Business

Frozen income tax thresholds are dragging growing numbers of pensioners and savers into the tax net – with more than 1.32 million people hit with unexpected end-of-year demands from HMRC.New figures show the number receiving so-called simple assessment letters almost doubled in just two years, as the state pension rises while the £12,570 tax-free personal allowance remains frozen.In the 2023-24 tax year, 1.32 million people were sent the dreaded brown envelopes telling them they owed income tax, up from 675,000 in 2021-22, according to data obtained from HMRC under freedom of information laws.The surge has been blamed on a stealth tax effect caused by the tax threshold freeze, first introduced by the Conservatives when Rishi Sunak was Chancellor, colliding with rising retirement incomes...

Fresh findings from Opinium, commissioned by Hargreaves Lansdown, show that nearly a third (32%) of Britons possess at least two workplace or personal pensions, while a quarter (24%) of those surveyed have accumulated three or more separate retirement funds.Alarmingly, around 4% of people admit they're unsure how many pensions they hold - or even where these accounts are located. Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, warns this oversight could seriously damage your financial security in retirement.Neglecting to locate these lost pots means potentially forfeiting thousands of pounds in retirement income - particularly crucial as the State Pension age is due to climb to 67 from April, with a subsequent rise from 67 to 68 planned between 2044 and 2046, report...

American Real Estate Association co-founder Jason Haber unpacks the state of the housing market and assesses Redfin’s announcement of a ‘great housing reset’ coming in 2026 on ‘The Claman Countdown.’ Texas and Florida once again lead the list of U.S. states that the most people are moving to, according to an analysis by U-Haul.  The moving company, which reviewed more than 2.5 million one-way transactions across the U.S. and Canada for its 2025 "Growth Index," said Texas tops the ranks of in-migration states, followed by Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee and South Carolina. The states with the most people leaving are California, Illinois, New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts. "Blue-to-red state migration, a hotly debated political topic that became more pronounced after the pand...

As January bills start to stack up, disabled people are wrestling with an average additional cost of £1,095 per month compared to non-disabled households, according to the charity Scope. This amounts to an extra annual living cost of £13,140, a burden shouldered by roughly 24% of Brits.However, those receiving PIP, Blue Badges or other benefit schemes could potentially save over £700 this year, reducing the added cost of being disabled without having to make significant lifestyle changes, thanks to Purpl. Purpl is a savings platform tailored specifically for disabled people, offering discount codes and advice on personal finance and disability.Backed by major brands such as Morrisons, eBay and EDF Energy, the platform allows disabled users to save an average of £15 per discount code acr...

Mauvaise nouvelle pour ceux qui veulent emprunter pour acquérir un logement : certaines banques ont revu à la hausse leur barème de taux des crédits immobiliers. Selon l’« éclaireur de tendances » des taux du courtier Empruntis, quelle que soit la durée d’emprunt, la hausse est généralisée. Avant négociation, les taux moyens s’établissent à 3,40 % sur dix ans, 3,45 % sur vingt ans et 3,55 % sur vingt-cinq ans, estime-t-il. Consolation, cette remontée des taux est encore modeste, « les barèmes reçus à date affichant de la stabilité ou des hausses comprises entre 0,10 % et 0,15 % », indique Caroline Arnoud, directrice du courtier Cafpi, dans sa météo des taux. « Les banques ajustent leurs grilles (+ 0,5 point en moyenne), offrant une certaine marge de négociation – v...

Independent Women's Center for Energy and Conservation director and daughter of Soviet escapees Gabriella Hoffman speaks to Fox News Digital about the market and geopolitical implications of the capture of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro. The fall of Venezuela’s socialist regime marks a generational turning point akin to the collapse of the Berlin Wall, according to an energy expert who says the scenes unfolding there echo the jubilation of people once trapped behind the Iron Curtain. Gabriella Hoffman, director of the Independent Women’s Forum’s Center for Energy and Conservation and the daughter of parents who escaped the Soviet Union, told Fox News Digital that Venezuela’s upheaval represents not just a political shift, but a restoration of freedom after decades of authoritarian rule...

Savers have been dealt a setback as NS&I has introduced new issues of its British Savings Bonds with reduced interest rates. The Treasury-backed provider stated the decision reflects "changes in the wider market".In December, the Bank of England base rate was reduced from 4% to 3.75%, benefiting some mortgage holders but disappointing savers. NS&I is assigned annual net financing targets, and funds invested with it contribute towards government expenditure.It also has an obligation to balance the interests of savers, taxpayers and financial services. The provider explained the rate adjustments will assist it in meeting its net financing target whilst continuing to balance the interests of savers, taxpayers and the wider financial services sector.British Savings Bonds are fixed-t...

Wall Street Journals Allysia Finley weighs in on California’s welfare spending, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz ending his re-election bid, and the left’s response to the Maduro capture on Varney & Co. The audacious U.S. special forces raid to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and bring him to the U.S. to face charges related to drugs and weapons trafficking could potentially lead to economic relief for average Venezuelans struggling under the regime's socialist economic policies. Venezuela's economy is heavily reliant on oil exports and experienced a sharp downturn in the last decade as mismanagement of the state-owned oil company caused production to fall and the rest of the Venezuelan economy struggled under sanctions and socialist policies.The Venezuelan economy contracted i...

Poundland is set to shut down 12 of its stores in January 2026. After already slashing the size of the chain, the discount retailer hopes to achieve greater success from now on, securing its place on Britain’s future high streets.The closing Poundland branches are holding clearance sales, with reductions of up to 40% and with items marked down in price until they are sold. The high street chain has confirmed it will have to shut a further two stores in February and more than 100 shops in the UK by early 2026.The February stores closing include Winton, Dorset, on February 6, and Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, Scotland, on February 8.Poundland has also pledged to price approximately 60% of grocery items at £1 throughout its network following the changes, which comes after a five-month tri...

Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are combining to wreck one of Britain’s greatest assets, our pubs. Without pubs, Britain isn’t Britain. There’s nothing like them anywhere else. Tourists love them. We love them. They’re our favourite place and have been for centuries. Labour doesn’t care. Instead, it’s choking them with tax after tax.Worse, Starmer is presiding over their decline by making soothing noises and pretending he's coming to their rescue. That’s his way. He did it at the election, promising Labour wouldn’t hike taxes, then whacking the country with £66billion while outrageously claiming he’d stuck to the manifesto.Now he’s pulling the same trick on pubs. This week, Starmer said he understands their value. He said he wants to support them. He said Labour is listening.He’s talking...