Test and Trace is failing to persuade 20,000 people to self-isolate each day, Dido Harding admits February 3, 2021 Around 20,000 people each day who should be self-isolating are not being convinced to do so by the government’s NHS Test and Trace scheme, chief executive Baroness Dido Harding has admitted. Facing a grilling from the Commons science and technology committee, Harding said that based on last week’s Test and Trace figures “circa 20,000 people [...]
Property chiefs: Lockdown and end of stamp duty holiday push down house prices February 2, 2021 The most recent drop in house prices is primarily caused by the soon-to-end stamp duty holiday, combined with the UK’s third national lockdown, property professionals told City A.M. this morning. According to new figures, published by Nationwide earlier this morning, January saw property prices fall for the first time in six months as the end [...]
Pub chain Marston’s shares fizz on takeover bid January 29, 2021 Shares in Martson’s jumped this morning after the pub chain confirmed it had received a takeover offer from a US private equity firm. In a statement this morning the British brewer said it had received an “unsolicited non-binding proposal” from Platinum Equity Advisors over a potential cash bid. Shares in Marston’s rose as much as [...]
SNP MP admits to travelling 170 miles out of constituency, twice January 28, 2021 An SNP MP has been caught travelling 340 miles during two trips from his second home to his constituency, just days after writing against privileged Covid rule ‘flounters’. East Lothian MP Kenny MacAskill confirmed he has been staying at his second home in Banffshire, 170 miles away from his constituency. With a house in Banffshire [...]
Covid cases begin decline as ‘lockdown has worked’ January 28, 2021 Covid cases have begun to decline across the UK, according to the latest government-backed study, after England’s chief scientific adviser said there were early signs “lockdowns have worked”. The latest figures from Imperial College London’s React study showed around 1.57 per cent of people in the UK had the virus between 6 and 22 January — slightly [...]
J20 and Tango owner Britvic suffers slump in sales due to hospitality restrictions January 28, 2021 Soft drinks group Britvic, which owns J2O, R White’s lemonade and Robinsons, suffered a slump in sales in the first quarter due to restrictions on pubs, bars and restaurants. The FTSE 250 firm said this morning that total revenue declined 9.8 per cent to £328.1m in the three months ended 31 December. The Hemel Hempstead-based [...]
Crypto AM shines its Spotlight on BitcoinPoint.com January 28, 2021 With the largest ATM network in the UK, innovative ‘on-ramp’ solutions to instantly buy and ‘off-ramp’ to sell Bitcoin, BitcoinPoint.com brings cryptos closer to Mass Adoption, with the vision of bringing financial inclusion to the unbanked and the non-tech-savvy. 16,000 ATMs Bitcoin sales from cash withdrawals have reached an unprecedented scale in the UK, as [...]
Brexit Transition: what businesses must do now January 28, 2021 The UK and the EU wrapped up a trade deal on Christmas Eve, bringing to an end years of negotiations. But though a deal has been struck, that doesn’t mean nothing’s changing. The UK has left the EU, and December 31 marked the end of the Brexit Transition period. The UK’s fresh start means that [...]
Office demand drops as Workspace reports 33 per cent fall in enquiries January 28, 2021 Workspace remains optimistic about the future of London’s office work despite a sharp drop in enquiries throughout the pandemic. This morning’s results show the group averaged 672 enquiries per month in the third quarter, a 33 per cent drop from the previous year. Lettings per month also fell by 3.4 per cent to 109, driven [...]
Apple earns $100bn in single quarter January 27, 2021 Silicon valley giant Apple has earned more than $100bn in its first quarter of 2021, making it one of just a handful of firms to ever have done so. Apple’s revenue for the quarter ended December 26 rose 21 per cent to $111.44 billion. Earnings per share rose to $1.68 from $1.25. Analysts had expected [...]