Financial news

• Nigel Lawson: former Conservative chancellor dies aged 91

  03-04-2023 23:07
  
  Lawson served in a number of cabinet roles in Margaret Thatcher’s government during a political career spanning 18 yearsTributes have poured in for the former Conservative chancellor Nigel Lawson, who has died at the age of 91.Lawson was the MP for the Blaby constituency from 1974 to 1992 and served in numerous cabinet positions in the government of Margaret Thatcher. Continue reading...
  
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• Lou McKeever on travel delays at Dover – cartoon

  03-04-2023 20:30
  
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• London council sanctioned after sick baby left to live in mouldy flat for years

  03-04-2023 18:48
  
  Westminster council found guilty of severe maladministration in case ofmother and baby living in mouldy bedsitA mother and baby were left to live in a damp and mouldy bedsit for two years by a London council despite the child suffering from fungal rashes and the woman complaining of flare-ups of her Crohn’s disease.Westminster council has been found guilty of severe maladministration by the housing ombudsman in a damning 16-page report detailing its treatment of the young family. Continue
  
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• Delaying NatWest share sales doesn’t matter. Just get the best price | Nils Pratley

  03-04-2023 18:48
  
  A formal date can concentrate minds, yet the priority must be the achievement of value for the public purseIt was almost exactly a year ago that the Treasury trumpeted what it called a “landmark” moment: for the first time since the financial crisis in 2008, NatWest, the formerly shredded Royal Bank of Scotland, was no longer majority-owned by the state. A £1.2bn sale of shares had cut the Treasury’s holding to 48.1%.A path to a full disposal by 2025-26 – a target t
  
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• Healthy Start NHS food voucher scheme has ‘pitifully’ low take-up

  03-04-2023 18:22
  
  Figures show usage has barely shifted in a year, despite rising food poverty in UKThe government has missed its target to increase the take-up of NHS healthy food vouchers aimed at vulnerable parents of young children, it has emerged, despite soaring grocery prices and rising food poverty.The latest figures show that take-up of the ill-starred Healthy Start scheme, designed to help pregnant women and parents of under-fours in low-income families pay for fruit, vegetables, milk, and baby milk pow
  
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• Why are oil prices rising and what does it mean for inflation?

  03-04-2023 13:37
  
  All you need to know about the Opec+ decision to cut production and the potential knock-on effectsOil price surges after surprise Opec+ production cutOil prices jumped on Monday after some of the world’s biggest producers agreed to cut production. Here we explain what happened and what it might mean for inflation and interest rates. Continue reading...
  
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• ‘Losing your home is a massive thing’: how the climate crisis came to Norfolk

  03-04-2023 11:00
  
  In Hemsby, people are watching their houses fall into the sea, while insurers refuse to pay out – and the authorities do nothing to helpOn a grey, bitterly cold March day, a large yellow digger is smashing its bucket into a small bungalow on the dunes. There is a wrenching tear. Within the time it takes to make a cup of tea, the house is flattened. An hour later, it’s gone, all traces loaded on to a truck, including the splintered wooden walls on which was written a goodbye message f
  
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• How to save money on having your hair done

  03-04-2023 11:00
  
  Like any other service there are deals to be done … from colouring to cutting The cost of looking after your hair can add up to hundreds of pounds a year, with prices for women averaging about £50 for a cut, £35 for a blow-dry and more than £80 for highlights, according to recent figures from the Hair and Beauty Industry Authority (Habia). Continue reading...
  
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• Invoice fraud: the latest tactic of gangs out to hijack your holiday

  03-04-2023 10:00
  
  There are some scams that are almost impossible to spot, as one family discovered when planning a trip to scatter their mother’s ashesIt was to be a poignant break for Tim Moore and his extended family. They planned to scatter his mother’s ashes on the Caribbean island of Montserrat, where she had lived for 18 years. Moore contacted a local holiday lettings agent and selected a villa to rent for the 12-day stay. But as soon as the price was agreed, a hacker intercepted the email exch
  
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• Would my mum lose her house and savings if she had to go into care?

  03-04-2023 08:00
  
  She wonders whether to give her property to me and my brother or buy a place with meQ My mum would like to give her property to me and my brother, as she is worried that if she had to go into a care home she would lose her house and savings. I have read about deprivation of assets and am just curious to know how the council decide that this has occurred.Another option my mum and I have been considering is buying a property together. That way I can care for her if she gets sick. Again, if she did
  
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• The AA lost my mum £80,000 on the sale price of her home

  03-04-2023 08:00
  
  It admits it made an error but we lost our buyer and had to go to auctionI am contacting you out of desperation on behalf of my mum. She is 76 and recently lost her husband of almost 50 years. She is selling the family home and needs to move into a bungalow as a matter of urgency.She accepted an offer of £295,000 in early 2022; however, the buyer’s survey identified some cracks to the external wall, and an investigation was recommended. We referred this to her insurer, the AA, and it
  
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• Half of all UK consumers have cut non-essential spending

  03-04-2023 07:01
  
  KPMG study shows scale of household spending cutbacks, with eating out hit particularly hardMore than half of UK consumers have cut back on discretional spending since the start of the year, with nearly two-thirds choosing to reduce the amount they spend on eating out, according to research from KPMG.As households grapple with a swath of bill increases and tax hikes coming into effect from the start of this month, the survey of 3,000 consumers also found that 49% plan to spend less on non-essent
  
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• Bum steer: Australia’s best and worst toilet papers assessed by Choice tests

  03-04-2023 05:20
  
  Consumer group finds Australia’s best-performing bog rolls come at a high price – but the worst-ranked does tooGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailIt’s the debate that divides households: two-ply or three? Recycled or bamboo?A review by consumer advocacy group Choice has attempted to settle those arguments by rating the nation’s best and worst toilet paper. Choice tested over 30 rolls, from supermarket staples to eco-alternatives, looking at their structural integr
  
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