According to the Fawcett Society, the gender equality charity, lone parents are set to be squeezed by the Government’s austeirty measures, which include cuts to benefits and tax hikes. A report by the Society explains the public service cuts will result in lone mothers losing an average 8.5% of their income after tax by 2015. [...]
Prime Minister David Cameron has stood firm over his Government’s plan to cut housing benefits. The opposition claimed the policy was a “complete shambles” but the PM defended the moves and said: “These are difficult changes but I think it is right.” The proposals include ending the “council housing for life”, which means tenants in [...]
Earlier this month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed a strong performance on the High Street for the month of May – boosted by the sales of televisions in the build-up to the World Cup tournament. However, England’s early exit from the World Cup coincided with a heatwave and according to retail analysts, sales [...]
The world’s largest technology company by sales, Hewlett-Packard (HP), has today announced it is to reduce headcount by 9,000. The Palo Alto, California-based company said the job losses will be the result of productivity gains and automation, in order to provide “next-generation services” which will benefit clients. It said: “As a result of productivity gains [...]
Consumer watchdog, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), has today revealed UK banks may soon be offering customers the ability to opt out of unarranged overdraft facilities. Should the procedure be put in place, it would mean consumers would avoid hefty fees if they slipped into the red. The announcement comes as the OFT took [...]
Lone-parent campaign group Gingerbread has said new rules mean unemployed single parents are facing severe pressure to return to work by the Government. According to the charity, new regulations means almost 70,000 single parents with a child aged 10 to 16 will now receive jobseekers’ allowance instead of income support. Currently, single parents aged over [...]
Despite the poor weather experienced over the summer months, DIY giant Kingfisher said strong trading at B&Q has boosted pre-tax profits. Brits are spending more time in their homes and gardens as a result of the downturn, resulting in a 35% jump in profits at the group. Some Britons are opting to grow their own [...]
HMV, the music and games retailer, has benefited from the demise of rivals and posted an 18% increase in full-year profits. The group said pre-tax profits for the 12 months to April 25 were 11.5% ahead at £63 million. Furthermore, annual group-wide pre-tax profit totalled £61.3 million, compared with the £52 million reported a year [...]
According to the Building Societies Association (BSA), over one million people opened a new building society savings account last year. Building societies have benefited since the collapse of Icelandic banks, Icesave and Kaupthing Edge, and the near collapse of Northern Rock, Bradford & Bingley, RBS, HBOS/Lloyds. The BSA said an additional 1.2 million accounts (net [...]
Recently appointed housing minister, Margaret Beckett, has made reference to weaknesses in the Home Information Pack (HIP) scheme in an address to the House of Commons. The minister made it clear that HIPs are here to stay but acknowledged shortcomings in the scheme mean that the full potential of the packs has not been achieved. [...]
First-time buyer mortgages remain in short supply
The Funding for Lending scheme (FLS) is failing to boost the supply of mortgages for first-time buyers, according to financial information service Moneyfacts. FLS, which was launched by the Treasury and the Bank of England in August, is designed to reduce funding costs for lenders, allowing them to increase their lending to businesses and individuals, [...]
Basic bank account standards at risk
Consumer Focus, the statutory consumer champion, is calling for a minimum standard for basic bank accounts to be introduced, to ensure the survival of the product. Basic bank accounts are used by people who are unable to open a regular current account, perhaps because of a poor credit history. It is estimated that they are [...]
A year has passed since the government replaced Child Trust Funds with Junior ISAs (JISAs) but more than half of parents are unaware that they exist, according to research by friendly society Family Investments Children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011 were eligible to open a Child Trust Fund and to receive [...]
PPI costs increase for Lloyds and Barclays
Lloyds Banking Group has set aside a further £1 billion to cover compensation costs for customers who were mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). Yesterday, Barclays revealed £700m of PPI costs in the 2012 third quarter increasing its total provision to £2bn. Lloyds Banking Group, which has made the largest PPI provision out of all the [...]
Bonfire Night worst day for burglaries warns Aviva
Insurance group Aviva is warning households to be vigilant over security at this time of the year, as burglaries tend to increase signficantly between Halloween and Bonfire Night. On Bonfire Night the number of burglaries increases by around 25 per cent compared with an average day, according to the company’s research. Aviva also reported a [...]
Consumer confidence hits six-month low
Although the UK has officially emerged from recession, consumer confidence fell to -30 in October from -28 in September, according to market researcher company GfK NOP. This is the lowest level of consumer confidence since April when the UK was in an economic slump. Analysts had expected the index to remain stable at -28. Respondents [...]
100,000 mortgage holders escape negative equity trap
New figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reveal that the number of borrowers in negative equity fell 13 per cent to 719,000 between the first quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012. The number of borrowers paying a mortgage greater than the value of their property fell despite a further small [...]
Banking commission appoints counsel to cross-examine witnesses
The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards has appointed counsel to cross-examine witnesses during its inquiry into the collapse of Halifax Bank of Scotland. Barrister David Quest has been appointed to question witnesses in a public evidence session, as part of a sub-committee panel inquiry into the bank. Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the Commission said: “This [...]
Mortgage approvals increased in September
An increase in the number of mortgage approvals in September suggests that the ‘Funding for Lending’ scheme, launched by the Treasury and the Bank of England, may be starting to give the property market a boost. According to Bank of England figures, the number of loans approved for house purchase increased by 2,103 to 50,024 [...]
Five million paid less than living wage
Five million people in the UK are paid less than the ‘living wage’ of £7.20, or £8.30 in London, according to a new report by KPMG. In Northern Ireland, 24 per cent of workers receive less than they require in order to pay for essentials and the situation is little better in Wales where 23 [...]
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