A no-deal Brexit could cause the UK’s digital sector to shrink August 28, 2020 The EU’s trade negotiator Michel Barnier recently said that a post-Brexit deal seemed unlikely. This supports our view at Securys that the Brexit transition period will close without an adequacy agreement, bringing an end to the unrestricted flow of data between the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA). Buried in a weekend article came [...]
UK economy: Retail footfall grows but job vacancies flatline August 27, 2020 The UK economy has continued its mixed recovery, with the number of Britons venturing out to the shops rising again but online job adverts staying flat for the third week in a row. Some areas remained in much worse shape than others, with 51 per cent of workers in the art and entertainment sector furloughed, [...]
EU trade boss Phil Hogan resigns over ‘golfgate’ August 26, 2020 EU trade commissioner Phil Hogan has today resigned after breaching coronavirus restrictions by attending a golf dinner. “It was becoming increasingly clear that the controversy concerning my recent visit to Ireland was becoming a distraction from my work as an EU Commissioner and would undermine my work in the key months ahead”, Hogan said in [...]
Southeastern to introduce colour-coded system to help commuters avoid busy trains August 25, 2020 Train franchise Southeastern will from next week tell passengers how busy their train is before they board to help them better observe social distancing rules. The operator, which runs rail services into London and the south-east, will become the first franchise to share such data directly with commuters in a bid to increase confidence that [...]
Balfour Beatty joint venture secures £1.3bn Hong Kong airport deal August 24, 2020 Construction firm Balfour Beatty this morning announced that its south-east Asia joint venture has won a HK$12.9bn (£1.27bn) contract to expand Hong Kong International Airport’s Terminal 2. Under the four-year deal, Gammon, of which the FTSE 250 company owns 50 per cent, will increase the size of the main terminal building and construct the surrounding [...]
EU trade boss Phil Hogan apologises for attending ‘golfgate’ dinner August 24, 2020 EU trade commissioner Phil Hogan apologised for attending a golf dinner that has caused outrage in Ireland as he tried to ride out pressure to resign. Adding to the scrutiny on Hogan, it also emerged that he had been stopped and cautioned by Irish police for using his phone while driving to the dinner. The [...]
Cabinet draws up plans for simultaneous no-deal Brexit and second Covid wave August 23, 2020 The government has drawn up plans to deal simultaneously with a second coronavirus wave and the effects of a no-deal Brexit after December 31. The Cabinet Office’s emergency plans include telling the Navy to protect the UK’s waters from illegal EU fishing boats and deploying the army on Brtain’s streets to quell civil unrest. The [...]
Home Grown Club boss on why the future of work is flexible August 22, 2020 While shops and restaurants are beginning to return to some semblance of normality, the evidence of coronavirus is still stark in London’s commercial districts. The City, perhaps more than anywhere, remains a ghost-town, its skyscrapers empty and its streets unclogged by the half a million commuters who used to make their daily pilgrimage. Offices will [...]
UK retail sales climb above pre-pandemic levels in July August 21, 2020 UK retail sales climbed 3.6 per cent higher in July compared to June, to beat their pre-pandemic levels, official data showed today. The climb came despite a seven per cent fall in online shopping after digital retail comprised a record 33.3 per cent of all retail sales in May. A sharp 11.9 per cent jump [...]
We are facing a mental health crisis among our young people — one we cannot afford to ignore August 21, 2020 The cost of Covid-19 keeps climbing. So far, the government is forecast to borrow £400bn in this financial year alone. Whether we like it or not, that money will have to be paid back — but the longer social distancing measures remain in place, workers stay furloughed, and consumers save rather than spend, the greater [...]