John Lewis and Waitrose are poised to cut about 1,000 roles across their shops as the department store and supermarket chains continue a post-pandemic overhaul (The Telegraph).
The John Lewis Partnership said it would aim to find new jobs for those losing their store management roles and would aim to reduce compulsory job cuts by offering voluntary redundancy to those affected (The Guardian).
The latest round of redundancies means that since the start of the pandemic 4,423 workers have lost their jobs at the retailer which was set up by John Spedan Lewis in 1928 with the ultimate purpose of providing “worthwhile and satisfying employment in a successful business” (The Times £).
A UK government-commissioned review has called for the world’s first taxes on sugar and salt going into food production, to break what it calls the “junk food cycle”, and a 30% cut in meat consumption (The Financial Times £).
The National Food Strategy argues that people must cut their meat intake by a third and up to a fifth of farmland should be turned over to woods and wildlife. It is part of a “farm to fork” reset of how Britain produces and eats its food to cut carbon emissions and obesity (The Times £).
The government-commissioned National Food Strategy, drawn up by the restaurateur Henry Dimbleby, says the UK population’s “malfunctioning” appetites and poor diets – fuelled by consumer and manufacturer’s reliance on processed food – place an unsustainable burden on the NHS and contribute to 64,000 deaths each year (The Guardian).
Jamie Oliver in a comment piece in The Times (£) writes “our food system is fundamentally rigged against public health.”
Sainsbury’s is to encourage customers continue to wear face masks in its stores after they stop being legally required on Monday (The Telegraph).
SSP’s pandemic nightmare deepened after the catering group’s chief executive Simon Smith resigned only two years into the role (The Times £).
The City column in The Telegraph says the abrupt exit of the Upper Crust chief “leaves a bad taste”.
Britain’s inflation rate rose to 2.5% in June, far exceeding expectations and adding to pressure on the Bank of England to take the increase in prices more seriously (The Financial Times £).
The Office for National Statistics said dearer food, secondhand cars, clothing, footwear and fuel were the main factors behind a jump in the annual inflation rate from 2.1% to 2.5% in June (The Guardian).
Inflation may hit 4% later this year and the Bank of England could have to remove its stimulus earlier than thought, a deputy governor at the Bank of England has warned (The Times £).
More than 200 companies listed on the UK stock market are vulnerable to predators as private equity scours Britain for takeover deals, according to a 60-page report by broking firm Canaccord Genuity (The Mail). It warned that a string of households names including Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s, Vodafone and ITV could become bid targets before the end of the year.
Arguments between the EU and UK over fishing quotas will remain “politically toxic” for decades after British fleets were “sold out” by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in last year’s trade deal negotiations, the leading UK fishing lobby group warned on Wednesday (The Financial Times £).
The government has been accused of sacrificing the fishing industry for a second time since Brexit in order to burnish its green credentials with a huge programme for offshore wind turbines (The Guardian).
British importers and exporters are bullish about growing their businesses in the next year, despite many still suffering from the impact of Brexit, according to a survey of more than 1,000 businesses by HSBC (The Times £).
Caviar House & Prunier, the luxury caviar and seafood business co-founded by Yves Saint Laurent, has sold a majority stake to private equity firm Olma Luxury Holdings, an investor in luxury brands (The Times £).
No comments yet