Brexit: Macron and Merkel clash over hopes for UK trade deal October 15, 2020 Hopes for a trade deal with the EU remained ambiguous at today’s EU summit, with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel disagreeing over whether the UK will secure a deal before the Brexit deadline. Macron told a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels today: “I hope to finalise a Brexit deal in [...]
Supermarkets supplying N. Ireland to get three month grace period after transition period December 9, 2020 Supermarkets selling into Northern Ireland will have a grace period to adapt their supply systems to the post-Brexit trading reality, Michael Gove said today. When the Brexit transition period ends at the end of the year, Northern Ireland will remain aligned to the EU’s single market and goods arriving in Northern Ireland will be subject [...]
Omicron: Aggressive new Coronavirus variant triggers worldwide travel bans as Covid fears grow November 27, 2021 Dozens of nations raced to halt air travel, while markets fell sharply and scientists held emergency meetings to weigh the exact risks as the discovery of a new Coronavirus variant has sent a chill through much of the world. A World Health Organisation (WHO) panel named the variant Omicron and classified it as a highly [...]
Watches of Switzerland repays furlough cash as it clocks surge in sales during pandemic December 17, 2020 Watches of Switzerland has raised its full-year guidance and announced it will repay furlough cash, after clocking a major boost in profits and sales during the pandemic. Operating profit at the luxury watchmaker beat expectations over the six months to 25 October, hiking 52 per cent year on year to £45.6m. Adjusted earnings before tax [...]
Brexit: Boris Johnson warns of ‘significant gaps’ to bridge in EU trade talks October 11, 2020 Boris Johnson has told French President Emmanuel Macron that there are still “significant gaps” to be bridged to seal a post-Brexit UK-EU trade deal. A statement released by Downing Street said the Prime Minister told Macron on a phone call yesterday that he needed to see progress in the coming days, “notably in the areas [...]
PM to hold last-minute Brexit talks with EU’s von der Leyen October 2, 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson will hold discussions with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen by phone tomorrow as the UK and EU try to strike a last-minute Brexit trade agreement. The latest and last round of scheduled talks between the two sides ended today. A deal remains a way off, with tensions still running [...]
UK set to halt US tariffs in bid for post-Brexit trade deal December 9, 2020 The UK has broken ranks with the EU and is set to suspend tariffs against the US over subsidies, in an attempt to broker a post-Brexit trade deal. There has been a long battle between the US and the EU relating to state subsidies for aircraft manufacturers Airbus and Boeing. The World Trade Organisation last [...]
EU to pay Astrazeneca £300m for Oxford coronavirus vaccine August 27, 2020 The European Union will pay €336m (£300m) for 300m doses for a potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by the University of Oxford and drugs giant Astrazeneca. In a statement, the EU said that as well as the initial doses, the deal would give it the chance to purchase an additional 100m doses, which would then [...]
World leaders pay tribute to Prince Philip April 10, 2021 Tributes to Prince Philip have poured in from leaders around the world after the Duke of Edinburgh died yesterday, aged 99. Speaking outside Downing Street yesterday afternoon, Boris Johnson said: “It is to Her Majesty and her family, that our nation’s thoughts must turn today, because they have lost not just a much loved and [...]
UK rolls out ‘vaccination status’ requirement for some international arrivals as ministers mull vaccine passports March 2, 2021 The government has updated its requirements for all international arrivals to England participating in the Test and Release scheme to provide their vaccination status, as ministers edge closer to introducing vaccine passports for foreign travel. The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) introduced the Test to Release scheme in December as a way of [...]