The chancellor needs more than a rainy day fund to help Britain weather Brexit March 8, 2017 In his final Spring Budget, the chancellor was already weaning his audience from this once important spring affair, with little of significant economic policy substance announced. He was handed a gift by the Office for Budget Responsibility in the form of an upgraded outlook for 2017, in anticipation of more resilient consumer spending, although expectations for [...]
Self-employed workers could be offered new options for parental leave March 8, 2017 Self-employed workers could be offered new options for parental leave under plans due to face consultation later this year. The government will this summer explore whether plans for the self-employed to pay higher National Insurance contributions should allow for state-funded paternal and maternal leave for new parents. Chancellor Philip Hammond announced the consultation today, citing in [...]
The Department for Education is going to pilot new lifelong learning schemes March 8, 2017 Ministers will spend £40m on plans to “test the effectiveness of different approaches to lifelong learning”. The effort comes as part of a focus on later life training, and chancellor Philip Hammond said the plan would “help the next generation learn and train throughout their lives.” Confederation of British Industry director general Carolyn Fairbarn said: [...]
The Treasury is plotting an £820m tax avoidance crackdown March 8, 2017 The Treasury is hoping to raise more than £800m from new anti- tax avoidance measures, including penalties for financial advisers. New penalties will come into force from July for tax experts like advisers, if they are found to have enabled the use of avoidance schemes later defeated by HM Revenue and Customs in the courts. The [...]
Budget 2017: Real wages predicted to rise after growth revised upwards this year by OBR March 8, 2017 Real wages are set to grow steadily for the next five years, the government’s Budget watchdog said, as it upgraded growth predictions for this year. Earnings will rise by 0.2 per cent above inflation this year, before accelerating to rise by 1.6 per cent more than prices by 2021, according to the Office for Budget [...]
Following a furious reaction to the National Insurance hike, was the Budget bad news for entrepreneurs? March 8, 2017 Chris Bryce, chief executive of the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed, says Yes. The chancellor heralded the UK’s economic strength and “record employment”, but then proceeded to hit the very people responsible for delivering this. No matter which way you choose to work, the self-employed now face a potentially hefty tax bill. [...]
Former chancellor George Osborne to make £650,000 a year for a four-day-a-month role at BlackRock March 8, 2017 Former chancellor George Osborne will be paid £650,000 a year to advise BlackRock four days a month, it has been revealed. Osborne started his role as a part-time senior adviser at the BlackRock Investment Institute, the asset manager's research arm, on 1 February. The role is focused on European politics, China's economy, and retirement planning in an age of [...]
European company results are beating analysts’ expectations March 8, 2017 European companies are defying analysts' expectations, according to new data. Fourth quarter revenues of nearly 61 per cent of companies in the Stoxx 600 that have reported to date have exceeded analysts' estimates, according to research from Thomson Reuters. In a typical quarter 53 per cent beat analyst revenue estimates. The Stoxx 600 is an index [...]
Standard Life Investments sees first senior executive quit after merger plans unveiled March 8, 2017 Standard Life Investments’ head of equities, David Cumming, is the asset manager’s first senior executive to exit the business following its merger with Aberdeen Asset Management. The company said in a statement that Cumming was leaving to “pursue other interests”. Cumming joined Standard Life Investments in 1998, becoming UK head of equities in 2000, and [...]
Budget 2017: Consumer-led growth is unsustainable says former Bank of England deputy governor Sir Charlie Bean March 8, 2017 The consumption-led growth which prompted the government’s economic watchdog to raise its forecasts for the UK economy this year is “unsustainable”, according to a former deputy governor of the Bank of England. Sir Charlie Bean said households “have been running down savings” to fund consumption. However, “that is not sustainable,” he said in a briefing [...]