BUSINESS GROUPS WARNING OVER NEW COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS

Business groups have warned of the ?devastating impact? on the economy of ongoing restrictions following yesterday's announcement by the government of a revised tier system. Adam Marshall, director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said: ?To weather a difficult winter ahead, greater support will be needed for the hardest hit firms, including those in town and city centres that will miss out on trade as employees continue to work from home.? (Guardian, p1). Last night, the prime minister said that the new restrictions, under which 41 per cent of the population is in the most severe tier 3 level and 57 per cent in tier 2, is the only way to guard against a third national lockdown and that tiers would be reviewed every 14 days. He said: ?Your tier is not your destiny. Every area has the means of escape.?(The Times,£, p1).  

Meanwhile, leading figures in the hospitality industry say the new restrictions, which cover 98 per cent of the sector, will ?lead to huge job losses? (The Times, £, p43) with an estimated £7.8 billion loss expected in December compared with last year, and will ?permanently decimate? the industry (Daily Mail, online only).

DIGITAL MARKETS UNIT TO CURB POWER OF TECH GIANTS

The government is to set up a new Digital Markets Unit to regulate a pro-competition regime for technology platforms including those funded by digital advertising, such as Google and Facebook. (Financial Times, £, p2). Following an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the new unit will create and enforce a new code of practice for technology companies (Guardian, online only), with the aim of ensuring a fair market for consumers.  Meanwhile, a Lords Communications Committee report, published today, recommends a 'mandatory news bar-gaining code' to be introduced into the government's Online Harms Bill (Daily Mail, p32), to address the ?fundamental imbalance of power? between news publishers and platforms. Under the code, technological platforms would have to pay publishers for the right to use content.

NEWS IN BRIEF

Online shopping is expected to reach a record high today with Black Friday price cuts from retailers in need of a sales boost after a ?lost? November (Guardian, p35).

The price of customs services has gone 'through the roof? as British businesses hurry to stockpile goods from the European Union before the post-Brexit transition period ends (The Times, £, p45).

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is assisting Manchester United following last week's announcement that the Premier League club's computer systems, which are still down, had been the subject of a sophisticated criminal hack (The Times, £, p78).

The European Central Bank (ECB) will today publish its final guide on environmental matters, which aims to help factor risks from factor climate change into business strategy, governance, risk management, and public disclosures for the biggest eurozone banks (Politico).

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