News

One of the many well-trailed announcements in the Spring Budget was the launch of a UK ISA. However, both its arrival and interest may be uncertain. Alongside the Budget, the Treasury published a consultation paper on a possible fifth ISA … Continue reading →

New calculations issued alongside the Spring Budget show just how higher rate taxpaying status is becoming ever more common. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) received plenty of attention leading up to the Budget. It was widely portrayed in the … Continue reading →

An independent report suggests that the State pension age (SPA) should rise much faster than planned. The next SPA rise begins in under two years with a phased increase to 67 ending in April 2028. Yet, neither main political parties … Continue reading →

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has been sorting through its inflation shopping basket. Every year in March, the ONS announces the results of a review of the approximately 750 items which it uses to compute inflation indices, such as … Continue reading →

One of the few surprises in the Spring Budget was the change affecting how child benefit is taxed for higher earners. The high income child benefit charge (HICBC or ‘hicbic’) was introduced in January 2013 to reduce child benefit payments … Continue reading →

New data on marriage and civil partnerships shows a significant threshold has been crossed. ‘Population estimates by marital status and living arrangements, England and Wales: 2022’, sounds like a rather esoteric piece of academic output from the Office for National … Continue reading →

New research has put some surprising numbers on the income needed in retirement. Each year since 2019, the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) has set about answering the question of how much retirement costs for couples and single retirees. … Continue reading →

Individual Savings Accounts will celebrate their 25th birthday on 6 April 2024. A quarter of a century ago, Personal Equity Plans (PEPs) and Tax Exempt Special Savings Accounts (TESSAs), both inventions of Conservative chancellors, were replaced by Individual Savings Accounts … Continue reading →

At the start of 2023, the Prime Minister pledged to halve inflation. The goal was reached, but how much credit can he take for the achievement? Source: ONS Inflation across 2023, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) ended … Continue reading →

Public opinion is pessimistic about the future of the State pension. Ask yourself these two questions: Do you believe that the State pension will be around in 30 years’ time? Do you think that the State pension will keep pace … Continue reading →

A date to note in this year’s calendar is the early Spring Budget on Wednesday 6 March. The Treasury issued a press release in the time between Christmas and the New Year revealing the Spring Budget date, a week earlier … Continue reading →