Manchester Airport has published an update for travellers this week – as airlines add flights to destinations and more retailers reopen their doors.
The latest announcement confirms a number of routes are being added to the schedule during what would ordinarily be the airport’s busiest month of the year.
From this week, easyJet will start flying to Kefalonia (Greece), Funchal (Portugal), Olbia (Sardinia) and Tivat (Montenegro), whilst Aegean Airlines will resume flights to Athens (Greece).
TAP Air Portugal will also resume travel to Lisbon.
TUI, meanwhile, is set to operate flights to Bodrum (Turkey), Chania (Greece), Santorini and the Greek island of Skiathos later this week.
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Spain remains on the quarantine list, with arrivals having to self-isolate for two weeks upon their return.
This weekend sees more airlines move back to Terminal Two. This handy graphics explains them all. Note not all have flights from the 1st August, but that's when their operations move across. pic.twitter.com/pe0tSfVhYO
All three terminals are now in operation at the airport, with Eurowings, Air Malta, Ethiopian Airlines and Brussels Airlines moving to Terminal Two last week.
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Etihad Airways and Iran Air are shifting to Terminal Two on 5 August and 8 August respectively.
A number of retailers are also set to reopen across the airport this week, including:
Terminal One – Jo Malone/Bobbi Brown – airside – 4 August
Terminal One – Upper Crust – airside – w/c 3 August
Terminal One – Direct Dry Cleaning – landside – 4 August
Terminal One – Attitude – airside – 8 August
Terminal Two – Boots – airside – 8 August
Terminal Three – WH Smiths – landside (arrivals) – 4 August
Next week will see the return of the following Terminal One outlets:
Karen Smart, Managing Director at Manchester Airport, said: “As we continue to see the return of more airlines and destinations for our passengers to fly to, we remain fully committed to ensuring their safety throughout their airport journey.
“In what would normally be our busiest month of the year, it is pleasing to see routes are increasing each week, giving passengers who want to travel the choice and opportunity to do so. This is why we now have all three terminals in operation, to allow passengers to maintain and keep a safe distance whilst on site.
“I’d like to thank all our passengers for continuing to abide by the measures in place during these uncertain times, and also thank all our staff who have gone above and beyond to ensure safe travel for all.”
Strict safety measures remain in place at the airport, including social distancing, temperature checks and the requirement of face coverings when passing through terminals.
Find out more about the restrictions and rules in place at Manchester Airport during coronavirus by visiting their website.
You can learn more about new flights and retailer reopenings online.
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Government launches £442m drive to get rough sleepers off streets before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has launched a £442m drive to get rough sleepers off the streets before Christmas.
Learning from ‘innovative’ approaches put into place during the pandemic, the Government has announced that new accommodation will be rolled out across England this winter, as well as offering practical help with housing, health, and other needs to support people to build a more stable life for themselves in the future.
The new commitment to offer everyone a route off the streets this Christmas, along with boosted funding, reflect the Andy Burnham‘s national drive to make ‘real change’ and get everyone playing their part in ending rough sleeping.
Not only will these plans change the lives of rough sleepers, but it’s also said they will have huge benefits for the country as a whole.
Research from homelessness charity Crisis suggests that by preventing 40,000 people from becoming homeless for a year, taxpayers could save around £370 million.
The Government has launched a £442m drive to get rough sleepers off the streets before Christmas / Credit: Number 10 Press Office | Jon Tyson (via Unsplash)
As well provisions to get people off the streets, and the intensive ‘wraparound’ support, the newly allocated funding will also help local areas deliver more than 1,000 ‘settled’ homes over the next three years, it has been confirmed.
Areas facing the greatest pressures will receive the largest share of support.
Working alongside councils, Mayors will play a leading role in driving local action to end rough sleeping, and will be tasked with making decisions that are right for their communities to deliver help where it’s needed most.
The Prime Minister says he ‘won’t accept’ rough sleeping any longer. He commented: “No one should have to bed down in a doorway or outside a station, but we’ve seen it for so long that it feels like Westminster has started to accept it.
“That’s why my first instruction as Prime Minister was to end rough sleeping, and it’s why today we’re getting started with a national drive to get everyone in for Christmas. We did it in the pandemic, we can do it again. But it needs all of us.
“Government will put the money in, but I’m asking leaders in communities and sectors across society to play their part locally too.
“Let’s get people out the cold, and let’s bring back hope.”
Featured Image – Gary Knight (via Flickr)
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Trainline and Virgin Atlantic among companies being investigated for ‘misleading’ pricing
Emily Sergeant
A number of companies are currently under investigation for ‘misleading’ pricing practices.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched three new consumer protection investigations into Trainline, Virgin Atlantic, and RED Driving School over concerns that customers were not shown the total price upfront when buying things like train and coach tickets, holidays, or even driving lessons.
The investigations are part of a wider CMA clampdown on misleading pricing practices – in this instance, where mandatory charges are separated from the headline price, or added later in the buying process, which is known as drip pricing.
These practices leave consumers facing ‘unexpected’ costs or having to calculate the so-called true cost themselves.
Such practices can also impact competition between businesses, as a firm using drip pricing may falsely appear to be cheaper than a competitor pricing correctly, and therefore attract more customers.
Trainline and Virgin Atlantic are among the companies being investigated for ‘misleading’ pricing / Credit: Northern | Aric Cheng (via Unsplash)
Trainline is being investigated over whether all mandatory fees have been included in the upfront prices displayed to consumers buying tickets in advance on its app and website, while Virgin Atlantic’s investigation will focus on whether mandatory resort fees and local taxes have been included in the upfront prices shown to customers buying package holidays.
RED Driving School is being investigated over how a mandatory booking fee and ‘digital’ fee have been displayed to people booking driving lessons – specifically whether these fees have been included in the total upfront price.
“At a time when many households are watching every pound they spend, it is important that people are not surprised by extra fees,” commented Emma Cochrane, who is the Executive Director for Consumer Protection at the CMA.
“Clear pricing helps people compare offers confidently and choose the option that works best for them.
“Unexpected mandatory charges make this much harder, which is why the CMA initially put these firms on notice over concerns about their pricing practices and is now opening formal investigations.”
The CMA says it’s at the beginning of its investigations and has reached no conclusions about whether these firms have broken the law.
If it finds there has been an infringement of the law, the CMA can order businesses to pay compensation to affected customers or be charged up to 10% of global turnover.