Film fans flocked online during lockdown. As restrictions ease, what’s happening to revive cinema-going and restart shoots? Our critic heads to the cinema to find outIt’s Saturday lunchtime and I am watching Sonic the Hedgehog in a cinema. It’s fair to say that it wouldn’t have been my first choice of film to break my four-month cinema fast (titles also show […]
Research company owned by associates of senior Tory and PM’s adviser gets £840,000 jobCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe Cabinet Office has awarded an £840,000 contract to research public opinion about government policies to a company owned by two long-term associates of Michael Gove and Dominic Cummings, without putting the work […]
Ofcom issues penalty for failure to meet postal target and second-class stamp errorRoyal Mail has been fined £1.6m by the communications regulator Ofcom for delivering letters late and overcharging for stamps.Ofcom requires the postal service to deliver 93% of first-class post within one working day of collecting it but Royal Mail undershot the target, with […]
US firm will buy naming rights for fleet and piers, and users can book journeys on its appUber is to extend its reach in London by taking to the water, with the Thames Clippers commuter service to be rebranded Uber Boat and bookable through the US company’s app.A formal partnership will be launched this summer, allowing Uber users to book a Thames river jour […]
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as the EC warns that the eurozone will shrink by 8.7% this yearLatest: EC slashes GDP forecasts after lockdownUK house prices drop for fourth month runningIntroduction: China stock market hits five-year highMarkets heading back to 2015 levels…but is it a bubble?European markets are down 1% 3.46pm […]
Trailblazing system would help to stabilise the energy grid’s electrical frequencyA giant flywheel in north-east Scotland could soon help to prevent blackouts across Britain by mimicking the effect of a power station but without using fossil fuels.The trailblazing project near Keith in Moray, thought to cost about £25m, will not generate electricity or produ […]
Car registrations during 2020 have been the worst in almost 50 years, despite a pick-up in JuneLatest: Housebuilders drive construction back to growthCar sales down 48.5% so far this yearHousebuilder shares jump but boohoo hit by Leicester linksEuropean markets are rallyingCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage 3.09pm BST Just in: Two e […]
UK health secretary said overall he was pleased with behaviour as hospitality sector reopensCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe UK health secretary has praised “the vast majority” of people who took advantage of pubs reopening on Saturday for behaving responsibly.In an interview on Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday, Matt Hancock said he […]
Chancellor urged to introduce a scheme that has jump-started other countries’ blighted hospitality and retail sectorsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageRadical plans to give all adults £500 and children £250 in vouchers to spend in sectors of the economy worst hit by the Covid-19 crisis are being considered by the Treasury.The propos […]
The arts were at the heart of the maritime city’s bid for regeneration. Will its closed venues get any help this week, along with others across the UK? Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageIt has been a tough week in a city that is an increasingly tough place to live. Southampton, which launched its 2025 UK city of culture bid armed wi […]
UK government initially called for 30,000 machines but NHS capacity was never stretchedCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageUK manufacturers are to export surplus medical ventilators after they produced 14,000 to treat coronavirus patients only to find that most were not needed.Boris Johnson hailed the success of the “ventilator challe […]
Marriages and haircuts take place the minute the government’s coronavirus lockdown deadline passes at midnightWhether it’s getting a haircut or getting married, a small sense of normality has returned to England just after midnight, with hair salons and wedding venues reopening.Sandra Jacobs was among the first people through the door at Tusk Hair in Camden […]
Exclusive: Fashion brand profits from ‘stay home’ clothing supplied at speed from city now experiencing Covid-19 surgeCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageOn 27 March, even as the rest of the UK were trying to make sense of how to get through the coronavirus crisis, Boohoo seemed to have nailed it.It was a Friday, and usually the fast- […]
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsLatest: Just 9,300 UK mortgages approved in MayMortgages approvals down 90% (!) since FebruaryEconomists: Lenders and borrowers both nervousEarlier:World stock markets have hit a two-week lowCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage 1.26pm BST With mortgage lenders getting more caut […]
Local shops are busy, and new ways of working could have huge long-term effects on the future of major British citiesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageIt’s not yet lunchtime but the queue outside Joe’s Bakery on Gloucester Road in Bristol’s northern suburbs is already growing. Five shoppers clutching canvas tote bags and rucksacks w […]
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