News

Research has confirmed what your pocket already knows: UK taxes are at historically high levels. Measuring how taxes have changed over time involves much more than simply looking at tax rates. Politicians are well aware of this, but they also … Continue reading →

New legislation has paved the way for important changes to automatic enrolment in workplace pensions. At the start of October, automatic enrolment in workplace pension schemes quietly celebrated its eleventh anniversary. The latest data (April 2021) from the Office for … Continue reading →

The rise in mortgage rates since early 2022 has taken its toll on house prices. Source: Nationwide, ONS. In 2023, an annual fall in house prices has become an almost standard news item around the turn of the month, when … Continue reading →

The administration of lasting powers of attorney (LPA) is on its way to becoming fully online. In an ideal world, you should have an LPA (or its Scottish or Northern Ireland equivalent) sitting beside your will. The absence of either … Continue reading →

National Savings & Investments has launched two top of the savings league table one-year bonds, but the headline rates may not be your net return. The primary role of National Savings & Investments (NS&I) is “cost-effective financing for the government.” … Continue reading →

The Chancellor has announced that he will issue an Autumn Statement on 22 November. Perhaps it was just coincidence, but a year to the day after Liz Truss was elected Prime Minister, the current Chancellor (and her second) announced that … Continue reading →

A new think tank report highlights the need to increase pension contributions. Over time, good ideas start to age. Take, for example, automatic enrolment into workplace pensions, which is now eleven years old. In some respects, it has been highly … Continue reading →

“Get a will and keep it up to date” is advice that often appears in the personal finance pages and elsewhere. A recent lapse in concentration from the Ministry of Justice illustrates how important that advice can be. The lapse … Continue reading →

Capital gains tax raised £16.7 billion in 2021/22, according to HMRC – a 15% increase over the previous year. But what lies behind these statistics? Source: HMRC In early August media outlets reported that the government had raised a record … Continue reading →

As interest rates continue to rise, we need to consider why. Source: Bank of England, National Statistics Cast your mind back to July 2020. Covid-19 was creating massive social and economic disruption, reflected in a Bank of England interest rate … Continue reading →

Is Downing Street really planning to abolish inheritance tax? Source: HMRC Shortly before the so-called ‘silly season’ (Parliament’s summer recess) got underway, several newspapers carried stories that Downing Street was considering the abolition of inheritance tax (IHT) in an attempt … Continue reading →

You do not have to take your state pension at state pension age. The current state pension age (SPA) – the earliest age at which you can draw your state pension – is 66. It will be gradually increased to … Continue reading →

New income tax statistics from HMRC appear to be good news, but the numbers are not what they seem. Taxpayer’s marginal rate Basic Rate Higher Rate Additional Rate 2020/21 Average tax rate 9.5% 21.8% 38.3% 2023/24 Average tax rate 9.9% … Continue reading →