EU migrant crisis: This is how the chancellor plans to pay for thousands of incoming refugees September 6, 2015 George Osborne plans to pay for thousands of incoming refugees by dipping into the UK's £12bn international aid budget. In an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr show today, the chancellor said he would use some of this money to help local councils house the refugees: The foreign aid budget can provide the [...]
Chancellor George Osborne’s bank tax comes under attack from Labour and SNP September 6, 2015 Small challenger banks and building societies will receive a boost if Labour and the SNP are successful in their attempt to amend Osborne's new bank tax. In his budget this year, the chancellor announced plans to replace the increasingly unpopular bank levy with an eight per cent surcharge on profits for banks of all [...]
UK income tax haul from non-doms has risen 7 per cent and hit £6.6bn last year August 31, 2015 The amount of income tax paid by so-called “non-doms” based in the UK has risen by seven per cent, according to a new report out today from Pinsent Masons, the global law firm. According to the report, non-doms – individuals claiming certain tax benefits because their permanent home is outside of the UK – [...]
George Osborne’s damaging bank tax changes are a blow to competition in the sector August 31, 2015 Who is taxed, and by how much, is one of the best windows into the mind of any chancellor. Who does he want to help, who does he want to hit, and why? How you raise the money matters just as much as how you give it out. With that in mind, consider [...]
George Osborne announces £500m funding for Faslane submarine base in new push for Trident programme August 31, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne has pledged £500m for the Royal Navy’s submarine base at Faslane, funding he says will create “thousands” of jobs. The base in Faslane, one of the UK’s three naval hubs, is home to Britain’s Trident programme, with four submarines armed with Trident missiles based there. Read more: What you need to know [...]
Lloyds Banking Group sell-off continues as government reduces stake to 13 per cent August 24, 2015 The government has sold a further one per cent of its stake in Lloyds Banking Group, taking its total holding to less than 13 per cent. It has now realised £14.5bn from the share sale, which began in December last year and will end no later than 31 December. All sales are used to [...]
Chancellor George Osborne kicks off his own European tour to try and win the EU over on Cameron’s reforms August 24, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne is embarking on a whistle-stop tour of three European capitals today, in an effort to secure support for Prime Minister David Cameron’s EU reform agenda. Osborne is set to visit Helsinki, Stockholm and Copenhagen to hold meetings with key members of the Finnish, Swedish and Danish governments, including Finnish finance minister Alexander [...]
Public sector borrowing: Government finances show a July surplus for the first time since 2012 – these five charts show the state the UK’s finances are in August 21, 2015 Figures published this morning showed the government's finances moved into surplus for the first July since 2012, with public sector net borrowing showing a surplus of just under £1.3bn, a fall in borrowing of £1.4bn compared with the same period last year. That's partly down to tax receipts, which rose to £7.8bn in July, £1.2bn [...]
Chancellor George Osborne’s tax breaks for British film industry given go-ahead by EU August 21, 2015 A new higher rate of film tax relief has been given the go ahead by the European Union. The scheme, first announced in the March Budget, will enable film companies to claim tax relief of 25 per cent on production costs. Chancellor George Osborne confirmed that the EU had agreed the move this morning. "British [...]
George Osborne wants to build more homes in the countryside August 20, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne wants to reform planning laws and make it easier for villages to build new houses. The chancellor said more people are moving to the countryside with rural areas of England experiencing net internal migration of more than 60,000 a year. "This government is determined to support the millions that already choose a [...]