The quarantine sledgehammer delivered another vicious blow to the travel sector, with new restrictions on popular tourist destinations such as Spain. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research has criticised the government's decision to withdraw the furlough scheme, stating it would be just as cost-effective to keep the scheme running.

Nick also picks up on the implications of the re-introduction of Crown Preference, postponed from April to December 2020 – at the time when PAYE and VAT liabilities are likely to be at their highest. Understanding which of your customers have postponed payments to HMRC is now more important than ever!

This week Nick and Jo take a look under the hood of the summer statement. The OBR made some worrying comments on the dangers of business indebtedness and the dampening effect this can have on business investments. They also explore some fascinating research conducted by the Evening Standard, who spoke to FTSE 100 companies to find out if and when they plan to return to the office.

Jo and Nick turn their focus to the fiscal sustainability report released by the OBR last week. They summarise the key takeaways - focusing on employment, business insolvencies & indebtedness and Brexit.

Rishi Sunak delivered his summer statement last week, detailing a plan to help the UK economy recover from the impact of Coronavirus. VAT rate cut, stamp duty holiday and the launch of the eat out to help out initiative being some of the key takeaways. There was also the announcement that the arts and culture sector will be receiving £1.57bn of much needed support. 

There were 12,000 job losses announced this week, adding to the growing tally and painting a miserable picture for future unemployment. Nick and Jo explore the softer signals of risk management and analyse the impact of people on risk. Discussion also covers the topic of trust, in a world where businesses are desperately fighting for survival.

June rent quarter has just passed, but sticky tenant-landlord relations are very much ongoing. Intu, the major retail landlord, collapsed last week and uproar was sparked when Go Outdoors's owner dumped the company into administration before buying it back and torching inflexible leases, thus allowing renegotiation from scratch... Nick and Jo discuss these recent events and explain what we can expect to see over the coming months.

A special podcast episode this week, as Nick and Jo discuss the Grimsey Review - Covid-19 Supplement! How can town centres and high streets reinvent themselves and begin to thrive post Covid-19? Leadership, Localism and More Green Spaces.

The Office for National Statistics released the news that UK GDP dropped 20.4% in April, the largest fall ever recorded... In this weeks episode, Nick and Jo discuss where the longer term funding for recovery will come from and why a debt fuelled recovery is not sustainable for growth.

The value of assets on corporate balance sheets will certainly be impacted by Covid-19. A downward re-evaluation of these assets will make it harder for a company to raise funding. Nick and Jo dive into the murky world of asset valuation and explain why always believing what you read on a company's balance sheet is a risky approach...

Lockdown continues to ease and non-essential retail shops will be allowed to reopen from the 15th June, a huge boost for the sector, but just how many actually return remains to be seen...

Hospitality is another sector that has been hit hard by the virus, the average H-Score® in the sector is 28, only just above our Warning Area. Jo and Nick take a more detailed look at the numbers, revealing a gloomy outlook for the two troubled sectors.