Gaps on supermarket shelves are likely to continue for several months unless the government does more to tackle the labour crisis hitting haulage firms, suppliers have warned. Logistics and hauliers’ organisations said August would be a pinch point in the shortage as workers take summer breaks, while firms offering bonuses and sign-on fees to recruit drivers were not helping matters. – Guardian
The ending of the government’s furlough scheme will lengthen dole queues by 150,000 despite a boost to activity from the ending of lockdown that will make the UK the fastest-growing G7 nation this year, a leading thinktank has said. In its quarterly update on the UK, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (Niesr) said it had revised up its 2021 growth forecast from 5.7% to 6.8%. – Guardian
Reese Witherspoon has sold a majority stake in her female-focused production company in a deal that values the venture at about $900m (£650m). Hello Sunshine, which produced the HBO drama Big Little Lies and The Morning Show for Apple TV+, was founded by the actress in 2016 to produce television series centred on female leads. – Telegraph
The communities secretary is facing renewed calls from commercial tenants to force landlords to waive at least 50 per cent of rent debts built up during the pandemic. The Commercial Tenants Association, which represents 500 businesses ranging from insurers to retailers, has written to Robert Jenrick proposing that the government adopt an Australia-style model to address the billions of pounds in rent debts. – The Times
The economy will grow faster than initially expected this year and policymakers should make it clear that they are ready to curb rising inflation, a leading think tank has said. In its latest forecasts, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research said that the economy would expand by 6.8 per cent this year, up 1.1 percentage points from its May report, even though the spread of the Delta variant of coronavirus has created new uncertainty. – The Times
