City of London to host ‘back to work’ week in bid to revive Square Mile December 14, 2020 The City of London will call on office workers to return to the Square Mile in a “back to work” week in April, in a bid to help resuscitate the bars, restaurants and hospitality venues hammered by empty streets during the pandemic. William Russell, lord mayor of London and a former Merrill Lynch investment banker, [...]
Freedom day: Boris Johnson confirms big bang shedding of Covid restrictions for 19 July July 5, 2021 Boris Johnson has confirmed there will be a big bang shedding of Covid restrictions in England, with mass events set to return without social distancing or face masks from 19 July for so-called freedom day. Johnson said the government will be imposing very few Covid restrictions from now on and will instead rely on people [...]
Labour hammered in Hartlepool by-election as Starmer comes under pressure May 7, 2021 Labour has suffered an historic defeat in yesterday’s Hartlepool by-election, with Boris Johnson’s Conservatives winning the constituency for the first ever time. The Tories blitzed Labour in the by-election, winning by a staggering 23 points after losing the seat in the 2019 General Election. The loss has already led to recriminations within the Labour party [...]
Lockdown reimposed in Aberdeen after coronavirus outbreak August 5, 2020 Lockdown restrictions are being reimposed in Aberdeen following a sharp spike in infections in the region, Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced today. Pubs and restaurants will be among venues to close from 5pm today as part of the containment measures. Aberdeen residents will be told not to go to one another’s houses, as Scotland [...]
Germany to enter four-week lockdown from November October 28, 2020 Germany will enter a four-week lockdown from 2 November, Chancellor Angela Merkel confirmed today. Pubs, bars and restaurants across the country will shut for one month, while all inter-household mixing will be banned. Gyms, cinemas and theatres will also shutter for four weeks, as Merkel scrambles to contain a second wave sweeping across the nation. [...]
Boris Johnson confirms pubs and restaurants will not open before 4 July June 10, 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has confirmed that pubs and restaurants will not reopen fully before 4 July. Johnson told MPs today that the government would follow its original plan to open the hospitality sector next month, despite speculation to the contrary. Some pubs and restaurants are still open for limited takeaway orders, however this has [...]
Retailers feel Tier 4 pain as footfall drops 40 per cent December 21, 2020 Retail footfall plunged by 40 per cent in the areas of England put under Tier 4 restrictions such as London, laying bare the impact of the restrictions on shop-owners during the crucial Christmas period. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday announced London and parts of the south and south east of England would go into [...]
Sterling strengthens after Bank boss Andrew Bailey dismisses negative rates talk January 12, 2021 The pound is stronger against the US dollar and the euro this evening after comments from Andrew Bailey
More than half of London businesses ‘are not prepared’ for local lockdown October 13, 2020 Almost 60 per cent of London businesses have no plan in place for a local lockdown, according to new research, as the London mayor today warned the capital could see tighter restrictions within the next few days. Only 41 per cent of companies in the capital currently have a plan in place to deal with [...]
Post-Christmas lockdown for Northern Ireland December 18, 2020 Northern Ireland will enter a strict six-week lockdown from Boxing Day. Health Minister Robin Swann said the lockdown is “in large part” the same as “the sustained lockdown” of last March. Non-essential shops will close after Christmas Eve, and close-contact services such as hairdressers and beauticians will have to shut. Pubs, cafés and restaurants will [...]