Financial news

• Johnston Press: rescue plan for Scotsman newspaper group

  17-11-2018 17:26
  The company will continue to publish more than 200 titles but the deal has been criticised by its largest shareholder and the NUJScores of local newspapers as well as titles including the i, the Yorkshire Post and the Scotsman, will continue to publish after its troubled owner agreed a deal to secure its future – only a day after the company entered administration. But thousands of employees will be worse off under changes to their pension plans.Johnston Press, which was founded in 1767 an
  
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• Productivity woes? Why giving staff an extra day off can be the answer

  17-11-2018 16:59
  Firms that operate a four-day week with no cut in pay or benefits, as proposed last week by John McDonnell, can see improvements in staff morale and health as well as revenueLorraine Gray credits the move to a four-day working week with her company’s rapid growth. She is operations director at Pursuit Marketing, a telephone and digital marketing firm based in Glasgow, and has seen an astonishing 29.5% improvement in productivity in the two years since employees started having Fridays off,
  
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• Forever in blue jeans? Levi's shakes off its troubles by embracing the past

  17-11-2018 12:00
  The 165-year-old denim brand had faded – but it seems to have hit its stride once more, and is reportedly considering going publicLevi Strauss, the world’s most famous denim brand, opened a new flagship store on Friday in Times Square, New York. The 17,000 sq ft store offers on-site tailoring, a T-shirt printer and a mini-museum of the 165-year old brand.Just a few years ago Levi’s was struggling. Strangled by yoga pants and the rise of “athleisure”, and struggling
  
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• Scammers target students with fake tax refund emails

  17-11-2018 11:33
  UK tax authority says thousands have received emails seeking bank details
  Thousands of university students have been targeted with fake tax refund emails in an attempt to steal their banking and personal details, HM Revenue and Customs has said.The tax authority has received thousands of fraud reports over the last few weeks in what it said was the first scam directly targeting university students in such high volumes. Continue reading...
  
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• Gift cards for Christmas: it's time to kick the habit

  17-11-2018 10:00
  With the high street in disarray, consumer groups warn that gift cards and vouchers are a bad buyWhat do shoppers at HMV, House of Fraser, Maplin, Toys R Us – and this week, Evans Cycles – have in common? They’ve all had problems using, or been left holding, worthless gift cards after the chain went into administration.With Christmas fast approaching, and reports into the dire state of the high street, consumers are being advised to break the gift card habit and give something
  
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• Does your insurance cover you to drive a friend's car?

  17-11-2018 10:00
  Policy exclusions mean you could end up unwittingly breaking the lawJumping behind the wheel of your mate’s or your partner’s car could, in some cases, result in the vehicle being seized on the spot and you being punished for driving with invalid insurance.That’s the warning from police, targeting uninsured drivers as part of Operation Drive Insured, a week of action involving 35 forces across England, Wales and Northern Ireland that ends tomorrow. Continue reading...
  
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• Pension news: How much should you REALLY be saving for your retirement?

  17-11-2018 09:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  SAVING for your pension can seem like a daunting task, but one that holds the key to your financial future in retirement.
  
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• Klarna: 'buy now, pay later' system that is seducing millennials

  17-11-2018 09:00
  It lets you try before you commit at Asos and other online retailers – but is it a debt trap?Swedish firm Klarna has taken online shopping by storm over the past couple of years. Millennials no longer pay for clothes and gadgets with old-fashioned money – they “Klarna” it.If you’re over 30, you’ve probably never heard of Klarna. It’s a new form of digital payment pitched at people who “wanna cop some new gear but can’t wait until payday&rdquo
  
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• Which arts membership schemes are good value?

  17-11-2018 08:00
  From the Tate to the Southbank Centre to the Barbican, tell us which schemes offer good perksEvery 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.I’d like to get my partner an arts organisation membership for Christmas (we live in London) as I’m keen for us to expand our cultural horizons. He likes the theatre, films and art. However, I don’t want
  
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• Social care: 'How do others manage without the extra we're able to afford?'

  17-11-2018 08:00
  Rosemary Moore, 86, on how her husband Derek’s dementia has affected their financesName: Rosemary and Derek Moore
  Age: 86 and 87
  Income: £44,232 (joint income)
  Occupation: Retired teachers (schools and higher education)Derek and I have been together for 56 years. And they’ve been very good years. Continue reading...
  
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• Is there a crisis of quality in new-build homes?

  17-11-2018 08:00
  Charles Church claims its homes are of ‘unrivalled design and quality’ – but some buyers feel badly let downWhen Victoria Baker and her husband opened the door to their brand new £380,000 five bedroom home in Ingleby Barwick, near Stockton, they were thrilled to finally move into what they thought would be their perfect home.Instead they say they were confronted by a catalogue of issues that has left them stressed and put a strain on their marriage. “It’s been
  
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• Bovis Homes: some buyers say their problems continue

  17-11-2018 08:00
  Poor quality prompted owners to list issues from leaks to creaking floors. For some the saga goes onNearly two years after a scandal over poorly-built houses tarnished Bovis Homes’ reputation and prompted a profit warning, the housebuilder says it has turned the corner – but some buyers say they are still battling to have their homes put right.Almost 4,000 people joined a Facebook group last year which listed problems from leaks and drainage issues to bent walls and creaking floors.
  
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• Co-op own-brand champagne better than Moët, says Which?

  17-11-2018 01:01
  Supermarket’s bubbly deemed as good as Mumm and best value for ChristmasCo-op’s own-brand champagne is as good as Mumm Cordon Rouge and better than Moët & Chandon, according to tests by Which? naming it as the best value deal for Christmas bubbly.The Co-op Les Pionniers NV champagne sells for £19, almost half the price of a bottle of Moët, but scored joint top with Mumm Cordon Rouge in blind tests by Which? experts. Continue reading...
  
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• Bug grub: Sainsbury's to stock edible insects on shelves in a UK first

  17-11-2018 01:01
  Supermarket will start selling roasted crickets in 250 of its stores from MondayBarbecued bugs are are going on the shelves of British supermarkets as Sainsbury’s becomes the first big UK grocer to stock edible insects.The retailer will start selling roasted crickets – described as “crunchy in texture with a rich smoky flavour” – in 250 of its stores from Monday, capitalising on the growing prominence of bush tucker in the global warming debate. The damaging environ
  
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• Patisserie Valerie chair hires former SFO investigator as his lawyer

  17-11-2018 00:42
  Cafe chain’s executive chairman Luke Johnson likely to be questioned by fraud investigatorsLuke Johnson, Patisserie Valerie’s executive chairman, is understood to have hired a former top prosecutor at the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) amid an investigation into the cafe’ chain’s finances.Johnson has hired John Gibson, who joined the American law firm Cohen & Gresser in September after serving for five years at the fraud investigator. Continue reading...
  
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