Financial news

• BT under increasing pressure from Ofcom to split from Openreach

  29-11-2016 13:55 via theguardian.com
  
  Regulator urges BT to separate from network division over competition fears, saying it is going to European commissionOfcom has increased pressure on BT to table stronger plans to legally separate from Openreach, which controls the UK’s broadband infrastructure, by threatening to call in European regulators after months of negotiations over a voluntary deal.The UK media regulator wants to strengthen the independence of Openreach to promote competition and boost the roll-out of superfast br
  
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• Wickes kitchen fitting was a recipe for disaster

  23-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  I’ve been without a hob in my new kitchen for three months after an emergency engineer was forced to disconnect itWhen Wickes installed my new kitchen, I noticed an odd, worsening smell that I put down to the ongoing works.It was nearly two months later that I realised it was gas. My supplier dispatched an emergency engineer, who discovered a leak in the newly fitted hob and categorised it as an immediate danger. The gas supply to the hob was disconnected and Wickes sent a replacement, but
  
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• Why are homegrown apples in the UK more expensive than imported bananas?

  23-02-2026 06:00 via theguardian.com
  From flooding in Peru to the fight for fair wages, a lot more goes into the price of fruit than what supermarkets charge consumers forWhy have apples increased so much in price in the UK? They seem much more expensive than bananas, even though many are homegrown, and so don’t have to travel halfway around the world.It seems bananas (sorry) that fruit grown in the country where it is being sold costs more than produce which has been shipped thousands of miles. But, unlike other goods, such
  
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• Tories would scrap ‘debt trap’ of high interest student loans, says Kemi Badenoch

  22-02-2026 18:46 via theguardian.com
  Education secretary Bridget Phillipson suggests priority is grants for poorer students rather than cutting interestKemi Badenoch has said the Conservatives would scrap the “unfair debt trap” of high interest rates on student loans, piling pressure on Labour ministers to tackle the growing outrage over the high costs.The education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, admitted the system of plan 2 loans had “problems” but suggested the government’s priority would be mainten
  
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• ‘Beyond worried’: the families waiting to hear how Send overhaul will change their lives

  22-02-2026 15:00 via theguardian.com
  Already struggling to get help, families with children with special needs are concerned changes could make things worseAt the age of 12, May Race’s son Joseph spends almost all of his time in his bedroom, too anxious, burnt out and – she says – traumatised even to join his parents and older brother downstairs most days. Joseph no longer leaves the house at all.He is autistic and has dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). His autism is of a type known as p
  
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• Romance fraud: warning over scam that turns victims into insurance cheats

  22-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Insurers say cases of scammers manipulating people into staging crashes and filing bogus claims are under-reportedRomance fraud typically evokes images of people being tricked out of their life savings by partners they meet on dating sites, but some scammers use a different tactic: recruiting unsuspecting victims into fake insurance claims.The scam involves a fraudster convincing their partner, or a person they are dating, either to say they have witnessed a car accident, or to take out an insur
  
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• DVSA explains key step everyone should do before starting driving lessons

  22-02-2026 06:30 via express.co.uk
  The Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency has issued fresh advice
  
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• ‘I’m an investment expert - this pension loophole could add £220k to your pot this year'

  22-02-2026 06:06 via express.co.uk
  Doing so is desirable for earners in the top brackets of tax as the entire £220k is subject to tax relief.
  
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• Nationwide warns 'we'll block your card' over messages going out to customers

  22-02-2026 05:47 via express.co.uk
  A customer reported getting text messages and phone calls from Nationwide
  
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• Lloyds explains 30-day rule over £50 bonus payments for customers

  22-02-2026 05:44 via express.co.uk
  You can get several payments through the Lloyds scheme
  
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• Follow this 12pm rule to 'naturally warm' your home over the rest of the winter

  22-02-2026 05:40 via express.co.uk
  People have been encouraged to stay active even while it's chilly
  
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• Ofgem issues 'top tips' to reduce energy bills

  22-02-2026 04:30 via express.co.uk
  Ofgem highlighted simple steps that can cut bills
  
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• British Gas says find important 'off button' in case of emergency

  22-02-2026 03:17 via express.co.uk
  British Gas experts explain how to locate and test your stopcock before frozen pipes or leaks strike this winter
  
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• Expert warns 'don't forget' as simple mistake could cost saves thousands

  22-02-2026 02:00 via express.co.uk
  Antonia Medlicott warns savers don't 'make the same mistake' as many missed out last year
  
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• Drivers warned ‘protect yourself’ after £1.4bn of parking fines in 1 year

  21-02-2026 21:02 via express.co.uk
  Motorists have been issued advice after a huge amount of cash was taken from Brits over 12 months.
  
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• Response given with one-week deadline on £20,000 personal tax allowance change

  21-02-2026 16:29 via express.co.uk
  A major tax change is being called for
  
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• ‘A crunchy, blistered, golden-brown pillow’: the best supermarket puff pastry, tasted and rated

  21-02-2026 14:00 via theguardian.com
  Which supermarket puff pastry puffs up proudly, and which comes up short?• The best supermarket unsalted butterPuff pastry is made by wrapping a block of fat (ideally butter) in a sheet of dough, then rolling it out, folding it over itself, and repeating the rolling and folding process several times more. This creates dozens of thin layers of fat between each layer of pastry. It’s skilled, arduous work, but that’s where ready-rolled puff pastry comes in. This miraculous product
  
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• Decline in remote jobs risks shutting disabled people out of work, study finds

  21-02-2026 12:00 via theguardian.com
  Research project warns fall in homeworking roles could undermine efforts to reduce unemploymentA decline in the number of jobs for people who need to work remotely, including those with disabilities, could undermine the government’s efforts to reverse rising unemployment, according to a two-year study.More than eight in 10 respondents to a survey of working-age disabled people by researchers at Lancaster University said access to home working was essential or very important when looking fo
  
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• Survivor of financial abuse invited to advise ministers after Guardian report

  21-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  City minister Lucy Rigby acts after woman faced repossession of house burned down by controlling husbandA woman who was nearly killed by her abusive husband has been invited to advise the government on measures to support victims of financial abuse after the Guardian highlighted her story last weekend.Francesca Onody was left homeless and penniless when her husband doused their cottage with petrol while she and her two children were inside. Her husband, Malcolm Baker, died when the property expl
  
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• Making Tax Digital: are you ready for HMRC’s self-assessment shake-up?

  21-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Tax authorities warn sole traders and landlords to act, as the biggest change to self-assessment in decades loomsSpring is “the time of plans and projects”, wrote Leo Tolstoy in Anna Karenina. For hundreds of thousands of self-employed people and property owners, those words are ringing true – and have never felt more daunting.This spring, HM Revenue and Customs is introducing the biggest shake-up of the self-assessment tax system in decades. Continue reading...
  
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• ‘Don’t go to the US – not with Trump in charge’: the UK tourist with a valid visa detained by ICE for six weeks

  21-02-2026 07:00 via theguardian.com
  Karen Newton was in America on the trip of a lifetime when she was shackled, transported and held for weeks on end. With tourism to the US under increasing strain, she says, ‘If it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone’When Karen Newton left home in late July 2025, she knew that international travellers were being locked up in immigration detention centres in the US. “I was aware,” she nods. “But I never thought it would have any impact on my holiday.” Kar
  
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• Man receives £42,000 bill for data roaming charges after Morocco holiday

  20-02-2026 16:39 via theguardian.com
  Andrew Alty thought O2 bill was a mistake, but daughter’s TikTok use allowed massive uncapped charges to accrueA small business owner was left facing a £42,000 bill that he said nearly bankrupted him after his daughter racked up data roaming charges while the family were on holiday in Morocco.Andrew Alty, who owns a curtains business, was in Marrakech when he received a bill for £22,000 from network provider O2, but at first he assumed it was a mistake. Continue reading...
  
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• Homes for sale with luscious lawns in England and Scotland – in pictures

  20-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  From a former Georgian hospital in a Scottish Borders town to a converted greenhouse in the Kent countryside Continue reading...
  
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• The Guardian view on Merz and Meloni: an emerging Berlin-Rome axis is threatening the EU’s green deal

  19-02-2026 20:05 via theguardian.com
  The deregulation agenda being pushed by Germany’s chancellor and Italy’s prime minister is economically and ethically flawedWhen the European Union launched its green deal in 2019, putting into law the goal of climate neutrality by the middle of the century, it showed strategic foresight as well as global leadership. Russia’s war in Ukraine has starkly underlined the extent to which the continent’s energy security – and its future prosperity – is dependent on
  
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• Accenture ‘links staff promotions to use of AI tools’

  19-02-2026 18:21 via theguardian.com
  Consulting firm keen to increase uptake of technology and is reportedly monitoring adoption by workforceAccenture has reportedly started tracking staff use of its AI tools and will take this into consideration when deciding on top promotions, as the consulting company tries to increase uptake of the technology by its workforce.The company told senior managers and associate directors that being promoted to leadership roles would require “regular adoption” of artificial intelligence, a
  
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• Global Counsel calls in administrators, blaming Peter Mandelson ‘maelstrom’

  19-02-2026 16:55 via theguardian.com
  Advisory firm has lost string of clients despite efforts to cut ties with co-founder after Epstein revelationsGlobal Counsel, the advisory firm co-founded by Peter Mandelson, is to collapse into administration, blaming the “maelstrom” caused by revelations about the former peer’s relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.Companies including Barclays, Tesco and the Premier League have all deserted Global Counsel, despite the company’s efforts to sever ti
  
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• UK manufacturing still beset by low orders and price pressure, says CBI

  19-02-2026 16:07 via theguardian.com
  Industrial trends survey shows firms are expecting to raise prices, with order books well below averageBritish manufacturing orders remain well below average and price pressure continues to persist, according to a closely watched survey.The CBI industrial trends survey found that manufacturers’ orders for the month were below average in February, while most firms expected to raise their prices and for output to decline over the next three months. Continue reading...
  
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• ‘Made in Europe’ EU industrial strategy could hit supply chains, UK minister warns

  19-02-2026 16:01 via theguardian.com
  Nick Thomas-Symonds says move could also create unnecessary UK-EU trade barriers and increase costsBusiness live – latest updatesA British minister has warned that the EU’s “Made in Europe” industrial strategy could hit supply chains, increase costs and create unnecessary trade barriers between the UK and some members of the bloc.Nick Thomas-Symonds, the UK minister for EU relations, made the comments as the EU is preparing to publish legislation that would require Europe
  
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• Horse meat set to be banned in Italy amid draft equine bill

  19-02-2026 15:08 via theguardian.com
  Law defines animals including horses, donkeys and mules as pets and is backed by opposition partiesItaly could soon ban horse meat as part of a law that would define equine animals including horses, donkeys and mules as pets, making it illegal to kill them.The bill has been drafted by Michela Vittoria Brambilla, a politician with Noi Moderati, a member of Giorgia Meloni’s ruling coalition, and is backed by opposition parties. Continue reading...
  
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• £150 discount for eligible households who make phone call before next Friday

  19-02-2026 14:20 via express.co.uk
  Eligible households don't have long left to claim the winter discount.
  
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