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Where to eat in London: Old favourites reopening and new places to check out August 22, 2020 Coronavirus may have shuttered the food industry for months, but the business is bouncing back, with more of our favourite places to eat and drink reopening every day, and some new ones joining them too. In this regular column, we’ll bring you the latest news from the front-line of the food business, complete with the [...]
Number of UK workers on furlough falls to 6.8m August 21, 2020 The number of UK employees on furlough fell from highs of almost 10m to 6.8m at the end of June as the coronavirus lockdown eased and staff returned to work. The latest government statistics showed that the number of people being paid through the coronavirus job retention scheme dropped sharply in June as some businesses, [...]
UK businesses grow at fastest rate in seven years as economy reopens August 21, 2020 The UK economy bounced back sharply in August after coronavirus restrictions were lifted, with a closely-watched measure of growth hitting its highest level in almost seven years. However, companies slashed jobs at the fastest pace since May as they adjusted to life during the pandemic, in a worrying sign of what could turn into a [...]
UK firms cut more than 106,000 jobs amid coronavirus pandemic August 19, 2020 The coronavirus pandemic has battered the UK economy since it arrived in early 2020 – and no sector has remained unscathed, with more than 100,000 job cuts planned during the pandemic. The government’s furlough scheme has allowed millions of people to keep getting a paycheck, but fears are growing that when this is phased out [...]
Eat Out to Help Out scheme serves up 35m meals in first two weeks August 18, 2020 More than 35m meals have already been claimed on the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, according to the Treasury. Restaurants, pubs and cafes have so far submitted more than 35m claims to the government for meals that have been discounted under the programme. The scheme gives diners 50 per cent off up to £10 [...]
Supermarket visits fall on coronavirus face mask rules August 18, 2020 British shoppers paid fewer visits to supermarkets in the wake of new rules making face masks mandatory, new data has revealed. The number of visits to UK supermarkets was 2m lower than expected in the week after the rule was adopted, according to Kantar. Charlotte Scott, Kantar’s consumer insight director, said the decline showed people [...]
UK needs 10m tests a week, says Premier League’s coronavirus adviser August 17, 2020 The company behind the Premier League’s coronavirus testing efforts has backed calls for the government to introduce a UK-wide testing scheme by the end of the year. Avi Lasarow, chief executive of testing firm Prenetics, has called on the government to swap its half-price restaurant scheme for a universal testing service across the UK. He [...]
Back to Business – James Cochran on how the pandemic helped him launch a long-planned project August 15, 2020 We talk to London’s top chefs about how they are dealing with the strange ‘new normal’. This week James Cochran speaks about launching a new venture and missing the theatre of service. Who are you? James Cochran, co-owner and executive chef of 12:51, a casual fine dining restaurant in Islington. Around the Cluck is our [...]
REC: Post-lockdown record rise in vacancies hints at UK jobs recovery August 14, 2020 More new vacancies for UK jobs were advertised last week than at any other time since the lockdown began, a new report has found. Around 126,000 new UK-based jobs were posted in the week 3-9 August, according to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC). It brought the total number of vacancies across the UK to [...]
Covid-19 threatens to set UK data protection back a generation August 14, 2020 There’s another crisis brewing. Millions of businesses across the UK have quickly adapted to the Covid-19 environment. While some companies have adopted technology to handle customer data collection, many have turned to more tried-and-tested track and trace systems — namely, good old-fashioned pen and paper. The hospitality industry, and especially pubs and bars, have had [...]