Financial news

• Rachel Reeves is right to scrap Jeremy Hunt’s gimmicky British Isa | Nils Pratley

  04-09-2024 19:47
  
  Good riddance to Hunt’s muddled and pointless creation – prodding pension funds may do more to wake up the UK stock marketWere you preparing to do your patriotic duty by investing in a “British Isa”, that late-in-the-day invention of Jeremy Hunt when the last government was scratching around for ideas to perk up the UK stock market? Tough: it looks like you won’t now have the chance.Rachel Reeves is poised to kill the Brit Isa before it has been launched, reports th
  
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• Priti Patel knocked out of Tory leadership race with Robert Jenrick securing most votes in first round – UK politics live

  04-09-2024 18:14
  
  Former home secretary finishes behind Mel Stride after only securing 14 votesGrenfell Tower inquiry report – live updatesPMQs is starting soon. Here is the list of MPs down to ask a question.Kemi Badenoch is the clear favourite of Conservative members for next leader, and will be very hard to beat if she makes it into the final ballot of two, according to a survey by ConservativeHome. Continue reading...
  
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• State Pension map shows where in the UK you could get £400 boost to your pot

  04-09-2024 17:43 via express.co.uk
  
  The new full state pension is set to be increased above inflation thanks to the triple lock.
  
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• Volvo u-turns on plan to sell only fully electric cars by 2030; Volkswagen warns time is running out to adapt – business live

  04-09-2024 17:39 via theguardian.com
  Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as European car makers struggle with transition to electric vehiclesThe oil price is weakening again today, hit by US growth worries – among other factors.After a near-5% fall on Tuesday, Brent crude has lost another 1.2% this morning to fall below $73 per barrel, its lowest since mid-December. Continue reading...
  
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• Bank fraud reimbursement limit set to be slashed by thousands under new plans

  04-09-2024 17:29 via express.co.uk
  
  Critics say the move will expose people to "devastating financial and emotional harm".
  
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• Banks warned over denying sex workers business accounts

  04-09-2024 17:12 via theguardian.com
  FCA gives detailed guidance to lenders after hearing lack of access could lead to ‘significant harm’ for individuals The City regulator has warned UK banks over denying accounts for sex workers, after hearing that a lack of access to business banking could lead to “significant harm” for individuals.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that while banks said they were able to provide accounts for the adult entertainment industry in theory, they were often denying or s
  
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• HMRC announces major shake-up in the treatment of tax-free ISAs

  04-09-2024 16:41 via express.co.uk
  
  The move is expected to encourage investment in shares, particularly among young adults, who are keen to buy a stake in high performing tech companies
  
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• Why is the UK slashing the maximum banks must refund to fraud victims?

  04-09-2024 16:04 via theguardian.com
  
  Consumer groups hit out at regulator’s ‘outrageous’ decision to cut limit from £415,000 to £85,000Consumer groups have attacked a regulator’s decision to slash the planned maximum amount that banks will have to refund to UK fraud victims from £415,000 to £85,000. One said it meant some people were likely to have their lives “destroyed”.The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) confirmed on Wednesday reports from the previous evening that it w
  
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• UK households urged to buy air fryer and save £161 before October rise

  04-09-2024 15:34 via express.co.uk
  
  Households can slash the cost of their electricity or gas bill with a Ninja Air Fryer - currently on a £70 off deal.
  
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• Premium Bonds saver 'infuriated' over prize limit rules - NS&I responds

  04-09-2024 15:29 via express.co.uk
  
  Each £1 Bond that goes into the monthly draw has an equal chance of winning a prize
  
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• State pensioners can still get £300 Winter Fuel Payment 'without Pension Credit'

  04-09-2024 15:27 via express.co.uk
  
  The Department for Work and Pensions has tightened the eligibility criteria for the £300 Winter Fuel Payments this year.
  
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• European Commission to examine Ticketmaster’s ‘dynamic pricing’

  04-09-2024 15:03 via theguardian.com
  
  Review follows UK competition watchdog’s announcement of ‘urgent review’ into Oasis concert tickets fiascoTicketmaster’s ability to raise the price of concert tickets based on demand is being scrutinised by the European Commission, the Guardian has learned, as the UK’s competition watchdog launches an “urgent review” into the Oasis concerts fiasco.The US-owned ticketing giant has been told it may have breached laws in the UK and Europe for inflating the
  
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• Martin Lewis explains how people must claim Pension Credit to get Winter Fuel Payment

  04-09-2024 15:00 via express.co.uk
  
  The MoneySavingExpert founder has urged members of the public to ensure that older friends, family members, neighbours, and acquaintances check if they are eligible for Pension Credit
  
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• State pension warning to British expats as one move could 'offset' £400 triple lock boost

  04-09-2024 14:34 via express.co.uk
  
  Next year's state pension increase will come as a "double boost" for certain British expats, but they need to be wary of one thing, an expert has warned.
  
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• Amazon announces near 10% pay rise for tens of thousands of UK workers

  04-09-2024 14:03 via theguardian.com
  
  Increase will lift minimum rates by 9.8% and comes after online retailer defeated GMB union bid for bargaining rights on payAmazon has announced a pay rise worth nearly 10% for tens of thousands of UK employees, after defeating an attempt by the GMB trade union for bargaining rights over pay and conditions.The online retailer said the increase would lift minimum pay rates by 9.8% to between £13.50 and £14.50 an hour, depending on location. Staff with at least three years’ servi
  
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• Labour’s not declaring a 20mph war on motorists. Maybe it should | Jonn Elledge

  04-09-2024 14:00 via theguardian.com
  
  It may outrage the right, but reducing speed limits in populated areas makes roads safer for everybody and journeys smootherDriving is not nearly as nippy a way of getting around a city as the average car ad suggests. In most of the UK, the speed limit in a built-up area is 30mph – but on what the government refers to with the zippy name of “urban classified local ‘A’ roads”, the actually existing average speed in England hovers instead just above the 16mph mark. In
  
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• Starmer accuses Tories of ignoring international law on arms exports to Israel – video

  04-09-2024 13:52 via theguardian.com
  The Labour leader, Keir Starmer, defended his government's decision to suspend some arms export licences to Israel after the opposition leader, Rishi Sunak, asked him if he had taken the geopolitical considerations and timing into account. Starmer told MPs: 'We either comply with international law or we don’t, but we only have strength in our arguments because we comply with international law. I appreciate the party opposite didn’t think that international law mattered'David Cameron
  
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• ‘Outrageous‘ Labour move to slash compensation offered to fraud victim bank customers

  04-09-2024 13:52 via express.co.uk
  
  Finance regulators and the government are understood to be drawing up proposals to reduce the maximum compensation available to fraud victims
  
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• Grenfell is simply explained: firms chased profits, ministers sat on their hands, innocents paid with their lives | Peter Apps

  04-09-2024 13:33 via theguardian.com
  Today’s report should make you angry. People died horribly and futures were wrecked because of ideology, neglect and greedPeter Apps is a contributing editor at Inside Housing and the author of Show Me the Bodies: How We Let Grenfell Happen‘A task that only the government can undertake.” A short, seemingly unremarkable sentence, tucked away on the 225th page of the second volume of Martin Moore-Bick’s 1,700-page Grenfell Tower inquiry report. But it encapsulates in a nuts
  
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• More than 17,000 AT&T workers strike over unfair labor practice by company

  04-09-2024 13:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Strike started on 16 August over firm’s delays in bargaining a new contract since the process began in JuneMore than 17,000 AT&T workers in the US south-east remain on strike as the Communications Workers of America have accused the company of unfair labor practices for attempting to further delay bargaining a new union contract.The workers, technicians, customer service representatives and others who install, maintain and support AT&T’s network have been on strike since 16 A
  
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• Two UK firms join forces to build ‘last-mile’ electric delivery vehicles

  04-09-2024 12:58 via theguardian.com
  ELM Mobility joint venture by Prodrive and Astheimer Design aims for 10,000 one-person quadricycles by 2030Two British automotive companies have teamed up to build thousands of electric delivery vehicles in the UK – the latest in a line of businesses attempting the risky push into vehicle manufacturing after several prominent failures.The motorsport manufacturer Prodrive and Astheimer Design have said they plan to build 10,000 of their one-person delivery vehicles by 2030, with production
  
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• Grenfell report blames decades of government failure and ‘systematic dishonesty’ of companies

  04-09-2024 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Verdict of seven-year inquiry into disaster that killed 72 people apportions responsibility widelyGrenfell Tower inquiry report – live updatesExplainer: key players named in the Grenfell reportRead the reportThe Grenfell Tower disaster was the result of “decades of failure” by central government to stop the spread of combustible cladding combined with the “systematic dishonesty” of multimillion-dollar companies whose products spread the fire that killed 72 people, a
  
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• Barratt profits plunge 75% as number of houses built slumps

  04-09-2024 11:06 via theguardian.com
  
  Cost of living crisis, higher mortgage rates and weak consumer confidence weigh on housing market in past yearBarratt Developments has suffered a 75% drop in annual profit and a double-digit decline in home completions after a “challenging” year for Britain’s biggest housebuilder.The company said the past year had proved tough for the housebuilding industry and potential buyers, as cost of living pressures, much higher mortgage rates and weak consumer confidence weighed on the
  
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• I believed Starmer and Reeves were too smart to repeat austerity. It appears I was wrong | David Blanchflower

  04-09-2024 11:00 via theguardian.com
  New governments usually come into power offering hope and a break with the past. This one is squandering the opportunity for a fresh startAll is not well in Britain. Last week the Children’s Society reported the results of a study of 15-year-olds’ life satisfaction, which has steadily declined over the past decade. The findings showed that British 15-year-olds had the lowest life satisfaction levels of 27 European countries.In a 2023 report on global mental health, the UK ranked the
  
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• UK state pension to rise by more than £400 a year, say reports

  04-09-2024 10:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Figures reportedly seen by BBC show men born after 1951 and women after 1953 will get£12,000 in 2025 and 2026The full UK state pension is expected to rise by more than £400 a year as a result of April’s triple lock, according to reports.The state pension will be increased by average earning figures, which are due to be released next week, according to the treasury’s internal working calculations, reportedly seen by the BBC. Continue reading...
  
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• Nvidia shares slump amid reports US is ramping up antitrust investigation

  04-09-2024 09:46 via theguardian.com
  
  Fall overnight comes after it shrinks by $279bn on Tuesday in biggest one-day drop in value by US companyBusiness live – latest newsShares in the AI chip designer Nvidia have continued to slide overnight after a report said US authorities were ramping up an investigation into whether the company had breached competition laws.The company’s shares fell 2.4% in after-hours trading, exacerbating a near-10% drop in the regular trading session that slashed its value by $279bn (£212bn
  
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• A sorry Saga as our home insurance rockets to an astronomical £4,730

  04-09-2024 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Last year it was £440 and nothing has changed but we can’t get a reason for the huge increaseLast year our home insurance policy with Saga cost £440. This year’s quote was for an astronomical £4,730.Its representative was astonished by the increase, stating that in “over 25 years in the business I have never seen an increase like that”. However, despite him going back to the underwriter, it remained. Continue reading...
  
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• Economic impact of UK live music industry hits record £6.1bn

  04-09-2024 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Exclusive: Growth in sector in 2023 driven by concerts featuring big names such as Elton John and BeyoncéSpending on the UK live music sector and associated businesses has hit a record £6.1bn as a wave of huge acts from Elton John to Beyoncé cashed in on the pent-up demand to attend shows in person.Live, the federation representing Britain’s live music industry, revealed that the sector’s contribution to the UK economy topped £6bn for the first time last yea
  
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• Why Oasis tickets are ‘definitely maybe’ too expensive – podcast

  04-09-2024 04:00 via theguardian.com
  
  After queuing online for hours to buy gig tickets, some fans saw the prices surge. What happened? Rob Davies reportsFor die-hard fans like the Guardian’s North of England editor, Josh Halliday, the news that Oasis was reforming for a series of gigs had them racing to their laptops to buy tickets. But with a handful of dates announced and a fever pitch of excitement for the concerts, when the tickets were finally released many people found themselves waiting for hours in online queues.Josh
  
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• Pension pot amount needed for ‘basic’ retirement rises 60% in three years

  04-09-2024 01:01
  
  Research shows ‘alarming’ rise in essential living costs during retirement, with low-paid workers worst affectedThe average pension pot needed for a “basic” retirement has risen by almost 60% in three years, according to research that highlights how the UK cost of living crisis has left many workers fearing they will never be able to retire.The study from the Resolution Foundation thinktank and the Living Wage Foundation found that a number of price rises across housing,
  
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• Councils in England draining reserves to stay afloat, leaders say

  04-09-2024 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Survey of 24 city authorities finds two in five plan to sell off assets and reduce servicesLocal authority leaders say they are having to drain their financial reserves to keep services afloat and avoid effective bankruptcy.A survey of the mid-tier group of English city councils, which includes Southampton, Hull, Sunderland and Norwich, found that many that had previously avoided financial difficulties during periods of austerity were close to running out of funds. Continue reading...
  
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• Starmer to face test next week as MPs vote on limiting winter fuel allowance

  04-09-2024 01:00
  
  Plan to means-test benefit for pensioners criticised by opposition parties and some Labour backbenchers Keir Starmer faces a test of his authority next week after promising a vote on the government’s plans to limit winter fuel allowance to the poorest pensioners.MPs will get the chance to vote on secondary legislation on Tuesday that will introduce means-testing of the benefit after pressure from opposition parties and Labour backbenchers. Continue reading...
  
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