General Election 2015: What is confidence and supply? April 28, 2015 We're just nine days away from what many believe to be the most uncertain election outcome in living memory. And with the polls showing no clear majority, a hung parliament is looking increasingly likely. This could lead us towards another coalition government, or its more obscure friend "confidence and supply", which is a much less [...]
Leading business group backs Ed Miliband’s plan to scrap arbitrary immigration targets April 28, 2015 Ed Miliband has received a ringing endorsement from one of the country's leading business groups for Labour's immigration stance. Labour have said they will not set out a specific immigration target to reduce the net inflow of people coming to the UK differentiating themselves from both the Tories and Ukip. This is welcome news to [...]
Labour and Conservatives would “significantly complicate” the pension contributions system, says IFS April 28, 2015 Both Labour and Conservative plans to change reform the system of pension contributions have come in for sharp criticism from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). The independent think tank says the system has been rattled by instability over the last five years, which would continue whichever of the top two parties formed the next [...]
Labour’s mansion tax is “unnecessarily complicated” and imply £16,000 charge on properties over £3m, says IFS April 28, 2015 Both Labour and Conservative plans for the taxation of property have come under fire from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) with Labour's controversial mansion tax being described as "unnecessarily complicated." The IFS says there is host of problems with the way property is currently taxed, not least the structure of council tax. The independent [...]
General Election 2015: David Cameron dismisses Russell Brand as “a joke” ahead of Ed Miliband interview April 28, 2015 David Cameron has called comedian-turned-political activist Russell Brand “a joke” and said the public should ignore his stance on not voting. Speaking at an event in North London, Cameron said he "profoundly disagreed" with Brand. "He says don't vote, it only encourages them. That's funny, right, it's funny. But politics and life and elections and [...]
IFS: Number of higher rate taxpayers could swell to 5m under the Conservatives April 28, 2015 The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has concluded that under the major parties' plans for taxation and benefits, in the next parliament households can expect their incomes, on average, to fall. The independent think tank found there were major differences between the parties, with the Tories planning small net cuts to tax and much bigger cuts [...]
General Election 2015: Statistician Nate Silver predicts Conservatives as largest party but an “incredibly messy outcome” April 28, 2015 The man who successfully predicted 99 state results out of 100 in the last two Presidential elections, as well as a host of House and Senate races, has forecast that the Conservatives will be the largest party after the General Election. Nate Silver, who participated in a BBC Panorama programme, thinks the Tories will capture [...]
Happy #EdBallsDay: It’s the fourth anniversary of *that* tweet April 28, 2015 Update: Ed Balls has made everyone's Ed Balls Day the best yet. https://twitter.com/edballsmp/status/593072495395282944 Crack open the champagne and settle down for hours of social media lolz. It's Ed Balls Day again. Ed Balls It's the fourth anniversary of what has become one of the finest tweets the political world has ever seen. Back [...]
General Election 2015: Icap CEO Michael Spencer wants a balanced immigration policy and an end to wealth creator persecution April 27, 2015 ELECTION COUNTDOWN: 9 DAYS TO GO Every day until the final week of the election campaign, we ask a business leader to say what policies would entice them to vote for a particular party. MICHAEL SPENCER: CHIEF EXECUTIVE, ICAP ■ Focus on the Economy Since 2010 the UK economy has done much better than [...]
Lib Dems: Blocking a BP takeover would be a massive Tory U-turn April 27, 2015 The Liberal Democrats believe it would be a huge shift for any future Conservative government to try to block a foreign takeover of BP. The party points to last year’s coalition row over a potential takeover of pharmaceutical giant Astrazeneca by Pfizer. Then, Vince Cable wanted to bring in greater restrictions to protect research and [...]