Government has been ‘too slow’ to help the arts during pandemic, say MPs July 23, 2020 The government has been “too slow” to respond to the “existential threat” faced by theatre, live music and other cultural outlets during the coronavirus pandemic, a committee of MPs has said. A wide-ranging report released today by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee found that MPs have “consistently failed to recognise [...]
British takeaways call for rent holidays as coronavirus puts businesses ‘on the brink’ March 22, 2020 British restaurants and takeaways have urged retail landlords to grant rent holidays as they battle to survive during the coronavirus outbreak. The British Takeaway Campaign (BTC), which represents restaurants, takeaways and small businesses in the supply chain, called for an immediate three-month freeze on rent ahead of quarterly payments due next week. The group warned [...]
Can the Boris government really avoid Austerity the sequel? June 8, 2020 There is still a widespread view that austerity at the start of the last decade was somehow a political choice — that David Cameron and George Osborne (remember them) thrust the term into the political discourse simply as an ideological excuse to shrink the size of the state. But far from being a political smokescreen, [...]
Tory MPs vote against protecting the NHS from a post-Brexit trade deal July 21, 2020 Tory MPs last night voted down an amendment to the government’s Trade Bill intended to protect the NHS from any form of control from outside the UK, in a major blow to Britain’s health service as it grapples with the aftermath of the pandemic. Labour proposed an amendment to the Trade Bill which would have [...]
Richard Branson warns Virgin Atlantic needs coronavirus loan to survive April 20, 2020 Virgin Atlantic owner Sir Richard Branson has warned that the beleaguered airline will need government financial support in order to survive the coronavirus crisis. In a blog post to Virgin employees, Branson said: “The reality of this unprecedented crisis is that many airlines around the world need government support and many have already received it. “We will [...]
London Stock Exchange boss appointed as new FCA chief June 22, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak has today appointed Nikhil Rathi, the current chief executive of the London Stock Exchange, as the permanent boss of the Financial Conduct Authority. Rathi will replace Christopher Woolard, who was serving as the FCA’s interim chief executive following former boss Andrew Bailey’s move to become governor of the Bank of England. The [...]
Government measures will shore up British banks’ creditworthiness, says Moody’s March 19, 2020 Measures introduced by the Bank of England and Treasury to support the UK economy as it grapples with the coronavirus pandemic will support British banks’ creditworthiness, according to ratings agency Moody’s. On Tuesday, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a financial support package including up to £330m of loan guarantees, equivalent to 15 per cent of GDP, [...]
George Osborne’s former adviser Rupert Harrison: Extra spending in Budget is ‘welcome’ March 10, 2020 Rupert Harrison has spent the last few weeks monitoring obscure economic indicators – everything from pollution in Chinese cities to traffic in Milan – in an effort to guide his clients at investment giant Blackrock through the worst market crisis since 2008. He’s no stranger to financial turbulence, however, having been chained at the hip [...]
UK house prices: Will the surge last or is it a bubble? September 2, 2020 UK house prices surged to an all-time high last month as pent-up lockdown demand and chancellor Rishi Sunak’s stamp duty cut stimulated the market. The average UK house price rose to a record £224,123 in August, up from £220,935 in July. Bombastic estate agents greeted the figures with glee, variously describing UK house prices as [...]
UK ‘too slow to act’ on coronavirus, and 40,000 Brits could die April 17, 2020 The UK government was “too slow” in dealing with the coronavirus outbreak and 40,000 people could die, a leading public health professor warned MPs today. “Where were the system errors that led us to have probably the highest death rates in Europe?” Anthony Costello, professor of International Child Health and director of the UCL Institute [...]