Financial news

• Jeremy Hunt to unveil pension fund reform plan to help UK startups

  10-07-2023 19:49
  
  Chancellor will outline proposals to mobilise investment and support homegrown firms in Mansion House speechThe chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is poised to announce plans to merge workplace pension schemes and release up to £75bn of retirement funds for fast-growing startups, in a move that could accelerate plans to create the next Silicon Valley.The proposals, aimed at mobilising investment from the UK’s £2.5tn pensions sector, are due to be outlined in a speech to top executives an
  
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• Royal Mail cuts hours at half its customer service points

  10-07-2023 19:03
  
  Critics fear the change could negatively affect businesses and workers who already struggle to collect their post and packagesRoyal Mail has reduced the opening hours at half of its customer service points in the UK on Monday, with critics warning it could affect workers and businesses.The postal giant has 1,200 customer service points in total where customers can drop off parcels or pick up post that could not be delivered to their homes. Continue reading...
  
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• Americans will have to restart student loan payments – here’s what to know

  10-07-2023 12:00
  
  After a three-year pause borrowers will have to reckon with their student debt once again in OctoberAfter more than three years of relief, Americans with student debt will have to start paying off their loans again in the fall. The Biden administration agreed to end payment pauses in a deal with Republicans, and the supreme court struck down the White House’s student debt forgiveness plan, which means borrowers will have to reckon with their student debt once again.Here is what we know abo
  
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• With interest rates soaring, can an annuity secure a happy retirement?

  10-07-2023 10:00
  
  Once written off as poor value, sales are on the up with better returns. But many retirees remain sceptical. So are they a good option?Sales of pension annuities have soared as rising interest rates mean much better returns for retirees – but many people remain sceptical about them.Until recently, annuities, which typically pay out a set income for life to a pensioner, have been largely dismissed because of their poor value. But recent increases in interest rates, which have piled pressure
  
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• We’re buying a shared ownership flat – how should we pay stamp duty?

  10-07-2023 08:00
  
  We have the choice to settle it all at once, or for just our 45% share of the propertyQ My partner and I are paying £333,000 to buy a 45% share of a flat costing £740,000 under the shared ownership scheme.Does it make sense to pay the stamp duty all at once in the beginning, or should we only pay the part for the 45% share and pay the rest when we staircase above 80%?
  COA When buying a shared ownership property in England or Northern Ireland, you can choose between paying the stamp d
  
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• TfL’s £300 Ulez fine left me seeing red

  10-07-2023 08:00
  
  My car has a French numberplate but I had made every effort to comply with the rulesDespite my efforts to avoid incurring Transport for London (TfL) fees for entering London in my car, which has French number plates, I’ve been charged a punitive £300.This almost pushed my bank account into the red. I imagine, in this financially stressful time, an unexpected £300 debit is enough to make many people overdrawn. Continue reading...
  
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• UK broadband and mobile firms accused of burying cheaper deals

  10-07-2023 07:00
  
  Study finds websites of several big providers give little prominence to ‘social tariffs’ despite calls to do soSome of the UK’s largest mobile phone and broadband providers have been accused of burying cheaper deals for vulnerable customers on their websites, despite pressure from the government to promote them amid the cost of living crisis.Charities and consumer groups said millions of low-income households across Britain were missing out on hundreds of pounds of savings, wit
  
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• ‘If you want cartwheels, I’m not your person’: Rachel Reeves on charisma, U-turns and rescuing the economy

  10-07-2023 06:00
  
  Labour’s shadow chancellor is proud of her background, sure of her ability – and miserable about the choices she might face after a general electionA member of Rachel Reeves’ team asks if I can meet the shadow chancellor in Kettering, Northamptonshire, because she wants to provide the Guardian with “original colour”. Lovely! What does the original colour consist of, I ask. “Well, Rachel’s grandparents worked for a shoe factory in Kettering. In fact, Rach
  
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