Supermarkets hand back help

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Tax relief returned

Tesco, Morrison’s, and Sainsbury’s have handed back hundreds of millions they received during the pandemic. Supermarkets have been slated for accepting over £1.9 billion in government support while their sales were booming during lockdown. 3 of the big 4 have now paid back the business rates relief.

Shoppers hit high streets

Footfall rose 87% in shops across England yesterday, as non-essential shops reopened after lockdown. It’s a bigger bounce than we saw at the end of the last lockdown. Experts reckon that’s because of “lockdown fatigue” and the pull of Christmas shopping.

Green offers £50m

Sir Philip Green’s family is going to pay £50 million into the pension fund of his collapsed retail empire. Arcadia went into administration earlier this week, leaving a deficit of £350 million in its pension scheme. There are still concerns about whether the pension scheme will be able to pay out - so there’s going to be an investigation by the Insolvency Service.

Premium Bond cheques to stay

National Savings & Investments has delayed plans to phase out prize cheques* after they were met with resistance. The prize “warrants” are currently sent by post, but were due to be replaced by online transfers. However, although a million savers have made the switch, others have struggled to register their bank details online.

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