General

It has been two months since the UK government enacted lockdown measures. The country is now transitioning to stage two of the health, social and economic crisis triggered by Covid-19.

The economic collapse in the UK is now the most severe downturn in 300 years, with activity forecast to plunge by around 30% in the first half of the year,

Britain’s overwhelmed care homes have emerged as the new front line in the fight against coronavirus. Care homes have struggled with a lack of testing and personal protective equipment (PPE) compounded by a multiplicity of data methodologies to count coronavirus-related deaths.

Britain’s smallest businesses can now borrow up to £50,000 from commercial lenders, entirely underwritten by the government and interest free for 12 months, in an extended support scheme announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak on Monday.

Empty streets, closed offices, restaurants and shops have become commonplace at home and abroad in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Europe is engulfed in an existential crisis like no other in its 70-year history. As nations across the world’s largest trading bloc show tentative signs of reopening their economies, the consensus is clear: the eurozone economy is experiencing the fastest and deepest economic contraction since the Second World War.