How will Trump’s tariffs impact the UK economy? April 3, 2025 The US president holds up a sandwich board in the Rose Garden. On it is a list of countries. Next to each country are two columns: one for “tariffs charged to the USA” and one for “USA Discounted Reciprocal Tariffs”. The leader of the free world is cooking up a storm. “Our country has been [...]
England Rugby captain Itoje sees £1m jump in wealth April 3, 2025 England Rugby captain Maro Itoje has seen his wealth jump by nearly £1m, according to his company’s latest accounts. Oghene Limited, whose sole director is England captain Itoje, saw total assets rise from £2.6m to £3.4m in the year to 30 June 2024. The Saracens forward is one of the highest paid players at his [...]
Cash ISA: What are the alternatives? April 3, 2025 Rumours are growing over expected reforms to Cash ISAs, as the Treasury searches for ways to boost its coffers. Under the current ISA regime, savers can place up to £20,000 per tax year in a Cash ISA without paying any tax on the interest they earn. This threshold could be reduced to £4,000 under Labour’s [...]
Bank of England fines financier Jay Hambro April 2, 2025 The Bank of England has fined banking dynasty scion Jay Hambro for his conduct during a stint as director of the Wyelands Bank, the Sanjeev Gupta-owned lender that ignominiously collapsed in 2020. The BoE’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) issued Hambro – a prominent City figure – with a £72,000 penalty on Wendesday, saying that his [...]
Wage growth falling for low-paid workers despite minimum wage hike April 2, 2025 Wage increases among low-paid workers are at their lowest level in three years, according to the jobs website Indeed, as economists fear high inflation will erode incomes. Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said on Tuesday that an increase to the national minimum wage would mean that low-paid workers could help drive growth across the UK. But [...]
‘Awful April’ price hikes will cause ‘inflation surge’ April 1, 2025 Sweeping price hikes coming into effect from Tuesday are set to push up inflation, a leading economics consultancy has said, as what many have called ‘Awful April’ is set to put an extra burden on businesses’ costs. Higher costs in everything from water to energy will contribute to a rise in inflation that peaks at [...]
Probe launched into ONS governance and data quality April 1, 2025 The government has launched an independent investigation into the UK’s beleaguered statistics watchdog to ascertain how its official data and surveys have become so unreliable. The remit of the probe – commissioned by the Cabinet Office and UK Statistics Authority (UKSA) – will span the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) culture, leadership and structure, and [...]
Shop prices fall again but ‘inflation is coming’ April 1, 2025 Shop prices fell again in March but a retail body has warned higher business taxes mean inflation is on the horizon. Retail prices have been in deflation since August 2024, primarily driven by deep discounting by non-food retailers. Shop price deflation was 0.4 per cent year on year in March, against a decline of 0.7 [...]
US tariffs: UK expects to be hit by Trump taxes this week, No10 admits March 31, 2025 The UK expects to be hit by Donald Trump’s tariffs this week, No10 has said, amid frantic discussions to secure an exemption for UK businesses. The government has been trying to negotiate to spare British exports from the taxes on imports into the US which are set to come into force later this week on [...]
Bank of England to hike FSCS protection from £85,000 to £110,000 March 31, 2025 UK depositors will receive greater protection from the Bank of England as the amount of money covered by a nationwide deposit guarantee scheme is set to rise to £110,000. The scheme provides financial protection to depositors in case banks, building societies, and credit unions become insolvent. It is funded by a levy paid by regulated [...]