From truffle trees to sunken treasure, beware of unregulated investments in your pension January 23, 2019 Self-invested personal pensions, or Sipps, give us the freedom to invest in what we want. But while this DIY approach to pensions appeals to many investors, there are mounting concerns that some Sipp providers are doing customers a disservice by allowing inexperienced investors to allocate their savings to unsuitable schemes. Liberty Sipp is the latest [...]
How to rewind the resignation and stop staff from leaving January 22, 2019 It has long been said that people don’t leave companies, they leave their manager. This is more true now than ever before. Years ago, during the “job for life” economy when the businesses that were in operation were better able to dominate their space, managers held a significantly higher level of power over the career [...]
Chasing global uncertainties with an active toddler is not easy January 22, 2019 You know you are a “Brexhausted” mother when you spend your day (and sometimes nights) chasing Brexit madness and the rest of the time chasing a super-active toddler. At least my toddler is starting to understand when I say “I think we are done for today, it’s time to go to bed”. While that’s been [...]
No Boris, springing aimless policy promises on the public is not the way to make change January 21, 2019 The tax burden in the UK is at a 50-year high, accounting for over 34.5 per cent of GDP. Nevertheless, MPs from across the political spectrum like to propose new and higher taxes – the implementation of which increase the burden on families, who are already struggling from Britain’s cost of living crisis and lackluster [...]
Davos is a chance for the UK to step-up and collaborate in the digital revolution January 21, 2019 After the drama of last week in Westminster, it’s the 49th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum that will take centre stage over the next few days. I will join more than 100 heads of government, as well the globe’s leading companies, international organisations, and NGOs in making the annual visit to Davos. Brexit [...]
London needs micro-homes to solve the housing crisis January 21, 2019 Size doesn’t matter. When it comes to property at least, it’s all about location, location, location. Everyday, thousands of city workers (yes, I’m talking about you) are forced into excruciatingly long commutes from the outskirts of London, because living in the city centre – and, frankly, most of the capital – is simply unaffordable. Micro-housing would [...]
In a cashless society, what will we do when our colleagues turn up rattling the collection tin? January 17, 2019 Periodically, a senior economist will suggest that as a society we could abolish cash. As an idea, it unites left and right in immediate dismay. On the one hand, it would strike a blow against individual liberty, giving retailers, banks, and possibly governments the potential to track your every transaction. On the other, it would [...]
Personality traits of self-made millionaires: What really makes them tick? January 16, 2019 Many people want to get rich, as demonstrated by the countless “get rich quick” guides out there. What's extraordinary is how these guides are often written by people who are not rich, nor have they carried out research into the subject. In order to write my book, The Wealth Elite, I conducted 45 in-depth interviews, primarily with individuals who [...]
Parent trap: the child benefits system has ended up punishing the very people it was designed to protect January 16, 2019 For high-flying parents who earn more than £50,000 a year, the child benefit system will seem ridiculous. You go through the effort of applying for the benefits (over the course of a year, this amounts to £1,000 for the first child, and £700 for each additional child), only for the money to be clawed back [...]
Profiting from the retail revolution: What’s hot and what’s not? January 15, 2019 It turns out that so-called Super Thursday wasn’t so super after all. Despite being lauded as a day when retailers boast strong figures from the festive period, last Thursday proved to be a mixed basket of results. With consumers feeling the pinch and Brexit-sized uncertainty looming large over the high street, it’s not surprising that [...]
