World leaders react to Joe Biden entering the White House January 21, 2021 The US is waking up to a new leader, and government vision, as Joe Biden became the country’s 46th president yesterday. The spotlight is now on the future of the country and its international relations rather than the twists and turns that made this presidential race so historic. Here is how world leaders reacted to [...]
Maskforce: TfL beefs up enforcement of face coverings January 20, 2021 Transport for London (TfL) has hardened its stance against passengers refusing to wear face coverings, after figures released today showed it has handed out almost 2,000 fines for mask-flouters. TfL announced it has expanded its team of enforcement officers to crack down on a “small minority” of the public refusing to comply with social distancing [...]
Ex-Greene King boss raises £200m to invest in struggling pub companies January 19, 2021 The former boss of Greene King Rooney Anand has secured £200m in investment to pump into the UK’s struggling pubs sector. Anand, who stepped down as chief executive of Greene King in 2019 after 15 years with the chain, is planning to make a number of acquisitions in the coming months, Sky News reported. The [...]
Morrisons to be first UK supermarket to pay staff at least £10 an hour January 13, 2021 Morrisons will pay its supermarket staff at least £10 an hour, becoming the first major UK supermarket to reach that milestone. The new deal will start in April and represents a significant pay increase for nearly 96,000 colleagues, the majority of which will see a nine per cent rise. Staff had pushed for an increase [...]
Hostelworld in talks with lenders over €30m facility after lockdown restrictions hit bookings January 13, 2021 Hostelworld is in talks with lenders over a new €30m (£26.7m) debt facility after taking “minimal” bookings in the final few months of last year. The budget accommodation platform said global travel demand remained muted in the fourth quarter of 2020, and trading continued to deteriorate from August until the end of the year due [...]
Pressure mounts on big four supermarkets as Lidl enjoys record Christmas sales January 13, 2021 Lidl has strengthened the pressure on its competitors by remaining the fastest growing retailer against the UK’s big four supermarkets of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons. The German chain achieved a record Christmas in 2020 with overall sales increasing 17.9 per cent in the same four-week December period versus the previous year. With Christmas favourites [...]
Priti Patel pledges more police on streets to crack whip on Covid rulebreakers January 12, 2021 The government will place more police on the streets to hand out fines to “irresponsible” people breaking lockdown rules, the home secretary has announced. In a stern warning to the nation, Priti Patel said: “If you do not play your part, our police officers who are out there, risking their own lives everyday to keep [...]
UK supermarkets bring in security to enforce mask wearing as Covid cases rise January 12, 2021 Supermarkets are ramping up Covid safety measures, with many of the major UK grocers planning to make masks mandatory and to only allow one person per household in store. Tesco, Waitrose and Asda have joined Sainsbury’s and Morrisons in announcing that customers without masks will be turned away, unless they are exempt for medical reasons. [...]
Deliveroo to roll out to 100 new towns and cities in 2021 January 12, 2021 Deliveroo will expand its service to 100 new towns and cities across the UK in 2021, following increased demand for business in 2020. The towns and cities earmarked for expansion include Yeovil, Bangor (Northern Ireland), East Kilbride, King’s Lynn, Scarborough, Llanelli and Exmouth. The move will mean the takeaway delivery app is available to 4 [...]
Sainsbury’s to enforce masks and shopping alone in Covid crackdown January 11, 2021 Sainsbury’s has become the second British supermarket to ban customers who refuse to wear a face mask amid a crackdown on Covid rulebreakers. The chain said shoppers will be prevented from entering without a face mask, while shopping in groups will also be banned. Sainsbury’s will put trained security guards at the front of stores [...]