UK’s Covid alert level downgraded as hospital pressure eases March 25, 2021 The UK’s Covid alert level is set to be downgraded as the number if patients in hospital with coronavirus continues to fall, the head of the NHS has said. NHS England chief Sir Simon Stevens recommended the nation’s coronavirus emergency incident level be lowered from level four to level three, effective from today. It means [...]
Matt Hancock: No guarantee that coronavirus laws will end in six months March 25, 2021 The health secretary has refused to commit to ripping up the Coronavirus Act in six months, telling MPs that emergency Covid laws could stay in place for another year. Speaking at a Commons debate on a potential extension of the legislation, Matt Hancock said: “There are parts of this Act that have allowed us to [...]
200,000 more people furloughed last month as 4.7m are still on the scheme March 25, 2021 Another 200,000 people were put on furlough for the first time last month as the government paid out nearly £4bn to cover wages. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said it had paid £57.7bn in furlough cash to around 11.4m people since the pandemic began. Around 4.7m people were still on furlough by the end of [...]
Britain most willing nation in the world to get Covid vaccine, survey finds March 25, 2021 People in the UK are the most willing of any nation in the world to get vaccinated against coronavirus, according to a new study. A YouGov poll found that 86 per cent of people in Britain were willing to get a Covid vaccine or had already received one as of 21 March — the highest [...]
Lockdown pet boom boosts CVS revenue to £245.6m March 25, 2021 The UK’s lockdown pet boom brought a boost to veterinary services provider CVS, which enjoyed a 9.4 per cent revenue growth in the last six months of 2020. The company saw its revenue rise to £245.6m, up around £20m from the year before, as customers were found to be spending around six per cent more [...]
Johnson says UK is ‘on the side of openness’ following EU vaccine row March 25, 2021 Prime Minister Boris Johnson today said that Britain is “on the side of openness” and that did he not want to see restrictions on the exchange of Covid-19 vaccines with the European Union. Yesterday the EU tightened its oversight of coronavirus vaccine exports, giving it greater scope to block shipments to countries with higher inoculation [...]
Covid-19, a year on: How Big Pharma reinvented itself March 25, 2021 In this series, Morning Wire looks back at the last year of the pandemic and Covid restrictions and takes stock of its impact on industries and issues at the heart of British society. Read more: Read the full Covid-19, a year on series here. Six years ago, pharmaceutical chief executive Martin Shkreli drew international condemnation when his [...]
Care home resident to be vaccinated despite son’s objections, judge rules March 24, 2021 An 83-year-old care home resident with dementia should be given a Covid-19 vaccine despite her son’s objections, a judge has ruled. Judge Simon Carr concluded in a hearing at a specialist court that vaccination against coronavirus would be in the woman’s best interests. The court issued a protective order over her identity. The pensioner’s GP [...]
France may be added to UK’s travel ‘red list’, warns Boris Johnson March 24, 2021 Tougher border restrictions with France including adding the country to the UK’s so-called travel red list may be needed “very soon”, the Prime Minister has said. Boris Johnson told MPs that the government “will have to look at” quarantine measures for hauliers coming into the UK from France “just because of the ambiguity about the [...]
Exclusive: City fund managers on pandemic volatility, inflation and value vs growth March 24, 2021 It has been a surreal year for fund managers in the City, with unprecedented volatility descending on practically every investment vehicle, asset manager or investor operating out of the Square Mile. The unpredictability of the ongoing pandemic is one of the reasons why the age-old investment-driven debate about ‘cheap’ value stocks versus ‘expensive’ growth equities [...]