Jenrick warns of coming ‘frustration and disruption’ as hundreds of thousands to be ‘pinged’ by app July 18, 2021 Robert Jenrick has today warned that the next month will be blighted by “frustration and disruption” as hundreds of thousands of people are set to be pinged by the Test and Trace app. The housing secretary also said the government stood by the decision to only exempt double-jabbed people from self-isolating from 16 August as [...]
Health Secretary Sajid Javid tests positive for Covid-19 July 17, 2021 The new health secretary Sajid Javid has announced he’s tested positive for coronavirus and has “mild symptoms”. “This morning I tested positive for Covid,” Javid wrote in a tweet. “I’m waiting for my PCR result, but thankfully I have had my jabs and symptoms are mild. “Please make sure you come forward for your vaccine [...]
Weekend Read: Job market tension threatens to derail Britain’s economic recovery July 17, 2021 The UK labour market is roaring back to life. After months of being shuttered due to Covid, businesses are finally welcoming customers back through their doors – and ramping up hiring to cope with soaring demand. Companies added 356,000 workers to payrolls over the last month. Total weekly hours worked has reached its highest level [...]
Sunak eyes budget delay to next year July 16, 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak could delay the budget until next year to allow him to assess more timely data on the economic impact of ending business support schemes. The news was first reported by The Guardian, which said officials have reportedly told Sunak waiting until the end of spring 2022 may provide him with more time [...]
ONS update: One in 95 people in England had Covid last week July 16, 2021 An estimated one in 95 people in England tested positive for Covid-19 in the week up to 10 July, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). In yet another sign that Covid cases are multiplying in the UK, the ONS estimates that 577,700 people in England had Covid last week [...]
Pingdemic shutdown: No industry untouched by NHS Test and Trace havoc July 16, 2021 Staffing shortages have turned manufacturing, bin collections, retail, transport and healthcare upside down as the NHS Test and Trace app “pinged” more than half a million people into isolation last week. The contact tracing app’s sensitivity is now under review after reports that the app is “pinging wrong” and Brits are being told to self-isolate [...]
Small shops face £1.7bn debt, says report by ex-boss of Iceland July 16, 2021 Small shops are struggling under £1.7bn debt, the former retail chief of Iceland, has warned. Independent businesses’ borrowing increased fourfold during the pandemic, according to the report. While the money borrowed has allowed small shops to survive, the task of paying back the loans still looms over them, said Bill Grimsey, the author of the [...]
Lenders set to increase interest-free periods on credit cards July 15, 2021 Households could be offered longer interest-free periods on credit cards over the summer, according to a survey of lenders. Banks and building societies also anticipate that mortgage availability to households will rise, according to the survey published by the Bank of England. The Bank’s Credit Conditions Survey is carried out every quarter to help it [...]
Will Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg wear a face mask at PMQs? He keeps MPs guessing July 15, 2021 The Commons Leader also kept colleagues guessing as to whether he will wear a face covering at Prime Minister’s Questions next week, once restrictions have been eased. “Wait and see,” he told fellow MPs. New guidelines, set to come into force on July 19, make mask-wearing compulsory for staff but only “encouraged” for MPs. Unions [...]
UK banks expect a rush of defaults in coming months July 15, 2021 UK banks expect defaults to rise over the coming months as households struggle to service debt taken on to cope with the financial pressures of the Covid crisis, new figures released today reveal. According to the Bank of England’s latest Credit Conditions Survey, banks expect default rates on unsecured lending – or credit card lending [...]