A dram good reason to care: The impact of climate change on Scotch whisky October 26, 2021 As one of Scotland’s main export products, Scotch whisky is enjoyed the world over. But perhaps we should not take a good dram for granted, as projected temperature increases and changes in rainfall patterns threaten distillery production over the next fifty years. Climate researchers from University College London found impending heat and drought stress caused [...]
Labour puts pressure on Sunak to ease household cost of living pressures in Budget October 26, 2021 Labour has put pressure on Rishi Sunak to do more to ease household cost of living pressures in the autumn Budget as MPs hit out at the Treasury for releasing large parts of tomorrow’s announcement early. Shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Bridget Phillipson today called on the government to cut VAT on energy bills [...]
Letters: making it through the winter October 26, 2021 [Re: Budget 2021] We still need to see strong support for the nation’s 6 million small businesses coming through in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement. There has been unprecedented support, yes, but withdrawing this now, all at once, would be a potentially damaging mistake. Firms face a tough combination of higher supply chain costs, higher energy [...]
Minimum wage set to rise to £9.50 per hour October 25, 2021 The National Living Wage will increase from £8.91 per hour to £9.50 in the Budget this week. The 59p an hour boost means a full-time worker on the National Living Wage will see a pay rise of more than £1,000 a year. This is a 6.6 per cent increase in the minimum wage, which is [...]
Oil giants revel in massive profits amid gas price crisis October 25, 2021 OIL giants such as Shell and BP are set to reveal massive profits after global gas prices soared. Shell will forecast post-quarterly revenue of £1.5bn for its natural gas division, when it reports on Thursday. Gas prices have climbed globally following a worldwide shortage in supplies. The cost of gas has risen for suppliers by [...]
PMI: UK private sector grows at fastest pace in three months October 22, 2021 Growth in the UK’s private sector has grown at the fastest pace in three months, according to a closely-watched survey. The IHS Markit/CIPS flash UK composite PMI report came in at 57.7 more than halfway through October, up from last month’s 54.1 at the same period. Scores above 50 represent growth, while anything below that [...]
Cascade of ‘cheerless’ economic news weighs on consumer confidence October 22, 2021 A cascade of “cheerless” news about the health of the UK economy has caused consumer confidence to plummet. Severe petrol and food shortages, compounded by soaring energy costs and wider inflationary pressures has engineered a cost of living crisis in the UK and stalled the economic recovery. As a result, consumer confidence slid to minus [...]
Roaring inflation to shove government borrowing back to expected levels October 21, 2021 Roaring inflation will shove government borrowing back to expected levels in the coming months. Surging energy prices, compounded by a jump in the rate of VAT for hospitality businesses, will drive sharp price rises, swelling the government’s interest bill. Further pressure on the public finance from higher debt servicing costs will bring “borrowing in the [...]
Close to 4m low-income households across UK are in arrears with household bills October 21, 2021 Nearly 4m British households on low incomes are estimated to be in arrears with household bills, according to new figures published this morning. Around 950,000 are thought to be in rent arrears, 1.4m are behind on council tax bills and 1.4m are behind on electricity and gas bills, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation said. It looked [...]
Markets today: Public finances in focus ahead of next week’s budget October 21, 2021 Yesterday’s European market session was a fairly subdued affair, even if it was a positive one, with the FTSE100 trading in one of its narrowest ranges this year. By and large many companies have been reporting decent numbers and have been able to pass on the increase in costs, to their customers, without a significant [...]