UK house prices rebound sharply after stamp duty cut July 31, 2020 UK house prices unexpectedly bounced back in July after tumbling in June, as pent-up lockdown demand was released and the stamp duty cut cheered buyers and sellers. Building society nationwide said British prices jumped 1.7 per cent in July compared to a month earlier, when they fell 1.6 per cent. Analysts had been expecting a [...]
Business rates aren’t fit for purpose but Rishi Sunak’s digital tax is a sticking plaster, not a solution July 30, 2020 Long before the coronavirus pandemic, our high streets were struggling. Faced with the rise of online sales, many well-known retailers were either closing stores, entering a form of insolvency known as a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), or falling into administration. The oft-quoted analysis of this demise was that the costs of running a physical store [...]
How badly will coronavirus hit UK house prices in 2020? July 29, 2020 Property experts hope a stamp duty holiday and relaxed lockdown restrictions will protect UK house prices from a sharp coronavirus fall this year. At the height of lockdown, experts predicted that UK house prices could fall by as much as 10 per cent this year due to the impact of coronavirus. However, chancellor Rishi Sunak [...]
Who will the PM hire as the press conference spokesperson? July 29, 2020 The Prime Minister today launched a search for a spokesperson to host White House-style daily televised press briefings, in a bid to boost government transparency during the pandemic. An advert for the job posted on the Conservative’s Linkedin page suggested that the successful candidate will be a well-known figure on the political circuit, and assured [...]
Covid-19 could push up prices for online shoppers, experts say July 29, 2020 Online shoppers could face more expensive deliveries as e-commerce retailers grapple with mounting costs due to soaring demand during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the latest research. The spike in demand for home deliveries during the coronavirus pandemic has increased costs for retailers, which will eventually be shared with consumers, experts said. Online sales surged [...]
UK mortgage approvals beat expectations as housing market reopens July 29, 2020 UK mortgage approvals beat expectations and rocketed in June as the housing market reopened from the coronavirus lockdown, the latest figures have shown. The number of mortgages approved by UK banks rose to 40,000 in June after May’s record crash to just 9,300, the Bank of England said today. Analysts had predicted a rise to [...]
Rishi Sunak’s deputy says targeted relief an option after furlough scheme ends July 28, 2020 Treasury minister Steve Barclay has ruled out extending the government’s furlough scheme past October, but left the door open for targeted relief to some sectors. The scheme is due to end on 31 October, with government payments decreased in September and October. Barclay said today that there would be no extension to the scheme, echoing [...]
Treasury unveils plan to speed up delivery of government projects July 28, 2020 Treasury minister Steve Barclay has unveiled the government’s plan to make his department “the new radicals” and transform Whitehall’s decision making processes. Barclay told centre-right think tank Onward today that the Treasury would become more like a Silicon Valley company by ensuring public sector projects operate at greater speed and by using better data to [...]
UK tax rises: How will Rishi Sunak pay down the coronavirus deficit? July 28, 2020 Rishi Sunak’s first five months as chancellor has seen him shower the UK economy with hundreds of billions of pounds, helping make him the most popular government figure. However, talk has already turned to the ballooning deficit – predicted to be around £350bn this year – and how to reduce it to more manageable levels. [...]
A digital tax is no way to reward our innovative online retailers July 28, 2020 Throughout lockdown, the advantages — indeed, the essentiality — of online retail became clear. Now, Rishi Sunak is rumoured to be mulling over a new online sales tax. Advocates for this new tax, such as SportsDirect owner Mike Ashley and Tesco boss Dave Lewis, believe that the existing business rates system creates an uneven playing [...]