MPs treated to second pay rise in less than a year, bringing starting salary to almost £75,000 February 26, 2016 Just nine months after awarding themselves a 10 per cent pay rise, MPs have voted to increase their salaries by another 1.3 per cent. The latest raise brings the starting salary for MPs to £74,962, almost three times the average UK wage of £27,600. The 1.3 per cent increase breaks the one per cent cap on public [...]
West London is nearly five times wealthier than anywhere else in UK – beating the Brussels elite to the top-spot in European wealth stats February 26, 2016 The champagne will be flowing on King’s Road tonight, after new figures showed that West Londoners generate nearly five times more GDP than anywhere else in the UK – and is the richest area in Europe. Data released today by the EU’s statistical office, Eurostat, shows economic activity across 276 EU regions in 2014, as measured by GDP per [...]
Don’t read this, Jamie Oliver: Government axes plans for sugar tax and delays obesity strategy February 26, 2016 David Cameron can expect an angry phone call from Jamie Oliver tonight, after it was revealed that the government is unlikely to introduce a tax on sugary drinks. The Department of Health has announced that the tax is unlikely to go ahead as part of the forthcoming childhood obesity strategy, which has just been delayed for a [...]
Barristers warned not to store confidential information in the cloud as US authorities can access it, putting UK legal privilege at risk February 26, 2016 Barristers are being urged to think twice about where they store their data, as the Bar Council has warned that information in cloud storage could be accessed without their permission. In a note to Bar Council members last night, the Bar Council IT panel advised that certain pieces of US legislation had the potential to allow [...]
EU referendum: Want a Brexit? We need to talk about Northern Ireland February 26, 2016 It’s been a week since David Cameron announced the details of the EU referendum, and the battle lines have well and truly been drawn. But perhaps the most surprising member of the pro-Brexit camp is Theresa Villiers. While her personal views on Europe have been well documented, in her role as Northern Ireland Secretary of State [...]
The amount we spent on contactless cards trebled to £7.8bn in 2015, with the payment method proving particularly popular with London commuters February 26, 2016 The way we're spending is changing, with the value of transactions on contactless cards soaring last year, according to research released today. The study by The UK Cards Association discovered that spending on contactless cards hit £7.8bn in 2015, up 233 per cent from £2.3bn in 2014. The number of transactions carried out contactlessly also rose to [...]
EU referendum: Filmmaker Martin Durkin says “Brexit: The Movie” crowdfunding campaign has hit its £100,000 target February 26, 2016 It may not actually have happened yet – but some people really want the story of Britain's EU referendum to be told. A crowdfunding campaign to raise money for "Brexit: The Movie" has hit its £100,000 funding target, the production company behind it said today. Wag TV said it had raised the money from 1,500 members of [...]
Brent crude and WTI: Oil prices rise as traders close short positions February 26, 2016 Oil prices reversed earlier losses to inch into positive territory this morning, however traders warned that the gains were largely due to "technical" movements. Brent crude, the global benchmark, increased 1.3 per cent to $35.74 per barrel. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude, the US benchmark swelled 1.33 per cent to $33.51. But traders said the [...]
Nintendo drastically slashes profit forecast due to strengthening yen and disappointing 3DS sales February 26, 2016 Nintendo has drastically slashed its profit forecast for the fiscal year ending next month, with a strengthening of the yen weighing on the Japanese video games manufacturer. Net profit estimates were trimmed from 35bn yen (£200.4m) to 17bn yen as its forecast sales were decreased by 70bn yen to 500bn yen. Nintendo's disappointing sales performance [...]
House prices rise again, with the value of London residential properties shooting up by 14 per cent year-on-year, while sales inch down two per cent February 26, 2016 The price of residential property has edged up with the capital seeing the biggest increases in value over the last year, figures released today show. According to the Land Registry's monthly market trend data for January 2016, the average price of residential property in England and Wales rose by 7.1 per cent over a year and [...]