Mervyn King, the Bank of England’s Governor, has confessed that the latest round of stimulus is not guaranteed to boost lending to SMEs. The ongoing lack of credit to SMEs has been a major concern for the Government as these companies are the key to job creation in the UK and are expected to be [...]
Speaking to the Treasury Select Committee today, Business Secretary Vince Cable has warned banks over lending, threatening higher taxes. The business secretary told MPs that the amount of lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) was a “serious problem” and has reminded banks of their targets, set out in the Project Merlin agreement. Under the [...]
Barclays chief executive, Bob Diamond, faced a grilling from MPs today over his reported £8 million bonus. The Treasury Select Committee, who questioned Mr Diamond, asked whether he would waive his bonus for a third year. Mr Diamond responded: “I haven’t been offered a bonus, that’s a decision that will be taken by the remuneration [...]
Barclays chief executive, Bob Diamond, will today face questions from MPs over his reported £8 million bonus. Bonuses have been a major issue for some time now and have sparked public outrage since many argued that excessive bankers’ bonuses reward the risk-taking culture that led to the financial crisis. The Treasury Select Committee, who will [...]
Addressing the Treasury Select Committee today, Chancellor George Osborne suggested the Bank of England could resume its quantitative easing (QE) scheme next year if economic growth slows. There has been suggestions that economic growth will be severely hampered because of the Government’s massive spending cuts - many have even said a double-dip recession is likely. [...]
Speaking in front of the House of Commons’ Treasury select committee, the Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, has reiterated that interest rates will stay at the historic low of 0.5% for some time to come. Mr King said: “It’s right to keep our foot firmly on the monetary accelerator”, adding he is [...]
The Treasury Select Committee has warned that cutting the deficit too quickly could risk pushing the UK back into recession. Since coming to power, the new coalition Government has made cutting the deficit its top priority. However, many leading business groups and former Chancellor, Alistair Darling, all warned that cutting the deficit too quickly could [...]
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 [...]
A member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has cast doubt on the idea of a continued recovery of the UK housing market. Addressing the Treasury Select Committee earlier this week, Kate Barker stated a personal view that mortgage finance could be “quite restrained” in the months ahead, leading to the possibility [...]
Unfair credit rating practices could be called to a halt by MPs following a parliamentary investigation. Currently consumers have to apply for a loan or credit card to find out the interest rate they’ll be offered. However, each application lowers their credit score - so the more a consumer searches around for the best deal, [...]
The Government has announced an inquiry into the UK mortgage market, focusing on arrears, repossession and access to mortgage finance. The Treasury Select Committee will undertake the study which will look at the impact of the recession on existing and potential homeowners. MPs will collect lenders’ statistics on current arrears and their forecasts for medium-term [...]
In its second report on the financial crisis, the Treasury Select Committee has blasted authorities for failing to spot the magnitude of the crisis and for their current management of overseeing banks. Chairman of the Committee, John McFall, said “Bankers have made an astonishing mess of the financial system.” The Committee said the effects of [...]
The ex-bosses of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and HBOS have apologised “profoundly and unreservedly” for the near-collapse of their banks. Speaking to the Treasury Select Committee, Sir Fred Goodwin, former chief executive of RBS said he “could not be more sorry” for the events that led to the bank’s demise. Furthermore, ex-chairman of RBS, [...]
A Professor of Finance from Imperial College Business School in London is predicting that UK house prices could fall by a further 5% to 10% before the market bottoms out. Addressing a committee of MP’s, Professor David Miles proposed that the property market should stabilise once house prices are 20% below their peak of summer [...]
A year has passed since the government replaced Child Trust Funds with Junior ISAs (JISAs) but more than half of parents are unaware that they exist, according to research by friendly society Family Investments Children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011 were eligible to open a Child Trust Fund and to receive [...]
PPI costs increase for Lloyds and Barclays
Lloyds Banking Group has set aside a further £1 billion to cover compensation costs for customers who were mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). Yesterday, Barclays revealed £700m of PPI costs in the 2012 third quarter increasing its total provision to £2bn. Lloyds Banking Group, which has made the largest PPI provision out of all the [...]
Bonfire Night worst day for burglaries warns Aviva
Insurance group Aviva is warning households to be vigilant over security at this time of the year, as burglaries tend to increase signficantly between Halloween and Bonfire Night. On Bonfire Night the number of burglaries increases by around 25 per cent compared with an average day, according to the company’s research. Aviva also reported a [...]
Consumer confidence hits six-month low
Although the UK has officially emerged from recession, consumer confidence fell to -30 in October from -28 in September, according to market researcher company GfK NOP. This is the lowest level of consumer confidence since April when the UK was in an economic slump. Analysts had expected the index to remain stable at -28. Respondents [...]
100,000 mortgage holders escape negative equity trap
New figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reveal that the number of borrowers in negative equity fell 13 per cent to 719,000 between the first quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012. The number of borrowers paying a mortgage greater than the value of their property fell despite a further small [...]
Banking commission appoints counsel to cross-examine witnesses
The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards has appointed counsel to cross-examine witnesses during its inquiry into the collapse of Halifax Bank of Scotland. Barrister David Quest has been appointed to question witnesses in a public evidence session, as part of a sub-committee panel inquiry into the bank. Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the Commission said: “This [...]
Mortgage approvals increased in September
An increase in the number of mortgage approvals in September suggests that the ‘Funding for Lending’ scheme, launched by the Treasury and the Bank of England, may be starting to give the property market a boost. According to Bank of England figures, the number of loans approved for house purchase increased by 2,103 to 50,024 [...]
Five million paid less than living wage
Five million people in the UK are paid less than the ‘living wage’ of £7.20, or £8.30 in London, according to a new report by KPMG. In Northern Ireland, 24 per cent of workers receive less than they require in order to pay for essentials and the situation is little better in Wales where 23 [...]
Commission calls for radical change in housing market
A new study by the Future Homes Commission suggests that the way homes are built in the UK is dysfunctional and needs a radical overhaul. The organisation, which was established by the Royal Institute of British Architects, believes that 300,000 extra homes could be built every year without any input from Government funding. Instead, the [...]
The UK economy emerged from recession yesterday and now leads the way in Europe according to research group Capital Economics. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by one per cent in the third quarter from July to September, the biggest rise for five years, the latest official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show. [...]
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