Financial news

• Budget black hole just got £3bn bigger - Reeves to plug gap by hiking these three taxes

  21-08-2024 17:49 via express.co.uk
  
  Labour chancellor Rachel Reeves doesn't need another excuse to increase our taxes, but she's just been handed one anyway.
  
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• Barclays issues warning to all Android users

  21-08-2024 16:54 via express.co.uk
  
  A man got in touch as he was struggling use the app.
  
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• I’ve finally got round to fixing up my house – and it’s given me a radical idea | Nell Frizzell

  21-08-2024 16:39 via theguardian.com
  
  All the jobs I wanted to do – from fixing the tap to replacing the shower curtain – are done. Why? Because of the terrifying prospect of strangers coming to look at itHere is a short and by no means comprehensive list of things that have been at the bottom of my fruit bowl for about a year: two screwdrivers, a small plastic Pikachu, four marbles, the inner mechanism of a door handle, a drawing of a clown, an unidentified key, the receipt for our wedding wine and a pipe cleaner. Today
  
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• Homebuyers ‘paying £470 a month too much' due to 'rip-off' standard variable rate loans

  21-08-2024 16:30 via express.co.uk
  
  The rates on these deals are way ahead of home loans that track the Bank of England base rate or the cheapest fixed rate deals.
  
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• What personal tax rises might Rachel Reeves introduce to ease UK deficit?

  21-08-2024 15:45 via theguardian.com
  
  We look at likely changes, as chancellor plans measures to plug £22bn public finances shortfallUK government borrowing hits higher than expected £3.1bn in JulyBusiness live – latest updatesThe chancellor, Rachel Reeves, is planning to increase taxes in October’s budget in an effort to plug what she has described as a £22bn shortfall in the public finances.The Labour election manifesto ruled out raising the rates of income tax, national insurance or VAT, but other pe
  
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• NS&I explains important document to collect Premium Bonds prizes

  21-08-2024 14:26 via express.co.uk
  
  Savers can check if they have any prizes to collect online
  
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• Economists predict higher taxes and borrowing after UK deficit overshoots forecasts – business live

  21-08-2024 14:25 via theguardian.com
  
  Tough budget looms after UK deficit hits £3.1bn in July – ahead of City forecasts of £1.5bn, and soaring over OBR forecast of £100mFull story: UK government borrowing hits higher than expected £3.1bn in JulyAnalysis: Reeves can point to ONS public finances report as cover for a harsh budgetThe big picture remains that the UK’s national debt is the highest since the early 1960s, as a share of the economy.Public sector net debt excluding public sector banks is n
  
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• Shares in National Express owner jump as it starts sale of US school bus business

  21-08-2024 14:03 via theguardian.com
  
  Mobico also reports 24% increase in half-year profits to £71.2m as group tries to reduce £1.2bn debtThe owner of National Express has revealed it has begun the sale of its North American school bus business in an effort to reduce its £1.2bn debt, sending its shares sharply higher.The share price of Mobico, which changed its name from National Express Group in June 2023, jumped by more than 20% after markets opened on Wednesday, before settling at 14% up at 66p by mid-morning. C
  
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• Murder inquiry after Leeds delivery driver dies ‘trying to stop van theft’

  21-08-2024 14:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Police appeal for witnesses after man found at roadside after delivering package for Amazon-contracted firmPolice have launched a murder inquiry after a delivery driver was killed during an apparent theft of his van while he was dropping off parcels in Leeds.The man, who has not been named, was found unconscious with serious injuries in Heights Drive, Wortley, just before 7pm on Tuesday. Continue reading...
  
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• Social housing rents to rise as part of UK push to build affordable homes

  21-08-2024 13:56 via theguardian.com
  Rachel Reeves works on plan for 10-year formula to give councils and housing associations certaintySocial housing rents will rise by more than inflation over the next decade as part of UK government plans to boost affordable housebuilding and shore up the finances of struggling landlords.The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, is working on plans to introduce a 10-year formula to calculate social rent on homes that will result in rents increasing every year by the rate of the consumer prices index &ndash
  
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• Millennials: have you recently taken a cruise for the first time?

  21-08-2024 13:23 via theguardian.com
  
  We want to speak with people under 40 who have holidayed on a cruise ship in recent times, particularly those with young familiesCruises have long been associated with older travellers, but there are signs that this is beginning to shift as the industry looks to bring families and younger generations onboard.Research published by JP Morgan in June found that demand for cruises “remains robust” and noted that the cruise industry had moved beyond its core market of baby boomers to incr
  
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• Pakistan businesses reeling from slow internet blame testing for firewall

  21-08-2024 13:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Government denies new cybersecurity measures responsible for up to 40% drop in internet speeds across the countryFor the free online tech skill classes advertised, there were hundreds of Facebook “likes” and in the end 1,500 people signed up. But on the first day last week, only a handful of those registered managed to log in to the live session. The internet was working at a snail’s speed.“We received hundreds of complaints,” says the course tutor, Wardah Noor, fou
  
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• Group of Republican attorneys general blocking climate laws funded by oil firms and dark money

  21-08-2024 13:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Association has received millions from Koch Industries, fossil fuel lobby and fund linked to billionaire Leonard LeoA powerful group that boasts 28 Republican attorney generals, including many who have sided with oil and gas firms to block states seeking compensation for weather disasters caused by climate change, has raked in millions of dollars from fossil fuel giants and a dark money fund tied to Federalist Society co-chair, Leonard Leo.The Republican Attorneys General Association (Raga) has
  
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• CCTV emerges of moment Sicily yacht sank as search efforts continue – video report

  21-08-2024 12:23 via theguardian.com
  
  A luxury yacht carrying 22 passengers including the software tycoon Mike Lynch sank off the coast of Sicily during an unexpected and severe storm. Matthew Schanck, a maritime expert, told Reuters it was likely to have been caused by a waterspout, a rare occurrence in the waters around the Italian island. He called it a 'black swan event' and said understanding what caused the boat to tilt was critical. CCTV footage taken from the port shows the yacht apparently disappearing into the darkness. Si
  
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• Mike Lynch was getting ready to ‘start again’, says former UK cabinet minister

  21-08-2024 11:58 via theguardian.com
  
  Lord Deben pays tribute to tech entrepreneur who is feared dead after yacht capsizedThe former cabinet minister Lord Deben has said his missing friend the tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was at the “beginning of a new life” when his yacht capsized in a violent storm off the coast of Sicily.Lynch and his teenage daughter Hannah are among six people feared dead after the Bayesian was hit by a tornadic waterspout and rapidly sank early on Monday morning. Continue reading...
  
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• Reeves can point to ONS public finances report as cover for a harsh budget

  21-08-2024 11:22 via theguardian.com
  
  October review is expected to be eye-wateringly severe, but chancellor will draw on official data to make her caseBusiness live – latest updatesIf Rachel Reeves was looking for political cover for what is being billed as a budget of eye-watering severity, then the latest set of figures for the UK’s public finances certainly provided it.The chancellor has been saying since arriving at the Treasury last month that the government has been spending and borrowing a lot more than expected
  
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• Privatised water firms are imperiling our health and poisoning our rivers. Act now: flood the streets with rage | Feargal Sharkey

  21-08-2024 11:00 via theguardian.com
  It is time to say this privatisation zealotry has been a disaster. March with us and let ministers know – enough is enoughYou’ve been lied to, you’ve been misled, you’ve been extorted, you’ve been cheated, and you’ve been abused. For the last 35 years, you have been subject to nothing more than possibly the greatest organised ripoff perpetrated on the British people, and you have had little in return apart from greed, profiteering, financial engineering, polit
  
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• I received a £100 parking charge even though we’d used the JustPark app

  21-08-2024 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  The space owner in Edinburgh told us to use ‘any spot available’, then we got the ticketI used the JustPark parking app, after recommendations from friends, to park our car in Edinburgh during a visit to our daughter who lives in an area of strict parking restrictions.On the morning of the visit, we contacted the parking space owner at work to check the requirements, and were told by text to “park in any spot available”.On returning to collect our vehicle in the early eve
  
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• How to get the best interest rate deal on a UK mortgage

  21-08-2024 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  With thousands of mortgages out there and uncertainty over the future, doing research is vital There are a few things you can do to improve your chances of getting the best deal, whether you’re a first-time buyer, moving to a new home, or remortgaging, says Nicholas Mendes, a mortgage technical adviser at the broker John Charcol. Continue reading...
  
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• Ministers urged to end water ‘postcode lottery’ with single social tariff

  21-08-2024 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Firms in England and Wales offer separate discounts but charities say central fund would help struggling customersMinisters are under pressure to end the “postcode lottery” on water by introducing a single social tariff for households on low incomes, amid fresh signs consumers are struggling to keep up with bill payments.Water companies in England and Wales offer their own social tariffs, providing discounts to consumers on low incomes. However, some of the schemes are more generous
  
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• Waitrose to open 100 convenience shops in £1bn investment drive

  21-08-2024 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Grocer’s five-year plan also includes up to four new big supermarkets as well as shop refurbishmentsWaitrose is planning to open 100 convenience stores over the next five years as part of a £1bn-plus investment in new outlets and shop refurbishments.The upmarket grocery chain is planning to unveil a revamped outlet in Finchley Road, north London, on Wednesday. Continue reading...
  
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• ‘I don’t want this landscape to change’: the UK energy head making the local case for clean power

  21-08-2024 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Faced with community anxiety over building for the energy transition, Energy UK’s Emma Pinchbeck stresses the wins, near-term and farThe prospect of pylons, wind turbines and solar farms springing up across the countryside has upset a number of UK communities. But the head of Energy UK, Emma Pinchbeck, believes there is a way to decarbonise our electricity and sooth these tensions.Pinchbeck is tapped to be the next leader of the Climate Change Committee, and currently represents the indust
  
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• Just Eat advert that depicted McDonald’s broke junk food code

  21-08-2024 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Advertising Standards Authority bans Facebook ad over lack of care to ensure it was not aimed at under-16sAn advert for the takeaway delivery service Just Eat that featured a McDonald’s burger has been banned for not taking sufficient care to ensure that it was not aimed at children under 16.The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled that the paid-for Facebook advert must not appear again in its current form after it upheld a complaint made by Bite Back 2030, a youth activist movement
  
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