New job retention bonus at heart of Rishi Sunak’s £30bn spending spree July 8, 2020 UK chancellor Rishi Sunak today put a new “job retention bonus” programme to encourage companies to bring back furloughed workers at the centre of a £30bn package aimed at kickstarting the economy. In his summer statement, Sunak said employers who take back furloughed workers until the end of January will receive a £1,000 payment for [...]
Stamp duty holiday: Industry reacts to property tax cut July 8, 2020 The UK property sector has reacted to the stamp duty holiday announced this afternoon, with many believing it will help to reinvigorate the market following months at a standstill during lockdown. Chancellor Rishi Sunak said this afternoon that the stamp duty threshold will increase from £125,000 to £500,000 until March next year to boost activity [...]
Hospitality sector welcomes ‘blaze of sunshine’ from chancellor’s VAT cut July 8, 2020 The hospitality sector has greeted chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcements of a VAT cut for the hospitality sector and a new Eat Out to Help Out scheme as a “blaze of sunshine” after months of closure during the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking in the Commons today to announce his “mini budget”, Sunak vowed to cut the VAT [...]
The idea that it is somehow grubby to care about the economy in the face of a global pandemic is nonsense July 8, 2020 Today, chancellor Rishi Sunak will make an announcement to the House of Commons about the shape of the government’s coronavirus support over the coming months. Sunak faces a tough choice as the country starts to open up while trying to keep infection rates as low as possible. There is no easy way out of the [...]
WFH: Is it the death knell for offices? July 7, 2020 Some real estate investors believe the successful working from home experiment during this crisis will lead to a long-term decline in demand for offices. We think this is premature. One of the more mundane aspects of the coronavirus has been the sudden evacuation of offices and mass adoption of home working. In the US it [...]
To avert an unemployment crisis, the government must act now and equip workers for the post-pandemic world July 7, 2020 Tomorrow, the chancellor will rise to make his economic statement with the country teetering on the edge of the worst unemployment crisis since the Great Depression. Around 10 million people face the possibility of losing their jobs. Clearly not all of them will, but as the furlough scheme unwinds, half of businesses say they expect [...]
We should mourn the immeasurable social and economic damage lockdown has inflicted on this country July 1, 2020 I knew it was coming. The torrent of media coverage looking back on 100 days of lockdown like a grossly nostalgic showreel. Carefully crafted articles painting a picture of British resilience and togetherness, celebrating the nation’s bravery and enjoyment of the simple things. I regret to inform you that I will not be spending my [...]
City of London Corporation criticised for awarding above-inflation pay rises during coronavirus crisis June 30, 2020 A London think tank has slammed the City of London Corporation for giving staff a pay rise above inflation levels during the coronavirus crisis. The Corporation recently confirmed that all its staff would receive a 2.25 per cent yearly pay rise from 2020 to 2023 as well as an additional 5 per cent annual increase [...]
Forecasting the Post-Coronavirus World June 30, 2020 As we move past what we hope is the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the focus of investors is shifting from the immediate economic damage to the way out of lockdown and on to a new normal. Since this is an unprecedented crisis, the forecasts of what the world will look like in the next [...]
Reach 4 Entertainment triples profits ahead of ‘significant’ coronavirus impact June 29, 2020 Theatre marketing firm Reach 4 Entertainment (R4E) tripled its profits in 2019, as the group posted strong annual results ahead of the coronavirus crisis, which it expects will have a “significant impact” on the live entertainment industry. The results R4E posted full-year revenues of £135.4m for 2019, up from £76.7m last year. Adjusted earnings before [...]