Dyson to make ventilators to bolster NHS supply in fight against coronavirus March 26, 2020 The government has ordered 10,000 ventilators from household appliance firm Dyson. The company said it has designed a new ventilator from scratch with engineers working “round the clock.” The government had earlier called for manufacturing firms in the UK to use their production capacity to make ventilators to counter a national shortage. However, the provision [...]
Virgin Atlantic to cut 3,150 jobs and quit Gatwick base May 5, 2020 Virgin Atlantic will cut a third of its workforce and cease its operations at Gatwick airport in a bid to survive the coronavirus crisis, the embattled airline announced today. The carrier, which will cut 3,150 of 10,000 strong workforce, is the latest airline to announce major job cuts after Ryanair and British Airways. In a [...]
UK’s smaller firms cannot pay debts amid coronavirus, say accountants April 6, 2020 The UK’s small and medium-sized businesses do not have enough cash to pay debts due in the next year, research has shown, as fears rise over the resilience of British firms in the face of the coronavirus slowdown. Coronavirus containment measures have pushed businesses to close and caused a slump in demand. This has caused [...]
Fees plunge at Hays as coronavirus hammers hiring July 16, 2020 Net fees at recruitment firm Hays plummeted by a third in the latest quarter, as coronavirus pressed paused on hiring and caused a huge spike in unemployment around the world. The FTSE 250 company, which provides recruitment services in 33 countries globally, reported a dent in hiring in every region in the world, with the [...]
RBS pays out 70 per cent of government coronavirus loans April 12, 2020 The vast majority of the emergency coronavirus cash being doled out to small businesses has come from the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), the lender has revealed. Taxpayer-backed RBS has so far approved 2,500 loans — roughly 70 per cent — under the government’s coronavirus business interruption loan scheme (CBILS), the Sunday Telegraph reported. The [...]
Retail restraint: John Lewis and Primark decline government help to play the long game July 16, 2020 For retail, the story of Covid-19 has been one of survival. Inevitably, the sector has looked to the government for assistance. Even the most hardened devotee of the free market has seen the Treasury’s coffers as a life belt to help companies get through the worst of the pandemic. Change and adaptation can come later. [...]
‘Turf war’ threatens Treasury as No 10 prepares for reshuffle February 12, 2020 Last minute preparations for a government reshuffle were ongoing last night ahead of an expected announcement tomorrow, with speculation that the Treasury’s ministerial team could be set for a shake-up. Rishi Sunak, second-in-command, is widely tipped for a promotion to a Cabinet post elsewhere in government after impressing No. 10. Sources have, however, suggested that [...]
Virgin Atlantic seeks up to £900m in rescue bid after coronavirus turbulence June 28, 2020 Embattled airline Virgin Atlantic is looking to raise up to £900m in a last-ditch rescue bid days after it said it was unlikely to secure a government bailout. The carrier, founded by Sir Richard Branson in 1984, has beefed up its original £750m cash call amid forecasts for an extended recovery period for the aviation [...]
Next Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey: Firms should expect coronavirus help March 4, 2020 The next Bank of England governor has said Threadneedle Street and the government is likely to provide loans to small and medium-sized firms to help them deal with supply chain disruptions from the coronavirus outbreak. Andrew Bailey told MPs that coronavirus was “going to be the first most pressing issue that we face”. He added [...]
PM warns Mike Ashley – obey the rules or face the consequences March 25, 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley to “obey the rules or to expect the consequences”, after the retailing heavyweight insisted staff must continue working during the coronavirus outbreak. During a bumper PMQs, Johnson was repeatedly asked about the situation facing workers, particularly self-employed, who currently have no additional support beyond [...]