “mutual recognition” whereby regulations that are set by devolved governments are recognised across the country to allow for internal trade. It [...]
Vauxhall to restart Ellesmere Port production on 17 August July 15, 2020 Vauxhall has this afternoon announced that production will restart at its plant at Ellesmere Port in Cheshire on 17 August. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the PSA-owned firm shuttered the facility, where it builds the Astra model, on 17 March. The announcement came despite reports that the plant would not open again until September at [...]
Simon Cowell buys out Sony Music Entertainment from joint venture July 15, 2020 Simon Cowell has bought out Sony Music Entertainment’s stake in their joint talent and production company, handing the TV presenter total control over the company after more than 11 years of partnership. Cowell today announced he has bought Sony’s 75 per cent stake in Syco Entertainment, which owns TV franchises Got Talent and The X [...]
Re-focusing on Brexit as we look to the future July 15, 2020 The UK Government has confirmed that it will not request an extension to the Brexit transition period which ends on 31st December 2020 and negotiations towards a Free Trade Agreement with the European Union (EU) are ongoing. Although the first half of this year has brought other priorities it’s now time to return our attention [...]
Coronavirus eats into Finsbury Food revenue as sales sink during lockdown July 15, 2020 Cake manufacturer Finsbury Food Group said it expects annual sales to dip slightly in 2020 as a plunge in sales during the second half of the year during the coronavirus crisis diluted progress made last year. The bakery group said second half sales slumped as a result of the national lockdown, with sales sinking 24 [...]
Number of jobs available in London plummets due to coronavirus July 15, 2020 The number of jobs available in London during the second quarter plummeted as the coronavirus crisis took hold. In April, there was a 72 per cent drop in the number of job vacancies with just a one per cent decrease in job seekers across the period, according to Morgan McKinley research. By the end of [...]