Financial news

• Savers lose out on £480 a year to ‘profiteering’ banks with low interest rates

  20-09-2023 01:01 via express.co.uk
  
  Savers have been urged to consider switching provider if their bank has not been passing on the interest rate increases.
  
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• Britons miss out on £17billion a year from banks profiteering off low interest rates

  20-09-2023 01:01 via express.co.uk
  
  UK savers say their average interest rate is 3.3 percent, 1.95 percent below the Bank of England's Base Rate.
  
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• 15 supermarket food essentials that are costing you more this year - including sugar

  20-09-2023 01:01 via express.co.uk
  
  Supermarket food and drink items now cost an average of £4.25 with prices increasing by 44p on average compared to last year.
  
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• Goldman Sachs issues recession warning as ‘Sick Man of Europe’ Germany falls into crisis

  19-09-2023 23:48 via express.co.uk
  
  The global financial institution broke down the various factors contributing to Germany's recession woes.
  
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• Santander raises savings interest rates to 5.60 percent - list of accounts for September

  19-09-2023 20:40 via express.co.uk
  
  Savings interest rates are on the rise thanks to the decision-making of banks, such as Santander.
  
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• Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days explained: What to know about the next big savings event

  19-09-2023 19:49 via express.co.uk
  
  Shoppers will be able to buy the latest products for a cheaper price as part of Amazon's Prime next exclusive event.
  
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• H&M is latest fashion retailer in UK to charge to return online purchases

  19-09-2023 16:05 via theguardian.com
  
  Rise in delivery and processing costs combined with increased use of free returns leads to £1.99 chargeThe Swedish chain H&M has become the latest in the fashion sector to start charging shoppers to return unwanted items bought online.The group, the world’s second-largest clothing retailer after Zara-owner Inditex, will charge £1.99 to take back items that are not damaged or faulty – either in stores or by post. Continue reading...
  
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• Aldermore boost interest rates on ISAs and other savings accounts

  19-09-2023 15:56 via express.co.uk
  
  Aldermore has increased its rates on its easy access and notice accounts to help Britons grow their savings.
  
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• B&Q owner cashes in as Britons improve homes rather than move

  19-09-2023 15:04 via theguardian.com
  
  Kingfisher says people are staying put as mortgage interest rates and household bills soarBritish consumers are continuing to spend on improving their homes and gardens as an alternative to moving home amid soaring mortgage rates and a surge in household bills, according to the owner of B&Q and Screwfix.Sales at Kingfisher’s UK and Irish business rose 1.7% in the six months to the end of July as homeowners bought 11% more insulation materials at B&Q in an attempt to offset winter h
  
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• Pensions law change approved that will increase a person's contributions by £500 a year

  19-09-2023 14:24 via express.co.uk
  
  Pensions auto enrolment is to be expanded to all workers aged 18 and over and regardless of how much they earn.
  
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• 'Calamity' Liz Truss brought UK to brink of meltdown but has she got one thing right?

  19-09-2023 11:24 via express.co.uk
  
  Former Prime Minister Liz Truss is desperately trying to rewrite history by blaming everybody else for her calamitous stint as PM.
  
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• Building Society launches fixed regular savings account with competitive 6.2% interest

  19-09-2023 09:33 via express.co.uk
  
  The Tipton and Coseley Building Society customers can now benefit from one of the highest interest rates available for a regular savings account.
  
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• Property over people? New York City’s $52bn plan to save itself from the sea

  19-09-2023 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  A decade after Hurricane Sandy, critics of a federal plan that allocates billions to protect the region from rising waters are calling it a ‘failure of imagination’Retired FDNY firefighter Patrick Kilgallen remembers the night well. In late October 2012, the approach of Hurricane Sandy up the US Eastern Seaboard coincided with a spring tide, propelling a surge of storm water that crashed into New York City and its surrounds, causing more than $70bn (£56bn) in damages, mostly fr
  
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• ID anomaly left me in the dark over Blue Light discount card

  19-09-2023 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  I am a social worker and used it for shopping but now I’m retired I can’t renew itUntil recently I worked as a social worker and benefited from the Blue Light Card discount scheme for public service employees. I used it to save money on my weekly shop in Asda, as well as in high street stores such as Next.I retired last summer and when I attempted to renew my card I was turned down. While retired members of the armed forces, police, fire service and NHS are still eligible, social car
  
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• Sadiq Khan says hundreds of thousands spent on anti-Ulez Twitter manipulation

  19-09-2023 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Mayor of London expected to tell social media firms of campaign and urge them to ‘bear down on the attempts to distort truth’Sadiq Khan is expected to claim that “hundreds of thousands of dollars” were spent on an anti-Ulez online manipulation campaign on Twitter, citing research conducted after Labour’s unexpected Uxbridge byelection defeat.The London mayor, who will speak at a conference in New York on Tuesday, said he feared that disinformation and manipulation c
  
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• Loose lending and inadequate auditing: central government’s role in the local council disaster | Nils Pratley

  19-09-2023 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Councils’ decision-making caused the worst failures, but lack of Westminster oversight is also to blameImagine a situation in which most companies on the London Stock Exchange had failed to file their report and accounts on time, with several behind on their paperwork by multiple years. Then further imagine that one explanation for the delays was that the UK doesn’t have enough auditors with the right skills, and that the body that used to do most of the work was abolished in 2015. T
  
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• Young people ditching ambitions over UK cost of living crisis, research finds

  19-09-2023 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Survey of 18- to 24-year-olds for Prince’s Trust found two-thirds had lowered their career expectationsYoung people are abandoning their dreams and ambitions because of the cost of living crisis and mental health concerns, new research has found.Harbouring hopes for an enjoyable career that makes them financially secure seems unimaginable and too risky, with young people saying they are only able to plan for the short term: half of those surveyed said they were not able to think beyond the
  
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• Daring or delusional? Starmer seeks to woo Europe with talk of new Brexit deal

  19-09-2023 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Labour leader to meet Emmanuel Macron amid his international tour to test appetite for closer ties to EUKeir Starmer is to meet Emmanuel Macron as he begins to prepare the ground for a potential renegotiation of the UK-EU trading agreement in 2025.The Labour leader will meet the French president at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Tuesday on the latest leg of an international tour, which has taken in The Hague and Montreal. Continue reading...
  
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• European governments shrinking railways in favour of road-building, report finds

  19-09-2023 02:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Rail networks in most countries have been starved of funding while motorways lengthen, study showsEuropean governments have “systematically” shrunk their railways and starved them of funding while pouring money into expanding their road network, a report has found.The length of motorways in Europe grew 60% between 1995 and 2020 while railways shrank 6.5%, according to research from the German thinktanks Wuppertal Institute and T3 Transportation. For every €1 governments spent bu
  
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• Football fans received 11,000 gambling messages in Premier League opening weekend

  19-09-2023 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Study for 5 News warns of ‘overwhelming and inescapable’ betting imagery in the gameFootball fans were bombarded with 11,000 gambling messages during the opening weekend of the latest Premier League season, according to a study that warns of “overwhelming and inescapable” betting imagery in the game.Clubs in the top flight agreed earlier this year to ban gambling firms from sponsoring the front of players’ shirts from 2025, but the research – which analysed so
  
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• Climate activists block Federal Reserve bank, calling for end to fossil fuel funding

  19-09-2023 00:54 via theguardian.com
  
  Action came as world leaders begin arriving in New York for the UN general assembly and after Sunday’s march to end fossil fuelsOne day after the largest climate march since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, hundreds of climate activists blockaded the Federal Reserve Bank in New York to call for an end to funding for coal, oil and gas, with police making scores of arrests.“Fossil fuel companies … wouldn’t be able to operate without money, and that money is coming prima
  
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• Israel’s prime minister urges Elon Musk to curb antisemitism on his platform, X

  18-09-2023 22:36 via theguardian.com
  
  Benjamin Netanyahu told the billionaire owner to clamp down on the hate on the site formerly known as TwitterIsrael’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, urged Elon Musk to address the proliferation of antisemitism on the billionaire’s social media platform X.In an in-person meeting in California on Monday, Netanyahu said he hoped Musk would find ways within the confines of the first amendment to clamp down on antisemitism and other forms of hatred on X, the platform formerly known a
  
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• Build HS2, say northern leaders, as ministers refuse to confirm Manchester link

  18-09-2023 19:47 via theguardian.com
  
  Andy Burnham says reports Rishi Sunak wants to cut line short at Birmingham ‘beggared belief’Northern leaders have called on Downing Street to honour promises to build the HS2 high-speed rail line, as ministers repeatedly refused to confirm to MPs whether it would run to Manchester.Doubts over the future of the multibillion-pound HS2 project are growing after the junior transport minister Richard Holden dodged multiple questions in the Commons. Continue reading...
  
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• Post Office: Horizon scandal victims to receive £600,000 compensation each

  18-09-2023 19:20 via theguardian.com
  
  Workers whose wrongful convictions for theft and false accounting have beenoverturned to receive payment from governmentEvery post office operator whose wrongful conviction over the Horizon IT scandal has been overturned will receive £600,000 in compensation from the government, ministers have announced.The Horizon scandal, described as “the most widespread miscarriage of justice in UK history”, resulted in more than 700 post office operators being prosecuted between 1999 and 2
  
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• The pensions triple lock is still needed – don’t let the Tories unpick it | Letters

  18-09-2023 18:57 via theguardian.com
  
  Readers respond to suggestions that the Conservatives are considering plans to water down the scheme designed to enhance the state pensionYour report (Treasury officials mull one-off break from pensions triple lock, 12 September) says: “Any change to the way the state pension is calculated would be controversial because the Conservatives pledged in their last election manifesto to abide by the [triple-lock] formula.”“Controversial” is an understatement. As recently as las
  
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• AI boom may not have positive outcome, warns UK competition watchdog

  18-09-2023 18:29 via theguardian.com
  
  Risks include high prices as well as proliferation of false information, fraud and fake reviews, says CMAPeople should not assume a positive outcome from the artificial intelligence boom, the UK’s competition watchdog has warned, citing risks including a proliferation of false information, fraud and fake reviews as well as high prices for using the technology.The Competition and Markets Authority said people and businesses could benefit from a new generation of AI systems but dominance by
  
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• Unfortunately for the Tories Liz Truss is the gift that keeps on giving | John Crace

  18-09-2023 17:54 via theguardian.com
  
  Almost a year after her disastrous mini-budget, ex-PM says she was right and the economy and everyone else was wrongYou’ve got to hand it to Liz Truss. Few politicians do shamelessness quite like her. Or turn lack of self-awareness into an art form. Imagine being everyone’s odds on favourite for the title of worst prime minister of all time. Worse even than David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson or Rishi Sunak. That would be enough to send most normal, sensate beings crawling unde
  
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• The big Australian companies cashing in on healthcare – podcast

  18-09-2023 17:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Some of Australia’s largest companies are getting into the business of healthcare, claiming they are making medical appointments and prescriptions easier to access. But not everyone is convinced.Health reporter Natasha May tells Laura Murphy-Oates why some experts are concerned about the rise of ‘McMedicine’Help make our podcast better by filling out our listener survey: http://theguardian.com/podcastsurveyauYou can subscribe for free to Guardian Australia’s daily news po
  
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• ‘One size fits nobody’: markers of high-quality clothing are getting harder to find

  18-09-2023 17:00 via theguardian.com
  
  From poorly finished seams to an over-reliance on elastane, cost-cutting in the manufacturing process is leading to less comfortable, less durable clothingGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailLast week I went shopping with some friends who also work in fashion. We did high-end boutiques first and then went hunting through the stalls at a vintage market. At the market, more than the boutiques, we found ourselves geeking out over the clothes’ intricate details.Silk crepe, 1940s tea dre
  
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• Proposed Sizewell C nuclear plant seeks outside investment

  18-09-2023 15:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Prospective investors will be subject to ‘strict national security checks’, minister vowsProspective investors in the proposed Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk will undergo “strict national security checks”, the government has said, as it formally kicked off a hunt for outside investment.The project, led by the French state-backed energy company EDF and backed by the UK government, aims to produce 3.2 gigawatts of electricity – enough to power about 6m home
  
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• Liz Truss admits 'rushed' mini-budget policies – video

  18-09-2023 13:57 via theguardian.com
  
  The former prime minister Liz Truss has admitted her mini-budget policies were rushed. Speaking at the Institute for Government, during her first high-profile speech on the economy since leaving office, Truss said: 'Some people said we were in too much of a rush. It was certainly true that I didn't just try to fatten the pig on market day but tried to rear, fatten and slaughter it on market day.' She added the reason her government was in a hurry was because voters wanted change and she wanted t
  
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• Beware sharper economic slowdown and tougher inflation, warns adviser to central banks

  18-09-2023 13:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Bank of International Settlements said markets risk ignoring aftershocks from inflation such as insolvencies and property price fallsBusiness live – latest updatesFinancial markets should be wary of stubborn inflation and a sharper economic slowdown next year than forecasters predict, the Swiss-based adviser to central banks has warned.The Bank of International Settlements said exuberant stock markets were at risk of ignoring the negative aftershocks from persistent inflation, which could
  
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• Childcare is broken: is the UK failing its future? – video

  18-09-2023 11:34 via theguardian.com
  
  The early years education system in the UK is a mess. Soaring nursery fees are causing parents – usually mothers – to quit their jobs, yet childcare settings are so chronically underfunded they are barely able to stay afloat, prompting underpaid staff to leave in droves.The government has promised a childcare revolution, with more free hours for families. The Guardian's Alexandra Topping speaks to parents and campaigners to find out whether this additional help for parents will fix t
  
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• Help-to-buy delays leave borrowers unable to sell or remortgage and paying more

  18-09-2023 11:28 via theguardian.com
  
  Since Homes England switched contractors, borrowers have been struggling to obtain vital documentsJuan Peña is “feeling a bit hopeless” after months of dealing with Homes England, the government body that ran the help-to-buy loan scheme. The doctor used one of the loans to purchase a flat with his friend, whom he is now trying to buy out. Although he started the process in April, when there was four months on his mortgage deal left, a series of delays have resulted in time run
  
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• Coventry Building Society ‘boosts’ interest on regular savings to ‘attractive’ 5.5 percent

  18-09-2023 09:27 via express.co.uk
  
  Flexible deposits of up to £500 can be made each month with no monthly minimum, and savers don't need a linked account to qualify.
  
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• We bought a house with my parents – can we get a mortgage to buy their share?

  18-09-2023 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  We’ve been told that no one would lend to us if they were still living in the property and fear we’re stuckQ My husband and I bought a house with my parents 12 years ago. We own one-third and they own two-thirds. We live together and it is the main home for all of us as well as our children. My husband and I also own a small rental property. Our plan was that as time went on we would buy my parents’ stake. My parents are now in their late 60s and thinking about options for the
  
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• UK student deals: top discounts and freebies to make the most of your money

  18-09-2023 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Arm yourself with these useful tips to save cash on food, TV and music, beauty and moreEvery penny counts when you’re studying, and there are lots of discounts around that can help ease the cost pressures on students. Here are some tips to help you avoid paying the full price.• Sign up to sites and apps such as UniDays and Student Beans, which list scores of student discounts on everything from takeaways to tech. Meanwhile, the Totum card and app (formerly known as the NUS Extra stude
  
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• How can Ovo send debt threats when I don’t even have an account?

  18-09-2023 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  I am being warned my credit rating could be impacted when I have never had an account with it or any of the companies it ownsCan you can help me resolve a problem with Ovo Energy? I spent a year working in Ireland, and, during that time, I had mail redirected to my dad’s address in Scotland.When I returned to the UK, one of the letters was from Ovo demanding I settle an overdue bill for £1,690. I have never had an account with Ovo or SSE Energy (Ovo bought SSE’s retail arm in 2
  
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• To grow the economy in a way that benefits people and the planet, politicians must think outside the box | Mariana Mazzucato

  18-09-2023 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  We rely on too many old ideas. Governments must foster growth that is innovative and sustainable. They could start with school mealsPoliticians from across the UK’s political spectrum seem to agree on one thing: growth. But for all the talk of resuscitating the UK’s flagging economy, there is little evidence (yet) to suggest that any party will succeed in charting a new course. Political leaders of all persuasions are – to echo the words of John Maynard Keynes – captive t
  
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• Proportion of UK house sellers cutting asking price reaches ‘highest in over a decade’

  18-09-2023 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  More than 36% of properties have had asking price cut at least once — the highest figure since 2011UK house sellers are cutting their asking prices at the fastest rate in more than a decade, after high interest rates dampened demand for property this summer.The proportion of homes on the market which have had at least one price reduction is at its highest level since January 2011, the property website Rightmove has reported. Continue reading...
  
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• Sunak warned over triple lock threat as PM accused of 'policies that ensure defeat'

  17-09-2023 14:38 via express.co.uk
  
  EXCLUSIVE: Senior Tory figures are warning that Rishi Sunak will lead the party to defeat unless he "stops attacking Conservative voters" with his policies on pensions and net zero.
  
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• Discounts and freebies: make the most of your money as a student in the UK

  17-09-2023 14:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Arm yourself with these useful tips to save cash on food, TV and music, beauty and moreEvery penny counts when you’re studying, and there are lots of discounts around that can help ease the cost pressures on students. Here are some tips to help you avoid paying the full price.• Sign up to sites and apps such as UniDays and Student Beans, which list scores of student discounts on everything from takeaways to tech. Meanwhile, the Totum card and app (formerly known as the NUS Extra stude
  
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• Record shop urges music lovers not to throw away CDs - they could be worth thousands

  17-09-2023 13:17 via express.co.uk
  
  EXCLUSIVE: Streaming may have taken over as the most popular way to listen, but many music lovers are still longing for physical copies of their favourite albums.
  
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• £200,000! That’s the cost of scrapping your state pension and nobody can afford it

  17-09-2023 13:10 via express.co.uk
  
  Pensioners don't need reminding of the importance of the triple lock as it may boost their state pension income by 8.5 percent from next April. They may underestimate how valuable it really is, though.
  
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• Labour policy chief refuses to guarantee triple lock pension protection in shock admission

  17-09-2023 12:22 via express.co.uk
  
  A Labour government under Sir Keir Starmer would not guarantee protections on the value of pensions, the party's policy chief has admitted.
  
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• Interest rates to hit 5.5% on Thursday yet savings and mortgage rates may FALL as a result

  17-09-2023 11:28 via express.co.uk
  
  The Bank of England is expected to increase interest rates to 5.5 percent at its next meeting on Thursday but markets reckon this could be the final hike as inflation is expected to slide.
  
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• A note of caution about the withdrawal of cash | David Mitchell

  17-09-2023 11:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Without coins and notes, unaccountable banks can know everything we’re spending. Is that good?There was some unexpected implied criticism of King Charles in the Daily Mail last week. It wasn’t the usual sort of complaint about his environmentalism or a kindly remark he made that could be interpreted as left-leaning. An article about bank closures, with particular reference to Windsor where every single bank has now closed, said this about the late queen: “Would they have dared
  
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• We shed crocodile tears over our high streets then click online and finish them off | Barbara Ellen

  17-09-2023 10:02 via theguardian.com
  
  Brexit, Covid and rising costs all contributed to closures like Wilko, but we lazy, hypocritical shoppers played a partOnce more, there are grim reports that the British high street is dying. It’s time for people like me to make it clear how much we care. To become alarmed and talk urgently, nostalgically, of bustling streets, crucibles of commerce, the pumping arteries of local communities.And more. The lost art of live shopping. Ringing tills, rustling bags. The magic and theatre of it a
  
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• 'I became an instant millionaire when I woke up to find £8.9m in Nationwide account'

  17-09-2023 09:51 via express.co.uk
  
  The teenager wanted to buy a Porsche and ‘thought all his birthdays came at once' according to his mum.
  
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• Shocking charts prove pensioners far worse off than they were 20-years-ago

  17-09-2023 08:00 via express.co.uk
  
  Weekly pensioner incomes suffered their biggest hit on record between 2021 and 2022, the latest figures show, dropping over £800 for the year.
  
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