Women and Equalities Committee examining impact of UK gender pay gap proposals on over 40s in new inquiry November 4, 2015 An inquiry into reducing the gender pay gap, which focuses on women over 40, was launched by the Women and Equalities Committee yesterday. “The gender pay gap is mainly a problem for women over 40, and currently hits women in their 50s even harder,” said Committee chair Maria Miller. “However, the measures already announced by the [...]
This chart shows panic over housing in the UK is rising to levels last seen in the 1970s November 4, 2015 People are freaking out about housing in the UK – and the panic hasn't been this bad since the 1970s. According to the latest Ipsos Mori Issues Index for October, 20 per cent of people see housing as the most important issue facing Britain today. The only time Brits have seen housing as even more of an [...]
Bitcoin price has smashed the $500 mark November 4, 2015 Bitcoin has gone through the roof, with the cryptocurrency passing $500 – a new 2015 high. The digital currency has surged 50 per cent in the past five days alone, as its gains have begun accelerating dramatically on the back of the EU’s recent decision to accept it as a currency. Charles Hayter of CryptoCompare [...]
London house prices: Peckham pre-fab shack auctioned for almost £1m November 4, 2015 More London house price madness: a tiny pre-fab bungalow on a street corner in Peckham has sold for just under £1m. The tumble-down bungalow, on the corner of Costa Street and McDermott Street, close to Peckham Rye Common, went under the hammer with a guide price of £590,000 – but sold for £950,000, at an auction on [...]
Mapped: The Crossrail effect – from Tottenham Hale to New Southgate, how London’s largest infrastructure project has affected house prices November 4, 2015 After years of talking about it, Transport for London finally began its consultation on Crossrail 2 last week, proposing a new route which will run from Cheshunt to Epsom, Chessington and Shepperton. But while the consultation has just begun, the second branch of Crossrail may have already began taking an effect on house prices [...]
UK services sector returns to growth in October as business activity jumps November 4, 2015 A bit of good news for those in the UK's dominant services sector: the sector bounced back in October, after a disappointing September. The Markit/CIPS services business activity sector rose to 54.9 in October, above the consensus of 54.5, way above the 50 point which denotes expansion, and up from the disappointing reading of 53.3 [...]
Price of petrol and diesel falls for the fourth consecutive month in October – and comes close to its 2009 low November 4, 2015 Petrol and diesel prices continued to slide for the fourth month in a row in October, new figures suggest, with diesel hovering close to the low price it hit in 2009. Unleaded fell to 107.82p during October, from 109.45p at the start, making filling an average family car 90p cheaper, RAC said this morning. That's [...]
UK house prices: Persimmon share price falls despite jump in sales November 4, 2015 Are housebuilders finally feeling the heat? FTSE-listed builder Persimmon reported a 12 per cent sales hike in the third quarter this morning – but shares continued to slide after the sector had a spot of bother with a broker yesterday. The figures Sales were 12 per cent higher in the period since it reported its half year results on [...]
GLA Conservatives estimates £576m per year tied up in spare London rooms and encourages Londoners to try out AirBnB November 4, 2015 London’s spare rooms could be worth £576m a year, according to Greater London Authority (GLA) Conservatives. Tony Arbour, GLA Conservatives Assembly tourism spokesman, has argued that half a million people in the capital could rent out a spare room to help pay their bills, which would also bolster London’s tourism industry. According to the GLA Conservatives’ [...]
Dovish statements from ECB president Mario Draghi send the euro tumbling again November 3, 2015 The euro fell against the pound and the dollar last night, following European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi reiterating the dovish comments he made in October. Speaking at a cultural event in Frankfurt, Draghi repeated that the ECB would review the degree of monetary stimulus required at the next governing council meeting in December, [...]