Margaret Thatcher’s Westminster home is up for sale October 21, 2024 Political junkies, rejoice! The central London house, which served as Margaret Thatcher’s home after she fell from power and John Major’s headquarters during his tenure, is officially up for sale at £3.65m. The three-bedroom Georgian townhouse on Great College Street packs a political punch. It has also served as a place for Conservatives to gather [...]
Budget: Minister refuses to rule out tax rise for £100,000 earners nine times October 21, 2024 A government minister has refused to rule out whether Labour would increase taxes on those earning more than £100,000 at the Budget. Speaking to Sky News, care minister Stephen Kinnock refused nine times to say whether – under Labour’s definition – someone earning a six figure salary would see their taxes go up. Labour’s election [...]
‘Silent crisis’ for retailers with record online returns – but can fees stop it? October 21, 2024 Online returns are set to top £27bn this year as the ‘silent crisis’ continues to squeeze retailers, with over a fifth of non-food purchases now returned, according to fresh data. With 10 per cent of shoppers accounting for a quarter of all returns, so-called ‘serial returners’ will make up £6.6bn of that figure – with [...]
Microsoft launches AI ‘agents’ to woo investors ahead of earnings October 21, 2024 Microsoft has launched a suite of artificial intelligence-powered ‘agents’ geared towards businesses, as the tech giant continues to build out its suite of AI products in a bid to stay ahead of the competition and woo investors. At its AI Tour event in London on Monday, Microsoft boss Satya Nadella introduced the autonomous agents, which [...]
Reeves tax raid ‘risks harming UK economy’, top business groups warn October 21, 2024 Some of the country’s top business groups have warned that Rachel Reeves’s rumoured plans to ditch a slew of tax breaks for entrepreneurs at the budget “risk harming” the economy and dissuading founders from setting up companies in Britain. In an open letter to the Chancellor today, four business groups representing over 1200 UK founders and investors, [...]
UK banks brace for Budget tax raid despite lobbying efforts October 21, 2024 UK banks are bracing for a tax raid in Labour's maiden Budget as new analysis reveals the sector is already paying a significantly higher rate than counterparts in the US and EU.
Sir Rocco Forte leads 300 business leaders in call to scrap ‘spectacular own goal’ tourist tax October 21, 2024 Over 300 business leaders have signed a letter asking Chancellor Rachel Reeves to reinstate tax-free shopping in the UK, calling the so-called tourist tax a “spectacular own goal” for retail. The signatories, which include hotelier Sir Rocco Forte, Paul Smith, Heathrow, John Lewis and Shakespeare’s Globe, have said that if Reeves is serious about promoting [...]
‘Highly damaging’: Capital gains hike would make UK even less competitive October 21, 2024 Lifting capital gains tax (CGT) would damage the competitiveness of the UK’s already poor tax regime, new analysis suggests. Research by the Tax Foundation suggests that the UK’s tax regime ranked at 30th out of 38 OECD countries in terms of competitiveness, up one place due to the introduction of the full-expensing policy last year. [...]
Volkswagen Finance fined by FCA for unfairly treating vulnerable customers October 21, 2024 The City regulator has fined Volkswagen's UK financial services arm £5.4m for its unfair treatment of customers in financial difficulty, which it said may have caused them harm.
Number of UK house sales jumped by a third after rates cut, before Budget October 21, 2024 Despite uncertainty about the coming Autumn budget, buyers continued to pile into the property market after the Bank of England cut interest rates, with the number of homes sold up by a third year on year. The number of sales agreed rose by 29 per cent, while the number of potential buyers contacting estate agents [...]
