Love it or loathe it, VAT free shopping only makes our tax system even more unwieldy March 7, 2023 If you want to give luxury stores a leg up at the expense of local businesses and create an even more complicated tax system - VAT free shopping is for you, writes Ben Ramanauskas.
Sadiq Khan urges government to commit to making all public bodies a ‘safe haven for women’ March 6, 2023 Sadiq Khan is urging the government to back his call for a review of “women-friendly” workplace policies ahead of International Women’s Day. The mayor of London is calling for public bodies to commit to supporting female workers with domestic abuse, gynaecological pain, leadership development, and the menopause. He has written to work and pensions secretary [...]
Costa Coffee hikes staff pay as cost of living crisis prompts chain to raise wages for third time in 12 months March 6, 2023 Costa Coffee became the latest coffee chain to give its staff a pay rise, as employers seek to retain employees who are battling a cost of living crisis. Beginning in April, some 16,000 baristas at the high street coffee chain will see wages increase from £10 per hour to £10.70 per hour. The rise is [...]
Striving for success in 2023? Turn to your partners to find the right balance March 6, 2023 2022 showed us just how much can change in a year. We saw UK businesses emerge from the grips of the pandemic with a sense of cautious optimism. It even seemed like normal service might finally resume. The battle for talent got more competitive as employees made their new working expectations clear. ESG commitments moved [...]
Chancellor to face ‘tough choices’ in delivering Spring Budget despite having to borrow £30bn less March 6, 2023 Jeremy Hunt will be forced to make tough decisions in his upcoming Budget, experts have warned, despite the Chancellor having considerably more wiggle room than previously thought. Improvements in the state of the British economy mean Jeremy Hunt will have to borrow £30bn less than the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR’s) November forecast showed, according [...]
Banks must pass on rate hikes to savers – or risk a windfall tax, warn experts March 5, 2023 Banks should pass on higher interest rates to savers in order to stave off pressure for a windfall tax, a host of experts have warned. Calls for a windfall tax on the banking sector have grown after most of the UK’s largest lenders recorded strong profits in their latest results. After a decade of ultra-low [...]
Lloyds Pharmacy puts all 1,300 sites under threat of closure in another blow for post-Covid UK high street March 3, 2023 Lloyds Pharmacy has put all of its 1,300 sites at risk of closure in another major blow for the highstreet. According to reports in The Sun, the private equity owner of the embattled chemist has launched a “strategic review of its entire UK store base”. It’s understood that process could lead to a sale of [...]
Nottingham Building Society says soaring lending ‘aided by higher interest income’ boosted profits March 3, 2023 The historic Nottingham Building Society reported strong pre-tax profits driven by a surge in mortgage lending last year. Founded in 1849, the building society this morning announced group pre-tax profits of £18.9m, with underlying pre-tax profit of £15.2m. Despite the downturn in the housing market in wake of the disastrous mini budget, it said in [...]
‘Google of the property market’ Rightmove shrugs off housing fears to post £241m profit March 3, 2023 Rightmove, the UK’s largest property portal, saw its operating profits rise seven per cent to £241m as the group revealed it was “not materially affected” by the difficult property market. The London-listed company, which lists homes for rent and sale, also saw revenues increase 9 per cent to £332.6m up from £304.9m the prior year. [...]
Salad Days: A run on grow bags and why Harry and Charlotte could help Brits see off food shortage, says RHS March 2, 2023 A shortage of fruit and vegetables in particular tomatoes, cucumber peppers and lettuce, is believed to be behind an increased interest in gardening. Brits have been being advised to avoid salads for the next “few weeks” as supermarkets have kept restrictions in place on tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and lettuce. The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) said [...]