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Banks restrict lending to existing customers
Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:48:10 +0000
More people are applying for loans but fewer are securing one, and those banks that are lending are only doing so to their existing customers

Battle looms over BA pensions
Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:07:24 +0000
British Airways signalled the start of a protracted battle with the Pensions Regulator over the price tag on its retirement obligations, the outcome of which will be crucial to its tie-up with Spain's Iberia

Top bankers destroy value, study claims
Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:01:29 +0000
Bankers should count themselves lucky they are being hit by a mere 50 per cent additional tax on bonuses, a report argues, because their benefit to society is negative

Investors urged to sell before next tax rise
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:56:33 +0000
Seven out of ten wealth advisers warn that capital gains tax will almost certainly be raised in a pre- or post-election Budget

It's not just bankers seeking a way round bonus tax
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:00:39 +0000
Fund managers, stockbrokers, and even some financial advisers will be hit by the new 50 per cent levy on "bankers'" bonuses

40 per cent tax to hit more middle-income taxpayers
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:11:10 +0000
Hundreds of thousands more taxpayers could be drawn into the 40 per cent income tax band over the next few years, accountants say, following a freeze on the higher-rate threshold and personal allowances in Alistair Darling's pre-Budget report (PBR) this week

Chancellor closes two inheritance tax loopholes
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:07:21 +0000
The inheritance tax (IHT) nil rate band is to be held at £325,000 in 2010, while the elimination of two loopholes in IHT rules may result in closer scrutiny of funds that are transferred into trusts used for IHT purposes.

Pension relief restricted for high earners
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:08:27 +0000
High earners are being advised to make contributions to their pensions now, before higher rate tax relief is scaled back further from 2011

Tax avoidance and evasion come under fresh assault
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 17:15:56 +0000
Tax avoidance and evasion are under siege as the government has introduced a range of measures to clampdown on both practices.

Energy efficiency
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:03:57 +0000
A boiler scrappage scheme and an exemption of all electric cars from company car tax for five years are part of a range of green measures to encourage consumers and businesses to become more energy efficient

Fall in income drawdown
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:06:06 +0000
Investors are taking a lower level of income from their pension investments in the stock market as a result of the economic climate, according to new research

Banks withdraw fixed rate saving deals
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 14:05:10 +0000
Banks and building societies are withdrawing many of their best savings deals, with fixed-rate products disappearing the fastest.

House prices higher than year ago
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 09:53:06 +0000
House prices rise year-on-year for the first time since mid 2008 in November as sales continued to pick up, in a sign of the rapid recovery in the housing market

Homebuyer loans hit 22-month high
Thu, 10 Dec 2009 11:29:57 +0000
The number of mortgages provided to homebuyers has reached its highest level for 22-months, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML)

Investors take fright at 'fiscal fiction'
Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:06:36 +0000
Investors took fright at the perceived timidity of the government's plans to balance the books with one of the biggest sell-offs of British gilts this year