The government has axed rail franchising and announced plans to extend support for train firms. To date the bill has run to more than £3.5bn and the Department for Transport has said “significant” support will still be needed. Support was initially given when passenger numbers fell during lockdown and taxpayer money was used to plug the shortfall in ticket revenues Although passenger numbers have edged up since lockdown, they are still less than half pre-pandemic levels. As a result, emergency measures to cover the losses of train firms have been extended by 18 months. They reduce the fees that can…
Author: sme-admin
Care providers in England will be given over half a billion Pounds to reduce COVID-19 transmission, bolster infection control and help protect residents and staff throughout winter. The Infection Control Fund, set up in May, has now been extended until March 2021, with an extra £546 million to help the care sector restrict the movement of staff between care homes to stop the spread of the virus. The fund will help care providers pay staff full wages when they are self-isolating and enable staff to work in only one care home, reducing the risk of spreading the infection. This brings…
Gender discrimination and harassment still exists – especially in tech. A new report from the non-profit ‘Women Who Tech’, which surveyed over 1,000 tech employees, found that more than 40% of women founders and women in tech continue to be harassed, despite the #MeToo movement. This year’s survey paralleled the 2017 survey while introducing new questions around investors’ perception of gender parity in tech and whether investors believe gender plays a role in access to funding. It also incorporated questions around whether women or nonbinary respondents were treated differently than men while working in tech or raising money for their startups. The report also found…
The Government has published the latest UK House Price Index data. This is the third publication since May 2020 following the decision to suspend the index as a result of the effect the coronavirus pandemic had on the reporting of the data. Between now and 21 October, they will be publishing the reports that were meant to be published during the period of suspension to enable the August data to be released on 21 October,. The June index was originally scheduled to be released in August. UK house prices increased by 3.4% in the year to June 2020, up from…
Seven UK companies have been awarded a share of over £1 million to help track debris in space Seven pioneering projects which will develop new sensor technology or artificial intelligence to monitor hazardous space debris, have been announced today by the UK Space Agency. The UK Space Agency and Ministry of Defence have also announced the next step in their joint initiative to enhance the UK’s awareness of events in space. Last year there was a close call in which a £100 million spacecraft operated by the European Space Agency (ESA) had to light up its thrusters to dodge a…
The Ministry of Defence is seeking new ways to assist military drone operators in urban environments in a new funding competition The Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) and Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) are seeking innovative and novel solutions to assist military drone operators to improve usability in challenging and complex urban operations. This cross-departmental requirement between DASA and DE&S is designed for the rapid exploitation of technology and is the first of its kind. Up to £900,000 is available for successful proposals that can help the Ministry of Defence overcome three challenges. The first challenge is the development of an optimised Unmanned Air…
New laws prohibiting social gatherings of more than six people come into effect today (Monday 14 September) as the Government calls on the public to remain vigilant in the fight against coronavirus. The new “rule of six” simplifies and strengthens the rules on social gatherings, making them easier to understand and easier for the police to enforce. It means that – apart from a set of limited exemptions including work and education – any social gatherings of more than six people will be against the law. Police will be able to disperse any such gatherings and fine individuals involved £100,…
Premises and venues across England must have a system in place to record contact details of their customers, visitors and staff in the latest move to break the chains of transmission of coronavirus. Premises and venues across England like pubs, restaurants, hairdressers and cinemas must have a system in place by law to record contact details of their customers, visitors and staff in the latest move to break the chains of transmission of coronavirus. These businesses and organisations had been advised to collect and share data, with many effectively doing so, but following the recent move to ban social gatherings…
Dounreay has awarded a major contract as the world’s deepest nuclear clean-up job gets underway. Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd (DSRL), on behalf of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, awarded the £7.5 million contract for “advanced transition works” at the 65 metre deep shaft and silo to Nuvia and its partner Graham Construction, through the site’s decommissioning framework following a competitive tendering process. Nuvia is an international nuclear engineering, project management, products and services contractor. The work will include the rerouting of existing services as well as minor construction and demolition works, preparing the 2 waste facilities to be emptied of legacy…
D’ora is the newest addition to the Rhino family at Cotswold Wildlife Park & Gardens. She is the seventh Rhino calf to be born at the Burford collection and is Monty and Nancy’s fourth breeding success together. Her birth is testament to the dedication of the mammal keepers and the Park’s commitment to the European Breeding Programme (EEP). Rory Carnegie, award-winning photographer and friend of the Park, captured some tender moments on camera between D’ora and her mother when she was just a few hours old. A photo gallery of the images are available here: https://we.tl/t-4srhMZuDky D’ora (pictured top left) is the…