The main state pensions will rise by 2.5% in April. The absence of an autumn Budget in 2020 meant that there was no formal announcement of the level of state pensions from April 2021. The numbers eventually emerged on 8 December in a press release from the Department for Work and Pensions: The new state […]
From February new rules apply if you choose pension drawdown but do so without taking advice. The Covid-19 pandemic has deferred many events of all sizes, from the Tokyo Olympics to millions of foreign holidays. One of the less prominent delays has been a change to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rules on pension drawdown. […]
An independent body of tax experts has set out the framework for a one-off wealth tax. Will the Chancellor be tempted? “[We] have a responsibility, once the economy recovers, to return to a sustainable fiscal position.” …said the Chancellor Rishi Sunak in his November statement, during which he also highlighted that the government was spending […]
Action Fraud is warning the public to remain vigilant as criminals begin to take advantage of the roll out of the COVID-19 vaccine to commit fraud. As of 7 January 2021, Action Fraud, the national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime, had received 57 reports in relation to the COVID-19 vaccine. Pauline Smith, Head […]
As the third Covid-19 lockdown took effect on 5 January 2021, the Chancellor announced a further £4.6 billion in grants to the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors. This new round of support follows extensions to the job retention and loan schemes revealed on 17 December 2020. There may be more to come with the Budget […]
An introduction to ISAs Individual Savings Accounts, universally known as ISAs, began life as relatively simple savings plans in 1999, but over the past 21 years the rules surrounding them have become ever more complex. A May 2018 report on savings tax from the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) suggested that “there is scope for […]
With the second lockdown now in place, the Chancellor has been forced to return to Parliament and announce extended job support measures. Two further grants under the SEISS were announced in September and have now been updated. The government’s new package of support measures laid out in the Chancellor’s Winter Economy Plan have been either […]
A recent report on UK dividend payments suggests the worst of the cuts may be over. For many, 2020 has not been a year they will want to remember. For investors, the first two quarters were a whiplash experience. For about a month from mid-February, Covid-19 pushed share markets down with a brutal abruptness. By […]
New research shows the majority of the self-employed are not saving for retirement. Here’s a quick quiz: Are you self-employed? If so, have you contributed to a private pension in the last year? The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) examined the answers to these two questions and found the probability of answering yes to both […]
The Chinese stock market broke the $10 trillion barrier in October. The total value of China’s stock markets in Shanghai and Shenzhen surpassed $10 trillion in October. For comparison, the UK market was worth about $4 trillion at the end of September 2020. However, this was not the first time that Chinese markets had reached […]
New HMRC data show the popularity of this traditional perk could be waning. There was a time when the company car was the fringe benefit that every employee wanted. You had ‘made it’ once you had the keys to a car with no worries about servicing, insuring or, sometimes, even fuel costs. It could also […]
Action Fraud is warning people selling items online to be on the lookout for criminals sending fake PayPal emails. Criminals have been targeting people selling items online, by sending them emails purporting to be from PayPal. The emails trick victims into believing they have received payment for the items they’re selling on the platform. Typically, […]
