Thomas Cook, Bury FC, British high streets: your commercial news round-up
updated on 29 August 2019
It’s been a tumultuous week in British politics and it’s guaranteed that headlines, and our worries, will be very much dominated by Brexit over the coming weeks. We’re highlighting the commercial side of this week’s news, however. Here’s our round-up of the big stories:
- A rescue deal worth £900 million has been agreed to by troubled travel firm Thomas Cook which has been facing financial difficulties after issuing three profit warnings this year. Chinese group Fosun will take control of the business, injecting £450 million into the firm in exchange for at least 75% of the the package tour division and 25% of its airline business. Fosun has also said that it might pull Thomas Cook from the London stock market.
- League One football club Bury FC were expelled from the English Football League (EFL) this week after failing to secure a takeover from investors C&N Sporting Risk. The news came as a huge disappointment to fans who had been holding out for a last-minute deal. Bury are the first team since 1992 to be expelled from the EFL. Another football team – Bolton Wanderers – were saved at short notice after being bought by Football Ventures (Whites) Limited.
- Fifty British towns will have their high streets boosted as the government revealed they are dedicating £1 billion to revive the town centres of struggling areas. Places like Dover, Blackpool and Doncaster will benefit from the investment which can be used on projects such as improving transport links or renovating empty shops into homes or offices.
- For those of us who live in London, the past few days commuting in the hot weather have been extremely unenjoyable, but we’ll feel slightly better in knowing that the temperatures on the Northern line will soon be used to warm homes in Islington, North London. The new scheme will see waste energy from the tube line converted into heating for homes and businesses as part of a larger government plan to move away from gas-fired boilers and other unsustainable energy sources.
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