Hospitality circuit breaker lockdown could wipe £1bn off UK GDP, research shows October 6, 2020 A two-week circuit breaker lockdown to reduce the spread of coronavirus could cost the UK economy around £1bn and result in more hospitality job losses, the latest research showed. Ministers have reportedly mulled closing pubs and restaurants and ordering Britons to reduce social contacts for at least two weeks in a bid to halt a [...]
Software mogul John McAfee arrested on US tax evasion charges October 6, 2020 Controversial tech millionaire John McAfee has been arrested in Spain on US charges of tax evasion. The anti-virus mogul, who founded software company McAfee, allegedly failed to file tax returns despite earning millions from promoting cryptocurrencies, speaking engagements and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary. McAfee faces extradition to the US [...]
In full: PM Boris Johnson’s Tory conference speech in full October 6, 2020 Boris Johnson took the stage Tuesday for the Tories’ virtual party conference, announcing policies on 1:1 teaching and low-deposit mortgages, but also promising to unleash the private sector. Here’s the text in full. Good morning conference, I want to begin by thanking you for everything you did at the election, pounding the streets in the [...]
Rishi Sunak signals that tax hikes will be delayed for some time October 6, 2020 Rishi Sunak has signalled he will hold off on tax rises and Budget cuts until the UK’s economic recovery is further along. Sunak said today that the UK needs to balance its books “over time”, just a day after saying at his conference speech that the Tories had a “sacred responsibility to future generations to [...]
Internet is an essential — so why is it still taxed as a luxury? October 6, 2020 One in nine people, the equivalent of six million across the UK, have reported falling behind on household bills because of coronavirus. While the chancellor has worked hard to protect jobs and offer targeted support, there can be no doubt that those already suffering financial hardship have faced disproportionate new challenges over the past six [...]
Business schools: Your country needs you… to save our SMEs October 6, 2020 With tighter restrictions coming into place across the country, local businesses would be forgiven for feeling fear and uncertainty about what is coming next as we go into a second wave of Covid-19. No business is immune — but those in the SME category are particularly at risk. Small business owners have been significantly impacted [...]
Business secretary Alok Sharma hits out at Extinction Rebellion for its ‘innefective’ methods October 5, 2020 Business secretary Alok Sharma has hit out at Extinction Rebellion for its methods, saying the environmental group’s actions will not lead to any real change. Sharma said at the Conservative party conference that the way to “achieve climate action” was not by “glueing yourself to trains, by glueing yourself to buildings [or] by disprupting peoples [...]
Coronavirus: Tory MP slams local lockdowns as ‘devastating’ October 5, 2020 A prominent Tory backbencher has slammed the government’s introduction of local lockdowns across the UK as “devastating”, claiming they infringe on the public’s freedom and should be swapped for a “risk-based” approach. Tory MP and former Brexit minister Steve Baker told the Conservative party conference today that local lockdowns “aren’t working”, while dwindling hopes for [...]
Odeon to go ‘weekend only’ at a quarter of its UK cinemas October 5, 2020 Odeon has announced it will shutter a quarter of its sites during the week, marking the latest in a series of shake-ups to the UK’s ailing cinema industry in the wake of the pandemic. Odeon, which owns 120 cinemas in the UK and Ireland, has informed members of its Limitless loyalty scheme that a portion [...]
UK eyeing closer financial services regulation alignment with non-EU countries, says Sunak October 5, 2020 The UK is looking to align its financial services regulation with major economic powers outside the EU, according to Rishi Sunak. The chancellor said today at a fringe event at the Conservative conference that the government will “review our regulatory framework” on financial services and that “not being inside the EU more generally gives us [...]