Wednesday, August 7, 2024

Jul 13: Pubs’ bumper Euro weekend; Carpetright jobs at risk; Ineos Grenadier Detour – Car Dealer Magazine

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Pubs are getting ready for what promises to be one of their biggest weekends of the year after England made it through to the Euro 2024 final.

They are hoping for a near-£48m boost, with landlords expecting to pour an extra 10m pints from the pre-match build-up to the final whistle in Berlin tomorrow evening after the title clash with Spain.

Thousands of those pints will flow during the late-night licensing hours, with pubs in England allowed to remain open until 1am for fans to either celebrate or drown their sorrows.

Carpetright is set to enter administration, putting the jobs of its 1,852 staff at risk.

The carpet and flooring retailer has filed a notice of intent to appoint administrators.

It is understood that experts from PwC are to be appointed as part of the process and will seek to find emergency funding or a rescue buyer for the troubled business. Carpetright has 272 stores across the UK and they are trading as normal.

A security guard was yesterday jailed for life with a minimum term of 16 years after hatching ‘depraved and vile’ plans to kidnap, rape and murder TV star Holly Willoughby.

Chelmsford Crown Court was told Gavin Plumb’s plot had a ‘catastrophic’ and ‘life-changing’ impact on the former This Morning presenter.

Plumb, 37, from Harlow, was unanimously convicted of soliciting murder and inciting rape and kidnap following a trial at the same court.

The suspect sought by police investigating the deaths of two men whose remains were found in two suitcases in Bristol has been named as 24-year-old Colombian national Yostin Andres Mosquera, the Metropolitan Police said.

It comes after more human remains were found at an address in Shepherd’s Bush, west London.

Police said officers found the remains at the house in Scotts Road yesterday. They’re believed to be connected to those found in two suitcases dumped near Clifton Suspension Bridge on Wednesday.

Ben & Jerry’s maker Unilever is to cut up to 3,200 jobs across Europe by the end of next year, after unveiling plans to make the business leaner and more productive.

The consumer goods giant said earlier this year that it was preparing to axe around 7,500 jobs, amounting to about 6% of its global workforce.

Details of the cuts have now emerged as the company kicks off a consultation process with its staff.

Professional snooker player Michael White has been jailed after being convicted of multiple domestic violence offences.

White, 33, was sentenced to three years in prison for the assaults that took place over a period of more than a year, South Wales Police said.

The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association said it had removed White, from Neath Abbey in south Wales, as a member after he was sentenced on Thursday. It added that he had also been taken off the world ranking list and the World Snooker Tour.

A two-storey school has collapsed in Nigeria, killing 22 pupils.

The Saints Academy college in the north-central Plateau state’s Busa Buji community collapsed shortly after pupils, many of whom were 15 years old or younger, arrived for classes yesterday morning.

A total of 154 pupils were trapped, with 132 rescued and treated for injuries in various hospitals. The state government blamed the tragedy on the school’s ‘weak structure and location near a riverbank’.

Energy secretary Ed Miliband has said he will leave ‘no stone unturned’ in trying to find a future for workers at Grangemouth, after ministers from the Scottish and UK governments met its owners.

It is understood a report called Project Willow, worth around £1.6m and funded by both governments, will seek to chart a future in low-carbon energy for Grangemouth.

Hundreds of jobs are thought to be at risk after owner Petroineos – a joint venture between PetroChina and Ineos – announced that the oil refinery at Grangemouth would be shut after next spring.

Ineos Grenadier Detour interior, via PA

Ineos has revealed its first limited-edition version of the Grenadier – the Detour.

The off-roader, which was unveiled at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, will be capped at 200 units, with customers able to personalise their vehicle.

It’ll have the same engines as the standard Grenadier, with the 3.0-litre petrol offering 249bhp and 450Nm of torque to manage 0-60mph in 8.6 seconds and a top speed of 99mph. The 3.0-litre diesel has 281bhp and 550Nm torque but the same 0-60mph time and top speed as the petrol.

The FTSE 100 closed 29.57 points up yesterday to end the week on 8,252.91. The Cac 40 was up 97.19 points at 7,724.32, the Dax was up 213.62 points at 18,748.18, and the Dow Jones was up 247.15 points at 40,000.90.

Western and southern areas will see the best of the sunshine today, says BBC Weather, with the north and west being cloudier. Showers are possible across most of the country, particularly heavy in the north-east.

Sunday will see increasingly cloudy skies and some lingering patchy rain in Scotland and northern England. Elsewhere will have sunny spells, variable cloud and the occasional isolated shower, but there’ll be more cloud in Scotland.

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