A report published by the independent Public Sector Pensions Commission is suggesting the Government needs to urgently review Britain’s public sector pension system. According to the report, a radical reform is needed as public sector pensions cost double the amount previously thought. The report said State pensions are “unreasonably forced on to future taxpayers” with [...]
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has said the Government is expected to see a rise in income tax revenue this year. Income tax revenue has plummeted over the last two years, one of the reasons is the recession which has hit tax revenues. Tax receipts and corporation tax takings have been lower, as well as [...]
MPs are calling for a radical reform of the UK banking system so that taxpayers are not footing the bill for future bail-outs. In its latest report into the banking crisis, published today, the Treasury Select Committee said taxpayers would not stand for another bail-out of the banks and is urging ministers not to rule [...]
The Pre-Election Budget has been delivered today by Chancellor Alistair Darling with items such as stamp duty changes confirmed. The Chancellor said stamp duty will be abolished on house purchases up to £250,000. The change, which will apply this year and next year, means 90% of first-time buyers will not pay the duty. Furthermore, Mr [...]
US banking giant, Bank of America (BoA), has been sued by the New York Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo, for defrauding investors and the Government over its takeover of Merrill Lynch. BoA, and two of its senior executives, Ken Lewis and Joseph Price, have been accused of “enormous fraud” on taxpayers and shareholders over the takeover [...]
Citigroup, which is the third largest US bank, has today posted a loss for the fourth quarter of 2009, as a result of the repayment of Government loans. The bank said it repaid $20 billion to the US Government during the 2009 year. The Wall Street banking giant said losses totalled $7.6 billion (£4.7 billion) [...]
US President Barack Obama has pledged to repay taxpayers the losses they are owed from bailing out the banks as he criticised bankers for the “massive profits and obscene bonuses.” The President said: “My commitment is to recover every single dime the American people are owed. “My determination to achieve this goal is only heightened [...]
Last week, it was announced that nationalised Northern Rock is to be split into two, after receiving the necessary approval from the European Union (EU). Meanwhile this weekend, it has been confirmed by Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, that Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are to broken up. The new banks [...]
Alistair Darling, Chancellor of the Exchequer, has admitted that 2009 will be a difficult year for the economy, as taxes will have to rise again to plug the millions that have been blown away following the economic crisis. With public finances in such dire straits and with the budget to be announced on the 22nd [...]
Following on from Monday’s announcement that Northern Rock is set to return to the mortgage market by lending £14 billion over the next two years, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group are set to increase loans to homeowners and SMEs in exchange for £500 billion of taxpayers’ assistance. Discussions are currently taking [...]
Banks are under pressure to back down from their multi-million pound court appeal in favour of overdraft charges. The banks are currently appealing a High Court ruling from last April that allowed the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to determine the fairness of bank charges. Some banks were known to charge customers up to £39 [...]
Following the Government’s announcement last month that billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money will be pumped into the UK’s struggling banks, consumer group, Which? says now is the time for banks to help out consumers. The group, which has introduced a new campaign to reform banking, said the Government must ensure that the banks are [...]
A new company called UK Financial Investments Ltd (UKFI) is to oversee the Government’s shareholdings in the three High Street banks it rescued last month. It was announced recently that the UK Government is to pump £37 billion into three of the country’s largest banks. £20 billion is to be injected into Royal Bank of [...]
The Government’s own advisers, Goldman Sachs, have warned that taxpayers could lose up to £1.28 billion due to the nationalisation of crisis-torn Northern Rock. Northern Rock was nationalised in February after the Government rejected takeover bids from the board of Northern Rock and a consortium led by Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group. A judicial review [...]
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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