Pensions growth ‘stabilises’ despite fears of a pandemic plunge, DWP finds June 28, 2022 Growth in pension saving has “stabilised” in the past two years despite fears that the pandemic would slash the amount of workers squirrelling away cash for retirement, official figures revealed today.
Rees-Mogg says cutting taxes could reduce inflation in split with PM June 28, 2022 Jacob Rees-Mogg has said cutting taxes immediately may reduce inflation in comments that will put him in direct dispute with Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak. The Brexit minister today said getting inflation under control “doesn’t necessarily mean tax increases – indeed it could mean tax cuts”. Johnson and Sunak have both said the UK cannot cut [...]
Sunak: UK has ‘tools at our disposal’ to tackle 40-year high inflation June 28, 2022 The UK has “the tools at our disposal” to tackle the worst inflation spike in four decades, the chancellor urged today. Responding to a grilling by MPs in the house of commons, chancellor Rishi Sunak said Britain is “not immune” to the inflationary “shocks” that are sweeping through the world’s richest economies. Prices have climbed [...]
Johnson’s plans for further steel tariffs are a black mark against Global Britain June 28, 2022 Boris Johnson has said he intends to extend tariffs on steel from China. This is a clear breach of WTO rules and, allegedly, was the final straw for his ethics adviser. But to Johnson this is the reasonable next step. He will also impose them on other countries, this time in line with rules from [...]
Incoming CMA chair warns job cuts could make it harder to take on cases that protect consumers from high prices June 28, 2022 The competition watchdog’s ability to get the best deal for British consumers could be endangered by job cuts, the government’s chosen candidate for chair of the body has warned. The government intends to slash 91,000 civil service jobs over the next three years, in an endeavour to bring headcount back to 2016 levels. Ministers’ preferred [...]
Outgoing lottery operator Camelot faced with falling ticket sales and Brits ‘tightening their belts’ June 28, 2022 Falling sales of tickets and instant win games amid signs that players had “tightened their belts” in the face of soaring costs are hitting outgoing UK National Lottery operator Camelot hard. Camelot, which recently launched legal action against the Gambling Commission after losing the lottery’s next licence to rival Allwyn, saw sales drop 3 per [...]
‘Real pay cut by 12 per cent’: Firefighters threaten to strike after angrily rejecting 2 per cent pay offer June 28, 2022 A firefighters’ union leader is warning of strikes after reacting angrily to a 2 per cent pay offer. The executive of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is recommending rejection of the offer, which it said is well below the soaring rate of inflation. Between 2009 and 2021, firefighters’ real pay has been cut by 12 [...]
Prime Minister and Chancellor to dismiss Tory calls for early tax cut June 28, 2022 The Prime Minister is set to bat away demands from Tory backbenchers to slash cuts in a major speech with the Chancellor next month. According to a report in The Times, Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak are set to outline the government’s economic strategy in the speech. However, they will delay announcing a timeline for [...]
Soaring inflation burns hole in councils’ finances, LGA finds June 28, 2022 Rampant inflation is burning a hole in the finances of English and Welsh councils and may force them to trim public services without more funding, reveals a fresh report published today. Rising energy costs caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine lifting European gas prices and an uplift to the national living wage will heap an [...]
Exclusive: Poor connectivity costs UK firms £18bn a year June 28, 2022 British SMEs are losing £18.77bn a year because of poor connectivity, costing the UK economy, an estimated loss of £7.7bn every year. The research, conducted by Three UK, YouGov and Development Economics, found that micro-businesses and small to medium sized firms, who provide their employees with work phones, are losing out on an average of one hour of [...]