UK companies facing COVID-19 “pincer movement”, data shows

 News release: 20 April 2020 New data shows a spike in limited companies going out of business – coupled with a big decline in new starts – has hit all regions and sectors since the start of March   New data suggests the UK economy is facing a worrying “pincer movement” due to the coronavirus pandemic,… Read more

Left in the cold: How company directors are excluded from the Government’s coronavirus support schemes

The Government’s various coronavirus support schemes aim to provide a safety net for both employees and the self-employed during the suddenly-imposed ‘lockdown’ period now affecting the UK economy. But while the headline measures announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak over recent weeks – including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (JRS) aimed at employees, Coronavirus Business Interruption… Read more

The business effects of pandemics

Published today this ERC rapid review Insight paper considers the existing evidence on the business effects of pandemics, with a particular focus on the impact on small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Evidence from previous pandemics is reviewed, and in addition, we provide an overview of early assessments of the emerging evidence on the business impacts… Read more

April 2020 Press Coverage

Wired.co.uk This is how coronavirus will upend the economy over the next year FT Online: Coronavirus claims thousands of UK businesses The Times: ‘Pincer movement’ threat to economy Reuters: UK company closures jumped in March as COVID-19 crisis grew MailOnline (from Reuters): UK company closures jumped in March as COVID-19 crisis grew The New York… Read more

London firms lead other European cities in crisis planning

Earlier this week a report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies highlighted the vulnerability of different groups of the population to unemployment following the current crisis. Businesses also vary in terms of their crisis planning and resilience, and research has shown that SMEs are less likely to connect risk identification and business planning activities, which… Read more

Press Coverage : Covid19: Critique and Proposals to Develop More Comprehensive and Inclusive Support for the SelfEmployed. Research Report. April 2020

Birmingham Live: Coronavirus crisis could mean 100,000 jobs lost around Birmingham, expert warns Radio Interview on You-Tube Telegraph : Blackhole of financial support threatens to ‘decimate’ generation of entrepreneurs Mirror : Seven million workers to be paid by state as firms join coronavirus furlough scheme                

750,000 self-employed miss out on UK coronavirus support – study

  Lack of provision for most vulnerable self-employed in measures announced by the UK Chancellor last week threatens to “decimate a whole generation of early-stage entrepreneurs”, report authors say. More than 750,000 self-employed people in the UK could miss out on Government support during the coronavirus pandemic, a new analysis has shown. The findings from… Read more

Covid-19 and the implications for future innovation

Over the last few days we have seen some inspiring and innovative responses to the Corona Virus crisis by UK firms and universities. The JCB-Dyson collaboration to produce ventilators and the UCL-Mercedes AMG collaboration to develop other breathing aids are outstanding examples. Necessity is the mother of invention after all. But what of the wider… Read more