With Theresa May expected to give it the green light, is Hinkley Point just a colossal white elephant? September 14, 2016 Ruth Lea, economic adviser to the Arbuthnot Banking Group, says Yes. There is little doubt that we need more electricity generating capacity – and the sooner the better. So the government’s determination to expand capacity is welcome. But Hinkley Point is flawed. Putting aside security fears over Chinese finance behind the proposed EDF nuclear power plant, [...]
The BBC iPlayer loophole is closing tomorrow: Here’s what you need to know August 31, 2016 The law around the licence fee is changing tomorrow. It is now illegal to watch BBC programmes on demand, including on the iPlayer, without paying the £145.50 annual fee. Here is what you need to know: Do I need to do anything if I already have a licence? No. If your household is already covered [...]
Pension or property: Which is the better option for your retirement? August 31, 2016 The Bank of England’s chief economist Andy Haldane drew ire from the pensions industry for the second time this year, when he claimed that property was a better investment option for retirement than a pension in an interview with The Sunday Times this weekend. “It ought to be pensions but it’s almost certainly property,” Haldane said. [...]
Home insurance premiums remain stable despite flood fears and tax increases August 30, 2016 Insurance premiums have not spiked as was feared following the flooding that blighted parts of Britain earlier this year. The latest research shows that annual premiums have increased just 1.6 per cent for the year to July. Furthermore, these price changes include the increase in insurance premium tax in November 2015 from six to 9.5 per cent. In addition there [...]
Iceland’s reticence to unwind financial crisis capital controls will prove costly in the long term August 1, 2016 Whether because of the enthusiasm of its football commentators or interest in its EEA arrangement as a model for post-Brexit UK, Iceland has been in the news frequently recently. Its economy has been growing fairly rapidly in recent years, up around 30 per cent from its 2009 trough, though still more than 20 per cent below [...]
The National Living Wage has led to hiked prices since its introduction in April, but there is little evidence of linked job losses July 11, 2016 The introduction of the national living wage has seen businesses hike their prices, according to a new study from the Resolution Foundation, but there is limited evidence of linked job losses. The living wage, which starts at £7.20 an hour, was introduced by George Osborne in the 2015 Budget, and came into force in April [...]
Civil servants are massive Glastonbury fans, as HM Revenue and Customs can expect £1.25m in VAT from the festival June 23, 2016 Accountants know how to live. While the North London's hipsters are fleeing town for their yearly pilgrimage to Glastonbury, the far from hip North London office of accountants MHA MacIntyre Hudson has been enjoying the festival season the only way bean-counters know how – calculating how much the government can expect in VAT from revellers' purchases [...]
“Project Fear” blamed for adspend slowdown in run-up to referendum June 21, 2016 Politicians and "Project Fear" have been blamed for reduced spending in the UK’s advertising market. GroupM, part of Sir Martin Sorrell’s WPP, has reduced its forecast for adspending growth in 2016 from 7.2 per cent to 6.3 per cent. The TV industry and national newspapers have been worst hit in the forecasts. The former is expected [...]
Robot rubbish: Most workers don’t fear automation June 21, 2016 The robots are coming, or so say experts, pundits and commentators. The World Economic Forum predicted that expanded automation and artificial intelligence (AI) would mark the fourth industrial revolution, which could lead to the biggest upheaval in the labour market in a century. Meanwhile, the Bank of England’s Andy Haldane has hypothesised that up to [...]
Leaving the EU is a walk into the unknown that would put our prosperity at risk June 14, 2016 As arguments on either side of the EU referendum debate are increasingly cast as products of fear or fantasy, an objective assessment is becoming, for the many in the undecided camp, increasingly difficult. I appreciate that there are emotional and political considerations in this important debate. But I prefer to see it in purely business [...]