Croydon council goes bust and freezes spending as Covid costs bite November 12, 2020 Croydon council has become the first London borough to buckle under the weight of the pandemic, as it today filed a notice declaring it virtually “bankrupt”. In a letter to councillors seen by City A.M, Croydon’s finance director Lisa Taylor outlined “serious issues” facing the borough, including a potential budget shortfall of around £66m this [...]
St Paul’s Cathedral awarded £2.1m in government funding November 7, 2020 St Paul’s Cathedral has been awarded £2.1m of government cash as part of a series of lifeline grants for cultural venues during the pandemic. The latest raft of government funding has seen more than £18m handed out to 182 cultural icons around the country. Thirty per cent of the money was awarded to London venues [...]
Coronavirus: London to lose £10.9bn from tourist spending, Sadiq Khan warns October 23, 2020 London is set to miss out on £10.9bn from a drop in tourist spending as a result of the coronavirus crisis, Sadiq Khan has warned, as footfall in the capital remains well below pre-pandemic levels. Overseas tourists will spend £7.4bn less on goods and services in London this year, while domestic tourists will spend £3.5bn [...]
Sadiq Khan urges ministers to build more London council houses to ease post-pandemic inequality October 21, 2020 Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has urged ministers to significantly increase the number of council houses in London, in a bid to offset increasing wealth disparities caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Khan today launched a major new report calling on the government to “stop blocking the aspiration of London’s councils to build” and urging ministers [...]
Majority of Londoners plan to stay in capital despite pandemic fallout October 21, 2020 Londoners have remained loyal to their city throughout the coronavirus crisis, with the bulk of people in the capital pledging not to leave the city despite fresh Tier 2 restrictions and work from home orders, according to new research. Just seven per cent of Londoners plan to pack up and flee the capital in the [...]
City of London pledges to lure in small businesses and artists in plan to ‘reinvent itself’ October 20, 2020 The City of London Corporation has pledged to “reinvent itself” by encouraging small businesses and artists to “re-enter the city centre”, as the capital attempts to shake off the economic damage of the pandemic . In a five-year target to reinvigorate London, the City has drawn up plans to motivate small businesses and artists to [...]
Business groups warn London lockdown would ‘crumble’ capital as mayor calls for support October 15, 2020 A London lockdown would “crumble” businesses and turn the capital into a “ghost town”, leading business bodies have warned City A.M, as fresh restrictions are likely to be imposed on the city in the next few days.
Finsbury Circus Gardens to become ‘City haven’ in major facelift October 13, 2020 The City’s largest open space is set to undergo a major revamp to transform it into a “haven for people and wildlife”, the City of London Corporation announced today. Finsbury Circus Gardens, London’s oldest public park, will see a new “secret garden”, urban forest and multi-purpose garden pavilion transform it into an “active cultural hub” [...]
London may be empty but community spirit must stay strong October 5, 2020 Just over six months since lockdown restrictions were first imposed, life today is very different for all of us with workplaces in the Square Mile. My workplace – Mansion House – would normally be buzzing with activity, hosting delegations from around the world and major set-piece events. The government’s recently revised guidance on working from [...]
Don’t let London become a Donut: Crowded on the outside, empty in the middle October 2, 2020 As a Londoner born and bred, I am acutely sensitive to the ebb and flow of people travelling in and out of London on a daily basis — the human tide of our capital. Despite various pleas and edicts, right now the centre of London is pretty much empty. The tide went out abruptly at [...]