Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne admitted this afternoon that the government will not meet its Budget forecasts for UK economic growth and borrowing. In his Autumn Statement, Mr Osborne reduced forecasts for UK growth to 0.9% this year, 0.7% next year and 2.1% in 2013. In March’s Budget the independent Office for Budget Responsibility [...]
At a speech at the insurers Lloyd’s of London, Chancellor George Osborne has admitted that recent weak economic data had led to a downgrade in growth. Speaking at the dinner in London, the Chancellor said: “We warned repeatedly that the recovery would be choppy.” However, despite the sluggish economic recovery, the Government is sticking with [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK public sector borrowing fell slightly last month. According to the ONS, public sector borrowing fell to £15.15 billion last month compared with £16.46 billion in May last year. The figure was lower than analysts’ expectations of £15.75 billion and was attributed to an increase in [...]
In his Mansion House speech this evening, Chancellor George Osborne is expected to confirm that banks will have to ring-fence their retail operations so they are protected from losses from investment banking. The Chancellor is also expected to suggest that banks will have to hold more capital – a recommendation of the Independent Commission on [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) today announced Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) rose to an annual rate of 4% in January – the highest rate since November 2008. The latest figures takes inflation to double the target of 2% – where it has been for more than a year. The latest figure prompted Governor of [...]
Chancellor George Osborne is today expected to announce that a deal has been reached between the Government and the banks with regard to lending targets and restraints on pay. The report comes a day after Mr Osborne confirmed he is maintaining the levy on banks, raising an additional £800 million this year and £2.5 billion [...]
The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR), which was established in May, is today expected to revise its growth forecast for the UK for the 2010 year. The independent body, which was set up by the coalition Government to assess the state of public finances, is expected to revise its growth forecast to 1.7% from the [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is scheduled to announce the UK inflation rate for October tomorrow morning, with analysts expecting the annual rate to hold steady at 3.1%. With inflation way above the 2% target, the Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, will be forced to write a letter to Chancellor George [...]
Ahead of the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham today, Chancellor George Osborne has revealed that child benefit is to be scrapped for higher rate taxpayers from 2013. Currently, child benefit is paid at £20.30 a week for the first child and £13.40 a week for any other children. For example, a mother of three would [...]
Speaking to an invited audience at Bloomberg’s London offices, Chancellor George Osborne has today defended his massive spending cuts and insists there is light at the end of the tunnel. However, he agreed with Mervyn King’s prediction last week, who said the economic recovery will be “choppy”. He added that there is an improvement in [...]
Chancellor George Osborne will today reveal plans to simplify the UK tax system, in a bid to encourage investment and drive economic growth. Since coming to power, the coalition Government has argued that the UK tax system is too complicated and has been proposing to make it simpler. Mr Osborne is set to announce that [...]
George Osborne’s emergency budget “takes from the poor to give to the rich” according to campaigners for a fairer tax system. The Chancellor of the Exchequer has failed to hold banks responsible for the financial carnage they caused in the credit crunch and the subsequent recession, the Robin Hood Tax campaign said. ”The Chancellor called [...]
In a bid to ease the pain from severe spending cuts, Chancellor George Osborne has said the coalition Government will proceed with its proposal to freeze council tax in England. Tomorrow’s budget is expected to bring tax hikes and deep benefit cuts so the council tax freeze is expected to help “millions of families…… at [...]
In his first Mansion House speech last night, Chancellor George Osborne confirmed that the Bank of England will hold the main role in regulating the UK financial sector. The move was widely expected and comes as City Watchdog, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), will “cease to exist in its current form”, said the Chancellor. The [...]
Chancellor George Osborne is today expected to hand over more responsibility to the Bank of England. The move comes just a few days after the BBC reported that City Watchdog, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), will be retained – as a subsidiary of the Bank of England. It was expected that the watchdog would be [...]
Chancellor George Osborne will proceed with a bank levy despite the failure to agree a universal tax at this weekend’s G20 summit. The summit, which was Mr Osborne’s first G20 meeting, saw no mention of a proposal for a bank levy. Speaking after the summit, the Chancellor said: “We’ll introduce a levy regardless of whether [...]
New Chancellor, George Osborne, is today set to wield the axe by announcing plans to cut £6.2 billion off the £156 billion deficit this year. The new Con/Lib coalition Government has said trimming the budget deficit is one of its priorities. However, Mr Osborne’s predecessor, Alistair Darling, warned that cutting the deficit too quickly could [...]
New Chancellor George Osborne gave a speech to business leaders at the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) annual dinner last night and has outlined plans to reform corporation tax. He told business leaders that the new Government is committed to lower and simpler corporate tax rates. At the emergency Budget, on 22 June, Mr Osborne [...]
At his first press conference as chancellor, George Osborne has today announced plans to launch a new fiscal watchdog, called the independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). The OBR, which will be led by former Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member, Alan Budd, is set to ensure the Government is held responsible for how [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
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