Loans to home buyers fell in October December 14, 2016 Loans to home buyers fell by eight per cent in October, despite the amount borrowers are paying towards interest rates hitting a historic low. First-time buyers borrowed £4.5bn, a monthly decrease of eight per cent, and a year-on-year drop of two per cent, according to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). Read more: [...]
Sadiq Khan is selling Boris Johnson’s water cannon after more than £322,834 was spent on them by the Met Police December 14, 2016 Boris Johnson's water cannon never quite got the airing the former mayor wanted and now Sadiq Khan has put them up for sale via the Ministry of Defence. But not before costing more than £322,834 for the Met Police in purchasing, fitting out and repairing the three machines, "despite the fact they cannot legally be used in [...]
The 53 countries where you get better mobile signal than the UK December 14, 2016 Finding a lack of mobile coverage irksome? Perhaps it's time to move country. The UK's 4G coverage is actually worse than you'll find in Albania, Peru and Morocco. In fact, an astonishing 53 countries around the world have better signal according to a report calling on the government to push for better access across the country, or [...]
The City watchdog is looking for feedback on how best to protect consumers’ cash December 14, 2016 The City watchdog has today launched a consultation into how best to fund the safety net which compensates consumers when financial services firms find themselves in hot water, including measures which could lead those most likely to wobble the market paying more to keep it secure. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) noted the funding rules for the [...]
TfL starts its tougher crackdown on illegal cab activity in the capital with the roll-out of new officers December 14, 2016 The first wave of the mayor's new beefed up compliance team to tackle illegal cab activity in the capital has hit the streets. Sadiq Khan unveiled plans to crack down on illegal taxis and minicabs in August and 50 of the 250 new officers have now joined the existing team of 82, which Khan says is [...]
This is what will happen to house prices in 2017 December 14, 2016 How will the UK's favourite asset fare in 2017? It's safe to say that the Brexit vote has not caused the immediate and catastrophic housing crash that former chancellor George Osborne was predicting before the referendum. But the outlook for property next year is not particularly rosy. Liberum analysts are expecting house prices to fall [...]
Here’s how one MP thinks strikes like the Southern rail ones can be avoided in the future December 14, 2016 Transport secretary Chris Grayling has been mulling over a range of measures to stop the Southern rail crisis being repeated in the future. And Chris Philp, MP for Croydon South, thinks he just might have the answer. Or at least part of it. The MP has laid out proposals for three major changes to legislation he [...]
Surprise rise in wage growth as unemployment falls – but claimant count rises December 14, 2016 UK wage growth rose more strongly than expected between August and October, hitting 2.5 per cent – beating expectations of a fall to 2.3 per cent. The figure was a rise from 2.4 per cent in July to September. Regular pay, which doesn't include bonuses, rose 2.6 per cent, up from 2.4 per cent in July [...]
Southern Rail strikes: Everything you need to know December 14, 2016 A second round of strike action in as many weeks is has entered its second day bringing continued misery to commuters on Southern Rail this week. The industrial action will started on Tuesday, with more planned for Friday and travellers have been warned of disruption throughout the entire week. Here's everything you need to know about travelling [...]
The worst days and routes to travel over Christmas and how to avoid them December 14, 2016 Everyone knows journeys can take a bit longer over the festive period, but there are some times you really don’t want to hit the road. Transportation analytics firm INRIX has found that some trips on major routes will take around four times as long over Christmas compared to other times of the year and the busiest days [...]