Companies’ short-term confidence in business output has lifted for the first time in 17 months December 12, 2016 Companies' short-term confidence in the UK's economy is becoming more upbeat, as figures out today show the outlook business output is brighter for the first time in 17 months. According to accountancy firm BDO's business output index, which indicates how businesses expect to perform in the three months ahead, rose from 96.6 in October to 97.1 in November. This [...]
Autumn Statement 2015: Transport for London loses billions in Spending Review as subsidies cut by Department of Transport November 25, 2015 Transport for London will lose out on billions of pounds of funding after the government announced it will cut its subsidy in the Spending Review. The Department for Transport will phase out TfL's resource grant which makes up around six per cent of its annual budget, amounting to £2.8bn by 2019. The move comes as part of efforts by [...]
Autumn Statement 2015: Stamp duty changes are a kick in the teeth and may be the final straw for some landlords November 25, 2015 Today's big headlines may be about the tax-credits u-turn, but one of the most significant of the chancellor's announcements was the new additional rate of stamp duty on buy-to-let properties and second homes. This additional three per cent will come as a kick in the teeth for landlords who've already had to cope with the loss [...]
Autumn Statement 2015: Here’s why the government’s new housing target is easier said than done November 25, 2015 NULL
Autumn Statement 2015 predictions: Accountants say George Osborne needs to spare UK Plc November 16, 2015 A leading industry group is making a wide-reaching appeal to chancellor George Osborne, calling for him to spare British businesses in next week’s Autumn Statement. The Institute for Chartered Accounts in England and Wales (ICAEW) said the chancellor should “not introduce anything that will impact businesses” in the fiscal update, saying measures introduced in the [...]
This housing chief thinks EU regulation protecting newts is holding back housebuilders December 4, 2016 Housebuiding in the UK is being held back by newts and other animals protected by EU regulation, one leading housebuilder has said. John Tutte, chief executive of housebuilder Redrow, has said that "we haven't got a shortage" of great-crested newts. But, due to shortages in places such as Spain, the amphibians are protected by EU [...]
Attention turns to final borrowing figures ahead of 2015 Autumn Statement and Comprehensive Spending Review November 15, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne could come under added pressure this Friday when the last state borrowing figures before next week’s Autumn Statement and Comprehensive Spending Review are published. Consultancy Capital Economics expects borrowing for October to come in at £6.5bn. While it would be substantially below last year’s October deficit of £9.4bn, it still puts the Treasury [...]
Government borrowing less than predicted putting it on track to undershoot deficit expectations January 24, 2017 UK borrowing was less than expected in December, boosting the government as it aims to eradicate the deficit in spending while avoiding an economic hit from Brexit. Borrowing to fund the deficit fell to £6.9bn in December, according the Office for National Statistics, putting it on track to undershoot the latest forecasts by the Office [...]
Autumn Statement 2015: Scrap the spending cuts ringfence, say the Institute of Economic Affairs and Taxpayers’ Alliance November 23, 2015 The government's decision to ringfence certain areas of spending means this week’s Comprehensive Spending Review is likely to be “incoherent and incomprehensive”, a prominent Westminster think tank has said today. The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) said that because 70 per cent of government spending is protected, or ringfenced, cuts risk being made in the [...]
Generation Rent: London is home to nearly a fifth of the UK’s rental accommodation December 2, 2016 London is now home to almost a fifth of the rental properties in the UK, but it accounts for nearly half of the total value of these households. There are 1,048,000 houses in the private rented sector in London, almost a fifth of the 5.3m in Britain as a whole. But the value of this [...]