Forget cutting tuition fees – student finance needs a complete overhaul February 23, 2015 In an age of big challenges, the general election campaign seems to be throwing up a host of small ideas. The Labour Party is currently quibbling internally over how to finance a policy of cutting the cap on regulated tuition fees from £9,000 to £6,000, for example. It’s unclear what problem this purports to solve. [...]
General Election 2015: Will the government raise the minimum wage? February 23, 2015 Minimum wage in the UK should rise by 20p to £6.70 an hour, according to the Low Pay Commission. The rise, the commission says, should take place in October, and would mean a pay rise for 1.2m workers. If the government decides to implement the rise, which it may do in next month’s budget, it [...]
General Election 2015: ITV and BBC to show seven-way debates, Channel 4 and Sky share head-to-head February 23, 2015 ITV and BBC will broadcast two separate seven-way debates between political party leaders ahead of the general election, while Sky and Channel 4 will both share a head-to-head between David Cameron and Ed Miliband. The broadcasters drew lots to decide how to distribute coverage of the debates which will see party leaders given [...]
Rothschild eyes pre-election bonus payouts to avoid Ed Balls tax February 23, 2015 Financial giant Rothschild is considering whether to hand out 2014 bonuses to staff early in order to avoid potential taxes that could be brought in if Labour wins the election. Shadow chancellor Ed Balls has promised to introduce a £1.5bn to £2bn tax on bonuses during its first year in office to fund a “jobs [...]
Will a UK economic boomlet help swing the coming election for the Conservative Party? February 22, 2015 Howard Archer, chief European and UK economist at IHS Global Insight, says Yes. While the latest economic developments may not be enough in themselves to swing the election for the Conservatives, they should sway some voters at the polling booths. The Tories can support their case that they are the best party to run the [...]
UK investment bank Rothschild could pay bonuses early in case Labour wins February 22, 2015 UK investment bank Rothschild is weighing up paying staff bonuses early, in order to avoid new taxes that could be brought in if Labour wins the general election. The Financial Times spoke with two sources “familiar with the bank’s thinking” and revealed the banks could pay bonuses to its 1,000 London staff before the traditional [...]
The Liberal Democrats want to go after companies who help with tax evasion February 22, 2015 The Liberal Democrats are pledging to get tough on tax evasion. Danny Alexander, the chief secretary to the Treasury, said that under new proposals organisation and people who enable or aid tax evasion would face harsh financial penalties. The proposals include the creation of a new offence; corporate failure to avoid preventing an economic crime, [...]
General Election 2015: These are the biggest pre-election business donations to Conservatives and Labour February 20, 2015 The Conservative and Labour party are neck-and-neck when it comes to the value of donations made by businesses ahead of May's General Election. While the Conservatives are out funded by Labour in overall donations, according to the latest data from the Electoral Commission, the main political parties are on an almost level pegging when it [...]
Labour rakes in more money than Tories in pre-election battle February 19, 2015 The Labour party received more money in the last quarter of 2014 than the Conservatives, new figures revealed yesterday. Electoral Commission data revealed that £10.9m was received by Labour between October and December 2014, compared to £8.4m for the Tories over the same time period. The Labour sum includes £3.7m of public money, from a [...]
How the dark arts of advertising are shaping the UK’s election campaign February 19, 2015 You have been warned (Source: Conservatives, Facebook) “Your worst nightmare just got worse,” warns the headline on one of the latest Conservative Party election posters, painting a picture of Ed Miliband and Alex Salmond united in guffawing victory on the steps of Number 10. A Labour/SNP coalition would mean “chaos” for the UK, say the [...]