Lender Aldermore enters race for Co-op Bank

By Daily Mail City & Finance

Updated: 20:43 EDT, 20 September 2023

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The United Auto Workers strike against the ‘Big Three’ Detroit carmakers entered its second day on Saturday, and some union members are questioning whether President Joe Biden has done enough to back their cause.

The strike involves 13,000 workers so far, less than a tenth of the union’s total membership, but UAW’s strike fund has enough cash to support a full 150,000-member walkout for up to three months. 

The union representing workers at General Motors, Ford and Stellantis is seeking a 40 percent raise for its workers. The walkout is limited for now to three assembly plants: a GM factory in Wentzville, Missouri, a Ford plant near Detroit, and a Jeep plant run by Stellantis in Toledo, Ohio. 

In Kokomo, Indiana, the hometown of UAW boss Shawn Fain, Local 685 President Garry Quirk told Politico that Biden, the self-described ‘most pro-union president in American history,’ had not done enough to prevent a strike.

‘I don’t know what he’s done,’ Quirk said. ‘Ask him. I don’t think he knows what he’s done. Seriously. I’m not trying to be mean.’

Quirk, 60, told the outlet he voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016, and then Donald Trump in 2020.

Fellow local member Denny Butler, 52, also expressed frustration at the White House’s perceived lack of action.

‘We haven’t had a president in there for years, with the exception of Trump, that was really for the people, all the way back to the Reagan days,’ he told Politico.

He noted that unions were once tightly aligned with the Democratic Party, but said that was no longer the case.

‘Democrats were for the working people. That s**t has changed. I’m telling you what, the Democratic Party was not what it was 20, 30 years ago.’ 

On Thursday, Biden spoke with Fain and the three auto company CEOs in a futile last-ditch bid to avoid a strike. 

The chair of Biden’s Council of Economic Advisers cited Biden’s record of backing unions and collective bargaining, saying the president had been ‘very much engaged’ in the negotiations. 

The union appeared to be digging in for a potential protracted strike, even as Ford quickly announced that ripple effects from the walkouts meant temporary layoffs of 600 jobs.

UAW President Fain said late Friday that it wasn’t true ‘negotiations have broken down.’

However, he added that ‘our members and allies are standing strong at the picket lines. Anyone who wants to stand with us can grab a sign and hold the line.’

‘Tomorrow, we expect to be at the bargaining table,’ he said. ‘All three companies have received a comprehensive counteroffer from our union, and we await their response.’

For Biden, the strike represents a collision of two of the president’s top goals – fighting climate change and expanding the middle class by supporting unions. 

Biden is trying to turbocharge the market for electric vehicles to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prevent China from solidifying its grip on the growing industry. 

His signature legislation, known as the Inflation Reduction Act, includes billions of dollars in incentives to get more clean cars on the roads.

However, many autoworkers fear the transition away from gas-powered cars will cost jobs, because electric vehicles require fewer people to assemble. 

Although there will be new jobs in the production of high-capacity batteries, there’s no guarantee that those factories will be unionized, and they’re often being planned in states more hostile to organized labor.

‘The president is in a really tough position,’ said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business. ‘What he needs to be the most pro-labor president ever and the greenest president ever is a magic wand.’

The union is demanding steep raises and better benefits, and it’s escalating the pressure with its targeted strike. 

Brittany Eason, who has worked for 11 years at the Ford Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan, said workers are worried that they’ll ‘be pushed out by computers and electric vehicles.’

‘How do you expect people to work with ease if they’re in fear of losing their jobs?’ said Eason, who planned to walk the picket line this weekend. 

Electric vehicles may be inevitable, she said, but changes need to be made ‘so everybody can feel secure about their jobs, their homes and everything else.’

Biden on Friday acknowledged the tension in remarks from the White House , saying the transition to clean energy ‘should be fair and a win-win for auto workers and auto companies.’

He dispatched top aides to Detroit to help push negotiations along, and he prodded management to make more generous offers to the union, saying ‘they should go further to ensure record corporate profits mean record contracts.’

As part of its demands, the UAW wants to represent employees at battery plants, which would send ripple effects through an industry that has seen supply chains upended by technological changes.

‘Batteries are the power trains of the future,’ said Dave Green, a regional director for the union in Ohio and Indiana. ‘Our workers in engine and transmission areas need to be able to move into the new generation.’

Executives, however, are keen to keep a lid on labor costs as their companies prepare to compete in a global market. China is the dominant manufacturer of electric vehicles and batteries.

‘The UAW strike and indeed the `summer of strikes´ is the natural result of the Biden administration´s `whole of government´ approach to promoting unionization at all costs,’ said Suzanne Clark, CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Some environmental groups, conscious of how labor remains crucial to securing support for climate programs, have expressed support for the strike.

‘We’re at a really pivotal moment in the history of the auto industry,’ said Sam Gilchrist, deputy national outreach director at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Presidential politics have increased the stakes for the strike, which could damage the economy going into an election year, depending on how long it lasts and whether it spreads. It’s also centered in Michigan, a key part of Biden’s 2020 victory and critical to his chances at a second term.

Former President Donald Trump , the frontrunner for the Republican nomination, sees an opportunity to drive a wedge between Biden and workers. 

He issued a statement saying Biden ‘will murder the US auto industry and kill countless union autoworker jobs forever, especially in Michigan and the Midwest. There is no such thing as a ‘fair transition’ to the destruction of these workers’ livelihoods and the obliteration of this cherished American industry.’

In an interview with NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,’ Trump said that ‘electric cars are going to be made in China,’ not the United States, and he said ‘the auto workers are being sold down the river by their leadership.’

Trump’s comments have not earned him any support from UAW president Fain.

‘That’s not someone that represents working-class people,’ he told MSNBC earlier this month. ‘He’s part of the billionaire class. We need to not forget that. And that´s what our members need to think about when they go to vote.’

Ammar Moussa, a spokesman for Biden’s campaign, said Trump ‘will say literally anything to distract from his long record of breaking promises and failing America’s workers.’ 

He noted that Trump would have let auto companies go bankrupt during the financial crisis rather than bail them out as President Barack Obama did at the time.

But there are also disagreements between Biden and workers.

When the Energy Department announced a $9.2 billion loan for battery plants in Tennessee and Kentucky, part of a joint venture by Ford and a South Korean company, Fain said the federal government was ‘actively funding the race to the bottom with billions in public money.’

Madeline Janis, co-executive director of Jobs to Move America, which works on environmental and worker issues, said the White House needs to do more to alleviate labor challenges.

‘We don’t have enough career pathways for people to see themselves in this future and let go of the jobs in industries that are causing our world to be in crisis,’ she said.

Port Adelaide‘s only AFL premiership coach Mark Williams has used his Hall of Fame induction to issue an emotional call to fight racism in the sport – and explained what led to one of the most iconic images in Power history.

In a passionate and wide-ranging speech at Melbourne‘s Crown Casino, the life-long football champion ended the function in stirring style.

Joking he was given the hard task of following iconic broadcaster Bruce McAvaney, Williams need not have worried as he delivered a memorable acceptance speech.

The 64-year-old said he remained in football, currently at Melbourne, due to his love of working with people from all backgrounds.

‘The Aboriginal people, I absolutely love. I really admire the AFL for talking and standing up for the ‘Yes’ vote for the Voice,’ Williams said.

‘I am saying we have to do the right thing and understand how bloody hard it is for the Aboriginal players to make their way in the AFL.

‘We need to support them and understand them.

‘When we get them there, make sure we give them opportunity and then absolutely demand the best from them and expect the best.’

Williams used the 2004 grand final when he coached Port to their sole premiership as an example of First Nations players starring on the biggest stage.

Byron Pickett won the Norm Smith Medal, while fellow Indigenous Power teammates Gavin Wanganeen, Peter Burgoyne and Shaun Burgoyne also played key roles in Port’s 40-point victory over the all-conquering Brisbane Lions.

‘I want them to be best on ground, not just making up the numbers,’ Williams said.

‘On grand final day, that’s what we saw when Port Adelaide won.’

The iconic image from Port’s breakthrough AFL premiership was Williams’ mock tie-choking gesture after the siren.

Williams reflected on just how tough things were for him and his family at that time in his life.

‘We were getting a lot of flack, it was hard living in Adelaide. Walking down the streets, my family was getting bullied and abused,’ he said.

‘People see the pulling of the tie and try and understand it. (But) If you walked a mile in my shoes or theirs (my family), you would understand how difficult it was.

‘To everyone’s credit, the Port Adelaide players, staff and board — everyone stuck together really closely. We worked on it and worked on it and kept going and kept believing in ourselves and finally got there.’

Three-time Geelong premiership heroes Jimmy Bartel and Corey Enright have become the latest Cats legends to be inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame.

The pair both ended their playing careers at the end of the 2016 season following Geelong’s preliminary-final loss to the Sydney Swans.

Despite ending their time with the Cats on a low, Bartel and Enright played a central role in an extraordinary period of success for the regional Victorian club.

The dynamic duo starred in Geelong’s 2007 premiership, the club’s first in 44 years, before being part of further grand-final success in 2009 and 2011.

A courageous midfielder, Bartel was awarded the 2007 Brownlow Medal and took out the Norm Smith Medal for his best-on-ground performance in the 2011 grand-final win over Collingwood.

Now a respected media analyst and a GWS board member, Bartel finished his career with 305 games and 202 goals.

Enright remains one of the greatest defenders in modern AFL history, named All-Australian six times, including in his final season.

Geelong should continue to dominate the Hall of Fame intake in coming years with fellow premiership greats such as Gary Ablett Jnr, Steve Johnson, Joel Selwood and Tom Hawkins almost certain to be included when they become eligible.

One of Bartel and Enright’s former adversaries, Sam Mitchell, was also inducted into the Hall of Fame after a stellar four-premiership career for Hawthorn, followed by a one-season stint at West Coast.

Mitchell skippered the Hawks’ 2008 grand-final victory over Geelong, before handing the captaincy reins over to Luke Hodge ahead of the 2011 season.

Hawthorn added to their premiership cabinet with a 2013-15 flag three-peat.

Mitchell was retrospectively crowned a joint winner of the 2012 Brownlow Medal after Essendon’s Jobe Watson gave up his award following the Bombers’ supplements saga.

Now coaching Hawthorn after taking over from his long-time mentor Alastair Clarkson at the end of 2021, Mitchell finished with 329 games and is a five-time Hawks best-and-fairest winner.

Port Adelaide’s only AFL premiership coach Mark Williams received a belated induction, 13 years after he stepped away from the Power.

Williams enjoyed an illustrious playing career in the SANFL with Port Adelaide, before taking his talents to the VFL/AFL at Collingwood and Brisbane.

AFL Commission chairman Richard Goyder confirmed St Kilda great Nick Riewoldt had accepted an invitation into the Hall of Fame.

However, the former Saints captain is living in the United States with his family this year and will be officially inducted when he returns to Australia.

2023 AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

Sam Mitchell (Hawthorn, West Coast)

Jimmy Bartel (Geelong)

Corey Enright (Geelong)

Michael Aish (Norwood, SANFL)

Tom Leahy (West Adelaide, North Adelaide SANFL)

Bruce McAvaney (broadcaster)

Mark Williams (Port Adelaide as player and coach, Collingwood, Brisbane)

Prince Harry today told the High Court what he believed was in the public interest – amid a series of testy exchanges with a lawyer who told him: ‘Could I ask the questions?’ 

The duke – who is suing Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) for damages over claims journalists at its titles used hacking, ‘blagging’ and other illegal means of deception – repeatedly clashed with the KC representing the publisher during the second day of his cross-examination.

Andrew Green KC told the prince after one fractious exchange: ‘Could I just repeat what I said yesterday – this is about me asking you questions, not you asking me questions.’

Meanwhile Harry repeatedly pushed back against the barrister’s line of questioning, telling him several times: ‘I’ll take your word for it.’

Harry, 38, alleges that about 140 articles published between 1996 and 2010 by MGN publications contained information gathered using unlawful methods, and 33 of these have been selected to be considered at the trial.

Mr Green asked the duke about an article published in the Sunday People in May 2005 about him having a knee injury and fellow cadets at Sandhurst complaining he was given ‘preferential treatment’ by being let off ‘gruelling marches’. 

The barrister asked about a press release issued by Clarence House about the injury, which included a quote from Harry. He asked the duke whether he stood by the evidence in his witness statement, in which he said he wasn’t ‘going around discussing any medical issues or injuries’.

Harry replied: ‘Yes, it is entirely accurate. That is a reference to while I was at Sandhurst and the distrust that I ended up having … with the medical staff at Sandhurst.’

Mr Green then turned to an article published in the Independent newspaper on the same day as the People article, and asked the duke if he accepted there was a degree of public interest in the story.

Yesterday, Harry said there was ‘a difference between the public interest and what is in the interests of the public’.

Harry replied today: ‘No, I do not.’

Mr Green asked the duke what he thought a public interest story about him would be.

‘I’m not entirely sure, I’d be speculating,’ Harry replied.

‘Well could you speculate for a moment,’ Mr Green said.

Harry said it could be in the public interest to report ‘a life-threatening injury’ he had suffered.

At one point in the cross-examination, the royal spoke directly to the judge.

Mr Green responded: ‘Could I ask the questions?’

In another testy exchange, Harry was asked if he would be happy or disappointed to find out that his phone had never been hacked by Mirror Group journalists.

‘That would be speculating,’ Harry replied.

He said there was ‘industrial scale hacking’ occurring at newspapers, so would feel it was an ‘injustice’ if this was not ‘proved’ in his case.

‘So you want your phone to have been hacked,’ Mr Green said.

‘No one wants to have been phone hacked,’ Harry replied.

Mr Green questioned Harry about a September 2007 People article that claimed his relationship at the time was ‘in crisis after a string of bitter bust-ups’.

Harry told the court that the ‘whole article itself is suspicious’, adding: ‘I never discussed with the Palace any details of my relationship with my girlfriend.’

Mr Green asked the duke if he was alleging that information in the story came from phone hacking.

‘Yes,’ Harry said, adding: ‘I say that everything that has been attributed to a Palace source… was obtained unlawfully.

‘The Palace wouldn’t know this information.’

Mr Green said the prince was in the ‘land of total speculation about where this information might have come from’.

‘Not at all, I disagree,’ Harry responded. 

Mr Green also used the phrase yesterday when Harry said he was ‘not sure’ whose phone was hacked when he broke his thumb playing football at Eton and it appeared in the media. 

The duke then claimed another Mirror article about his breakup with Chelsy Davy had been obtained through voicemail interception.

The article ‘Down in the dumped’ reported on an ’emotional phone call’ in which Ms Davy apparently asked for a trial separation.

Harry said in his witness statement yesterday that the piece included ‘a quote from a ”friend”, that said we needed some time out, but that we were likely to get back together’.

But he said neither he nor Ms Davy had ever spoken about what happened to anyone outside their closest friends.

Harry said he thought the information could have been obtained through voicemail, but confirmed he did not specifically recall leaving a voicemail as it happened so long ago.

Mr Green said the trial separation was ‘already widely reported’ in the Sunday papers. ‘I’ll take your word for it, Mr Green,’ Harry replied.

Referring to a December 2007 article about Harry dropping Ms Davy off after she spent the night at Kensington Palace, which included a paparazzi photograph of Ms Davy, Mr Green suggested that was something ‘anyone could have observed’.

The barrister said there were often photographers outside the palace, to which Harry said: ‘They were only there for pretty much emergencies or big moments of the royal family – weddings, engagements, hospital visits.’

Mr Green said: ‘There were there on this occasion’, to which Harry replied: ‘That is why it’s suspicious, my lord.’

The duke added: ‘This to me is incredibly suspicious as I say. She spent the night with me, I was dropping her off as close to Kensington High Street as I could get without being seen.

‘To know that a photographer was there for us, waiting, was highly suspicious.’

The prince said he suspected he had seen the article at the time of publication as he believed his security team would have alerted him to it.

Mr Green also mentioned a Sunday Mirror article about Harry’s breakup with Ms Davy, which was headlined ‘Hooray Harry’s dumped’ and contained reports of a ‘vodka binge’. 

The duke said it was ‘hurtful to say the least’ that ‘such a private moment was turned into a bit of a laugh’.

Mr Green said the name had been used to describe the royal in previous stories.

‘It was not celebrating the demise of your relationship,’ he added.

In a 49-page witness statement unveiled yesterday, the duke said that he found it ‘very hard to trust anyone, which led to bouts of depression and paranoia’.

‘Friendships were lost entirely unnecessarily,’ he continued, later adding that some of his friends ‘became instant targets’.

The duke later said that he can now see ‘how much of my life was wasted on this paranoia’, adding: ‘I’ve always heard people refer to my mother as paranoid, but she wasn’t.

‘She was fearful of what was actually happening to her and now I know that I was the same.’

Mr Green questioned Harry on about 20 of the 33 articles over the course of yesterday.

Harry was asked about why he has complained about articles in MGN titles when the same information had previously been put into the public domain by other media outlets.

The duke said his understanding was that MGN journalists used unlawful methods to get ‘exclusive’ angles on existing stories or to move the story on in some way.

Mr Green also asked Harry about his claim that articles ’caused him to be paranoid and to distrust those around him’, and whether he was referring to specific MGN articles or ‘the general effect of all of the articles’ about him.

Harry said: ‘Yes, because … it is 20 years ago and I simply can’t other than speculate whether I saw these articles at the time.

‘I certainly saw a lot of articles at the time and was made aware … unfortunately, by the behaviour and reaction of my inner circle.’

The duke added that when information he had told to only a few members of his inner circle was made public, ‘your circle of friends starts to shrink’.

MGN is contesting his claim and has either denied or not admitted that articles about Harry being examined at the trial involved phone hacking or unlawful activity.

At the start of the duke’s individual case on Monday, Mr Green said there was ‘simply no evidence capable of supporting the finding that the Duke of Sussex was hacked, let alone on a habitual basis’ and that payment records used in the duke’s claim ‘simply do not demonstrate unlawful conduct or knowledge thereof’.

Harry’s claim is being heard alongside three other ‘representative’ claims during a trial which began last month and is due to last six to seven weeks.

The three other representative claimants are Coronation Street actor Michael Turner, known professionally as Michael Le Vell, who is best known for playing Kevin Webster in the long-running soap, former Coronation Street actress Nikki Sanderson, and comedian Paul Whitehouse’s ex-wife Fiona Wightman.

BELOW IS HARRY’S FULL WRITTEN WITNESS STATEMENT –  

With no workers to fill job vacancies, bills spiralling out of control and a rise in drug addicts on the streets, Germany – still widely viewed as Europe’s economic powerhouse – slipped into a recession last week.

Once famed for the financial might of its currency, the truth is that working-class and middle-class people in Germany are feeling the pinch.

Rental, energy and supermarket prices are rising, tightening the purse strings of an already thrifty nation further.

Things got even more bleak in Germany last Thursday when it emerged that the economy suffered an unexpected dip in the first quarter of the year, formally putting the country into recession.

German economists said that soaring costs due to high inflation has reduced consumer spending. In fact, grocery bills are a staggering 28.6 per cent higher than they were in 2021. 

The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.3 per cent between January and March, according to data released on May 25 by the Federal Statistical Office. 

The unexpected dip is a major blow for the German government, which just weeks ago boldly doubled its growth forecast for this year after a feared winter energy crunch failed to materialise. 

As politicians leading its struggling coalition government scramble to help the economy rebound, problems are mounting across the whole country.

At Chaplin’s Pub, tucked away in a side street just two minutes’ walk from the main train station in Hamburg, Germany’s second largest city, barman Christopher Kruse, 60, says the country’s pub culture is dire straits.

‘During winter, I’d sit here sometimes with just one customer watching the football, so we were losing money by keeping it opening.

‘Pubs are closing left, right and centre. During Covid people got hooked on Netflix. They now think, “Should I go out and pay €4.50 for a beer when I can get a six-pack of cans at home and watch movies?”.’

Like many other European countries, Germany has a desperate shortage of workers.

According to the Institute of German Economics (IW), a staggering 630,000 vacancies were left unfilled last year in everything from nursing and healthcare to skilled trades, IT and the service sector.

This leaves those in work overstretched and overwhelmed, with many wanting to quit.

Mr Kruse said: ‘You can really feel times are tough. Finding staff is pretty much impossible. Those in work are having to do everything they can to keep customers coming.

‘We’ve not increased prices so we remain attractive, even though our own costs have skyrocketed. But we are making it work by offering shots for 50 cents to get people through the doors.’

Nearby is the Hansa Treff bar, run by Mehmet Simsit, 58, who sits outside having a coffee and cigarette with friends.

Just a few feet away is the Hansa Fountain which is supposed to symbolise the financial might of the Hanseatic League, the maritime trading network which ran from the 13th century to the 17th century, making Hamburg rich and powerful.

Ironically, today it’s a magnet for beggars, drug addicts and rough sleepers.

‘Things are really hard for everyone.’ says Mr Simsit. ‘Our costs are up between 30 and 40 per cent or higher. Just look at this coffee. Last year it cost me just 25 cents to produce it, today its 60.’

‘This neighbourhood has lots of problems. We campaigned against a toilet being set up in the square as it will just be used by the drug addicts, the homeless and the prostitutes.’

As he speaks, a woman sporting garish lipstick and a battered eye flashes a smile, despite having several missing teeth, at a group of British football fans who are getting the beers in.

‘This is a poor community, so it’s really hard for local customers to pay the prices, but we must still be firm, so I don’t let in any drug addicts, even though I’m a reformed junkie.’

‘I care for these people and work with organisations to help them out of destitution. But what is really alarming is that people society would class as ‘normal’ are now also becoming desperate.’

‘Each week I organise food handouts here in collaboration with a local church and high-end hotels. But now a lot of pensioners who worked all their lives and lived decent lives are turning up because they can’t afford to feed themselves.’

Near the Leihhaus, or pawn shop, where a homeless person is sleeping outside, Ibrahim Akan, 42, sales manager of the Aladin Center pound-store, says far fewer people are coming in to spend.

And at Bizim Berber hairdressers on the same street, Enver Pamuk, 60, says it is a daily struggle to keep prices low for people in this hard-up neighbourhood when his own overheads are soaring.

‘We’ve had to cut staff from six to three. But this doesn’t solve the problem, and we have had to therefore raise our prices from €10 to €15 for a cut.’

With its disadvantaged districts such as St Georg or the seedy streets of the famous Reeperbahn red-light district, Hamburg has its share of grit.

But this proud maritime city also has many other sides, and you can easily switch between vastly different areas, from run down to stunningly beautiful, in no time.

From the main station, whose entrance is guarded by a small army of beggars and boozers, it is just a one-minute tube ride to Jungfernstieg promenade, where you emerge to see the sun glittering on the Binnenalster lake before you, and can enjoy a drink while watching families sailing.

Just turn your head 180 degrees and you see not just the five-star Vier Jahreszeiten Hotel, but also the historic Alsterarkaden, a prestigious arcade bursting with boutique stores.

Other places where you can really feel the wealth of Hamburg, Germany’s fourth most expensive city, is by strolling around its affluent parts and just taking a peep at the real estate.

Harvestehude, Blankenese, and Eppendorf are all strikingly posh areas, with high-end properties including elegant villas and swanky studio apartments.

And yet even here people are tightening their designer belts.

Financial auditor Anna Prehn, 34, lives in the lush Winterhude district, home to a range of attractive properties on the front of the river Alster.

‘Prices increased especially for everyday things like grocery shopping. Fruits and vegetables are very expensive at the moment. What also increased is having dinner in restaurants.

‘I’m also worried about the development of prices for rental housing. It is really difficult to find a affordable flat in Hamburg and I hope that the prices will decrease in the future.’

The numbers back-up her observation, as the Verbraucherzentrale, a network of consumer protection organisations, reveals that the rise in grocery prices between April 2022 and April 2023, is a whopping 17.2 per cent.

The bad news does not end there, because much of the rise in grocery prices in Germany did not take place between 2022 and 2023, but during the previous year.

When you add it all up, the numbers are shocking. It means that since 2021, grocery prices in Germany have gone up 28.6 per cent.

Worse still, if you focus on the price of selected items, the difference between what Germans paid for goods in 2021 and 2023 is simply flabbergasting.

Bread rolls, for example, increased by 25 per cent, fish (28 per cent), milk (38-42 per cent), poultry (33 per cent), beef (40 per cent), semolina (42 per cent), noodles (48 per cent), margarine (59 per cent), wheat wheat flour (70 per cent) and sunflower and rapeseed oil (73 per cent).

Among its grotty neighbourhoods and lush boroughs are areas that are not stunningly beautiful but still relatively affluent, such as Eimsbüttel.

Strolling around the clean main street and leafy sides streets around the Osterstraße tube stop, local businesses say they are doing alright, but it is clear that the situation is very different to before the pandemic.

At the nearby Faire Fritzi children’s clothing and toy store, owner Kathi Plate, 39, explains why prices in her sector have increased.

‘Cotton prices in the country have risen considerably, which means more expensive clothing. But what makes us a bit of an exception to this situation is that our business did not exist before the pandemic.

‘On one hand this is really good because it means we don’t have to look back at pre-pandemic costs and think – oh heavens – look at the huge increases in costs.

‘On the other hand it means we are just starting out at a time when fewer customers are coming and they are spending less, so sometimes you think – phew – things really could be a bit easier. But we will manage.’

Other store owners are also struggling. Florist Britta Rohweder, 52, at die Straussbar, said ‘In tough times it is when folk cut-back on luxuries. And our costs rose around 35-40 per cent in Winter, so normally all this would be very worrying.’

‘But we have also focused on doing flower decoration for companies, weddings and funerals, so we are still doing well.’

The theme of cutting back is also an issue at the nearby wedding store Brautschuppen. Here Nieke Fischer, 26, explains: ‘We are doing well enough, but customers are most definitely cutting back on their spending, on average by €100 per person on last year.

‘What I find really sad is that many brides are also cutting back on certain services, like pre-wedding grooming to test out make-up and styles and things, and instead they are just doing it all last minute on the day, and so end up not as satisfied on the most important day in their life.’

For others, however, things are really not so bad. Sitting outside the boutique after some clothes shopping, Anne-Cecil Wedtgrube, 39, says: ‘Clothes prices at the more low-price stores like H&M are now up, but the pricier stores have not really increased their prices.

‘I therefore may as well keep shopping and have high-end stuff given that the low-end stuff is getting more expensive.’