The Government has now provided details of the new flat-rate state pension, as well as increases in the retirement age – due to be equalised at 65 by 2018. The state pension age will then be lifted to 66 for both men and women by 2020. Meanwhile, it was announced that the new pensions system [...]
Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith, will unveil plans to simplify the pensions system so that it “pays to save” for retirement. According to Mr Duncan Smith, it should make pension planning easier to understand – stripping out the current complex means-tested payments system and will move towards a flat-rate payment for men and [...]
As part of the coalition Government’s welfare crackdown, Iain Duncan Smith, Work and Pensions secretary, has today announced that those on incapacity benefit will be forced to undergo medical tests. The tests, which will be trialled in Burnley and Aberdeen from today, will be rolled out throughout the country from next April. The move, which [...]
India’s inflation rate fell last month to its lowest level since January, Government data showed today. Headline inflation eased to 8.5% in August from a revised 9.8% in July – however, this partly due to a change in the way the index is calculated. The new index includes a wider range of consumer goods, such [...]
In the Government’s emergency budget in June, it was revealed that the benefits system would be in line for a radical overhaul. One option being considered would see unemployment benefits and tax credits abolished and replaced with a single payment, Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith, has announced. The move is designed to cut [...]
A shake-up of the retirement system will see the default retirement age scrapped in the UK from October 2011. Under new Government proposals to be unveiled later today, employers will no longer have the legal right to terminate the employment of a 65-year-old. Charities such as Age UK and activists have welcomed the new proposals [...]
Proposals have been unveiled by Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith, which could see unemployed people encouraged to seek jobs outside the areas where they live. According to Mr Duncan Smith, millions of people are “trapped in estates where there is no work” but have been unable to relocate because it would mean giving [...]
The French Government has announced the country’s retirement age will be lifted from 60 to 62 by 2018, as part of a sweeping overhaul to its pension system. The new measures are to be implemented to cut France’s pension costs and reduce public borrowing. However, the shake-up has met with public anger after tens of [...]
Mervyn King, the Governor of the Bank of England, is calling for major regulatory reform, but Chancellor Alistair Darling said there are no plans to change the current financial regulatory system. The news comes as US President Barack Obama is proposing a major reform of banking regulation in order to prevent future meltdowns of the [...]
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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