L&G report: Inflation is widening gap between rich and poor with ‘pay cut’ for 95 per cent of UK households March 27, 2023 Legal & General’s Rebuilding Britain Index (RBI) found that 95 per cent of working UK households have experienced a real terms pay cut over the last 12-months as rising inflation makes its way felt into nearly all households. UK inflation has surpassed forecasts and stayed in the double digits and the rate of price increases [...]
Firms face £300m paperwork bill in proposal to help save cash through business rates March 27, 2023 Businesses across England could be saddled with bills for around £150 a year under new Government proposals intended to help them with their tax. A requirement for businesses to update the Government annually could cost a total of around £300 million a year, analysis by Gerald Eve, a real-estate advisory company, has found. The estimate [...]
UK recession still on the cards after aggressive Bank of England interest rate hikes March 27, 2023 A recession is still on the cards in the UK despite the economy performing much better than experts predicted just a few months ago, new forecasts out today project. Higher interest rates and households responding to the cost of living crunch gripping their finances by trimming spending is tipped to push GDP 0.3 per cent [...]
UK household debt swells past £2 trillion for first time ever March 27, 2023 Family debt has swelled past £2 trillion for the first time ever in a sign Brits are whipping out their credit cards to fund spending amid the cost of living crunch, new research out today reveals. Household debt is now nearly the same size as the entire UK economy (£2.2 trillion) and has been pushed [...]
UK suffering worst living standards squeeze on record, OBR boss warns March 26, 2023 Brits’ spending power won’t recover to pre-pandemic levels for another half decade, the boss of the UK’s economic watchdog has warned. The UK is experiencing the “biggest squeeze on living standards we’ve faced in this country on record”, Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) chairman Richard Hughes said today. His stark warning came after the regulator’s [...]
ULEZ row: Khan reassures 90 per cent are unaffected by expansion, as 700K face new charge and ‘massive financial impact’ March 24, 2023 Nearly 700,000 car drivers in London will face a daily £12.50 ultra low emission zone (Ulez) fee when the scheme expands, according to new analysis. The RAC, which carried out the research, said the expansion of the zone from August 29 will have a “massive financial impact on motorists and businesses”. It comes a day [...]
Explainer: The cost of transport in London is higher than any other major city March 24, 2023 If you live in London, you will have noticed public transport costs have gone up. And by quite a big chunk – from the 5th of March TfL fares went up by an average of 5.9 per cent. This makes the UK the country with the most expensive public transport in the world, according to [...]
Dating, DIY and Netflix: Brits stop spending on love and luxury due to cost of living crisis, Nationwide says March 24, 2023 The value of households’ spending on subscription services, home improvements and dating fell annually in February, according to analysis by Britain’s biggest building society of its members’ outgoings. The volume of dating transactions fell by a third (33 per cent ) in February 2023 compared with the same month in 2022, also falling by 7 [...]
Lump sum or regular saving, investing for children and how to go green: Your Isa guide to making the most of this year’s tax-free allowance March 24, 2023 With just under three weeks left until the end of the tax year, savers may still be considering how to use their annual tax-free Isa allowance. You can use your allowance whether you are looking at setting up a regular savings plan, or investing a lump sum, or even considering putting some cash aside for [...]
FTSE 100 close: London index falls as investors react to mixed retail figures, JD Wetherspoon and Tui March 24, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 index closed 1.31 per cent lower today as investors failed to be enthused by data showing the UK’s economy is faring better than expected following the Bank of England’s (BoE’s) decision to hike interest for the eleventh time in a row. The capital’s premier index fell 1.05 per cent to 7,424.71 points [...]