Financial news

• How attempts to save BHS, and 11,000 jobs, were doomed by chaos and mistrust

  31-12-2016 17:00
  
  And in the months since it collapsed, Philip Green has not fulfilled his pension pledge, and former staff are left struggling on benefitsOn the day the BHS store in Edinburgh closed down, Lin Macmillan, a former employee, decided to visit it one last time.“It was really sad,” she said. “The staff were obviously very upset but still acted professionally.” Continue reading...
  
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• ‘I took up polyphasic sleeping’: alternative New Year’s resolutions

  31-12-2016 09:30
  
  These entrepreneurs swapped dieting and spring cleaning for something less clichedChris McCullough is CEO of RotaGeek, a tech business that sells scheduling software Continue reading...
  
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• Sterling's slide: winners and losers in 2016

  31-12-2016 09:00
  
  The Brexit vote and interest rate cut have piled pressure on the pound. However, the dip has proved to be a blessing for someUncertainty over the outlook for the UK economy after the Brexit vote in June has sent the pound plummeting to levels not seen since the 1980s. After the initial falls, Theresa May’s announcement that she would trigger article 50 by March and continuing talk of a hard Brexit piled more pressure on sterling. As did an emergency cut in interest rates from the Bank of E
  
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• The train companies pocket millions in compensation for delays

  31-12-2016 08:01
  
  Only one third of eligible passengers obtain a payout for delays and cancellationsHere’s a shocking fact for those of you who (like me) shivered on freezing platforms when their train was cancelled or delayed over the so-called festive period. The train operating companies can actually make a nice little profit out of your distress, so they have almost no incentive to improve the service.As you get ready to fork out £5,000-plus for an annual season ticket on a 40-mile journey into wo
  
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• It’s take-back Tuesday, the day when unwanted presents are returned

  31-12-2016 08:01
  
  But what are your rights, and can you change a gift simply because you don’t like the colour?Get ready for “take-back Tuesday”: 3 January will be the busiest day of the year for shoppers returning Christmas gifts and for delivery companies trucking boxes back to Amazon and other online retailers, loaded with stuff none of us really wanted in the first place. Related: Brexit worries and online stores hit shopping centre salesContinue reading...
  
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• Women’s haircuts are so expensive – what’s the answer?

  31-12-2016 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  I’ve seen Supercuts but don’t know if they’re any goodEvery week a Guardian Money reader submits a question, and it’s up to you to help him or her out – a selection of the best answers will appear in next Saturday’s paper.This week’s question: Continue reading...
  
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• Ten ways to save money on your holiday flights

  31-12-2016 08:00
  
  Tricks for finding the best price on long-haul flights – and how to use the opposite strategy for short-haul budget carriersBook early for the best deals, say travel agents; January and February are the busiest months for tour operators as families book for the summer. But research has found that while you should book ahead for short journeys on such airlines as Ryanair or easyJet, it’s better to wait until much later for the best deals on long-haul flights.The best time to book a sh
  
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• Rising fares and crowded trains: the misery of Britain's rail users

  31-12-2016 08:00
  
  Cancellations, delays, overcrowding and strikes – yet fares are set to go up again. We talk to angry commuters who have to pay more for poor serviceFares for despairing train passengers, many of whom have suffered some of the worst rail delays and disruption for years, will rise on Monday by an average of 2.3% – and in some cases by as much as 7%.Against a backdrop of continued strikes on one major route and very poor service on a number of others, an army of season ticket holders on
  
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• Deadline: one month left to file your tax return

  31-12-2016 08:00
  
  Send it to HMRC by 31 January or you’ll pay the penaltyWith exactly a month to go until the deadline, almost six million of the 11 million or so people in Britain required to fill in a tax return still haven’t sent it in yet.Perhaps you’re planning to give Jools’ Annual Hootenanny (BBC2, 11.20pm) and Robbie Rocks Big Ben Live (BBC1, 11.25pm) a miss and knuckle down to doing your form tonight. That’s not as crazy as some might think: last year a record-breaking 24,54
  
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• Cold comfort as D&G policy leaves me without a fridge during the festive season

  31-12-2016 08:00
  
  I have been with a faulty fridge for three months and getting a replacement from insurance company has been frustrating I have four household appliances insured on a Domestic & General policy, one of which, my faulty fridge, was written off several months ago. But getting a replacement has been a saga.In the past few months I have phoned D&G at least a dozen times, but was on hold for hours at a time, at great expense. Ultimately, nobody answered. In desperation I used the online complai
  
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• Qantas: hundreds of passengers stranded in Dubai over New Year's

  31-12-2016 07:44
  
  Engineers trying to fix A380 aircraft as Qantas customers are put up in hotels while they wait to learn when they will get to AustraliaHundreds of Qantas passengers will spend New Year’s Eve stranded in Dubai after their flight to Sydney was delayed by more than 20 hours.Engineers in Dubai worked on the A380 aircraft while passengers were put up in hotels while they waited to learn when they could fly to Australia. Continue reading...
  
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• French workers win legal right to avoid checking work email out-of-hours

  31-12-2016 06:10 via theguardian.com
  
  From 1 January, workers have ‘right to disconnect’ as France seeks to establish agreements that afford work flexibility but avoid burnoutFrom Sunday, French companies will be required to guarantee their employees a “right to disconnect” from technology as the country seeks to tackle the modern-day scourge of compulsive out-of-hours email checking.On 1 January, an employment law will enter into force that obliges organisations with more than 50 workers to start negotiation
  
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• English sparkling wine industry toasts export record

  31-12-2016 01:01
  
  UK-produced premium fizz now sold to 27 countries as industry nets sales of £100m a yearThe rise of English sparkling wine from a novelty to a major player in the global drinks market continues, with home-produced premium fizz now exported to a record 27 countries.Figures published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs reveal the number of countries receiving cases of British bubbly, which makes up nearly 70% of the UK’s total wine production, was up from 19 in 20
  
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• City news: Opec, Legal & General, Britvic and Greene King

  31-12-2016 01:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  OIL prices soared by over 8 per cent yesterday as Opec agreed to reduce output for the first time since 2008 to clear a global glut.
  
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