The real reason the chancellor should not let the OBR audit party manifestos December 9, 2013 IT HAS been a tough week for Ed Balls. Many within Labour are said to be questioning his position as shadow chancellor following his disastrous response to George Osborne’s Autumn Statement. While Balls claims he “couldn’t give a toss” about the speculation, he needs to repair his party’s economic credibility, and fast. That’s one reason [...]
Our at-a-glance guide to Osborne’s mini-budget December 5, 2013 Growth up, borrowing down, yet the debt is still rising. Another raid on the banks, but shops to gain from reduced business rates THE UK ECONOMIC OUTLOOK● The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has revised up its forecast for economic growth and revised down its prediction for inflation. It expects unemployment to drop quickly next [...]
DS Smith profit soars as market share increases December 5, 2013 PACKAGING firm DS Smith saw its share price soar over six per cent yesterday morning, after posting a 52 per cent rise in half-year profits that showed its European expansion plan is paying off. The FTSE 250 company, which packages McVities Hobnobs among other popular brands, said pre-tax profits rose to £85m and revenue rose [...]
Timid new policies do little to address the risks behind Osborne’s good news December 5, 2013 FOR THE first time since before the financial crisis, the chancellor of the Exchequer was able to stand up and announce some good news at the Autumn Statement yesterday: the deficit, the labour market, and growth are all better than expected. Alistair Darling started by predicting a “trampoline” recovery when the recession first hit, with [...]
Local government excluded from more spending cuts December 5, 2013 Local government will be excluded from a further £1.1bn of cuts to departmental budgets, with the intention of helping local authorities to freeze council tax from 2014 to 2016. Chancellor George Osborne suggested yesterday that the average household would save £1,100 during the course of the current government because of the repeated freezing of council [...]
Foreign buyers and buy-to-let hit by tax plans December 5, 2013 OVERSEAS residents will be made to pay capital gains tax (CGT) when they sell their homes in the UK under changes announced by the chancellor yesterday, in a move expected to raise up to £345m by 2018. The Treasury will also raise money by halving the tax-free period for homeowners letting a property in which [...]
Tax crackdown on partnerships aims for £7bn December 5, 2013 A PACKAGE of measures to curb tax avoidance were included in yesterday’s Autumn Statement, in a move the chancellor says will raise nearly £7bn. Osborne outlined a two-pronged crackdown on company partnerships used to reduces taxes for hedge fund managers’ salaries and disguise company employees as self-employed partners to avoid income tax. “Most wealthy people [...]
What does the chancellor’s budget mean for you? December 5, 2013 Catherine Gannon, 51Managing director of law firm GannonThe business is performing extremely well but that is thanks to investments: profits are up but the cost of living has increased, making Catherine feel less well off. She lives with two children, aged 11 and 13, in her own home and holds investment properties. She doesn’t have [...]
Reactions to the chancellor’s statement December 5, 2013 THE BUSINESS GROUPDirector general of the CBIJohn Cridland The CBI had lobbied the government to cap business rates at two per cent and support business finance. “We have always advocated the dual approach of tackling the deficit and driving growth – the OBR forecasts confirm it is working. Let’s stick with what works. “The pressure [...]
Here’s why BoAML thinks Bitcoin is going to reach silver status December 5, 2013 Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BoAML) has said that Bitcoin could become a major source of e-commerce and can become a serious competitor to traditional money transfer services. In BoAML's view Bitcoin has clear potential for growth. However, the bank believes Bitcoin's volatility remains a problem for its further development. BoAML estimate that if Bitcoin [...]