Government preparing for legal fight with Covid inquiry (it set up) over Boris Johnson WhatsApp messages Ministers worried Ministers are preparing for a high-profile legal battle with the Covid-19 inquiry as the Government seeks to challenge the request for Boris Johnson’s unredacted WhatsApp messages and notebooks. Bereaved families and opposition parties hit out at the Government after the Cabinet Office took the highly unusual step of seeking a judicial review of inquiry chairwoman [...]
Covid inquiry legal battle looms for ministers over Boris Johnson WhatsApp requests Boris Johnson Ministers could be set for a legal battle with the Covid-19 inquiry over the requested release of unredacted WhatsApp messages and diaries belonging to Boris Johnson. The Cabinet Office has until 4pm on Tuesday to respond to the request from Lady Hallett’s official inquiry. There has so far been little sign that ministers are set [...]
Boris Johnson probed by cops over fresh lockdown breach allegations Partygate ‘Partygate’ PM Boris Johnson is under police investigation following fresh claims he allegedly breached lockdown rules, it emerged last night. The disgraced ex-prime minister has been reported to the Met Police by the Cabinet Office after new evidence came to light that he may have breached the Covid-19 pandemic rules. Johnson allegedly hosted friends at [...]
Sadiq Khan hosts crunch business talks with City figures May 23, 2023 Sadiq Khan has warned London’s businesses are facing “the most difficult period in living memory” as a result of Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and the inflation crisis. The Mayor of London has called for the government to devolve some immigration powers to City Hall as a means of tackling regional labour shortages sparked by the [...]
Covid cash lost to fraud down by third because we’re ‘going after everybody’, Sunak claims May 3, 2023 Government cash lost to fraud and error via Covid-19 business and jobs support schemes has been reduced by a third thanks to “hundreds of criminal investigations”, Rishi Sunak has claimed. The prime minister defended the pandemic business loans and job support and vowed his government was “going after everybody” in a bid to reclaim the [...]
TRG: Analysts bump up share price target after strong growth May 2, 2023 Shares in Wagamama owner, The Restaurant Group (TRG), soared over 13 per cent this morning as it reported strong growth for the year so far, defying previous concerns from investors. TRG told the market that Wagamama sales were up nine per cent in the first leg of the year and performance in its pubs and [...]
FA Cup Final hit with fresh rail strike as Manchester fans face disruption getting to London April 27, 2023 The FA Cup Final and Eurovision Song Contest will be disrupted as ASLEF train drivers’ union today announced a series of 24-hour strikes. The 24-hour strikes will take place on Friday 12 May, Wednesday 31 May, and Saturday 3 June, which coincide with FA cup final between Manchester United and City, the last of the [...]
Covid loan fraud: More than 450 company directors disqualified in crackdown April 18, 2023 More than 450 company directors have been disqualified in a crackdown on covid fraud claims. The Insolvency Service announced that 459 of the 932 disqualifications overall for fraud were related to the coronavirus financial support scheme, introduced during the pandemic to help businesses in lockdown. This comes after the organisation published its monthly figures for [...]
Who has been hit hardest by £21bn of pandemic fraud, and will the taxpayer EVER get it back? March 30, 2023 The UK Government has lost £21bn worth of taxpayers money due to fraud since the start of the pandemic, that is “very unlikely” to be unrecovered, according to the National Audit Office (NAO). The NAO said that many public bodies are unaware of the amount of fraud they face, as it revealed that levels of [...]
Tui: Share price crashes 9.4 per cent over travel giant’s plan to raise £1.6bn for Covid loan repayment March 24, 2023 Shares in Tui today plummeted by more than 9.4 per cent after the travel company announced plans to raise €1.8bn (£1.6bn) to repay loans given to it by the German government during Covid-19. Tui, the world’s largest travel company, today set out plans to sell 328,910,448 new shares, at a 29.85 per cent discount of [...]