Ed Balls fails to rule out lowering the threshold for the 40p rate April 1, 2015 Ed Balls has failed to rule out dragging more people into the 40p tax bracket. The shadow chancellor said the country still faced a £90bn deficit and could not guarantee the 40p threshold would not be lowered. The higher rate applies to those earning £41,865. In an interview with ITV News, Balls said: What I’d [...]
General Election 2015: Lord Ashcroft poll shows Nick Clegg on course to lose his seat to Labour April 1, 2015 Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg could lose his seat in Sheffield Hallam, according to the latest set of polls by Tory peer Lord Ashcroft. The snapshot poll shows 36 per cent are planning to vote for Clegg's Labour opponent Oliver Coppard, two points ahead of those who said they would support the deputy prime minister. [...]
General Election 2015: Labour-SNP deal could produce “constitutional crisis,” warns Blackrock April 1, 2015 The world's largest fund manager Blackrock has warned that a Labour-SNP deal after the General Election could lead to Britain resembling a "pre-crisis Spain." A partnership between the SNP and Labour would "raise the spectre of a dis-United Kingdom" reminiscent of when Spain's government was beholden to Basque and Catalan separatists and result in a [...]
Economy leapfrogs immigration as number one issue for voters April 1, 2015 The economy has become the number one issue at this year's General Election, polls show. After two months of lagging behind immigration and health, voters think the state of Britain's economy is not just the top issue for the country but also for themselves and their families. Polling guru Mike Smithson said the latest YouGov [...]
Former Labour business leaders back Tory economic plan April 1, 2015 As Ed Miliband prepares to lay out Labour's case for clamping down on zero hours contracts, more than 100 business leaders have declared their support for a Conservative government. In a letter to the Daily Telegraph leaders from some of Britain's household names like BP and Prudential sounded their support for Tory economic policy and [...]
General Election 2015: Growth lift unlikely to win Tories bigger slice of votes March 31, 2015 The UK economy grew at a faster rate last year than previously estimated, but political analysts are cynical as to whether this will boost the Conservatives’ election chances. Chancellor George Osborne was enthused after the Office for National Statistics published its third and final growth estimate yesterday. “GDP revised upwards from 2.6 per cent to [...]
Greece bailout: Greeks hoping for partial verdict on reform plans this afternoon March 31, 2015 Reforms proposed by Greece in return for urgently needed bailout cash will be scrutinised this afternoon during a Euro Working Group meeting – a group of Eurozone deputy finance officials. No final decision on the reforms will be made at the meeting – which starts at 2pm – but approval would be a major step. [...]
Backlash for Ed Miliband over zero hours contracts ban March 31, 2015 Business groups have blasted Labour’s plans to ban zero hours contracts as unnecessary and damaging. Ed Miliband will today set out his party’s proposals to ban the “exploitative” contracts. The next Labour government is to introduce early legislation to ban zero hours contracts for employees who are in practice working regular hours. The new legal [...]
General Election 2015: 103 business leaders sign anti-Labour letter March 31, 2015 Over 100 business leaders have warned that a Labour government would "threaten jobs and deter investment" in a letter to be published in The Telegraph tomorrow. The letter, signed by 103 business bosses, praises the Conservative government which it says has "been good for business and has pursued policies which have supported investment and job [...]
Nigeria: Five of Muhammadu Buhari’s biggest economic challenges March 31, 2015 Muhammadu Buhari has become the first opposition candidate to win a Nigerian presidential election, after incumbent Goodluck Jonathan conceded defeat today. The 72-year-old former military ruler was over 2m votes ahead of his rival with 35 of Nigeria's 36 states declaring results. According to Reuters, Buhari's All Progressives Congress (APC) have received a call from [...]