cityam--2020-12-15--Britain begins trials of Valneva vaccine

Valneva will begin phase one and two UK trials of its coronavirus vaccine today , boosting Britain ’ s chances of wide-scale inoculation next year .
The Scottish-based vaccine company will initially test its jab on 150 British volunteers in England .
Early stage trials will attempt to prove whether the vaccine produces a safe and effective immune response against Covid-19 .
Read more : Vaccine ‘ gamechanger ’ will see UK economy bounce back sharply , analysts say If successful , Valneva will then begin larger clinical trials involving more than 4,000 UK volunteers in April 2021 , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the vaccine .
“ Today we have more welcome news that life-saving clinical trials will begin across the country to test the safety and effectiveness of Valneva ’ s vaccine , which is being clinically developed right here in the UK , ” said business secretary Alok Sharma .
“ As we take the monumental steps in rolling out the first Covid-19 vaccine , we must remember that we need to have a range of vaccines available to protect the British public now and long into the future.
” The UK government has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccine candidate — enough to immunise 30m people .
That compares to orders for 40m doses of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine , which last week initiated Britain ’ s largest ever vaccination programme .
Read more : London in Tier 3 : What are the rules ?
Ninety-year-old Margaret Keenan last Tuesday became the first person in the world to receive a coronavirus vaccine outside of a clinical trial , with jabs of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine set to be administered at dozens of hospital hubs across the country .
Around 800,000 doses are expected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the end of this week , with care home residents and carers , the over-80s and some health service workers at the front of the queue .
The government has spread its bets with 357m orders of seven different vaccine candidates , placing its largest stake in the Astrazeneca/University of Oxford vaccine , of which the UK is in line to receive 100m doses .
It comes after health secretary Matt Hancock on Monday raised eyebrows after announcing that a new variant of coronavirus has been identified in the southeast of England .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ said : “ Over the last few days , thanks to our world-class genomic capability in the UK , we have identified a new variant of coronavirus which may be associated with the faster spread in the south of England.
” “ Initial analysis suggests that this variant is growing faster than existing variants , ” Hancock told MPs .
The health secretary added that it was “ highly unlikely ” that the new mutation would “ fail to respond to a vaccine ” .
Read more : New coronavirus mutation spreading in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s comments sparked concern that the new strain would scupper the wide-scale rollout of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine , which is specifically suited to tackle the SARS-CoV-2 strain .
The new variant is currently being cultured at Porton Down , where Public Health England also has a research laboratory .

Britain begins trials of Valneva vaccine
Business secretary Alok Sharma visited the Valneva laboratory in Scotland in August
Valneva will begin phase one and two UK trials of its coronavirus vaccine today, boosting Britain’s chances of wide-scale inoculation next year.
The Scottish-based vaccine company will initially test its jab on 150 British volunteers in England. Early stage trials will attempt to prove whether the vaccine produces a safe and effective immune response against Covid-19.
If successful, Valneva will then begin larger clinical trials involving more than 4,000 UK volunteers in April 2021, who will each be given two doses of the vaccine.
“Today we have more welcome news that life-saving clinical trials will begin across the country to test the safety and effectiveness of Valneva’s vaccine, which is being clinically developed right here in the UK,” said business secretary Alok Sharma.
“As we take the monumental steps in rolling out the first Covid-19 vaccine, we must remember that we need to have a range of vaccines available to protect the British public now and long into the future.”
The UK government has ordered 60m doses of Valneva’s vaccine candidate — enough to immunise 30m people.
That compares to orders for 40m doses of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine, which last week initiated Britain’s largest ever vaccination programme.
Ninety-year-old Margaret Keenan last Tuesday became the first person in the world to receive a coronavirus vaccine outside of a clinical trial, with jabs of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine set to be administered at dozens of hospital hubs across the country.
Around 800,000 doses are expected to be available in the UK by the end of this week, with care home residents and carers, the over-80s and some health service workers at the front of the queue.
The government has spread its bets with 357m orders of seven different vaccine candidates, placing its largest stake in the Astrazeneca/University of Oxford vaccine, of which the UK is in line to receive 100m doses.
It comes after health secretary Matt Hancock on Monday raised eyebrows after announcing that a new variant of coronavirus has been identified in the southeast of England.
Speaking in the Commons, Matt Hancock said: “Over the last few days, thanks to our world-class genomic capability in the UK, we have identified a new variant of coronavirus which may be associated with the faster spread in the south of England.”
“Initial analysis suggests that this variant is growing faster than existing variants,” Hancock told MPs.
The health secretary added that it was “highly unlikely” that the new mutation would “fail to respond to a vaccine”.
However, Hancock’s comments sparked concern that the new strain would scupper the wide-scale rollout of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine, which is specifically suited to tackle the SARS-CoV-2 strain.
The new variant is currently being cultured at Porton Down, where Public Health England also has a research laboratory.


cityam--2020-12-15--Twitter pulls 'unsustainable' Periscope app

Twitter has announced plans to shut down its live-streaming app Periscope after seeing a decline in usage .
The app has been in an “ unsustainable maintenance-mode state… for a while ” , Twitter said in a blog post .
“ Over the past couple of years , we ’ ve seen declining usage and know that the cost to support the app will only continue to go up over time.
” Read more : UK to regulate social media firms such as Facebook and Twitter over content removal The company introduced the live-streaming app in 2015 and will now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ capabilities into Twitter .
Broadcasts that were shared to Twitter will remain on the site as replays and broadcasters will be able to download their archive .
“ We probably would have made this decision sooner if it weren ’ t for all of the projects we reprioritised due to the events of 2020 , ” the company added .
“ The capabilities and ethos of the Periscope team and infrastructure already permeate Twitter , and we ’ re confident that live video still has the potential of seeing an even wider audience @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Mudge : Why has Twitter just hired a world-famous hacker ?
Periscope will be removed from app stores by March 2021 but it is already preventing new account signups starting in the latest update to the apps , which is rolling out today .
Twitter bought Periscope in March 2015 but it did not take off like other live streaming services such as Twitch .
Twitter later integrated live video into the main Twitter app in 2016 , in a feature that was described as being “ powered by Periscope ” .

Twitter pulls ‘unsustainable’ Periscope app
Twitter has announced plans to shut down its live-streaming app Periscope after seeing a decline in usage.
The app has been in an “unsustainable maintenance-mode state… for a while”, Twitter said in a blog post. “Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen declining usage and know that the cost to support the app will only continue to go up over time.”
The company introduced the live-streaming app in 2015 and will now bring most of Periscope’s core capabilities into Twitter. Broadcasts that were shared to Twitter will remain on the site as replays and broadcasters will be able to download their archive.
“We probably would have made this decision sooner if it weren’t for all of the projects we reprioritised due to the events of 2020,” the company added.
“The capabilities and ethos of the Periscope team and infrastructure already permeate Twitter, and we’re confident that live video still has the potential of seeing an even wider audience within the Twitter product.”
Periscope will be removed from app stores by March 2021 but it is already preventing new account signups starting in the latest update to the apps, which is rolling out today.
Twitter bought Periscope in March 2015 but it did not take off like other live streaming services such as Twitch.
Twitter later integrated live video into the main Twitter app in 2016, in a feature that was described as being “powered by Periscope”.


cityam--2020-12-15--Europe lays out new rules that could force the breakup of big tech

Europe has laid out sweeping new tech regulation that could see big firms face huge fines in a further crackdown on big tech companies .
The European Commission today set out two new pieces of legislation as it looks to curb the power of some of the world ’ s most popular firms .
The EU has long had concerns over the growing influence of firms and the knock-on effect on smaller startups .
European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager and EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton today announced plans for the Digital Services Act .
It will widen the requirements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ content , particularly illegal content .
The legislation will also force companies to be transparent on the algorithms used for rankings on products they feature or recommend .
It comes after the UK Government announced plans to hand Ofcom considerable powers over social media firms .
The regulator will be able to fine companies failing in their duty of care up to £18m or 10 per cent of their annual global turnover .
Read more : EU joins UK in rolling out sweeping new fines for tech giants Meanwhile , in the US @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , have been ordered to hand over information as part of a probe into consumer privacy .
The Commission also announced details of its Digital Markets Act with the end goal of fostering competition in the market .
It is expected to apply to the big players like Google and Amazon .
Under the proposals set out today big tech firms could be fined between six per cent – under the Digital Services Act – and 10 per cent – under the Digital Markets Act – of global annual turnover .
Read more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with new legislation Currently companies can only be fined up to four per cent of turnover under the existing GDPR regulations .
EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton dismissed suggestions the new rules could be discriminatory .
“ Everybody is welcome in Europe .
Our responsibility is to give direction , rules to protect what is important to us , ” he told a news conference .
Regulatory scrutiny has been growing across the worldwide after concerns over privacy as well as complaints that they abuse their market power .
The US Federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state sued Facebook claiming the tech giant had broken antitrust law .
In the complaint , the 46 states , Washington DC and Guam also asked for Facebook ’ s acquisitions of Instagram and Whatsapp to be judged to be illegal .

Europe lays out new rules that could force the breakup of big tech
Europe has laid out sweeping new tech regulation that could see big firms face huge fines in a further crackdown on big tech companies.
The European Commission today set out two new pieces of legislation as it looks to curb the power of some of the world’s most popular firms.
The EU has long had concerns over the growing influence of firms and the knock-on effect on smaller startups.
European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager and EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton today announced plans for the Digital Services Act.
It will widen the requirements to define areas of additional responsibility around content, particularly illegal content.
The legislation will also force companies to be transparent on the algorithms used for rankings on products they feature or recommend.
It comes after the UK Government announced plans to hand Ofcom considerable powers over social media firms.
The regulator will be able to fine companies failing in their duty of care up to £18m or 10 per cent of their annual global turnover.
Meanwhile, in the US, nine companies, including the above, have been ordered to hand over information as part of a probe into consumer privacy.
The Commission also announced details of its Digital Markets Act with the end goal of fostering competition in the market. It is expected to apply to the big players like Google and Amazon.
Under the proposals set out today big tech firms could be fined between six per cent – under the Digital Services Act – and 10 per cent – under the Digital Markets Act – of global annual turnover.
Currently companies can only be fined up to four per cent of turnover under the existing GDPR regulations.
EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton dismissed suggestions the new rules could be discriminatory.
“Everybody is welcome in Europe. Our responsibility is to give direction, rules to protect what is important to us,” he told a news conference.
Regulatory scrutiny has been growing across the worldwide after concerns over privacy as well as complaints that they abuse their market power.
The US Federal Trade Commission recently announced nearly every US state sued Facebook claiming the tech giant had broken antitrust law.
In the complaint, the 46 states, Washington DC and Guam also asked for Facebook’s acquisitions of Instagram and Whatsapp to be judged to be illegal.


cityam--2020-12-15--The Best Fifa Football Awards 2020: Does Lionel Messi deserve to retain his Best Men's Player crown?

The Best Fifa Football Awards 2020 take place this week to honour the top performers of last season .
Lionel Messi will be hoping to retain his Best Fifa Men ’ s Player title in the face of competition from his perennial rival Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski .
So who really was the best in 2019-20 ?
Read more : Trevor Steven : I feel lucky to have shared a pitch with the greatest footballer of all , Diego Maradona Using quantitative analysis methods rooted in investment banking , number crunchers at Carteret Analytics believe they can provide an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to measure a players ’ contribution to their team winning matches .
It then assigns each player a value called their Carteret Rating .
Who should be named top man at Best Fifa Football Awards ?
On that basis , Lionel Messi was again the top player in world football last season and deserves to be named Best Fifa Men ’ s Player .
But Messi was only marginally more effective than Lewandowski , whose goals helped Bayern Munich win the Champions League .
Ronaldo , meanwhile , does not make it into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into question his place on the three-man shortlist at The Best Fifa Football Awards .
Manchester City ’ s Kevin de Bruyne was the third best performer in 2019-20 , according to the ratings .
Tottenham and England captain Harry Kane was fourth , followed by prolific Borussia Dortmund youngster Erling Braut Haaland .
Messi , Lewandowski and Ronaldo all score highly for the Game Changer element of their rating , which measures influence on a match ’ s outcome .
But the Barcelona forward has a higher Game Control rating , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ possession .
Analysis of the top seven players according to Carteret Rating and their relative performance in the previous season shows who is on the rise or slide .
While still the best , Messi slipped slightly , as did De Bruyne .
But Lewandowski , at 32 , improved , as did Kane and Haaland .

The Best Fifa Football Awards 2020: Does Lionel Messi deserve to retain his Best Men’s Player crown?
Lionel Messi is on a three-man shortlist for best men’s player at The Best Fifa Football Awards this week
The Best Fifa Football Awards 2020 take place this week to honour the top performers of last season.
Lionel Messi will be hoping to retain his Best Fifa Men’s Player title in the face of competition from his perennial rival Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski.
So who really was the best in 2019-20?
Using quantitative analysis methods rooted in investment banking, number crunchers at Carteret Analytics believe they can provide an objective answer.
The company mines data to measure a players’ contribution to their team winning matches. It then assigns each player a value called their Carteret Rating.
Who should be named top man at Best Fifa Football Awards?
On that basis, Lionel Messi was again the top player in world football last season and deserves to be named Best Fifa Men’s Player.
But Messi was only marginally more effective than Lewandowski, whose goals helped Bayern Munich win the Champions League.
Ronaldo, meanwhile, does not make it into the top 10 Carteret Ratings, calling into question his place on the three-man shortlist at The Best Fifa Football Awards.
Manchester City’s Kevin de Bruyne was the third best performer in 2019-20, according to the ratings.
Tottenham and England captain Harry Kane was fourth, followed by prolific Borussia Dortmund youngster Erling Braut Haaland.
Messi, Lewandowski and Ronaldo all score highly for the Game Changer element of their rating, which measures influence on a match’s outcome.
But the Barcelona forward has a higher Game Control rating, which reflects factors such as effectiveness in retaining possession.
Analysis of the top seven players according to Carteret Rating and their relative performance in the previous season shows who is on the rise or slide.
While still the best, Messi slipped slightly, as did De Bruyne. But Lewandowski, at 32, improved, as did Kane and Haaland.


cityam--2020-12-15--Moss Bros landlords approve retailer's rescue plan

Landlords have approved Moss Bros restructuring proposals as the menswear retailer aims to reduce costs due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic .
The high street store ’ s creditors gave the company voluntary arrangement proposals the green light today , after the plan was launched on 27 November .
Moss Bros has not announced whether the proposals could lead to the closure of some of its 128 UK stores or whether any retail jobs will be affected .
However Moss Bros chief executive Brian Bick said the CVA will allow the retailer to “ reset the cost base @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pandemic on a sure financial footing ” .
“ We are incredibly grateful to our landlords and suppliers for their support in this process and proud of our employees for the way they have dealt with all that 2020 has thrown at them , ” Bick said .
“ We also recognise the backing of our new shareholders throughout the challenges of the takeover , pandemic and CVA process .
We look forward to continuing to evolve our brand and ranges to serve all our customers , old and new , just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” More than 80 per cent of voting creditors – including the majority of landlords – voted to pass the proposals .
Will Wright , head of regional restructuring at KPMG and joint supervisor of the CVA , added : “ The passing of the CVA provides Moss Bros with a solid footing upon which it can continue to navigate through this period of extreme uncertainty.
” Read more : Moss Bros calls on KPMG to help with restructuring plans Moss Bros has been hit by the lockdown measures implemented by the government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The company said its particular niche – men ’ s formalwear – had been particularly impacted due to the cancellation of mass gatherings such as weddings , proms and sporting events such as the Royal Ascot .

Moss Bros landlords approve retailer’s rescue plan
Moss Bros has been just one of many high street stores that struggled during the pandemic.
Landlords have approved Moss Bros restructuring proposals as the menswear retailer aims to reduce costs due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The high street store’s creditors gave the company voluntary arrangement proposals the green light today, after the plan was launched on 27 November.
Moss Bros has not announced whether the proposals could lead to the closure of some of its 128 UK stores or whether any retail jobs will be affected.
However Moss Bros chief executive Brian Bick said the CVA will allow the retailer to “reset the cost base of the business and to emerge from the pandemic on a sure financial footing”.
“We are incredibly grateful to our landlords and suppliers for their support in this process and proud of our employees for the way they have dealt with all that 2020 has thrown at them,” Bick said.
“We also recognise the backing of our new shareholders throughout the challenges of the takeover, pandemic and CVA process. We look forward to continuing to evolve our brand and ranges to serve all our customers, old and new, just as we have for so many years.”
More than 80 per cent of voting creditors – including the majority of landlords – voted to pass the proposals.
Will Wright, head of regional restructuring at KPMG and joint supervisor of the CVA, added: “The passing of the CVA provides Moss Bros with a solid footing upon which it can continue to navigate through this period of extreme uncertainty.”
Moss Bros has been hit by the lockdown measures implemented by the government in response to the coronavirus crisis.
The company said its particular niche – men’s formalwear – had been particularly impacted due to the cancellation of mass gatherings such as weddings, proms and sporting events such as the Royal Ascot.


cityam--2020-12-15--Redbridge overtakes Ealing: How many Covid-19 infections are there in your local borough?

London recorded 4,238 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours , as the capital braces itself to enter Tier 3 from midnight on Wednesday .
Latest data from Public Health England showed that London ’ s infection rate now stands at 270.5 per 100,000 in the past seven days — the highest in the country — while the South East ’ s rate is 211.5 .
Read more : Capital Punishment : London to enter Tier 3 on Wednesday A spike in cases in 21 out of 32 London boroughs in the last couple of weeks has led the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ measures from Wednesday .
Figures released by Public Health England showed that Redbridge has overtaken Ealing as the worst-affected borough , after recording a staggering 256 cases in the past 24 hours .
It has now recorded 10,280 confirmed Covid-19 cases since the start of the pandemic .
Read more : Coronavirus cases ‘ levelling off ’ across England ahead of three-tier system Ealing reported 131 new cases in the last 24 hours to climb to 9,349 in total .
Newham has also overtaken Ealing with 9,821 confirmed cases , after recording 189 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Matt Hancock said that a new variant of coronavirus has been identified in the southeast of England , which is growing faster than existing variants .
The mutation is predominantly in the south of England which may be causing the steep rise in cases in the capital .
Several other boroughs in East London have recorded a high rate of new cases , with Dagenham and Tower Hamlets also reporting spikes in infections .
Enfield is starting to see a spike in infections too having recorded a further 263 cases on Tuesday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more : Two-thirds of London boroughs launch their own local contact tracing systems It comes as the UK recorded a further 18,450 coronavirus cases , bringing the total number of people who have tested positive since the start of the pandemic to almost 1.87 .
The official UK death toll officially passed the 60,000 mark last week , with a further 506 fatalities recorded in the past 24 hours bringing the total number of Covid-related deaths to 64,808 .
Listen to our daily City View podcast as we chart the economic fallout and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Data sourced from Public Health England , accurate as of 4pm on Monday 14 December Before the Open newsletter : Start your day with the City View podcast and key market data

How many Covid-19 infections are there in your London borough?
London has seen a sharp drop in the number of recorded coronavirus cases over the past few days, after figures released on Friday showed the capital currently has the lowest R rate in the country.
A further 629 cases were recorded in the past 24 hours, taking the total number of positive tests in London since the start of the pandemic to 697,278.
It marks a significant drop since a record 19,871 daily cases were recorded on 29 December, as lockdown measures continue to drive down infections.
Several areas in the capital have seen case numbers drop threefold over the past fortnight, which in turn has pushed down the spread of infection.
Most boroughs in the capital now have a seven-day rate below 100 new cases per 100,000, but that figure is below 50 in some areas in central London.
Twenty-nine London borough areas, including the whole of east London which was hardest hit by the second wave, have a seven-day case rate below 100 new confirmed cases per 100,000.
Meanwhile, Southwark, Westminster, Camden, Kensington and Chelsea all recorded seven-day rates below 50. Lewisham saw the lowest case rate in the capital in the week to 24 February, with an average of 43 people infected per 100,000 population.
Meanwhile, Ealing currently has the highest case rate, with 123 cases per 100,000, followed by Hounslow at 115 and Hillingdon on 97.
Health chiefs have said all London boroughs need to get below a case rate of 100 before restrictions can begin to be lifted, starting with the reopening of schools on 8 March.
It comes after figures released last Friday showed London’s R rate remains at a best estimate of 0.6 to 0.8 — the lowest in the country, alongside the east of England and the South West.
The figure means infections may be falling anywhere between five and eight per cent each day.
However, separate figures released last week showed the percentage of people testing positive for coronavirus in London remains the highest of any English region.
Data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed around 1 in 63 Londoners were infected with the virus last week.
That compares to an estimated 1 in 80 people who contracted the virus in England as a whole in the week to 6 February, according to ONS figures.
Listen to our daily City View podcast as we chart the economic fallout and business impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
London coronavirus cases by borough (in alphabetical order)
Data sourced from Public Health England, accurate as of 4pm on Tuesday 2 March
Boroughs Rate of infection per 100,000 people in last 7 days Total confirmed cases since start of pandemic Barking and Dagenham 86 22,925 Barnet 75 29,569 Bexley 58 21,812 Brent 91 27,577 Bromley 48 23,857 Camden 42 13,683 Croydon 73 30,213 Ealing 123 29,807 Enfield 48 29,217 Greenwich 55 21,769 Hackney and City of London 57 21,234 Hammersmith and Fulham 76 12,564 Haringey 58 20,345 Harrow 95 19,917 Havering 65 26,383 Hillingdon 97 25,287 Hounslow 115 23,817 Islington 43 14,574 Kensington and Chelsea 43 8,643 Kingston upon Thames 47 11,764 Lambeth 49 23,625 Lewisham 39 21,226 Merton 79 15,719 Newham 61 34,574 Redbridge 72 31,965 Richmond upon Thames 55 10,430 Southwark 42 21,947 Sutton 80 15,509 Tower Hamlets 53 28,074 Waltham Forest 52 24,325 Wandsworth 63 21,377 Westminster 41 13,577
Before the Open newsletter: Start your day with the City View podcast and key market data


cityam--2020-12-15--'We will lose £400k': The cost of Tier 3 for the hospitality sector

As the hospitality sector begins to count the cost of the latest Tier 3 lockdown , we spoke to one industry figure who says his company will lose £400,000 .
Stuart Procter , COO of Mayfair hotel and restaurant The Stafford , said the latest blow has left his company reeling in a year he ’ s already had to make 300 redundancies .
“ I ’ m furious .
Devastated .
I can ’ t quite believe how this has been handled .
You can ’ t give 48 hours notice for a decision this big , one that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is people ’ s lives and livelihoods – at The Stafford and Norma alone we ’ ll lose £400,000.
” Read more : ‘ I just feel like crying ’ – chefs react to ‘ cruel ’ Tier 3 restrictions The hospitality sector reacted with fury when London was placed into Tier 3 yesterday , despite evidence that seems to contradict the government ’ s focus on the bars and restaurants .
“ You can drop the kids off at school , take the tube work and then go shopping on Oxford Street @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a meal in a restaurant , where transmission rates are incredibly low – where is the sense in that ?
“ I could understand if the government was saying nobody could go out , that we would have to just stay in and get through the winter .
But there ’ s this idea that we can all mingle with our families for a few days , which is going to spread the virus much more than the hospitality sector ever could.
” Read more : Sadiq Khan : London ’ s hard-hit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The lack of communication with the sector – which has led to calls for a Hospitality Minister to be appointed – has been particularly galling for many business owners , with Procter pointing to the fact no support package was announced alongside the Tier 3 restrictions .
“ This is the third time this has happened , and you can see there ’ s no plan .
Boris didn ’ t even have the guts to make the announcement himself – what kind of leadership is that ?
“ It ’ s the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ve had to get rid of 50 per cent of our workforce this year .
That ’ s 300 people , some of whom have worked here for 30 or 40 years .
These are people I ’ ve worked with day in day out .
And more than that , their families will suffer .
It ’ s messing with people ’ s lives , messing with their mental health.
” Read more : London in Tier 3 : What are the rules ?
Procter says he also feels for the people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ period : “ People had booked trains , planes .
They were coming in for Christmas dinner .
The government has made a big thing about ‘ saving Christmas ’ – what about those people ’ s Christmas ?
” As well as the lost revenue , The Stafford and its spin-off restaurant Norma have been left with £10,000 worth of stock that can no longer be sold .
Some of it will be sold on through the company ’ s delivery service , although that will cover only a fraction of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lobster tails ready to serve – there ’ s only so much lobster you can give to the staff.
” Asked what more could be done to support businesses , Procter said the government should look to Germany and France , where “ hospitality businesses are being given far more support ” .
Read more : London moves into Tier 3 : what does this mean for travel ?

‘We will lose £400k’: The cost of Tier 3 for the hospitality sector
As the hospitality sector begins to count the cost of the latest Tier 3 lockdown, we spoke to one industry figure who says his company will lose £400,000.
Stuart Procter, COO of Mayfair hotel and restaurant The Stafford, said the latest blow has left his company reeling in a year he’s already had to make 300 redundancies.
“I’m furious. Devastated. I can’t quite believe how this has been handled. You can’t give 48 hours notice for a decision this big, one that will affect this many people. This is people’s lives and livelihoods – at The Stafford and Norma alone we’ll lose £400,000.”
The hospitality sector reacted with fury when London was placed into Tier 3 yesterday, despite evidence that seems to contradict the government’s focus on the bars and restaurants.
“You can drop the kids off at school, take the tube work and then go shopping on Oxford Street, but you can’t have a meal in a restaurant, where transmission rates are incredibly low – where is the sense in that?
“I could understand if the government was saying nobody could go out, that we would have to just stay in and get through the winter. But there’s this idea that we can all mingle with our families for a few days, which is going to spread the virus much more than the hospitality sector ever could.”
Lack of communication
The lack of communication with the sector – which has led to calls for a Hospitality Minister to be appointed – has been particularly galling for many business owners, with Procter pointing to the fact no support package was announced alongside the Tier 3 restrictions.
“This is the third time this has happened, and you can see there’s no plan. Boris didn’t even have the guts to make the announcement himself – what kind of leadership is that?
“It’s the unfairness that gets you. I’ve had to get rid of 50 per cent of our workforce this year. That’s 300 people, some of whom have worked here for 30 or 40 years. These are people I’ve worked with day in day out. And more than that, their families will suffer. It’s messing with people’s lives, messing with their mental health.”
Procter says he also feels for the people who were booked in over the festive period: “People had booked trains, planes. They were coming in for Christmas dinner. The government has made a big thing about ‘saving Christmas’ – what about those people’s Christmas?”
As well as the lost revenue, The Stafford and its spin-off restaurant Norma have been left with £10,000 worth of stock that can no longer be sold. Some of it will be sold on through the company’s delivery service, although that will cover only a fraction of the lost revenue.
“We had 100 lobster tails ready to serve – there’s only so much lobster you can give to the staff.”
Asked what more could be done to support businesses, Procter said the government should look to Germany and France, where “hospitality businesses are being given far more support”.


cityam--2020-12-15--The story of a saga of collectors and the museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga

The Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection , which is one of the most important art collections of the 20th century , was formed in only two generations .
Its precursor was August Thyssen , the second Baron ’ s grandfather , who exchanged letters with the sculptor Rodin and even acquired several of his works .
August ’ s third son , the first Baron Thyssen , managed to gather together an extremely important core of European artworks dating from the 13th to the 18th century , with the emphasis on portraits .
The second Baron , Hans Heinrich Thyssen , who at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to take up the reins of the Thyssen empire upon his father ’ s death in 1947 , not only managed to hold together his father ’ s legacy but also made additions to it in the form of works by the German Expressionist school , the Impressionists , the American Post-Impressionists , and the foremost 20th-century tendencies , with a preference for landscape painting .
In the course of only a few years the Baron acquired over six hundred exceptional works of art .
The Carmen Thyssen Collection was first presented to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Madrid , in 1996 .
It currently consists of one thousand three hundred and twenty works .
The cornerstones of the collection are its 18th-century vedute , 19th-century naturalist landscapes and its Impressionist , Post-Impressionist and early 20th-century avant-garde works , with an important corpus of North American painters .
While the first Baron ’ s contribution to the collection was a direct result of his interest in portraiture and Hans Heinrich Thyssen ’ s of his preference for landscape painting and modern art as well as Old Masters , the Baroness has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ art collecting .
Carmen Thyssen extended her collection to 19th-century and early 20th-century Spanish art , in the hope that it would be better understood and appreciated internationally .
In 1997 she herself declared that her taste for Spanish tradition was the greatest contribution she could ever make to her collection .
However , the Spanish paintings are more than just a collection of works of art in itself .
The collection also brings memories of a recent past to mind , for it represents part of Spanish history and customs .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the collection ’ s characteristics and above all , the subject matter , which reflects a predilection for genre scenes and landscapes .
In order to bring these works closer to the public , the Carmen Thyssen Collection exhibitions were organised on a more international scale from 1994 on .
With great success and prestige the Baroness took temporary exhibitions of international works – always including Spanish paintings – all over the world .
In 1997 the Shanghai Museum opened with the exhibition From Zurbarán to Picasso , which three months later travelled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ months played an extremely important part in promotion of Western art in the Far East .
Furthermore , the exhibition The Spirit of the Place .
Masterworks from the Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection was shown at the Frick Collection in New York from the end of 1997 to March 1998 .
These exhibitions were only two of forty-two different projects .
The genre scene and Andalusian painting section was first presented under the title Andalusian Painting in the Carmen Thyssen Collection at the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza , Madrid , in July 2004 , and in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
This was not the first time that part of the collection had travelled to Malaga , for in 1999 the city had hosted Aspects of the Landscape Tradition in the Carmen Thyssen Collection , which illustrated the development of landscape painting .
Consisting of two hundred and thirty-two works , the Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga Collection is centred around 19th-century Spanish painting .
When viewed as a whole , it illustrates the view of Spain which was prevalent abroad during the Romantic age .
As this period also saw the rise of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ travellers went away with new ideas of Spain as a foreign country .
France was one of the principal contributors to the creation of the clichés then associated with Spain , which saw the arrival of many intellectuals from the neighbouring country , including Prosper Mérimée and Théophile Gautier .
The French aristocracy also took a hand , one manifestation being King Louis-Philippe ’ s “ Spanish Gallery ” , which opened in the Musée du Louvre in 1838 .
However , the court of the Duke and Duchess of Montpensier in Seville @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Orléans , was Louis-Philippe ’ s son ) became a focal point for the exchange of ideas between personalities and European intellectuals in the very heart of Andalusia .
Among those visitors were a large number of Britons , including Richard Ford , David Wilkie , George Borrow and John Frederick Lewis .
Chronologically , the Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga Collection begins with a group of fifteen exhibits under the heading “ Old Masters ” and includes works dating from the Middle Ages to the Baroque period , the centrepiece being Zurbarán ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the collection belongs to the movements associated with Romanticism and genre scene painting , the Précieux style , realism and the early 20th century .
In the Romanticism and genre scene painting group we shall see landscapes , the origins of flamenco , the continuation of Goya through the work of Lucas Velázquez , flower-filled courtyards and pilgrimages .
Particularly important in the realist and précieux style section are the expressive intensity of Mariano Fortuny , the portraits of Raimundo de Madrazo and the vedute of José Moreno Carbonero , Martín Rico @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transition from Romantic to realist painting is illustrated by the work of the Belgian Carlos de Haes and the marine paintings of Guillermo Gómez Gil , Emilio Ocón and Ricardo Verdugo Landi .
The fin-de-siècle area signals the road towards modernity , whose heterogeneity is a veritable repertoire of the interpretations of the new artistic idioms .
Thus we see works by Darío de Regoyos in the new Impressionist style , by Beruete with regenerationism , by Joaquín Sorolla with the brilliance of light , the “ pure ” view of Ramon Casas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ melancholy gaze of Julio Romero de Torres and the austerity of Zuloaga .
Negotiations between the Baroness and Malaga City Council began in 2006 , by which time the latter had already acquired the Palacio de Villalón , a building of considerable artistic and historical importance , situated in one of the city ’ s oldest districts .
Indeed , the Catholic Monarchs began to allocate plots of land in that area only twenty days after recapturing Malaga on 19 August 1487 .
The palace stands on the site which formerly extended from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Puerta Nueva gate .
Given its proximity to the square known as the Plaza Pública ( where the Town Hall was established in 1528 ) , a large number of king ’ s guards and their squires were assigned to the area .
The street known as Calle de Las Guardas received its name precisely due to the guards who lived there , yet is actually prior to that period , having once been part of the Roman decumanus which crossed the city from Placeta de la Alcazaba to the River Guadalmedina @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of craftsmen known as the Los Mártires , although more luxurious and ostentatious dwellings were subsequently built there and the squires were gradually replaced by a higher social group .
Although the palace dates from the 16th century , it owes its present appearance to work completed in the 18th century .
The surviving original elements include the wooden roofs and the two Renaissance columns in the courtyard .
The Renaissance façade contains a large door that is surmounted by a noble coat of arms and leads to a large vestibule which in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with semi-circular arches framed on the ground-floor level by Arabic moulding .
Particularly interesting are the coffered ceilings and tracery , most of which are clearly of Mudéjar inspiration , especially those over the staircase and in the main hall .
Although the building deteriorated in the second decade of the 20th century , fortunately the stone façade and coat of arms survived , as did various other important original features , particularly the wooden coffered ceilings .
In May 2004 urgent repairs were made to the roofs and in 2005 archaeological excavations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Roman remains beneath the foundations dating from the 3rd century A.D. , including a complex for producing garum , which Malaga exported to Rome .
A residential zone and a nymphaeum ( fountain ) adorned with original fish-motif paintings have also been unearthed .
It was in 2008 that the Palacio de Villalón was first considered as a site for the future Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga and the decision was subsequently made public .
The Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga covers a total area of 7,147m2 , of which 5,185m2 is used for exhibition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ architects Rafael Roldán and Javier González .
Although sober and dating from around 1780 , the paintings of architectural motifs and figures of angels on the façade of the adjacent building ( which houses the administrative department ) are of exceptional compositional quality .
Furthermore , the museum has given rise to a unique link .
The narrative of its works establishes a special dialogue with memory and the past , as the Collection will provide a variety of interpretations and cast light on established traditions .
It will also provide the pleasure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ combining a retrospective view of history with the beauty of the work of art all in a single space .

Partner Ad Feature is produced by an advertiser with the specific intent to promote a product and is not produced by the City A.M. team.
The story of a saga of collectors and the museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga
The Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, which is one of the most important art collections of the 20th century, was formed in only two generations. Its precursor was August Thyssen, the second Baron’s grandfather, who exchanged letters with the sculptor Rodin and even acquired several of his works. August’s third son, the first Baron Thyssen, managed to gather together an extremely important core of European artworks dating from the 13th to the 18th century, with the emphasis on portraits.
The second Baron, Hans Heinrich Thyssen, who at only twenty-three years of age was obliged to take up the reins of the Thyssen empire upon his father’s death in 1947, not only managed to hold together his father’s legacy but also made additions to it in the form of works by the German Expressionist school, the Impressionists, the American Post-Impressionists, and the foremost 20th-century tendencies, with a preference for landscape painting. In the course of only a few years the Baron acquired over six hundred exceptional works of art.
The Carmen Thyssen Collection was first presented to the public in the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, in 1996. It currently consists of one thousand three hundred and twenty works. The cornerstones of the collection are its 18th-century vedute, 19th-century naturalist landscapes and its Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and early 20th-century avant-garde works, with an important corpus of North American painters.
While the first Baron’s contribution to the collection was a direct result of his interest in portraiture and Hans Heinrich Thyssen’s of his preference for landscape painting and modern art as well as Old Masters, the Baroness has also left her own special mark on art collecting. Carmen Thyssen extended her collection to 19th-century and early 20th-century Spanish art, in the hope that it would be better understood and appreciated internationally. In 1997 she herself declared that her taste for Spanish tradition was the greatest contribution she could ever make to her collection.
However, the Spanish paintings are more than just a collection of works of art in itself. The collection also brings memories of a recent past to mind, for it represents part of Spanish history and customs. This does much to explain a number of the collection’s characteristics and above all, the subject matter, which reflects a predilection for genre scenes and landscapes.
In order to bring these works closer to the public, the Carmen Thyssen Collection exhibitions were organised on a more international scale from 1994 on. With great success and prestige the Baroness took temporary exhibitions of international works – always including Spanish paintings – all over the world. In 1997 the Shanghai Museum opened with the exhibition From Zurbarán to Picasso, which three months later travelled to Beijing and for a further three months played an extremely important part in promotion of Western art in the Far East. Furthermore, the exhibition The Spirit of the Place. Masterworks from the Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection was shown at the Frick Collection in New York from the end of 1997 to March 1998. These exhibitions were only two of forty-two different projects. The genre scene and Andalusian painting section was first presented under the title Andalusian Painting in the Carmen Thyssen Collection at the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, in July 2004, and in February 2005 it moved on to Malaga. This was not the first time that part of the collection had travelled to Malaga, for in 1999 the city had hosted Aspects of the Landscape Tradition in the Carmen Thyssen Collection, which illustrated the development of landscape painting.
Consisting of two hundred and thirty-two works, the Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga Collection is centred around 19th-century Spanish painting. When viewed as a whole, it illustrates the view of Spain which was prevalent abroad during the Romantic age. As this period also saw the rise of national movements and regional singularities, foreign travellers went away with new ideas of Spain as a foreign country.
France was one of the principal contributors to the creation of the clichés then associated with Spain, which saw the arrival of many intellectuals from the neighbouring country, including Prosper Mérimée and Théophile Gautier. The French aristocracy also took a hand, one manifestation being King Louis-Philippe’s “Spanish Gallery”, which opened in the Musée du Louvre in 1838. However, the court of the Duke and Duchess of Montpensier in Seville (the Duke, Antoine d’Orléans, was Louis-Philippe’s son) became a focal point for the exchange of ideas between personalities and European intellectuals in the very heart of Andalusia. Among those visitors were a large number of Britons, including Richard Ford, David Wilkie, George Borrow and John Frederick Lewis.
Chronologically, the Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga Collection begins with a group of fifteen exhibits under the heading “Old Masters” and includes works dating from the Middle Ages to the Baroque period, the centrepiece being Zurbarán’s St Marina. The main body of the collection belongs to the movements associated with Romanticism and genre scene painting, the Précieux style, realism and the early 20th century.
In the Romanticism and genre scene painting group we shall see landscapes, the origins of flamenco, the continuation of Goya through the work of Lucas Velázquez, flower-filled courtyards and pilgrimages. Particularly important in the realist and précieux style section are the expressive intensity of Mariano Fortuny, the portraits of Raimundo de Madrazo and the vedute of José Moreno Carbonero, Martín Rico and Antonio María Reyna Manescau. The transition from Romantic to realist painting is illustrated by the work of the Belgian Carlos de Haes and the marine paintings of Guillermo Gómez Gil, Emilio Ocón and Ricardo Verdugo Landi.
The fin-de-siècle area signals the road towards modernity, whose heterogeneity is a veritable repertoire of the interpretations of the new artistic idioms. Thus we see works by Darío de Regoyos in the new Impressionist style, by Beruete with regenerationism, by Joaquín Sorolla with the brilliance of light, the “pure” view of Ramon Casas, Ricardo Canals and Anglada-Camarasa, the melancholy gaze of Julio Romero de Torres and the austerity of Zuloaga.
Negotiations between the Baroness and Malaga City Council began in 2006, by which time the latter had already acquired the Palacio de Villalón, a building of considerable artistic and historical importance, situated in one of the city’s oldest districts. Indeed, the Catholic Monarchs began to allocate plots of land in that area only twenty days after recapturing Malaga on 19 August 1487. The palace stands on the site which formerly extended from the city’s main square to the Puerta Nueva gate. Given its proximity to the square known as the Plaza Pública (where the Town Hall was established in 1528), a large number of king’s guards and their squires were assigned to the area. The street known as Calle de Las Guardas received its name precisely due to the guards who lived there, yet is actually prior to that period, having once been part of the Roman decumanus which crossed the city from Placeta de la Alcazaba to the River Guadalmedina. That area belonged to a district of craftsmen known as the Los Mártires, although more luxurious and ostentatious dwellings were subsequently built there and the squires were gradually replaced by a higher social group.
Although the palace dates from the 16th century, it owes its present appearance to work completed in the 18th century. The surviving original elements include the wooden roofs and the two Renaissance columns in the courtyard. The Renaissance façade contains a large door that is surmounted by a noble coat of arms and leads to a large vestibule which in turn opens onto a courtyard of columns with semi-circular arches framed on the ground-floor level by Arabic moulding. Particularly interesting are the coffered ceilings and tracery, most of which are clearly of Mudéjar inspiration, especially those over the staircase and in the main hall.
Although the building deteriorated in the second decade of the 20th century, fortunately the stone façade and coat of arms survived, as did various other important original features, particularly the wooden coffered ceilings. In May 2004 urgent repairs were made to the roofs and in 2005 archaeological excavations nearby led to the discovery of important Roman remains beneath the foundations dating from the 3rd century A.D., including a complex for producing garum, which Malaga exported to Rome. A residential zone and a nymphaeum (fountain) adorned with original fish-motif paintings have also been unearthed. It was in 2008 that the Palacio de Villalón was first considered as a site for the future Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga and the decision was subsequently made public.
The Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga covers a total area of 7,147m2, of which 5,185m2 is used for exhibition purposes. It was restored by the architects Rafael Roldán and Javier González. Although sober and dating from around 1780, the paintings of architectural motifs and figures of angels on the façade of the adjacent building (which houses the administrative department) are of exceptional compositional quality.
Furthermore, the museum has given rise to a unique link. The narrative of its works establishes a special dialogue with memory and the past, as the Collection will provide a variety of interpretations and cast light on established traditions. It will also provide the pleasure of revisiting and sharing the past by combining a retrospective view of history with the beauty of the work of art all in a single space.


cityam--2020-12-16--From Industrialized Yield Farming to Hydroponics

Over the course of 2020 the liquidity locked in decentralized finance ( DeFi ) protocols has grown in rapid fashion with use cases such as crypto-backed lending , decentralized exchanges ( DEX ’ s ) and insurance bringing the Total Value Locked ( TVL ) in DeFi to its current peak ~ $ 15 billion with the majority of this capital existing on the Ethereum blockchain .
Ethereum launched in 2015 with smart contracts , enabling users to interact with decentralized applications and programs that execute according to pre-defined logic , all open for anyone to validate on the blockchain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the Ethereum EVM/accounts world with it ’ s set of inefficiencies and design tradeoffs you must actually first consider how tapped out the legacy centralized finance ( CeFi ) system it aims to replace already is .
Look no further than U.S. 10-year corporate bonds yielding subzero for example .
If smart contract technologies only provide a 5–10 basis point ( 0.05 — 0.10 % ) improvement in contract efficiency , all global debt will move to decentralized public blockchains over the medium to long term .
As more global bond investors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increasingly inevitable .
With the hunt for > 1 % + real yield debt products driving investors up the CeFi risk curve , the DeFi sector is quickly becoming a more secure , high-yielding alternative for low or negative yielding CeFi capital to consider allocating funds to .
DeFi covers a range of financial products & services powered by open-source networks and smart contract automation , completely eliminating the need for centralized financial institutions .
The 0 to 1 innovation that DeFi represents means the disruption approaching the banking and finance model will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ creators as this will be the only option for these players to exist in the value chain .
The functional result is end-users placed at the center of the value chain as the key value creator .
Decentralized means DeFi products are globally accessible 24/7 , 365 days a year .
Anyone , anywhere can trustlessly interact with the DeFi protocols or build on top of this open financial infrastructure .
DeFi lending protocol Compound Finance revolutionized the playbook for incentives to achieve growth volume through the introduction of protocol layer liquidity mining @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Yearn showed us all the power of rapid governance feedback loops in DeFi protocols , even if it meant ‘ testing in prod ’ .
Both of these protocols helped pave the way for what ’ s become the standard in liquidity incentives & tight feedback loop governance models .
Our Liqwid team has learned a lot from the prior innovation as well as pitfalls in the early DeFi protocols .
From these lessons we are developing Liqwid , as an alternative to the current DeFi protocol tradeoffs and to pave the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cardano blockchain .
Liqwid is the next generation of yield farming for the next generation of farmers : Liqwid is an algorithmic protocol for lending and automated liquidity provision currently in development and set to launch on the Cardano blockchain late Q1 2021 .
Liqwid enables Cardano ADA and/or stablecoin holders to earn interest on their digital asset deposits and borrow crypto-assets .
Liqwid loans are automated by a set of smart contacts on the Cardano chain that determine the most efficient rates for borrowing or lending based on current supply demand rates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rate calculated by the protocol ’ s interest rate model for lenders derived from the supply-side liquidity and borrow-side demand .
As discussed in the Intro to Liqwid Medium article , DeFi lending annual percentage yields ( APY ) significantly outpace the yields equivalent CeFi lending products generate .
Higher yields on DeFi instruments can be attributed to assumed higher risk levels combined with the process efficiencies unlocked by smart contracts and decentralized autonomous organization ( DAO ) technologies .
The Liqwid core team believes in the DeFi core ethos of trustless and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hurdles many emerging market participants are faced with today .
Legacy CeFi barriers to entry such as identity and prior credit history are replaced with a suite of smart contracts capable of automating each step in the end-users process flow to borrow or lend by auto-calculating borrow & earn rates in a dynamic ‘ peer to pool ’ model .
All of the smart contract logic and metadata lives on the Cardano public chain and can be viewed by anyone , maintaining another core DeFi tenant of transparency .
Inline with another DeFi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 100 % non-custodial .
Functionally this means users retain complete control of their deposited crypto-assets at all times and can add or remove liquidity anytime they decide .
The unlimited banking hours inherent in DeFi products also require end-user obligations to securely store their funds with no centralized financial institution to serve as a reset .
In the future ( post v1 ) Liqwid aims to introduce functionality that more directly competes with CeFi bank & fintech product offerings beyond the ‘ Kosher ’ DeFi crypto-backed lending protocol our team is developing for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Liqwid versions will include user opt-in identity features through an integration with Cardano ’ s Atala Prism decentralized identifier ( DID ) framework and credit features via the LiqwiDAO delegation process .
Liqwid ’ s CFO , CTO and product leads join the team from audit , finance and IT backgrounds working with Swiss and German banks & fintechs and our team will use this existing network to streamline the process of future product offerings utilizing CeFi banks & fintechs as a white labeling service for compliance and regulation across jurisdictions .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ DeFi products that rely on 100 % opt-in CeFi touchpoints to introduce more capital efficient product offerings that directly compete with CeFi products : 0 % collateral lending , ETFs and mortgage-backed securities for example .
While not in scope for the v1 protocol this is the future-vision state functionality that will make its way into the protocol in future releases .
To begin decentralisation from day 1 , Liqwid user ’ s will receive $ LQD governance tokens for supplying or borrowing from Liqwid Pools pro-rata .
This process is set to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ team will be sharing additional details leading up to the event start .
This will be a fair-launch token distribution and our team is aiming to have as large an initial user base as possible .
75 % of LQD governance tokens are allocated for distribution to Liqwid protocol users and the LiqwiDAO Treasury which is governed by protocol users and used to update the future system as required .
Cardano $ ADA has already the most liquidity locked in a Proof of Stake network and with the upcoming protocol upgrade to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other native tokens will scale Cardano ’ s total on-chain liquidity to higher highs .
$ LQD is the protocol ’ s governance token and coordinating mechanism that will be used for voting , introducing new proposals and distributing dividend cash flows .
The Liqwid team has analyzed the complete set of risks & responsibilities needed to ensure Liqwid governance distribution is a fair-token launch alongside a vibrant community-led DAO set of best practices .
For an in depth review of the LiqwiDAO and Treasury model this intro to Liqwid governance covers the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ v1 launch : Yield farming in its current form popularized by the Compound COMP distribution has become a DeFi standard allowing projects to bootstrap their communities and liquidity ( TVL ) through incentives created by distributing the protocol ’ s governance token and when correctly implemented mitigates entire classes of protocol risks related to ; genesis token distribution ( VC/pre-sales ) , community formation & support strategies , and long term liquidity .
The latter-most is fundamental to constructing a viable system capable of servicing borrow demands with supply-side liquidity at all times @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Liqwid protocol architects have completed leading into v1 development will help ensure that this distribution event encourages longer term liquidity supplying over the short term ‘ mercenary capital ’ that ’ s become standard in Ethereum DeFi ( e.g .
Uniswap to Sushiswap ) and more closely align the protocol incentives ( and disincentives ) with the Liqwid community ’ s future state vision .
The majority of $ LQD are allocated for the protocol users : Sustainably sourced digital hydroponic farming is coming to the Cardano ecosystem in Q1 2021 .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ LQD paving a new path for community led DeFi projects on Cardano .
If anyone is interested in becoming more involved with the project the Liqwid legion of ~100 eco-friendly digital hydroponic farmers are helping the core team build Liqwid v1 and contributing high-quality discussion along the way , join on the Liqwid Discord !
The Liqwid core team is competing in Cardano ’ s Project Catalyst to receive grant funding to allow them to scale up developer bandwidth as they transition from protocol design to full sprints for v1 development .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Appinventiv Blockchain/DeFi team as well as the Tweag Haskell experts to formally verify and internally audit the protocol components leading up to v1 launch .
The Voltaire phase of Cardano has introduced Project Catalyst , the first public funding round on the blockchain enabling teams building Cardano based solutions to request funding amounts for proposals and the community of ADA holders to vote on these proposals in iterative rounds every 6-8 weeks .
Fund2 has served as a powerful first step into the uncertain but thrilling Wild West-like landscape of decentralized on-chain governance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ team is excited to become apart of the 1st cohort of funded projects building protocols on the Cardano chain today to drive on-chain value flow for the entire community of Cardano ADA holders in the future .
To learn more or check out the full Liqwid proposal for fund2 in Ideascale : https : //cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Liqwid-Cardano-DeFi-Lending-Markets/322338-48088 .
The Cardano blockchain provides a low cost , highly performant and secure blockchain to deploy Liqwid ’ s suite of smart contracts and the LiqwiDAO governance module upon .
Capabilities native to Cardano ’ s extended UTXO @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and functional resource determinism critical to Liqwid ’ s approach to smart contracts on the blockchain and in the end what makes Cardano the most natural fit blockchain for Liqwid ( or any DeFi protocol ) to thrive with functionally non-replicable on 2nd generation blockchains such as Ethereum .
The order of magnitude cost savings , predictability and protocol efficiency of transacting on the Cardano chain will result in a higher Profit and Loss ( PnL ) meaning the gains for the Liqwid protocol automatically distributed pro-rata to LQD token holders will be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ exact same scenario on Ethereum .
Liqwid is a more efficiently operating money market and since deployed on Cardano the protocol PnL accruing to the protocol owners ( $ LQD token holders ) will represent a significantly higher percentage compared to Ethereum DeFi where most fees accrue to ETH miners with liquidity providers ( *protocol value creators* ) forced to accept low-margin protocol profits .
In conclusion , the team at Liqwid is committed to delivering a new standard in DeFi user experience on a blockchain with technology robust enough to power a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fade into the backdrop to allow protocol architects , product leads and app developers to build great user experiences .
The Cardano community reached unimaginable heights even in a year as chaotic as 2020 .
Through it all this community grew and evolved and in Q3 2020 witnessed the birth of community-led DeFi protocols with the Liqwid legion of hydroponic farmers .
We are heads-down as we push into full sprints for the course of v1 development from now through January 2021 .
At this time our team will begin inviting beta testers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ us in quality assurance .
There is much more to be announced from our team leading up to v1 launch so stay tuned .
From the Liqwid team to yours , have a happy , safe holidays !

Partner Ad Feature is produced by an advertiser with the specific intent to promote a product and is not produced by the City A.M. team.
From Industrialized Yield Farming to Hydroponics
Over the course of 2020 the liquidity locked in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols has grown in rapid fashion with use cases such as crypto-backed lending, decentralized exchanges (DEX’s) and insurance bringing the Total Value Locked (TVL) in DeFi to its current peak ~$15 billion with the majority of this capital existing on the Ethereum blockchain. Ethereum launched in 2015 with smart contracts, enabling users to interact with decentralized applications and programs that execute according to pre-defined logic, all open for anyone to validate on the blockchain.
To understand how DeFi is viable in the Ethereum EVM/accounts world with it’s set of inefficiencies and design tradeoffs you must actually first consider how tapped out the legacy centralized finance (CeFi) system it aims to replace already is. Look no further than U.S. 10-year corporate bonds yielding subzero for example. If smart contract technologies only provide a 5–10 basis point (0.05 — 0.10%) improvement in contract efficiency, all global debt will move to decentralized public blockchains over the medium to long term. As more global bond investors slide into subzero territory this outcome becomes increasingly inevitable. With the hunt for >1%+ real yield debt products driving investors up the CeFi risk curve, the DeFi sector is quickly becoming a more secure, high-yielding alternative for low or negative yielding CeFi capital to consider allocating funds to.
DeFi covers a range of financial products & services powered by open-source networks and smart contract automation, completely eliminating the need for centralized financial institutions. The 0 to 1 innovation that DeFi represents means the disruption approaching the banking and finance model will transform incumbent value extractors into commoditized value creators as this will be the only option for these players to exist in the value chain. The functional result is end-users placed at the center of the value chain as the key value creator. Decentralized means DeFi products are globally accessible 24/7, 365 days a year. Anyone, anywhere can trustlessly interact with the DeFi protocols or build on top of this open financial infrastructure.
DeFi lending protocol Compound Finance revolutionized the playbook for incentives to achieve growth volume through the introduction of protocol layer liquidity mining linked to the COMP governance token distribution. Yearn showed us all the power of rapid governance feedback loops in DeFi protocols, even if it meant ‘testing in prod’. Both of these protocols helped pave the way for what’s become the standard in liquidity incentives & tight feedback loop governance models. Our Liqwid team has learned a lot from the prior innovation as well as pitfalls in the early DeFi protocols. From these lessons we are developing Liqwid, as an alternative to the current DeFi protocol tradeoffs and to pave the trail for DeFi teams building on the Cardano blockchain.
Liqwid is the next generation of yield farming for the next generation of farmers:
Liqwid is an algorithmic protocol for lending and automated liquidity provision currently in development and set to launch on the Cardano blockchain late Q1 2021. Liqwid enables Cardano ADA and/or stablecoin holders to earn interest on their digital asset deposits and borrow crypto-assets. Liqwid loans are automated by a set of smart contacts on the Cardano chain that determine the most efficient rates for borrowing or lending based on current supply demand rates. Each Liqwid Pool has a variable rate calculated by the protocol’s interest rate model for lenders derived from the supply-side liquidity and borrow-side demand. As discussed in the Intro to Liqwid Medium article, DeFi lending annual percentage yields (APY) significantly outpace the yields equivalent CeFi lending products generate. Higher yields on DeFi instruments can be attributed to assumed higher risk levels combined with the process efficiencies unlocked by smart contracts and decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) technologies.
The Liqwid core team believes in the DeFi core ethos of trustless and borderless access to financial infrastructure without the hurdles many emerging market participants are faced with today. Legacy CeFi barriers to entry such as identity and prior credit history are replaced with a suite of smart contracts capable of automating each step in the end-users process flow to borrow or lend by auto-calculating borrow & earn rates in a dynamic ‘peer to pool’ model. All of the smart contract logic and metadata lives on the Cardano public chain and can be viewed by anyone, maintaining another core DeFi tenant of transparency.
Inline with another DeFi key element, the Liqwid protocol is 100% non-custodial. Functionally this means users retain complete control of their deposited crypto-assets at all times and can add or remove liquidity anytime they decide. The unlimited banking hours inherent in DeFi products also require end-user obligations to securely store their funds with no centralized financial institution to serve as a reset.
In the future (post v1) Liqwid aims to introduce functionality that more directly competes with CeFi bank & fintech product offerings beyond the ‘Kosher’ DeFi crypto-backed lending protocol our team is developing for v1. To allow this, future Liqwid versions will include user opt-in identity features through an integration with Cardano’s Atala Prism decentralized identifier (DID) framework and credit features via the LiqwiDAO delegation process.
Liqwid’s CFO, CTO and product leads join the team from audit, finance and IT backgrounds working with Swiss and German banks & fintechs and our team will use this existing network to streamline the process of future product offerings utilizing CeFi banks & fintechs as a white labeling service for compliance and regulation across jurisdictions. This would enable Liqwid to build bespoke hybrid DeFi products that rely on 100% opt-in CeFi touchpoints to introduce more capital efficient product offerings that directly compete with CeFi products: 0% collateral lending, ETFs and mortgage-backed securities for example. While not in scope for the v1 protocol this is the future-vision state functionality that will make its way into the protocol in future releases.
To begin decentralisation from day 1, Liqwid user’s will receive $LQD governance tokens for supplying or borrowing from Liqwid Pools pro-rata. This process is set to begin with the v1 launch and the team will be sharing additional details leading up to the event start. This will be a fair-launch token distribution and our team is aiming to have as large an initial user base as possible. 75% of LQD governance tokens are allocated for distribution to Liqwid protocol users and the LiqwiDAO Treasury which is governed by protocol users and used to update the future system as required. Cardano $ADA has already the most liquidity locked in a Proof of Stake network and with the upcoming protocol upgrade to a multi-asset ledger the introduction of stablecoins and other native tokens will scale Cardano’s total on-chain liquidity to higher highs.
Liqwid Governance: $LQD
$LQD is the protocol’s governance token and coordinating mechanism that will be used for voting, introducing new proposals and distributing dividend cash flows. The Liqwid team has analyzed the complete set of risks & responsibilities needed to ensure Liqwid governance distribution is a fair-token launch alongside a vibrant community-led DAO set of best practices. For an in depth review of the LiqwiDAO and Treasury model this intro to Liqwid governance covers the entire governance module in current development for v1 launch:
https://medium.com/liqwid-finance-introduction-series/liqwidao-1st-a-web3-model-for-good-governance-13c6e0f36d2f
Yield farming in its current form popularized by the Compound COMP distribution has become a DeFi standard allowing projects to bootstrap their communities and liquidity (TVL) through incentives created by distributing the protocol’s governance token and when correctly implemented mitigates entire classes of protocol risks related to; genesis token distribution (VC/pre-sales), community formation & support strategies, and long term liquidity. The latter-most is fundamental to constructing a viable system capable of servicing borrow demands with supply-side liquidity at all times. The incentives and game theory analysis the Liqwid protocol architects have completed leading into v1 development will help ensure that this distribution event encourages longer term liquidity supplying over the short term ‘mercenary capital’ that’s become standard in Ethereum DeFi (e.g. Uniswap to Sushiswap) and more closely align the protocol incentives (and disincentives) with the Liqwid community’s future state vision.
The majority of $LQD are allocated for the protocol users:
Sustainably sourced digital hydroponic farming is coming to the Cardano ecosystem in Q1 2021. Liqwid is excited to lead with $LQD paving a new path for community led DeFi projects on Cardano.
If anyone is interested in becoming more involved with the project the Liqwid legion of ~100 eco-friendly digital hydroponic farmers are helping the core team build Liqwid v1 and contributing high-quality discussion along the way, join on the Liqwid Discord!
Project Catalyst: Cardano’s ‘VC in the Cloud’
The Liqwid core team is competing in Cardano’s Project Catalyst to receive grant funding to allow them to scale up developer bandwidth as they transition from protocol design to full sprints for v1 development. The Liqwid core developers will work with the Appinventiv Blockchain/DeFi team as well as the Tweag Haskell experts to formally verify and internally audit the protocol components leading up to v1 launch.
The Voltaire phase of Cardano has introduced Project Catalyst, the first public funding round on the blockchain enabling teams building Cardano based solutions to request funding amounts for proposals and the community of ADA holders to vote on these proposals in iterative rounds every 6-8 weeks. Fund2 has served as a powerful first step into the uncertain but thrilling Wild West-like landscape of decentralized on-chain governance for this entire ecosystem and the Liqwid team is excited to become apart of the 1st cohort of funded projects building protocols on the Cardano chain today to drive on-chain value flow for the entire community of Cardano ADA holders in the future. To learn more or check out the full Liqwid proposal for fund2 in Ideascale: https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Liqwid-Cardano-DeFi-Lending-Markets/322338-48088.
So why Cardano?
The Cardano blockchain provides a low cost, highly performant and secure blockchain to deploy Liqwid’s suite of smart contracts and the LiqwiDAO governance module upon. Capabilities native to Cardano’s extended UTXO protocol layer enable the best of expressiveness and functional resource determinism critical to Liqwid’s approach to smart contracts on the blockchain and in the end what makes Cardano the most natural fit blockchain for Liqwid (or any DeFi protocol) to thrive with functionally non-replicable on 2nd generation blockchains such as Ethereum. The order of magnitude cost savings, predictability and protocol efficiency of transacting on the Cardano chain will result in a higher Profit and Loss (PnL) meaning the gains for the Liqwid protocol automatically distributed pro-rata to LQD token holders will be a significantly larger margin compared to the exact same scenario on Ethereum. Liqwid is a more efficiently operating money market and since deployed on Cardano the protocol PnL accruing to the protocol owners ($LQD token holders) will represent a significantly higher percentage compared to Ethereum DeFi where most fees accrue to ETH miners with liquidity providers (*protocol value creators*) forced to accept low-margin protocol profits.
Summary:
In conclusion, the team at Liqwid is committed to delivering a new standard in DeFi user experience on a blockchain with technology robust enough to power a global financial system yet functional enough to fade into the backdrop to allow protocol architects, product leads and app developers to build great user experiences. The Cardano community reached unimaginable heights even in a year as chaotic as 2020. Through it all this community grew and evolved and in Q3 2020 witnessed the birth of community-led DeFi protocols with the Liqwid legion of hydroponic farmers. We are heads-down as we push into full sprints for the course of v1 development from now through January 2021. At this time our team will begin inviting beta testers in to try the protocol and assist us in quality assurance. There is much more to be announced from our team leading up to v1 launch so stay tuned.
From the Liqwid team to yours, have a happy, safe holidays!
Dewayne Cameron, Management Consultant, Founder – Liqwid Finance


Record highs

The relentless appetite for risk drove the market higher yet again and with that , aggregate Bitcoin futures open interest ( OI ) advanced to a new record high .
Interestingly , the CME has lost some ground to the likes of OKEx and Binance , although the OI still remains above $ 1 billion .
Nevertheless , with the contango structure abound , the path towards $ 20,000 is still intact , even if the path is turning out to be choppier than some would have hoped .
While Bitcoin continued its bull riding proceedings , the boisterous market @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in fact , while Bitcoin OI is back at its highs , Ethereum ’ s OI has made little progress since the 2.0 beacon chain was activated in the wake of sufficient funds being deposited .
At the same time , the amount of Ethereum locked across DeFi has risen to above 7mln and is at its highest level since November 24 .
It is worth bearing in mind that while the total number of Bitcoins locked on Ethereum network did decline since its peak , the actual notional value of Bitcoins is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at much lower absolute levels .
In turn , the total value locked across various DeFi offerings now stands at $ 14.95 billion .
While Bitcoin continued its bull riding proceedings , the boisterous market for Ethereum is no longer so and in fact , while Bitcoin OI is back at its highs , Ethereum ’ s OI has made little progress since the 2.0 beacon chain was activated in the wake of sufficient funds being deposited .
At the same time , the amount of Ethereum locked across DeFi has risen to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ level since November 24 .
It is worth bearing in mind that while the total number of Bitcoins locked on Ethereum network did decline since its peak , the actual notional value of Bitcoins is much higher as the assets were minted at much lower absolute levels .
In turn , the total value locked across various DeFi offerings now stands at $ 14.95 billion .
Crypto AM : In conversation with James Bowater Crypto AM : Market View in association with Ziglu Crypto AM : Technically Speaking in association with with Zumo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with INX Crypto AM shines its Spotlight on Coinrule

Crypto AM Daily in association with BEQUANT

Record highs
Road to 20k
The relentless appetite for risk drove the market higher yet again and with that, aggregate Bitcoin futures open interest (OI) advanced to a new record high. Interestingly, the CME has lost some ground to the likes of OKEx and Binance, although the OI still remains above $1 billion.
Nevertheless, with the contango structure abound, the path towards $20,000 is still intact, even if the path is turning out to be choppier than some would have hoped.
Making Noise
While Bitcoin continued its bull riding proceedings, the boisterous market for Ethereum is no longer so and in fact, while Bitcoin OI is back at its highs, Ethereum’s OI has made little progress since the 2.0 beacon chain was activated in the wake of sufficient funds being deposited. At the same time, the amount of Ethereum locked across DeFi has risen to above 7mln and is at its highest level since November 24. It is worth bearing in mind that while the total number of Bitcoins locked on Ethereum network did decline since its peak, the actual notional value of Bitcoins is much higher as the assets were minted at much lower absolute levels. In turn, the total value locked across various DeFi offerings now stands at $14.95 billion.
In the Markets
Making Noise
While Bitcoin continued its bull riding proceedings, the boisterous market for Ethereum is no longer so and in fact, while Bitcoin OI is back at its highs, Ethereum’s OI has made little progress since the 2.0 beacon chain was activated in the wake of sufficient funds being deposited.
At the same time, the amount of Ethereum locked across DeFi has risen to above 7mln and is at its highest level since November 24. It is worth bearing in mind that while the total number of Bitcoins locked on Ethereum network did decline since its peak, the actual notional value of Bitcoins is much higher as the assets were minted at much lower absolute levels. In turn, the total value locked across various DeFi offerings now stands at $14.95 billion.
Crypto AM: Longer Reads
Crypto AM: In conversation with James Bowater
Crypto AM: Market View in association with Ziglu
Crypto AM: Technically Speaking in association with with Zumo
Crypto AM: Talking Legal in association with INX
Crypto AM: Inside Blockchain with Troy Norcross
Crypto AM: A Trader’s View with TMG
Crypto AM: Definitively DeFi
Crypto AM: Founders Series
Crypto AM: Industry Voices
Crypto AM shines its Spotlight on Coinrule


cityam--2020-12-16--Boris Johnson: ‘Unanimous agreement’ not to cancel Christmas

The four nations will split on plans to relax coronavirus restrictions over Christmas , as the government faces mounting pressure to U-turn on its advice amid a surge in cases .
Welsh first minister Mark Drakeford announced the country will toughen up current guidelines allowing three households to mix over Christmas , announcing that Wales will limit gatherings to two households .
“ Nobody wants to be ill at Christmas .
And none of us want to give this deadly disease to our closest family or friends , ” he said .
“ So the advice in Wales cut it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coming in after the Christmas period.
” Wales will also enter a “ Tier 4 ” lockdown when the five-day window for relaxed rules ends on 28 December .
Scotland will also diverge from the current guidelines , limiting gatherings between different households to one day on Christmas Day .
“ We don ’ t intend to take away at the flexibility that in my view , wouldn ’ t be fear .
At this stage , and it wouldn ’ t be realistic either and indeed , it may risk undermining rather @ @ @ @ @ @ @ guidance , ” said Scotland ’ s first minister Nicola Sturgeon .
“ However , we and Scottish government do intend to strengthen the guidance we give to people about whether and how they should make use of the flexibility.
” It comes despite the Prime Minister telling the Commons this afternoon that all four UK nations have reached a “ unanimous agreement ” to go ahead with plans to relax coronavirus restrictions over the Christmas period .
Boris Johnson told PMs the law would not change , but that people should “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” if they do spend time with family over the festive period .
Read more : Michael Gove to hold Covid Christmas talks with devolved nations over ‘ rethink ’ Cabinet Office secretary Michael Gove held crunch talks with the devolved nations this morning , as the government faces mounting pressure to scrap “ Christmas bubble ” plans .
Under the current plans , three households will be able to meet and form a “ bubble ” between 23 and 27 December .
But with cases on the rise , especially in London @ @ @ @ @ @ @ warned that going ahead with the plans could further exacerbate the spread of the disease .
The UK ’ s two leading science journals yesterday issued their first joint editorial for more than 100 years slamming the Christmas relaxation of rules .
The British Medical Journal and Health Service Journal said the government should U-turn on its “ rash decision to allow household mixing and instead extend the tiers over the five-day Christmas period in order to bring the numbers down in the advance of a likely third wave ” .
Read more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to scrap ‘ rash ’ Christmas relaxation of rules It is understood that Number 10 is concerned that a cancellation of Christmas plans could lead to lower compliance with the rules in January and later in the winter .
However , ministers are said to be considering urging people to self-isolate before visiting friends and family over the festive season , in a bid to stop the virus spreading across the country .
Communities secretary Robert Jenrick told the BBC this morning the legal framework would “ continue ” but insisted that it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ family ” to discuss whether they really needed to meet up .
Jenrick added that the government would issue stronger guidance to reflect the “ rising number of Covid cases ” , but will stop short of changing the rules .
A poll conducted yesterday showed that more people in Britain oppose the government ’ s plans to relax coronavirus restrictions around Christmas than support them .
Around 50 per cent of respondents in the poll , which was conducted by Kantar , said they opposed or strongly opposed the planned relaxation , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said the government “ haven ’ t got it right ” , and urged ministers to rethink the decision .
“ If they don ’ t change the rules , my message is we ’ re under no obligation to do all that ’ s allowed , there ’ s no reason you have to kiss or hug an older relation , ” he added .

The UK’s four nations split on Christmas Covid rules
The UK’s four nations will split on plans to relax coronavirus restrictions over Christmas, as the Prime Minister faces accusations of confusing the public over the government’s messaging.
Welsh first minister Mark Drakeford said the country will toughen up current guidelines allowing three households to mix over Christmas, announcing that Wales will limit gatherings to two households.
“Nobody wants to be ill at Christmas. And none of us want to give this deadly disease to our closest family or friends,” he said. “So the advice in Wales cut it down to two households and stronger measures coming in after the Christmas period.”
Wales will enter a “Tier 4” lockdown when the five-day window for relaxed rules ends on 28 December, with Drakeford telling a press conference that it was the “right decision” to reduce Covid transmission.
“We have seen how a lower level of restrictions in London failed to contain the virus and now greater restrictions have to be in place,” he said. “Coronavirus is rising in every part of Wales. By taking action on an all-Wales basis, we act to protect people in every part of Wales.”
Scotland will also diverge from the current guidelines, with first minister Nicola Sturgeon announcing a limit on gatherings between different households to just one day on Christmas Day.
“We don’t intend to take away at the flexibility that in my view, wouldn’t be fear. At this stage, and it wouldn’t be realistic either and indeed, it may risk undermining rather than strengthening compliance with the overall Covid guidance,” said Sturgeon.
“However, we and the Scottish government do intend to strengthen the guidance we give to people about whether and how they should make use of the flexibility.”
It comes despite the Prime Minister telling the Commons this afternoon that all four UK nations have reached a “unanimous agreement” to go ahead with plans to relax coronavirus restrictions over the Christmas period.
Boris Johnson told PMs the law would not change, but that people should “exercise a high degree of personal responsibility” if they do spend time with family over the festive period.
“We don’t want to criminalise people’s long-made plans but we do think it’s absolutely vital that people should at this very, very tricky time exercise a high degree of personal responsibility, especially when they come into elderly people,” he said.
Johnson faced accusations of confusing the public in a bid to “save Christmas”, as his statement on the “unanimous” laws came alongside simultaneous press conferences from Drakeford and Sturgeon announcing a divergence on the guidance.
The PM is set to hold a press conference announcing new guidance at 3.30pm, with an updated rulebook to be published on the government’s website later this evening.
Under previous plans, the government was set to allow three households to meet and form a bubble between 23 and 27 December across all four UK nations.
It is understood that England and Northern Ireland will still follow this advice.
But with cases on the rise, especially in London and the southeast, ministers have been warned that going ahead with the plans could further exacerbate the spread of the disease.
The UK’s two leading science journals yesterday issued their first joint editorial for more than 100 years slamming the Christmas relaxation of rules.
The British Medical Journal and Health Service Journal said the government should U-turn on its “rash decision to allow household mixing and instead extend the tiers over the five-day Christmas period in order to bring the numbers down in the advance of a likely third wave”.
It is understood that Number 10 is concerned that a cancellation of Christmas plans could lead to lower compliance with the rules in January and later in the winter.
However, ministers are said to be considering urging people to self-isolate before visiting friends and family over the festive season, in a bid to stop the virus spreading across the country.
Communities secretary Robert Jenrick told the BBC this morning the legal framework would “continue” but insisted that it was “incumbent on each and every family” to discuss whether they really needed to meet up.
Jenrick added that the government would issue stronger guidance to reflect the “rising number of Covid cases”, but will stop short of changing the rules.
A poll conducted yesterday showed that more people in Britain oppose the government’s plans to relax coronavirus restrictions around Christmas than support them.
Around 50 per cent of respondents in the poll, which was conducted by Kantar, said they opposed or strongly opposed the planned relaxation, while 40 per cent backed it.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said the government “haven’t got it right”, and urged ministers to rethink the decision.
“If they don’t change the rules, my message is we’re under no obligation to do all that’s allowed, there’s no reason you have to kiss or hug an older relation,” he added.


cityam--2020-12-16--Pound hits two-year high as hopes of Brexit trade deal rise

The pound hit its highest level in two years after market optimism rose that the UK and EU would strike a post-Brexit trade agreement .
Sterling climbed 0.5 per cent to $ 1.352 having earlier touched $ 1.355 , its highest level since the spring of 2018 .
The pound was up 0.3 per cent against the euro at €1.109 .
Read more : Ursula von der Leyen : ‘ Narrow path to agreement ’ in Brexit talks The rise in the currency came as reports suggested that the two sides were giving ground , raising the chances of an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the renationalisting fishing vessels , according to EU sources who spoke to The Guardian .
It had previously wanted boats operating under the UK flag to be majority British-owned .
Excitement for a deal also rose as it became clear that leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg had not moved a “ recess motion ” .
This suggested the Commons could be made to sit over the Christmas recess to ratify an agreement .
Read more : Bank of England set to hold policy amid Brexit and lockdown uncertainty Connor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Spreadex , said : “ The market perception of the Brexit negotiations is that no news is good news , and that the relative lack of updates on the progress of the latest round of talks suggests both sides are serious about pursing an agreement .
“ This chimes with reports that the UK has dropped another one of its sea-obsessed demands , abandoning its intention of renationalising fishing vessels.
” A no-deal Brexit would mean the UK leaves the EU single market and goes on to World Trade Organization terms .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as farming and cars .
Consultancy Capital Economics said a no-deal Brexit could make the pound drop initially to $ 1.15 , before recovering somewhat .
However , it also said that a deal could help sterling rise to $ 1.40 in 2021 .
Read more : Michel Barnier warns MEPS of short no-deal Brexit period even if deal closed this year The Brexit-driven rise in the pound failed to dampen the FTSE 100 , which was last up 0.9 per cent at 6,571 points .
Traditionally , a higher pound weighs on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overseas earnings .
Capital Economics said a Brexit deal and a relatively rapid economic recovery thanks to vaccines could push the FTSE up to 7,500 points next year , along with the pound .

Pound hits two-year high as hopes of Brexit trade deal rise
Chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier is continuing Brexit negotiations, amid reports that both sides are giving ground
The pound hit its highest level in two years after market optimism rose that the UK and EU would strike a post-Brexit trade agreement.
Sterling climbed 0.5 per cent to $1.352 having earlier touched $1.355, its highest level since the spring of 2018. The pound was up 0.3 per cent against the euro at €1.109.
The rise in the currency came as reports suggested that the two sides were giving ground, raising the chances of an agreement.
Britain has dropped a push for the renationalisting fishing vessels, according to EU sources who spoke to The Guardian. It had previously wanted boats operating under the UK flag to be majority British-owned.
Excitement for a deal also rose as it became clear that leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg had not moved a “recess motion”. This suggested the Commons could be made to sit over the Christmas recess to ratify an agreement.
Connor Campbell, market analyst at trading platform Spreadex, said: “The market perception of the Brexit negotiations is that no news is good news, and that the relative lack of updates on the progress of the latest round of talks suggests both sides are serious about pursing an agreement.
“This chimes with reports that the UK has dropped another one of its sea-obsessed demands, abandoning its intention of renationalising fishing vessels.”
Pound ‘could rise to $1.40’ with Brexit deal
A no-deal Brexit would mean the UK leaves the EU single market and goes on to World Trade Organization terms. This would increase tariffs in key areas such as farming and cars.
Consultancy Capital Economics said a no-deal Brexit could make the pound drop initially to $1.15, before recovering somewhat. However, it also said that a deal could help sterling rise to $1.40 in 2021.
The Brexit-driven rise in the pound failed to dampen the FTSE 100, which was last up 0.9 per cent at 6,571 points. Traditionally, a higher pound weighs on the index by dragging on constituents’ overseas earnings.
Capital Economics said a Brexit deal and a relatively rapid economic recovery thanks to vaccines could push the FTSE up to 7,500 points next year, along with the pound.