The Family and Parenting Institute (FPI) today warned that families with children will be worst affected by the Government’s proposed changes to tax and benefits. A study by the Institute for Fiscal Studies on behalf of the FPI suggests that the average income of families with children will fall by 4.2 per cent by 2015-16, [...]
Customers who were mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI) are liable for tax on the compensation they receive. The Financial Services Authority awarded compensation to PPI customers who had been mis-sold policies, plus 8 per cent interest on the money they originally spent on the policy. This interest is subject to tax it has been revealed, [...]
UK residents holding cash and investments with Swiss banks are to be taxed by Swiss authorities, with the money then handed over to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). A deal has been agreed between governments whereby account holders can retain their anonymity but will be forced to make their contribution to the Treasury. HMRC expects [...]
China‘s property prices have remained stubbornly high despite several Government initiatives to avoid a property bubble. The Government recently announced plans to introduce a property tax. Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng said it is preparing for the “trial reform on property tax as required by the central Government”. It has also made it more expensive to [...]
HSBC, which is Europe’s largest bank, has once again denied rumours that it is planning to relocate its UK headquarters to Hong Kong. A report in the Sunday Telegraph quoted an unnamed, investor as saying “we were told that a move [to Hong Kong] is now more than likely”. However, the bank has refuted the [...]
Mervyn King, the Bank of England’s Governor, has expressed his support for breaking up banks – measures that would shake-up the UK’s banking industry. Mr King’s comments come shortly after the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) said it was looking at ways to increase competition and choice among high street banks. One option could see [...]
Chancellor George Osborne has today announced that UK banks will have until next month to sign up to a code of practice, in a bid to get them to pay more tax. Speaking to BBC television today, Mr Osborne said: “We are going to be looking at the code of practice that the banks were [...]
Leading think tank, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), has unveiled City bankers will be in receipt of a bonus pot of £7.3 billion this year. The total is 4% lower than last year’s total and considerably lower than the £11 billion paid out at the height of the banking boom in 2007. [...]
US banking giant Goldman Sachs has today announced profits dived 82% in the second quarter to $453 million. The figures represented the worst quarter since the height of the financial crisis – almost two years ago and were hit by the British bonus levy and a US fraud settlement. Commenting, Lloyd Blankfein chief executive, said: [...]
Banks are being urged to show compassion when allocating bonuses this year – in light of the cost-cutting measures in the public and private sectors. Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mark Hoban, said banks need to be mindful during the forthcoming bonus season – at a time when pay restraints are being implemented across the [...]
Influential think tank, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), believes taxes will increase sharply in the next ten years, in order to cut the UK’s budget deficit. According to a report by the Institute, taxes would have to rise by the equivalent of 6p on the basic income tax rate to bring [...]
The traditional practice of leaving an inheritance is being replaced with a “pre-inheritance”. Nearly half (46%) of British adults have received a pre-inheritance, money given to them out of the estate of a benefactor who has yet to die. However, the new trend could already be on the wane, with just 17% of over-55s saying [...]
Savers are being urged to make full use of this year’s ISA allowance before the 5 April deadline. Unbiased.co.uk warned that Brits are set to unnecessarily spend £35 million on tax this year because they haven’t bothered to put their savings into an ISA. Research by the financial advice website found that 5.9 million adults [...]
The Pre-Election Budget will be delivered today by Chancellor Alistair Darling but he has repeatedly said there will be no “giveaways” ahead of the general election. What we can expect to see, though, are more details of how the Government expects to trim the budget deficit. Mr Darling has previously pledged to halve the budget [...]
Bill Nighy has pledged his support for a campaign to impose a “Robin Hood tax” on speculative financial transactions between banks. The actor, famous for his roles in Pirates of the Caribbean and Love Actually, has joined forces with director Richard Curtis to make a three-minute film explaining how the tax would work. In the [...]
French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde has today unveiled details of a 50% tax on bankers’ bonuses. After a cabinet meeting today, Ms Lagarde told reporters that a bill detailing the new tax would be presented to parliament early in the New Year. Any bonus above €27,500 (£24,000) will be taxed at a rate of 50% [...]
Today is the day of the Pre-Budget Report and Chancellor Alistair Darling will give more detailed plans about how the Government intends to halve the £180 billion deficit. Moody’s credit rating agency has warned that Britain is facing a “fiscal crisis” unless the Government takes action to pay off the debt or risk losing its [...]
A report by the National Audit Office (NAO) has revealed that around 1.5 million pensioners have made overpayments in income tax due to processing errors. Furthermore, the NAO revealed that around 3.2 million were neglecting to take up their allowance entitlements. The watchdog also estimated that half a million pensions have underpaid tax, by an [...]
Brits are handing over £144 million to the government in taxes they don’t need to pay by failing to put their savings in a tax-free account. Research by Unbiased.co.uk found £109 million is being wasted by 6.2 million savers who don’t keep their savings in a tax-free cash ISA account. Some 1.7 million shareholders are [...]
Budget airline easyJet is to close its base at East Midlands airport and cut services at Luton Airport by a fifth with a view to transferring them to profitable bases in continental Europe. Luton is one of easyJet’s biggest bases and operates 16 aircraft and carries almost 5 million passengers each year. Meanwhile, the low-cost [...]
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, [...]
About | Privacy | Disclaimer | Resources | XML Feeds | Press Releases | Directory | Contact us
