Before the Bell: Flash PMIs and Federal Reserve in focus December 16, 2020 The pound had a pretty good day yesterday as optimism grows that a UK/EU deal on trade could well be within reach after some positive comments from Irish PM Micheal Martin. “While we’ve been here many times before, the prospect of an imminent deadline can help concentrate minds, and despite some push back over fear [...]
‘We will lose £400k’: The cost of Tier 3 for the hospitality sector December 15, 2020 As the hospitality sector begins to count the cost of the latest Tier 3 lockdown, we spoke to one industry figure who says his company will lose £400,000. Stuart Procter, COO of Mayfair hotel and restaurant The Stafford, said the latest blow has left his company reeling in a year he’s already had to make [...]
Millions worth of festive food could go to waste as London enters Tier 3 December 15, 2020 Millions of pounds worth of food could go to waste as a result of the government’s decision to send London into Tier 3 at midnight tonight. In Tier 3 all bars and restaurants will be forced to close, although they are able to offer take-away and delivery services. Restaurateurs say the rug has been pulled [...]
Capital Punishment: London to enter Tier 3 on Wednesday December 14, 2020 London is set to enter Tier 3 from midnight tomorrow, as the government scrambles to contain a sharp spike in coronavirus cases in the capital. The capital will enter the highest level of restrictions at 0.01am on Wednesday morning, the health secretary has announced. Parts of Essex and Hertfordshire including Basildon, Brentwood, Chelmsford, Epping Forest [...]
‘I just feel like crying’ – chefs react to ‘cruel’ Tier 3 restrictions December 14, 2020 London restaurateurs and chefs reacted with frustration and despair at the “cruel” news London will enter Tier 3, a period of virtual lockdown that will see bars and restaurants closed until the new year. Unlike the first lockdown, Tier 3 allows non-essential shops to remain open, adding to criticism from the hospitality sector that it [...]
City of London to host ‘back to work’ week in bid to revive Square Mile December 14, 2020 The City of London will call on office workers to return to the Square Mile in a “back to work” week in April, in a bid to help resuscitate the bars, restaurants and hospitality venues hammered by empty streets during the pandemic. William Russell, lord mayor of London and a former Merrill Lynch investment banker, [...]
Sadiq Khan urges PM to shut all London schools as cases spiral December 14, 2020 Sadiq Khan has called on the government to consider shutting all schools and colleges in London until January, following a “significant” spike in coronavirus cases among teens. In a letter to Boris Johnson, the mayor of London said “urgent consideration must… be given to closing secondary schools, sixth form and FE colleges a few days [...]
Before the Bell: Deadlines come, and deadlines go December 14, 2020 Uncertainty over the prospect of a stimulus deal or economic aid package saw US markets finish last week on the back foot, as US politicians once again put party politics ahead of the people they are supposed to represent. “With a deadline fast approaching by year end US lawmakers are once again split down the [...]
We must all work together to stay safe and keep London out of Tier 3 restrictions December 14, 2020 With the festive period now underway and a Covid-19 vaccine being rolled out across the country, this feels like the light at the end of the tunnel for many people. I am proud to say that this includes some of the Square Mile’s older, most vulnerable residents, many of whom have endured a tough year [...]
London records highest jump in Covid cases in England as Tier 3 pressure mounts December 11, 2020 London recorded the biggest leap in the proportion of people testing positive for coronavirus in the week to 5 December, cranking up fears of tighter restrictions for the capital ahead of the Christmas period. Figures released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the level of Covid in London jumped from around 1 [...]