Benefits squeeze means payouts will rise below rate of inflation December 5, 2012 WORKING age benefits will rise just one per cent over the next three years, well below the projected levels of inflation calculated by the government’s budget watchdog. The real-terms cut suggests that chancellor George Osborne brushed off strong opposition to the move from Liberal Democrats Nick Clegg and David Laws and work and pensions secretary [...]
Duncan Smith says EU vote will happen November 4, 2012 CABINET minister Iain Duncan Smith said yesterday that a vote on the UK’s relationship with the EU is under discussion and it is “just a matter of when and on what”. The work and pensions secretary said David Cameron is “not against” a referendum but failed to clarify whether a simple in/out vote was being [...]
Duncan Smith says EU vote will happen November 4, 2012 CABINET minister Iain Duncan Smith said yesterday that a vote on the UK’s relationship with the EU is under discussion and it is “just a matter of when and on what”. The work and pensions secretary said David Cameron is “not against” a referendum but failed to clarify whether a simple in/out vote was being [...]
Migrant crackdown runs against all the economic evidence | City A.M. June 23, 2013 THE health secretary Jeremy Hunt said yesterday: “The pull factors are very important if we are to deter people from coming here in the first place.” It is deeply depressing that, with UK GDP well below its 2008 level and no growth last year, the government chose to make proposals designed to put people off [...]
What the other papers say this morning November 14, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Government to delay welfare reform The government is prepared to delay its flagship welfare reform amid fears the complex changes may need to be more thoroughly tested before being extended to all benefit claimants. Universal credit, under which six benefits will be incorporated into a single payment, lies at the heart of a [...]
Senior Tory hits back at Boris claims August 15, 2012 BORIS Johnson was last night on the receiving end of a rebuke from a top minister after the Mayor called on the government to “stop pussyfooting around” and invest in London’s infrastructure. Iain Duncan Smith, the work and pensions secretary, said “Boris is wrong” to say the government was not doing enough to stimulate growth. [...]
Judge rejects claim that work schemes are modern slavery August 6, 2012 GOVERNMENT schemes designed to help the unemployed gain work experience are lawful, a judge ruled yesterday, in a major victory for the Department of Work and Pensions. Graduate Cait Reilly won a judicial review of one back-to-work scheme after being told by a Jobcentre that she must work unpaid shifts at a branch of Poundland [...]
Hunt asks City to provide cover for old age care February 11, 2013 HEALTH secretary Jeremy Hunt yesterday called on the City to help solve the funding crisis in long term care by providing new savings products, as he confirmed care fees would be capped at £75,000 for the elderly from 2017. “People will need to prepare and plan for social care costs as much as people prepare [...]
Low-paid lose benefits during strikes June 17, 2012 Workers who go on strike will forfeit benefits that top up their wages, work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith said yesterday. Employees can claim benefits such as working tax credits if their income falls below £13,000, even if this drop is caused by strikes. “Striking is a choice, and in future benefit claimants will [...]
Finance education at school is the first step to empowering future consumers February 13, 2013 I AM sure that you and I have at least one thing in common: that one of the most useful skills in our lives is being able to manage money – making sure I live within my means, don’t run up excessive debts, can pay my mortgage, can make sure my savings earn interest, and [...]