Now Halifax says UK house prices dropped last month – but rose almost 10 per cent in the year to February March 3, 2016 It was a day of two house price indices today, and while Nationwide was insistent that house price growth was flat between January and February, figures from Halifax have shown prices fell by1.4 per cent. But Halifax's house price index, released today, also showed prices rose 9.7 per cent from last February – and were up [...]
We’ve failed generations of young people by sidelining technical education August 18, 2016 "I hope that technical education will be given in the future a far higher status in educational circles than it has had in the past,” commented an MP during a debate on an education bill. That statement could have come any time in the past century. In fact, it was made by Edward Cobb MP [...]
Barclays customers can now use Apple Pay… finally April 5, 2016 It's been a long old wait, but Barclays has finally jumped on board the Apple Pay bandwagon. Barclays is the last of the major banks to support Apple Pay in the UK, letting customers pay with just the swipe of their iPhone or Apple Watch. “Since we introduced contactless to the UK in 2007, it’s [...]
Prime Minister David Cameron: Pubs will stay open later on 10th and 11th of June for Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday March 23, 2016 Pubs will be allowed to stay open longer on 10 and 11 June as part of nationwide celebrations marking the Queen's 90th birthday, Prime Minister David Cameron confirmed today. Downing Street said that subject to a consultation process with licensing authorities, the pub industry and community groups, pubs that are licensed to trade until 11pm will be allowed [...]
Budget 2016: Chancellor George Osborne to kick start £16bn B&B sell-off March 12, 2016 Chancellor George Osborne is gearing up to kick start a £16bn sale of bailed-out banking group Bradford and Bingley (B&B) loans in next week's Budget. Osborne decided to include the projected sale of the mortgage lender on Wednesday, following weeks of discussions with Treasury officials. The timing of the auction is unclear, and it may not conclude for months, giving investor's appetites [...]
Foreign currency: With sterling down against the euro and US dollar, here’s how to make your holiday money go further this summer July 12, 2016 Unless you’re holidaying in South Africa, Brazil, Russia or a number of other countries whose currency has fallen more steeply than sterling this year, you should brace yourself for considerable increases in the cost of hotel rooms, car hire and dining out. Market uncertainty around Brexit has led sterling to fall against a basket of other [...]
Bank of England stress tests: Berenberg warns Lloyds Banking Group could be hit hard by 2016 stress tests while Standard Chartered and HSBC could fare better than in recent years March 30, 2016 Lloyds Banking Group is "particularly vulnerable to larger stress test losses" in 2016 compared to Britain's other big banks, analysts at Berenberg have warned. The Bank published its plans yesterday for this year’s stress test of Britain’s biggest banks, saying it would test to see how lenders would fare in a scenario where global growth falls 1.9 [...]
Google’s Android Pay is coming to the UK, letting you pay with mobile on the Tube and across the high street, including Pret, Starbucks, Waitrose and more March 23, 2016 Users of Android will soon be able to use their smartphone to pay for items and even travel to work, as Google prepares to launch Android Pay in the UK following hot on the heels of Apple Pay. Google said it will roll out "in the coming months" with the backing of Britain's biggest banks, but did not [...]
Make £££ interest on top current accounts this year August 17, 2016 Savers have been dealt a double whammy of blows this month. The Bank of England cut interest rates from their already-record low of 0.5 per cent down to a paltry 0.25 per cent, which is likely to have an impact on the already poor levels of interest paid on savings accounts. The 0.5 level was considered [...]
BBA: UK high street banks approved fewer mortgages than expected in April as stamp duty surge ends May 26, 2016 The number of mortgages approved by high street banks last month fell more than expectations, after a surge in the start of the year driven by the rush to buy before new stamp duty charges came in. BBA figures out this morning show that the number of mortgages approved in April fell to 40,104 – [...]