6:35 am, October 4, 2021
Military tanker drivers take to roads to ease fuel crisis
Army tanker drivers are taking to the roads for the first time to deliver supplies to beleaguered petrol stations hit by the fuel crisis.
Around 200 military personnel – half of them drivers – are being deployed in Operation Escalin, despite ministers insisting the situation at the pumps is easing.
The troops – who have been on standby since the start of last week – will initially be concentrated in London and the South East, where the worst shortages remain.
Sunak to unveil further half-a-billion of support to help people into work
Chancellor Rishi Sunak will commit more than £500m in fresh funding to help people back into work as he seeks to stem the continuing turbulence of the coronavirus pandemic.
Mr Sunak is shifting the focus on to getting people into new or better jobs as the government comes under sustained pressure over a major squeeze on living standards.
The extra funding comes with Mr Sunak and Boris Johnson under pressure from within the Conservative ranks about the historically high tax burden.
Traffic light system scrapped as travel rules simplified
New rules introduced to make travel to the UK ‘easier and cheaper’ have come into force.
The UK’s traffic light system involving green, amber and red lists has been scrapped, with locations categorised as either on the red list or not.
It comes amid reports the number of countries on the red list will be slashed to nine from 54 later in the week, with destinations such as Brazil, Mexico and South Africa expected to be opened up to quarantine-free travel.
Metropolitan Police officer due in court charged with rape
A serving Metropolitan Police officer is expected to appear in court later charged with rape.
Pc David Carrick, 46, of Stevenage, Hertfordshire, will appear via video link at Hatfield Magistrates’ Court, the Crown Prosecution Service said.
Scotland Yard said Carrick, who is based within the Met’s Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command, was charged with rape by Hertfordshire Constabulary on Sunday.
Weekend Car Dealer headlines you might have missed
- Environment minister highlights need to switch to electric vehicles following petrol crisis
- First Drive: Updates keep the Seat Ibiza competitive as ever
- Car Dealer Podcast: James and Batch go head-to-head to prove who is the champion
- Used car prices up average of £822 in September with franchised dealers making the biggest increases
- Hendy Performance opens new showroom in Exeter following increased demand seen in the south west
Three quarters of hospitality firms hiking wages amid staff shortages – survey
Three quarters of pub and restaurant bosses say they are increasing pay to attract staff as a worker shortage continues to hamper the sector’s recovery, according to a survey.
A survey of 200 senior executives from across the hospitality industry found that one in six jobs currently lies vacant, and 96 per cent of business leaders were seeing staffing shortages for some roles.
The CGA business confidence survey, which was conducted by the research firm with technology specialists Fourth, showed that the shortage of staff was prompting bosses to step up efforts to attract and retain workers.
UK urged to tighten defences against ‘dirty money’ after offshore data leak
The government is facing fresh calls to tighten Britain’s defences against ‘dirty money’ after a leak of offshore data exposed the secret financial dealings of some of the world’s richest and most powerful people.
The cache of almost 12 million files – dubbed the Pandora papers – is said to cover the activities of some 35 current or former world leaders, more than 300 public officials and 100 billionaires.
According to BBC Panorama, which conducted a joint investigation with the Guardian, among the disclosures in the papers are details.
Warning over ‘ghost broking’ car insurance fraud
Young men are particularly likely to fall victim to fraudsters selling fake car insurance, according to police figures.
From January to August 2021, Action Fraud, the national fraud and cyber crime centre, received 351 reports of ‘ghost broking’.
People aged 17 to 29 are the most likely age group to report falling victim. Cash-strapped students are often targeted.
Facebook prioritises own interests over public good, whistleblower claims
Facebook prematurely turned off safeguards designed to thwart misinformation after Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump in last year’s elections in a moneymaking move, a whistleblower claims.
The whistleblower, former Facebook product manager Frances Haugen, said this contributed to the invasion of the US Capitol on January 6.
She also asserted during an exclusive interview that aired Sunday on CBS’ 60 Minutes that a 2018 change to the content flow in Facebook’s news feeds contributed to more divisiveness and ill will in a network ostensibly created to bring people closer together.
Mixed weather ahead with showers and sunshine expected
Today, western areas of the UK will continue to see sunny periods and scattered showers. Drier with sunshine in the east. Longer spells of rain will arrive into the south-west through the evening, reports the BBC.
Tonight, Wales and England will be unsettled with outbreaks of rain, these heavy across southern England. Scotland and Northern Ireland will have partly cloudy skies and cool temperatures.
Tomorrow will be wet and windy with gales over Wales and much of England. Drier and brighter and breezy in Northern Ireland and much of Scotland.
