Finanse

The government is planning to "bring back the family doctor" by giving GPs an extra £889m to spend time with patients in a bid to end a dispute.more

A quarter (25%) of 18 to 34-year-olds expect the cost of Christmas to put them into debt, a survey has found. This is higher than 17% among all age groups who said this, according to the research commissioned by lender Creditspring.more

The typical water bill will rise by an average of £86 from April for a year before easing, the industry regulator has said. The steep rise is part of bill increases in England and Wales over the next five years to pay for supply upgrades and to reduce sewage discharges, Ofwat said.more

The UK inflation rate has gone up for the second month in a row, with prices rising at their fastest pace since March. Inflation hit 2.6% in the year to November, according to official figures. Fuel and clothing were among the main drivers behind the rise. Increasing ticket prices for gigs and plays were also a factor.more

British media are reporting that one of US President-elect Donald Trump's closest associates and also one of the world's richest people Elon Musk is to financially support Nigel Farage's Reform UK party. The alleged donation is reported in the ‘Financial Times’ and the ‘Daily Telegraph’, among others.more

One in four Poles goes into debt to organise Christmas; 11 per cent use the help of family or friends, according to a KRD survey published yesterday. At the same time, 9.5 per cent try to organise Christmas at the expense of increased spending.more

The richest person in the world just hit an even higher milestone. Elon Musk’s net worth has reached $400 billion, according to Bloomberg, making him the first person ever to cross that mark. Behind his nearly $20 billion jump in wealth was a deal that shot up Musk’s rocket company SpaceX’s valuation to roughly $350 billion, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.more

The UK economy shrank for the second month in a row in October as concerns about the Budget continued to weigh on confidence. Official figures showed a 0.1% drop, despite expectations that the economy would return to growth after a fall in September.more

The energy price cap could rise another 1% in April to £1,762 a year for a typical dual fuel consumer, Cornwall Insight has said.more

Numbers of hungry and malnourished households in the UK are on the rise because of climate breakdown and inflation, government figures show, with poorer, younger and disabled people hit hardest. Many households worry about food running out, cannot afford balanced meals, experience hunger and have missed meals in the past 30 days, the figures reveal.more

In order to earn money for Christmas expenses, this year the average Pole will work a little over 5 days. Programmers will earn the necessary amount the fastest, in a little over 3 days - according to a report by Personnel Service.more

Government departments have recommended a pay rise of 2.8% for millions of public sector workers including teachers, NHS staff and senior civil servants next year. Unions responded by saying the proposed pay increase was too low, with one threatening strike action. more

Searches for post-retirement jobs in the UK have risen by 16% in the past year as pensioners face higher living costs, with further significant regional differences in job-seeking trends shown in new research – up by 900% in one southern UK city.more

Cash use in the shops rose for a second year in a row after a decade of falls, according to retailers. Notes and coins were used in a fifth of transactions last year, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said, as shoppers found cash helped them to budget better. The amount spent per purchase also dropped slightly from £22.43 in 2022, to £22.03 last year, it said.more

People selling unwanted items online can continue to do so with confidence and without any new tax obligations, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed. However, online platforms will start sharing some user sales and personal data with HMRC from January 2025.more

London residents working night shifts are 40 per cent more likely not to earn a 'real living wage' compared to those who work during the day, a report has found. The Living Wage Foundation (LWF) published research this week revealing that 17 per cent of the city's night workers earn less than £13.85 per hour, in contrast to 12 per cent of daytime workers.more

Nearly half of UK mortgage holders are set to see their payments rise over the next three years, according to the Bank of England (BoE). The central bank estimates that around 4.4 million mortgages will experience higher payments by 2027, with 420,000 households facing hikes of £500 per month.more

More than a million mortgages have been issued in the past three years which home-buyers are set to still be repaying into pension age. The latest data shows that two in five new mortgages have terms that see homeowners still making payments in retirement.more

Typhoo Tea has fallen into administration after 121 years. The vapes and batteries maker Supreme has said it is in talks over a potential rescue deal to snap up Typhoo, which filed a notice to appoint administrators on Wednesday, according to official filings. The collapse follows several years of declining sales, mounting debts and even a break-in at its Wirral factory last year.more

Net migration to the UK hit a record high in 2023 of 906,000 in a period covering Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak’s premierships, revised estimates show. The measure for the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving the country then dropped by 20% in the latest period, the 12 months to June 2024, and now stands at 728,000.more

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) warns of scam attempts targeting Self Assessment customers. Customers urged to be cautious of refund scams as the 31 January tax return deadline draws closer.more

Tax rises in the Budget have made it more difficult for firms to "take a chance" on hiring people, according to one of Britain's most prominent business groups.more

Ministers are being urged to raise the basic rate of statutory sick pay from £3 an hour – one of the lowest in the developed world – after a report found the government’s changes would leave more than 1.6 million people unable to pay essential bills.more

A single ticket-holder has won the £7.4 million jackpot in Saturday’s Lotto draw and players have been advised to check their tickets. Andy Carter, senior winners’ adviser at Allwyn, operator of The National Lottery, said: “Brilliant news, one lucky ticket-holder has won tonight’s £7.4 million Lotto jackpomore

An additional 50,000 pensioners will be living in relative poverty next year as a result of cuts to the winter fuel payment, the government's own estimates have revealed. more