6:56 am, January 5, 2023
Rail passengers face more disruption as train drivers strike
Rail passengers face a third consecutive day of travel disruption on Thursday because of a strike by train drivers.
Services will be crippled by the walkout by members of Aslef at 15 rail companies in a long-running dispute over pay, with some areas having no trains all day.
The latest wave of industrial action comes as reports suggest the prime minister could announce legislation to enforce minimum service levels during strikes as soon as Thursday.
Starmer to promise ‘decade of national renewal’ in first speech of 2023
Labour will deliver a ‘decade of national renewal’ if it comes to power, Sir Keir Starmer will say in his first speech of 2023.
In his new year’s speech, the Labour leader is also expected to promise an end to the ‘sticking plaster politics’ in Westminster, with ‘a new way of governing’ for the future. But he is also expected to make clear that his pledges should not ‘be taken as code for Labour getting its big government chequebook out again’.
The speech comes a day after the PM delivered his own address, in which Rishi Sunak promised to halve inflation, deal with NHS waiting lists, and tackle small boats crossing the English Channel.
Government must help SMEs recover amid ‘bleak’ outlook, business group urges
Business confidence has stagnated and the future remains bleak for small firms struggling against “monumental” inflationary pressures and energy costs, an influential business group has warned.
One small services firm in Somerset reported that its electricity costs will skyrocket from £34,000 per year to around £250,000 from March, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) found.
The BCC, which surveyed more than 5,600 businesses in November, 92 per cent of which were small to medium enterprises (SMEs), urged the government to provide clarity over its new energy support package after it ‘failed’ to do so before Christmas.
EU advises pre-flight Covid tests on passengers from China
The European Union has ‘strongly encouraged’ its member states to impose pre-departure Covid-19 testing of passengers from China, in a move that is likely to upset Beijing and has already been criticised by the global airline industry.
Following a week of talks between EU health experts, the bloc stopped short of fully imposing on all 27 member states such a travel restriction that members like Italy, France and Spain had already implemented.
China has already vehemently rejected such actions and has warned of ‘countermeasures’ if such policies were to be imposed across the bloc.
Door always open for talks to avert NHS staff strikes, insists Sunak
The prime minister has said the ‘door is always open’ for dialogue with trade unions representing healthcare workers ahead of a fresh wave of strikes in bitter pay disputes.
Rishi Sunak defended the government’s record, telling reporters: ‘We have found extra money for the NHS and social care. I think that was recognised by many independent people at the time of the autumn statement, that we have prioritised the NHS, that we have listened and put more funding in.’ He also defended the independent pay process, which has come under criticism from unions representing nurses and ambulance workers who have taken industrial action in recent weeks and will strike again this month.
New car sales sink to lowest level in three decades
Supply shortages have been blamed for new car registrations falling to the lowest level since 1992.
Around 1.61m new cars were registered in 2022, according to preliminary data released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). That is down two per cent compared with the 1.65m registered during the previous 12 months and a quarter below pre-coronavirus levels.
The Nissan Qashqai topped the ranking of overall new car registrations in 2022 followed by the Vauxhall Corsa, Tesla Model Y, Ford Puma and Mini. More here
Aston Martin confirms new DBS 770 Ultimate
Aston Martin has confirmed that it will be producing a limited run, final edition version of its DBS flagship.
Though details are thin for now – ahead of the car being revealed in ‘early 2023’ – Aston Martin has stated that the V12 twin-turbocharged engine in the DBS will be tuned up to 760bhp, representing a significant hike on the 715bhp you’ll get from the regular car. The 770 in the car’s name references the Ultimate’s output in PS.
As a limited-edition version, just 499 examples of the Ultimate will be produced, according to Aston. The British firm has also stated that it will act as the ‘ultimate finale to a bloodline’, which suggests that the DBS nameplate won’t be returning to an Aston Martin vehicle.
Wednesday Car Dealer headlines you might have missed
- NYSE suspends trading in Cazoo warrants and starts delisting proceedings
- Renault says ‘non’ to agency sales, branding the switch too ‘risky
- Motability chief exec nets bumper pay packet as profits soar close to £1bn
- Leeds car dealership submits plans to expand onto primary school playing field
- Lookers asks to demolish Mercedes and Smart showrooms in Brighton to make way for new modern dealership
- What’s in a name? This is how you should now pronounce ‘Hyundai’
- Barretts becomes latest dealer group to close showrooms on Sundays in search of better work-life balance
- Redgate Lodge spends more than £1m on new preparation centre and showroom upgrades
- Tesla shares slide as ambitious delivery targets missed
Christmas shoppers provide boost despite rail strikes and cost-of-living crisis
Christmas shoppers provided retail and hospitality with a crucial boost despite the cost-of-living crisis and rail strikes, figures show.
Shopper footfall in December was up 5.8 per cent on the month before and 9.9 per cent higher than a year before, while the all-important gap between pre-pandemic 2019 also narrowed to 10.9 per cent from 11.4 per cent in November, according to retail consultants Springboard.
December footfall on high streets was 12.7 per cent higher than in 2021, while shopping centres saw a 10.3 per cent uplift and retail parks also enjoyed 3.6 per cent more visitors. However, in the penultimate week before Christmas, marred by four days of rail strikes, footfall was 20.1 per cent lower than 2019, more than doubling from 9.6 per cent the week before.
Boxing Day bounce sees rise in sellers putting homes on the market
The housing market experienced a Boxing Day bounce as 2022 drew to a close, with the number of sellers putting homes on the market up by 46 per cent compared with the same day a year earlier, according to Rightmove.
The website said the number of sellers putting their properties up for sale on December 26, 2022 was the highest it has ever recorded for any Boxing Day.
In further signs that people may be preparing for a move in early 2023, Rightmove said the number of people contacting estate agents to value their home between Boxing Day and New Year’s Day was the highest number recorded in a week since early September. Valuation requests were 29 per cent higher than a year earlier.
Weather outlook
After a bright start, cloud will build in from the west bringing rain into western and northern areas, reports BBC Weather. The south-west and other parts will stay dry.
Rain in the west will push into eastern areas tonight, but will clear by dawn.
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