Flybe is set to fly again after rescue
THE Flybe name is set take to the skies once again this summer after administrators for the troubled firm completed the sale of its business and assets to a new company.
Exeter-headquartered Flybe Ltd collapsed in early 2020, but administrators at restructuring firm EY, have completed a deal which will also see an unspecified number of jobs transfer to a new company affiliated with investment adviser Cyrus Capital.
The new company, previously known as Thyme Opco Limited, will now be renamed Flybe Ltd, and hopes to start flights in 2021.
A Flybe spokesman said: “We are extremely excited to announce the conclusion of almost six months of dedicated hard work by the great team at Flybe, the UK Civil Aviation Authority, the European Commission, and the many others who made this announcement possible.
“Today’s news represents a critical first step in our mission to accomplish the first-ever rescue of an insolvent British airline.
“Subject to further success with vaccinations and relaxation of travel restrictions, we plan to launch a new and much improved Flybe sometime this summer on many of our former routes where there remains a critical need for a strong, reliable and customer-focused airline.
THE National Trust, which owns land and historic properties in the South West, has ordered volunteers to undergo diversity training, which has reportedly led to some resignations.
The trust, which has lost around £200m since the start of the coronavirus pandemic last year, is asking everyone, including rangers, to do the training as they prepare to return to work as lockdown eases.
The inclusion training covers a broad range of diversity and inclusion issues including age, disability, sexual orientation and religious beliefs, which a National Trust spokesperson insists has been policy for several years.
However, according to The Telegraph, the diversity training has led to “several” resignations in part because of the training.
A former volunteer told the publication: “One is left to wonder how many potential volunteers will be put off by this policy, [and how many] existing volunteers who will call it a day rather than subject themselves to examinations.”
They also questioned why the course applied to all staff, even in roles where they feel it to be “irrelevant”.
A spokesman for the National Trust said: “We are not forcing our volunteers to undergo everyday inclusion training as soon as they return.
“The only training they are expected to undertake before they return is reopening safely so they are fully aware of the changes we’ve made to how we open our properties following the Covid pandemic.
“As part of their ongoing development with the Trust, volunteers are given time to undertake a number of mandatory training courses including fire safety, data protection, safeguarding, and everyday inclusion.
“We have been offering inclusion training for several years, and it is similar training to that offered by thousands of other organisations across the country.
“Our everyday inclusion training, which is delivered in-house, covers a broad range of diversity and inclusion issues including age, disability, sexual orientation and religious beliefs, and we’re pleased that nine out of 10 volunteers rated the training as good or excellent.”
Last summer, members of the National Trust threatened to cancel their memberships after the organisation acknowledged its links to slavery. The trust shared a thread on Twitter on August 23 highlighting a series of objects on its sites that have direct and indirect links to slavery and colonialism. “Many of the places we care for have direct or indirect links to slavery,” it read.