Coronavirus: Dettol maker issues alert after Trump’s injection disinfectant comments April 24, 2020 Dettol and Lysol maker Reckitt Benckiser has issued advice telling people not to ingest its products “under any circumstances” after President Donald Trump suggested injecting disinfectants to treat coronavirus. Reckitt Benckiser said: “As a global leader in health and hygiene products, we must be clear that under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered [...]
Heathrow boss calls for coronavirus tests at UK airports April 24, 2020 The chief executive of the UK’s biggest airport has written to the government to call for it to introduce mass health screening at the country’s airports as part of its response to the coronavirus pandemic. Last night John Holland-Kaye wrote to health secretary Matt Hancock to demand the UK puts in place rigorous measures to [...]
Coronavirus: Boris Johnson ‘plans to return to work on Monday’ April 24, 2020 Boris Johnson is intent on returning to work as soon as Monday to continue tackling the coronavirus crisis, it is reported. Earlier this month, the Prime Minister was discharged from St Thomas’ Hospital following his own battle with coronavirus. He has since been recovering at Chequers, his countryside residence. But Johnson – who spent three [...]
Investors believe coronavirus lockdown will return with a rocky road to recovery April 24, 2020 The majority of investors believe the coronavirus lockdown will return, implying a precarious road to economic recovery. A Peel Hunt survey of investors and corporate managers reveals uncertainty over timing and severity of the lockdown, but the strong view is that it will likely return. Last week the foreign secretary Dominic Raab extended the UK’s [...]
Burberry to keep paying furloughed staff during Covid-19 crisis April 24, 2020 Burberry today said it will keep paying employees who are unable to work because of store or site closures during the coronavirus crisis. The luxury brand said it would not make use of the government’s furlough scheme — which pays 80 per cent of salaries for non-working staff — for jobs in the UK, where [...]
Government’s coronavirus website runs out of tests within minutes April 24, 2020 The government’s online coronavirus testing scheme for essential workers was closed within minutes of opening this morning. At Thursday’s daily Downing Street briefing, health secretary Matt Hancock announced the expansion of the testing programme to include key workers and people from their households. He said millions of people could book an appointment for a drive-through [...]
PM’s ex-economic adviser urges govt to go ‘further’ on coronavirus loans April 24, 2020 A former chief economic adviser to Boris Johnson has urged the government to underwrite 100 per cent of coronavirus business loans. Speaking exclusively to Morning Wire editor Christian May on the City View podcast, Dr Gerard Lyons called on the government to do more to funnel loans to small businesses hit by coronavirus. Lyons said [...]
Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group misses out on coronavirus loan, settles Belgian tax bill April 24, 2020 Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group’s application for a coronavirus loan has been rejected, it admitted today, as it finally settled a €674m (£588m) Belgian tax bill. Frasers Group (formerly Sports Direct) saw it application for a government bridging loan denied, sending shares down 2.4 per cent. The Covid Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF) scheme is open to [...]
Pearson holds dividend as school closures hit revenue April 24, 2020 Education publisher Pearson today said it will pay out a dividend for 2019 even as the closure of schools and test centres pushed down revenue in the first quarter. The FTSE 100-listed firm reported a five per cent decline in year-on-year revenue in the first three months of the year, which it said was a [...]
UK retail sales ‘obliterated’ in record fall over coronavirus April 24, 2020 UK retail sales plunged by their biggest fall on record in March, official data showed today as retailers counted the cost of the coronavirus lockdown. While food sales surged, overall UK retail sales plummeted 5.1 per cent last month compared to February, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). That was much bigger than [...]