Travel chaos is looming after airport operator, BAA, has voted in favour of strike action, the Unite union has announced today. BAA, which is majority owned by Spain’s Ferrovial, owns six airports: Heathrow, Stansted, Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Southampton. These airports would have to close on any strike days, as crucial staff including fire-fighters, security [...]
Workers at motoring group AA have voted in favour of going on strike in a row over pensions. The AA’s management wants to put a cap on annual rises in pensionable salaries, to raise employee contributions and also to cut the maximum annual increase in pensions paid. The final-salary scheme is already closed to new [...]
The GMB trade union has today announced staff at British Gas have voted in favour of industrial action over claims of “macho management” and changes to staff terms and conditions. The union has given the UK’s largest energy retailer a week to respond before deciding its next move. GMB said over 61% of its 8,000 [...]
British Airways (BA) passengers will face travel chaos after the airline’s 12,000 cabin crew members voted in favour to take industrial action over cost-cutting measures, which include a pay freeze, a switch to part-time working for thousands of staff and working conditions. The results of the strike emerged this evening after Len McCluskey, assistant general [...]
Cadbury shareholders have today voted in favour of the £11.5 billion ($18.9 billion) takeover deal from US giant, Kraft Foods. Today’s vote brings an end to Kraft’s five-month battle to take control of the 186-year-old British confectioner. Cadbury said it had received valid acceptances of the offer from shareholders representing 71.7% of the company. Commenting [...]
It emerged in December that Yorkshire Building Society and Chelsea Building Society were in advanced merger talks and the deal is moving a step closer after YBS members voted in favour of the merger. Around 87% of savers and 85% of borrowers voted in favour of the merger, which members of the Chelsea have already [...]
The Supreme Court has today ruled in favour of the banks over the fairness of unauthorised overdraft charges. The legal battle, which has been ongoing since July 2007, will come as a devastating blow to consumer groups who have been campaigning for many years about the charges, which they deem to be unfair. However, Lord [...]
Sir Tom McKillop, the departing chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), has apologised for the bank’s difficulties. The apology came ahead of the shareholder vote for the £20 billion Government bailout, of which shareholders voted by 99% in favour. Earlier this month, the bank said it expected to report its first full-year loss [...]
Lloyds TSB shareholders voted today on the proposed takeover of Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS) with 95.98% voting in favour of the deal. Shareholders also approved proposals to raise £5.5 billion by issuing new shares and special preference shares. The takeover will create a new banking giant called Lloyds Banking Group, which will comprise almost [...]
Earlier this morning the US Senate voted in favour of a new version of the $700 billion (£380 billion) bailout plan. Senators voted 74 to 25 in favour of the emergency legislation established to prevent further damage to the US financial system. The new approved version includes sweeteners such as tax breaks for families and [...]
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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