LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Property consultant Altus calculates that, of the £11bn in business rates relief granted in England, about £3bn will go to food retailers. A bailout package meant to prop up businesses facing closure is filling the supermarkets' coffers even as they enjoy record sales. Tensions were raised last week when Tesco, the biggest beneficiary, said it would pay a final dividend of £635m for 2019-20, about 15% higher than the City had expected. Chief executive Dave Lewis reminded critics that it related to performance before the virus drove food-buyers to the supermarkets. He also said that measures to keep Tesco running during the crisis would result in extra costs of £650m-£925m. - Sunday Times

The government faces a chorus of cross-party calls on Sunday for the urgent recall of parliament in "virtual" form as MPs and peers demand the right to hold ministers to account over the escalating coronavirus crisis. The demands from leaders of all main opposition parties, as well as senior Tories, came after the death toll from Covid-19 in the UK approached 10,000. Deaths from the virus rose by 917 on Saturday compared with Friday to a total of 9,875. - Guardian

Jaguar Land Rover is this week expected to reveal sales have plummeted 30 per cent since the beginning of the year. City insiders said the miserable data for the three months to March 31 reflected the impact of the coronavirus lockdown on Britain's biggest car maker. Sources said the maker of Range Rovers and the Land Rover Discovery suffered slumps in both Europe and China, where its cars are also popular. - Mail on Sunday

Primark has cancelled or suspended £256m of orders from suppliers in Bangladesh, according to new figures that lay bare the ripple effect of the retail coronavirus crisis. The fast-fashion giant has about £1.6bn of stock stuck in its supply chain and its 373 stores, which it has been forced to shut amid global efforts to halt the spread of Covid-19. According to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Primark has cancelled orders for 83 million garments worth a total of £135m and suspended orders for a further 84 million garments worth £121m. - Sunday Times

Philip Jansen, who is recovering after suffering mild symptoms of the virus, has written an impassioned plea to the public to unite against 'harmful, dangerous misinformation'. In a lengthy statement prepared for The Mail on Sunday, Jansen reveals the shocking news that 39 BT engineers have been physically or verbally assaulted by members of the public who wrongly believe the new mobile technology triggers coronavirus symptoms. - Mail on Sunday

Manchester airport's owner is pleading with the chancellor to prop up Virgin Atlantic as the airline makes a last-ditch lobbying push for a £500m taxpayer bailout to survive the coronavirus crisis. In a letter to Rishi Sunak, the boss of Manchester Airports Group, Charlie Cornish, stresses the carrier's key role as the biggest long-haul operator at Manchester, flying nearly one million people a year to New York, Los Angeles and Atlanta. - Sunday Times

Calls for a comprehensive package of debt relief to help poor countries cope with the coronavirus pandemic have intensified after research showed that more than 60 countries are spending more on paying their creditors than they are on health. Before a series of key meetings this week, the Jubilee Debt Campaign said it was vital to relieve the mounting financial pressure on poor countries by cancelling their debt payments this year. - Guardian

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