The first six months of 2017 have presented investors with an interesting half year. Think about the first six months of 2017 in the UK. There were several serious terrorist attacks, Article 50 was triggered to start the formal Brexit process, the Budget less than perfectly executed and, to round matters off, a snap election […]
Judging by the manifestos of the three main political parties, the days of appealing to voters by cutting income tax (and its alter ego, national insurance) are over: The Conservatives repeated their 2015 manifesto promise of a personal allowance of £12,500 and a higher rate threshold of £50,000 (outside Scotland) by 2020. The way inflation […]
The latest Quarterly Inflation Report (QIR) from the Bank of England has been published and shows that ‘the Old Lady’ has changed her mind a little. But the market projections for short-term interest rates don’t make for helpful reading for those with cash deposits. The QIR was published in May, a few days before the […]
The general election campaign provided a reminder that the issue of funding social care remains unresolved. Who pays how much for long term care in England came to the fore last month. It is one of those subjects which successive governments have repeatedly kicked down the road. Nearly 20 years ago the then […]
Many people are introduced to the benefits of life insurance when they sign up for their first mortgage. Having taken the important step of putting cover in place that would ensure that their mortgage would be repaid in the event of their death, they often put the policy away in a safe place and don’t […]
No, it’s not a mistake, but it is not the FTSE 100, either. The most frequently quoted index of UK share prices is the FTSE 100 index, or the “Footsie” as it is frequently described. The FTSE 100 index was launched at the end of 1983, with the aim of giving a yardstick to the […]
