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Ministers under fire over number of UK coronavirus tests

Concern among frontline NHS staff about disconnect between rhetoric and reality on viral checks and protective clothing

News

UK to spend up to £75m chartering flights for stranded Britons

Aircraft to repatriate ‘tens of thousands’ affected by coronavirus lockdowns

Contrasting police methods during lockdown raise liberty fears

Tough tactics used by some forces puts traditional consensual approach at risk

3 hours ago

UK manufacturing

Big names of UK engineering in push to make 30,000 ventilators

Fears remain pursuit of new but unapproved designs alongside existing models may have been wasteful

UK banks expect regulator to order dividend freeze

Action likely this week to shore up lenders’ capital levels for coronavirus outbreak

UK business & economy

Bus companies to be promised coronavirus bailout this week

UK operators seek aid after passenger numbers fall by almost 80%

Opinion & Analysis

Britons flocked to the parks as lockdown took hold

FT analysis shows Johnson’s measures are working but results lag other countries

3 hours ago

Robert Shrimsley

The new Labour leader must play a patient game

All the opposition can do now is ask the right questions and be seen to behave responsibly

Coronavirus: free to read

How UK companies can access state Covid-19 bailout funds | Free to read

There remains some confusion about claiming support from the chancellor’s rescue packages

Normal UK life may not return for 6 months

Efforts to suppress virus ‘will be wasted’ if curbs are lifted too soon, says top medical officer

AnalysisCoronavirus

Britain’s frontline doctors braced for coronavirus surge

UK predicts big increase in cases in next two weeks that will test the NHS to its limits

Promoted Content

More UK

Tuesday, 31 March, 2020

AnalysisOil & Gas industry
Quarantined offshore: North Sea energy groups rocked by coronavirus
Companies grapple with protecting staff in critical industry where many cannot work from home
3 hours ago
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Coronavirus
Coronavirus latest: France reports highest single-day death toll
Monday, 30 March, 2020

UK energy
Energy groups seek help on payment holidays
Loan scheme worth up to £100m a month would allow suppliers to assist struggling customers
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Brexit
Brussels parliamentary group calls on UK to seek Brexit extension
European People’s party says extension is ‘the responsible thing to do’ given Covid-19 pandemic
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Retail sector
Retailers defend online sales during lockdown
Chains say customers are buying essentials but ministers and unions question safety
Monday, 30 March, 2020

#techFT
How China would rewire the internet
Ventilator challenge, start-up runway fund appeal, Samsung AirDresser
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Civil Service UK
Senior civil servant chosen to oversee Whitehall reforms
Civil service shake-up key objective of Johnson government — particularly for PM’s chief adviser Dominic Cummings
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Security Service UK
Spy who led response to Skripal attack is appointed new MI5 head
Ken McCallum to take over from Andrew Parker as director-general next month
Monday, 30 March, 2020

John Thornhill
Covid-19 is accelerating the shift from transport to teleport
We are fast moving to a world where more economic activity takes place in digital form
Monday, 30 March, 2020

UK business & economy
UK economic sentiment deteriorates even before lockdown
Economists expect April decline to be much more severe
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Gideon Rachman
Even Covid-19 cannot damp partisanship
As the human and economic damage mounts, old political divides are likely to re-emerge
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Trade Secrets
EU sharpens its weapons to see off the looters and pillagers Premium
Governments look to protect their companies from foreign competitors
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Dominic Cummings
Dominic Cummings develops coronavirus symptoms
Prime minister’s adviser is the latest government figure to go into self-isolation
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Rail
UK government agrees rail deals with Govia and First Group
Awarding of franchises allows skeleton services to continue on Southeastern and Great Western lines
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Coronavirus
UK steps up efforts to supply tens of thousands of ventilators
Engineering group Smiths collaborates with other manufacturers to make 10,000 machines for coronavirus patients
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Special ReportBoldness in Business
Smaller Company: Ÿnsect hatches plan for food chain sustainability
The French start-up’s insect protein for animal feed could ease environmental strain
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Style
Fashion houses get creative in the fight against Covid-19
An ‘emergency designer network’ is using its skills — and production facilities — to make medical masks
Monday, 30 March, 2020

AnalysisCoronavirus
The mystery of the true coronavirus death rate
Without comprehensive testing and more precision over the cause of fatalities global comparisons should be treated with caution
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Coronavirus
Europe’s fishermen adrift as coronavirus puts market on the rocks
Industry suffers as restaurant closures across the globe knock appetite for lobster
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Edwin Heathcote
Learning to love the ‘sublime’ impact of energy of the landscape
Scenery, taken as natural, is often the result of intense labour over centuries
Monday, 30 March, 2020

Coronavirus
Creative industries left out of self-employed support
Professionals using limited company structures will not qualify for coronavirus rescue package
Sunday, 29 March, 2020

Coronavirus
Grounded airline staff asked to bolster NHS resources
Virgin Atlantic and easyJet call on employees to volunteer for new UK hospitals
Sunday, 29 March, 2020

Alex Salmond
Women who accused Alex Salmond of sex offences ‘devastated’ by acquittal
Statement on behalf of 9 alleged victims says fight for respect has ‘far to go’
Sunday, 29 March, 2020

Commercial property
UK landlords threaten legal action over non-payment of rent
Some last Wednesday received less than a third of monies due after ministers granted moratorium
Sunday, 29 March, 2020

UK airports
Regional airports fear for the future as Covid-19 grounds flights
Industry groups say lack of support from government undermines commitment to ‘connectivity’