Financial news

• Woman finds out her London flat will be demolished – video

  27-09-2023 19:28
  
  Residents were shocked to hear the new 23-storey apartment block above the Thames in south-east London which they have just moved into is set to be demolished by the council.Jewellery designer Isabelle White, 33, said getting a flat in the block in Greenwich had seemed ‘too good to be true’ after living in Manchester for a year because of a lack of affordable housing in the capital. She moved into her one-bed, £1,200 a month flat only three weeks before the council announced it
  
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• ‘No one wants to lose their home’: London renters shocked at order to raze their flats

  27-09-2023 19:24 via theguardian.com
  
  Mast Quay II tenants may need to find new homes after Greenwich ordered demolition of tower complexRenters at a cluster of new Thameside apartment complex expressed shock on Wednesday after the Royal Borough of Greenwich ordered the “unprecedented” demolition of 204 homes over what it said were a series of planning breaches.Many residents at the Mast Quay Phase II development in Woolwich first learned the news from journalists after the local authority announced on Monday that the de
  
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• HMRC investigating tax affairs of one of Tory party’s largest donors

  27-09-2023 19:23
  
  Exclusive: Inquiry into tax affairs of JCB boss Anthony Bamford calls into question whether Tories should accept funds from peerProfile: who is Anthony Bamford?One of the Conservative party’s biggest and most influential donors, Anthony Bamford, is under investigation over his tax affairs, the Guardian can disclose.The broad-ranging inquiry by HMRC calls into question whether the Tories should accept funds from the peer in the run-up to the general election. Continue reading...
  
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• One simple change you can make in the kitchen to cut energy bills

  27-09-2023 16:08 via express.co.uk
  
  Kitchen appliances account for around 17 percent of the average household's electricity bill making it key to focus on this area to cut costs.
  
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• ‘We feel we’ve earned it’: UK over-50s on switching to part-time work

  27-09-2023 13:39 via theguardian.com
  
  As record numbers of people over 50 work part-time, three who have reduced their hours explain whySimon Woodall, 52, a self-employed carpenter and joiner from Plymouth, says he worked “70 hours a week, for 30 years”, until he had a heart attack in June last year.“The medical staff just said: ‘You have stress-related heart disease, if you keep going, you’re not gonna last very long, no matter what tablets you take or how much healthy food you eat.’ This trigger
  
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• New York is breaking free of Airbnb's clutches. This is how the rest of the world can follow suit | Anna Minton

  27-09-2023 13:21 via theguardian.com
  
  The company is calling it a ‘de facto’ ban – and it could reshape the housing market in residents’ favourNew York City’s crackdown on Airbnb, which was enforced earlier this month, has been described as a “de facto ban” by the company. The tough restrictions, designed to bring back thousands of rental properties to the housing market for city residents to live in, will be closely scrutinised by politicians in cities worldwide. Many argue that Airbnb&rsqu
  
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• From the ideal shower time to the best temperature: nine bathing questions answered

  27-09-2023 11:39
  
  Are we getting showering right? Here’s everything you need to know, from whether we need a daily deluge to tips for the best way to wash your hairHow long is the ideal shower?
  Accepting that the intended goal of your shower is to get clean, dermatologists agree that five to 10 minutes ought to do the basic trick of getting you thoroughly washed without causing any skin damage.Is it OK to skip showering?
  Brace yourselves – many dermatologists actually think it’s better for your
  
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• Cold water fanatic or extreme-steam junkie? Take our quiz to discover your showering personality

  27-09-2023 11:39
  
  Whether you linger in the shower, enjoying the drum of water on your back, or take a more no-nonsense approach to getting clean, our quiz will put your washing style in the spotlightInspired to upgrade your shower set-up? Head to Mira Showers to learn all about its new Platinum digital shower and how to get one installed through its shower replacement service Continue reading...
  
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• ‘I touch my toes 10 times in the shower’: Britons come clean about their bathing habits

  27-09-2023 11:38
  
  Do you brush your teeth under the spray to save time? And where do you stand on the soaping of legs? We asked you to share your showering secrets, and here’s what you said …“My daughter, who’s 14, and I often discuss the issue of leg washing in the shower. Namely, if people are having a quick one, do they bother to wash their legs? I always do, soaping everything including my feet, but she doesn’t. Having asked around our friends, it seems that actively washing you
  
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• From saving water to temperature presets: why it’s time to get excited about ‘smart showers’

  27-09-2023 11:38
  
  Designed to solve the age-old problem of unreliable temperatures and make bathing more joyful, smart showers promise to upgrade both the look and feel of your showerWhether you’re an ice-cold Wim Hof devotee or an extreme-steam junkie, we can all agree that there are few things more disappointing than a lacklustre shower. From painfully unreliable temperatures (hot then cold then scalding – sound familiar?) and puny pressures to flimsy shower heads, a joyless shower is barely worth d
  
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• Santander wanted my bedbound father to visit his branch on a trolley

  27-09-2023 09:30 via theguardian.com
  
  After his account was frozen, the bank would not accept anything except an in-person visit for an identity checkMy father had a stroke earlier this year and is bedbound and needs 24-hour care. Last month, two online payments from his Santander account were blocked. He was told to call the helpline and asked various security questions.When he was unable to name a recent transaction, his account was locked and he was told he would have to go into the branch for his identity to be verified. He expl
  
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• UK university students facing ‘unprecedented rent rises’

  27-09-2023 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Maintenance loan failing to keep pace with rising rents, which have jumped by more than 8% since last yearUniversity students in the UK are facing “unprecedented rent rises” amid record demand for accommodation, while the value of the maintenance loan designed to cover living costs stagnates, according to a report.Many students are struggling to find affordable rooms, as rents have jumped by more than 8% overall this year compared with 2022-23, a survey by the real estate services fi
  
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• Scrapping inheritance tax would cost £15bn a year by 2032, says IFS

  27-09-2023 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Thinktank carried out analysis as calls mount among Tory MPs for the tax to be abolishedScrapping inheritance tax would cost the government almost £15bn a year in lost revenue by 2032, according to analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies that follows calls from Tory MPs for the main tax on inherited wealth to be abolished.The thinktank said the latest figures from HMRC showed fewer than 4% of estates paid inheritance tax (IHT) in 2020–21, but the rapid growth in wealth among old
  
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• First-time buyers in UK drop by a fifth as higher mortgage costs bite

  27-09-2023 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Lender says homes needing renovation are most in demand as people seek cheaper propertiesThe number of first-time buyers in the UK has fallen by more than a fifth, while homes in need of renovation are most in demand as buyers look for cheaper properties, in the latest evidence that people are struggling with higher mortgage costs.There were 22% fewer first-time buyers between January and August compared with the same period last year, according to the mortgage lender Halifax. They still account
  
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