National Insurance rise to hit City of London small businesses the hardest in UK January 30, 2022 Small businesses in the City of London will be the worst hit in the UK by the coming rise in National Insurance, according to new research shared with City A.M. Figures from the House of Commons library, and collated by the Liberal Democrats, show small businesses in the Cities of London and Westminster constituency will [...]
‘Tax-cutting Conservatives’ Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak confirm tax rise is going ahead January 30, 2022 The Prime Minister and Chancellor have doubled down on a controversial planned tax hike to boost health funding, after it was reported that Boris Johnson was “wobbling” on the policy. The PM is under pressure from some Conservative MPs to scrap or at least delay the national insurance increase to win back support as he [...]
Weekend Read: Brexit and the pandemic have cost UK businesses £250bn, each January 30, 2022 The political choice of Brexit has cost UK businesses as much as the unforeseeable Covid pandemic. British companies have lost over £250bn to Covid and an equal amount to Brexit by the end of 2021, but the Brexit tally is now rising faster, The Centre for Economics and Business Research found that Covid-19 lockdowns had [...]
FCA investigates ‘crippling’ cladding insurance costs January 29, 2022 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is launching an investigation into the ‘crippling’ insurance costs paid by residents with cladding issues. In letters sent today to chief executives of insurance firms, the City watchdog said it will be investigating whether “products provide fair value and premiums fairly and accurately reflect risk.” The FCA will look into [...]
Exclusive: Brexit financial services regulation bonfire set to be in next Queen’s Speech January 28, 2022 An overhaul of the UK’s financial services regulation is set to be included in the next Queen’s Speech as the government speeds up its push to make the City more competitive post-Brexit. Chancellor Rishi Sunak gave an update to the cabinet on Tuesday about the UK’s plans to shed EU rules for financial services, with [...]
PM mulls tax hike U-turn as govt awaits Sue Gray’s report: ‘Boris would now do anything to survive’ January 28, 2022 While questions loom over the future of Boris Johnson’s premiership in light of an official inquiry into partygate allegations, the prime minister is reportedly wavering on controversial plans to raise national insurance. The PM is under pressure from some Tory MPs to scrap the tax hike to win back support as he awaits the findings [...]
FCA requested to review buildings insurers as Gove says leaseholders hit with ‘rapidly escalating’ costs January 28, 2022 The financial services regulator has been requested to review the buildings insurance market for blocks of flats. In a letter to the regulator, housing minister Micheal Gove said he was “extremely concerned” to hear from leaseholders about their experience of “rapidly escalating” insurance premiums on high and medium-rise blocks. There have been cases where insurance [...]
Treasury Committee chair joins chorus of MPs urging government to ditch national insurance hike January 27, 2022 The chair of an influential group of cross-party MPs that scrutinise the government’s spending plans has joined the chorus of policy makers calling for the national insurance hike to be scrapped. Tory MP Mel Stride, who chairs the Treasury Committee, urged the government to cancel the looming 1.25 percentage point national insurance rise to ease [...]
Plan B curbs sweep away retail sales as Brits shun high streets January 27, 2022 Plan B curbs that swept Brits away from the high street and offices throttled UK retailers this month, reveals a closely watched survey published today. The re-emergence of restrictions on daily life that dragged on throughout January hit high street sales, according to research carried out by the UK’s largest business group, the Confederation of [...]
Why the travel industry needs to embrace cryptocurrency January 27, 2022 Can the travel industry offer digital nomads an alternative crypto payment option as they further integrate crypto into their lives?