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Merryn Somerset Webb is Editor-in-Chief of MoneyWeek and a contributing editor and weekly columnist for the Financial Times. She has published a book called 'Share Power', showing not only where capitalism is going wrong, but also how every one of us can have the power to make it work for us. Larry Fink, Chair and CEO of BlackRock, also understands the problem. However, 'participation for all' is the key objective in Share Alliance's quest for a more egalitarian form of capitalism — Somerset Webb's book and Fink's annual letter to shareholders move us strongly in the right direction. Background music: 'People Watching' by Sir Cubworth.

·  Temper tantrums do not solve fights in the playground, and they certainly don't resolve international disputes. If we are concerned about young people under the age of 16 having access to social media in order to reduce the risks to which they are exposed, we should certainly be concerned about the existential risks to which we are all exposed as a result of this 'Epic Fury' being unleashed on the Middle East, the powder-keg for so many conflicts. Background music: 'Don't Look Inside' by Biz Baz Studio.

The young owners of over two-thirds of all Child Trust Funds reach adulthood at the end of March 2026, but very large numbers of HMRC-allocated accounts remain unknown and unclaimed, including almost three-quarters of the £1 billion belonging to low-income young adults: the position is particularly acute in the north of England and devolved nations. These are accounts for which HM Treasury/HMRC are the 'settlor', and therefore have a duty to deliver these young adults' birthrights. Background music: 'Waiting' by Andrew Langdon 

Mike Indian says that the Iran war will have a profound and lasting effect upon the UK government. In the short term, it has strengthened the Prime Minister's position, with his "Steady Eddie" persona. But the cost of living will come to the fore, with energy, food, CO2 and fertiliser costs all rising and the possibility of food shortages. The PM has come under attack for delays in defence spending. It is one thing to announce an increase in investment but it is important how the money will be spent. We don't appear to have learnt from the Ukraine invasion about the importance of shortening supply chains. Mike discusses the extraordinary intervention by J D Vance in the Hungarian election. Many European leaders will breathe a sigh of relief at Orban's outing but it is not clear what Magyar is for and how he will use his power.

Professor Tim Evans says that to understand Donald Trump, you need to know that, in the late 80s and early 90s, he was a close friend of Richard Nixon, who told him that he used the persona of an irrational madman to unsettle others. Indeed, Nixon and his wife urged Trump to enter politics. In terms of policy, Trump is also a devotee of Reagan and William McKinley, an advocate of tariffs in America's interests. The Archbishop of Canterbury is one of the most important constitutional positions in Britain. In an increasingly secular age, the new Archbishop will have a challenging task ahead, but Tim feels that she is the right person for the job. The issue of Net Zero has come to the fore in the midst of an energy crisis like the 1970s. Tim ponders the politics of it, wondering if it could become as divisive as Brexit.

Russ Mould of A J Bell says that the S&P 500 has just set a new all-time high, with the UK getting close too. Despite the war in in the Middle East, markets must believe that they've seen it all before and that the war won't last long. But there are longer-term issues to address if not, including the status of the dollar, supply chain issues and national security, with a move from Just In Time to Just In Case. This year the best performer has been Latin America while the UK has beaten the US. If you want dependable stodge and think the emphasis will continue to be on commodities and raw materials, then both areas look sensible. Russ also discusses Japan. Investors need to think about their sectoral and geographical mix as well as valuation. This can go a long way towards helping you find an optimal asset allocation.

Steve Caplin warns holidaymakers to check their data allowance abroad, having saved a small fortune by using the Roamless app in Morocco. He loves some of the public's names for autonomous cleaning robots. American scientists are experimenting with robot seeing-eye dogs. Skoda, who made bikes before cars, have come up with a bell that works even if pedestrians are wearing noise-cancelling headphones. The singer Eddie Dalton, topping UK music charts, turns out to be AI-generated. There's a crowdfunded gadget that lets you use your vintage camera lenses digitally, while Steve admires a cheap multi-function pen. And he is impressed that Jeff Bezos's company Blue Origin has found a way to make oxygen from moon dust.

James Cameron-Wilson found the romcom #7 ‘You, Me & Tuscany’ implausible, clichéd and derivative dross. However, he adored #9 ‘California Schemin'’, a true story directed by James McAvoy about a pair of Scottish wannabe rappers who pretend to be American to get noticed. Told with cinematic verve and with great performances, it's an extraordinary story which reminded him of ‘Trainspotting’. James found Keanu Reeves in ‘Outcome’, on Apple TV+, a story about a movie star worried about a bizarre video from his past, all rather too familiar and underwhelming. Directed and co-written by Jonah Hill, it's also terribly crude. He adored ‘The President's Cake’, an Iraqi film, again based on true events, made with non-actors. Heart-breaking and compelling, it's a small masterpiece, available on BFI Player and Amazon Prime.

The Government is about to launch its 'Retail Investment Campaign' to encourage people to start investing, but will it work? The Bank of England hints at rising interest rates, but it's not in a rush to make early decisions. Georgie Frost, Simon Lambert and Helen Crane discuss these and other issues, including flight cancellations and supermarket pricing tricks. Plus, how much would you need to pay for an A4-sized slice of property in your area?

How much unproductive time do you spend scrolling through social media? It's designed to hook you in and keep you there: they don't charge you, as they pull in money from their advertisers; but that lost time has a real value so far as you're concerned. This short episode provides proposals for 'pattern interrupting': giving you the opportunity to look at that addiction afresh, and to turn unproductive time into beneficial time. In short, breaking the pattern of time-wasting. 

As earnings season gets underway, the S&P 500 has soared past 7,000 for the first time. Our team reflects on the market’s rapid rebound and dissects the important financial reports we’ve received so far. Trends in digital advertising and generative AI are discussed. Also, the team parses news from noise in recent press releases before ending with stocks on our radar.
Jon Quast, Lou Whiteman, and Asit Sharma discuss Netflix’s Q1 2026 financial results, broad takeaways from some big banks, Meta Platforms catching up to Alphabet, Alphabet catching up to OpenAI, blah blah blah day — news from noise, the market’s new high — lessons we’ve learned, and stocks on our radar. Companies discussed: Netflix (NFLX), Alphabet (GOOG)(GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), Charles Schwab (SCHW), JP Morgan Chase (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC), Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C), Rocket Lab (RKLB), Caterpillar (CAT), Snap (SNAP), Broadcom (AVGO), Yum! Brands (YUM), LPL Financial (LPLA), Leidos (LDOS). Host — Jon Quast; Guests — Lou Whiteman, Asit Sharma.

Jason Hall, Jon Quast, and Matt Frankel discuss financial news that investors should know about. This includes recent financial results from banking giants Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW), and key "picks and shovels" providers in the semiconductor industry, Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE:TSM) and ASML (NASDAQ:ASML). They end the programme discussing three stocks they are most-looking-forward to hearing from this earnings season: Stock 1, Stock 2, and Stock 3. Jason, Jon and Matt discuss Bank of America and Schwab Q1 results, TSMC and ASML's first quarter and the implications for AI, and three stocks the team are most-looking-forward to seeing report this quarter. Companies discussed: Bank of America (BAC), Charles Schwab (SCHW), Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM), ASML (ASML), Lyft (LYFT), Uber (UBER), Goldman Sachs (GS), Nvidia (NVDA), Toast (TOST). Host — Jason Hall; Guests — Jon Quast, Matt Frankel.

A report has been launched by Sciensus exploring how at-home care could be the future of a resilient NHS. It allows for complex treatment, such as chemotherapy and dialysis, to be delivered in our living rooms. Experts are suggesting this could be an ideal solution for those facing the hidden costs of attending regular hospital appointments and a postcode lottery of quality of care. Joining Rory McGowan to discuss this further is Christian Tucat, Chief Executive Officer at Sciensus.

HMRC is urging self-employed workers and landlords to prepare for one of the biggest changes to the tax system in years. Under the Government’s 'Making Tax Digital' programme, hundreds of thousands of taxpayers will soon be required to keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC, with the rollout starting on 6th April 2026 for those earning over £50,000. As the thresholds fall over the following years, millions more people — including those with side hustles or online income — could eventually fall within the new reporting rules. Joining Rory McGowan to discuss this is accountant and UK tax expert at HaysMac, Graeme Privett.

The dust has settled on the Budget but while we now know what Rachel Reeves plans for our finances, many questions remain. The Budget featured a raft of tax rises — but also left out some moves that were widely rumoured to happen. On this special bonus episode, Simon Lambert is joined by Lisa Caplan, of Charles Stanley Direct, to find out what people are asking after the Budget — and the answers to those important questions

The UK Budget speech and the response from Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch. This includes the 'Point of Order' beforehand from Mel Stride regarding the premature release of the OBR report. This is the unabridged record without comment, and the recording runs for one hour and 31 minutes.

Pensions and inheritance are at the forefront of many people's minds ahead of the Budget. In her last Budget, Rachel Reeves announced she will pull pension pots into the inheritance tax net from April 2027. Meanwhile, there are concerns that pension tax-free lump sums and inheritance tax allowances could fall victim to another raid as the Chancellor tries to balance the books again. In this special episode of the This is Money podcast, Simon Lambert is joined by Lisa Caplan, director of Charles Stanley Direct Advice and Guidance. Lisa spends her days helping customers understand how to protect their wealth, make their pension last in retirement and, importantly, enjoy their hard-earned money. She discusses with Simon the questions people are asking right now about pensions and inheritance tax and her answers.

The world is facing a myriad of Gordian Knots at present — problems so intricate and complex that they need new and very different approaches to solve them. In Greek mythology, it was Alexander the Great who chopped the knot rather than struggling to untie it. If you're facing a raft of complex problems, this episode could help you find novel and creative ways to solve them. So, think of the most challenging things in your life and listen in for inspiration. Maybe Donald Trump should seek Adam Cox's guidance for resolving conflicts across the world, or the UN for dealing with climate change — or Governments across western democracies seeking an answer for intractable debt problems? Image: Wikipedia

For the 500th show, Steve Caplin takes a look back at some of the highlights of ten years of Gadgets & Gizmos. He covers sprayable sleep, cows imitating zebras to ward off mosquitoes, crows collecting cigarette butts, NFTs, self-parking slippers, KFC chicken-tasting nail polish, the first human head transplant, the Skunklock noxious bike lock, Refrigerdating, the robot dog flamethrower, ant populated gin and how to make pain relief pills 10 times more effective.

Berkshire’s cash hoard is approaching “Dr. Evil” levels. Tim Beyers and Dylan Lewis discuss Warren Buffett’s message to investors and Berkshire Hathaway shareholders in his annual letter, Berkshire’s growing cash position and what it might say about his view of the investing opportunities out there, and Apple’s $500Bn commitment to its Advanced Manufacturing Fund, AI development, and R&D efforts. Then, 16 minutes in, American's pharmaceutical options for legally treating mental health issues could expand soon. MindMed is testing the effects of LSD on depression and Anxiety, the company’s CEO Rob Barrow talks Ricky Mulvey through his company's work and the future of psychedelics and mental health. Companies discussed: BRK.A, BRK.B, AAPL, MNMD. Host - Dylan Lewis; Guests - Tim Beyers, Rob Barrow, Ricky Mulvey

James Cameron-Wilson reports on box office -13% but still up on 2024, with ‘Wicked’ becoming last year's most successful film with £59.6m. The musical biopic of Bob Dylan, ‘A Complete Unknown’, with Timothy Chalomet and Edward Norton is the new #1. The tedious and unbelievable ‘Wolf Man’ limps in at #7. James found Netflix's spy thriller ‘Back in Action’, the return from retirement of Cameron Diaz, all very silly and over the top, despite some good stunts. The Oscar nominations were coming out during recording, so James gives his first thoughts on who's in and who's out.

Warren Buffett sends us into the season to be thankful with his philanthropic acts and his poignant words, and gives us all a place to start the conversation with family about money. Asit Sharma and Dylan Lewis discuss NBC’s negotiations to extend their rights to broadcast rights to the Macy’s Day Parade, and why holiday live events are turning into an arms race, the expectations for Black Friday through Cyber Monday, and two predictions on the direction of consumer spend and who will be driving it in future years, and Warren Buffett’s plans for passing his wealth on to his family and philanthropic efforts, and the words of wisdom we should all have in mind as we get together with loved ones this week. Companies discussed: CMCSA, M, NFLX, AMZN, BRK.A, BRK.B. Host - Dylan Lewis; Guests - Asit Sharma

The core of the problem with unclaimed, adult-owned Child Trust Funds (of which there are over £2 billion waiting to be claimed) is with accounts opened by HMRC. That's why The Share Foundation has proposed a 'default withdrawal at 21' process, based on the young person's National Insurance number. Danny Kruger MP took part in the CTF conference in Westminster on Tuesday 5th March, and two weeks later in a Westminster Hall CTF debate, and supported this initiative which could release £1/4 billion each year to help these young and predominantly low-income young adults. Background music: 'Waiting' by Andrew Langdon

The debate on 19th March 2024 was hosted by Sir Jeremy Quin MP to call for the need to simplify family access to Child Trust Funds for disabled young people, and a number of MPs contributed to the debate, including Danny Kruger and Ed Davy. The audio record is provided by Parliament Live, and is an unabridged recording of proceedings, without additional comment. Listeners may notice an adjournment for voting in the House of Commons.

Welcome to a special episode of The Financial Outlook: the investment section of the Managing My Money course. What's the difference between saving and investment? It's all in the risk. We talk about shares, bonds and funds, and which perform best over the long term. The Managing My Money course has 16 sections in total, and is presented by Glen Goodman and Annie Weston. You can enjoy the whole course, produced in association with the Open University via Share Radio's home page. Here's the link to the slides for this episode: https://www.shareradio.co.uk/help-guides/managing-my-money/supporting-slides/mmm-week-5-episode-10-supporting-slides/

“The [Child Trust Fund] scheme has been closed to new entrants for over 12 years. In this time HMRC has been focusing resources on evaluating and improving existing schemes. We will continue to keep the need to evaluate old schemes under review.” So said Andrew Griffith MP, Economic Secretary to HM Treasury in reply to a parliamentary question from John Ashworth MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. But this is not an 'old scheme' — there is currently over £1.7 billion sitting in mature accounts belonging to over 900,000 mainly low-income young adults throughout the UK who don't know anything about their good fortune! Their Child Trust Fund harvest is seeing too little action at present: but it's not too late to get it sorted, and the current focus from the National Audit Office and Public Accounts Committee will certainly help.
Background music: 'Hopeful Freedom' by Asher Fulero

The huge take-up of ChatGPT over recent weeks has brought the challenge of Artificial Intelligence into sharp relief. As the Chief Executive of its creator, OpenAI, said in one of his blogs, 'Artificial Intelligence will bring unimaginable wealth but, unless something changes, most of us will get none of it. We need a radical solution'. Conventional wisdom sees Universal Basic Income as the way through this dilemma, but this will only bring us more state intermediation and human subservience. We can put forward a better solution, by enabling all to share in the wealth that technology brings and to play their part in its future governance.
Background music: 'Digital Solitude' by Silent Partner

Jonathan Davis, editor of the Investment Trusts Handbook, tells Simon Rose what makes investment trusts special and why investors should consider their merits. He explains the differences to other types of funds, including the premium and discount. He discusses the yields on alternative assets (including renewable energy and even music royalties) and how trusts can continue paying dividends even in bad years. The handbook, from Harriman House, is available in hardbook or free as an ebook (https://tinyurl.com/mt69fc24).

It’s the last episode of Answers (but don’t worry, we’re just moving to Motley Fool Money every Tuesday). We’ll reminisce on our biggest lessons learned over the last seven years and answer your questions, some financial, some festive.

The Talk by the WealthiHer Network, every month on Share Radio: this month we are here to talk about the secrets of some of UK leading female businesses leaders and their journeys within launching their businesses. Tamara Gillan is joined by Charlotte Bobroff, the executive director at J.P. Morgan who has been incremental with working with female founders from female high-powered businesses. She recently curated an event surrounding female high-powered businesses and she will be discussing her findings. Also, we have the pleasure of Daina Speddings, who is an investor at BGF and will share her perspective on the investment journey.

Scrooge has made the deal of his life with Chinese investors and must now quickly return to London on Christmas Eve to close the deal. On the flight back, during a fitful sleep, Scrooge confronts his past and present and learns the future consequences of his miserly life to find the true meaning of Christmas. Proscenium Online Theatre is super excited to be bringing you a whole new season of audio dramas in 2022. Starting off with 'The Girl in the Yellow Dress', a dark romance by South African playwright Craig Higginson, and 'Plunder', an original Hong Kong based thriller by American playwright Alan Olejniczak. In the meantime - sit back, close your eyes and enjoy the Proscenium Online Theatre’s production of 'A Christmas Carol'.

https://www.prosceniumonlinetheatre.com

Join the Sustain:Social panel session on December '21, considering the outlook for investors in the wake of the COP26 in Glasgow. The panel comprises of - Chair: Rodney Hobson Panel: Gervais Williams (Premier Miton Group); Jamie Broderick (Impact Investing Institute); Mohan Gundu (Sustainable Funds Group); Mike Appleby (Liontrust Sustainable Investment team); Gavin Oldham (The Share Foundation / Share Radio).

Food banks are providing a vital role to help people this winter, and the Trussell Trust supports more than 1,200 throughout the United Kingdom. In this special episode of The Bigger Picture, their Chief Executive Emma Revie briefs supporters about their progress, and their plans for the future. If you would like to support the extraordinary work undertaken by this charity, please visit https://trusselltrust.org

Imagine a world in which everyone has a stake in the great tech firms that serve them each day, and where dividends are gradually replacing wages to provide regular income for everyone, as work becomes scarcer as a result of automation? Imagine a world where every young person not only has a small inheritance with which to start their adult life, but also the opportunity to build its value by learning life skills? Simon Rose is taking a well-earned break this week, so we’re taking the opportunity to bring you a talk given Gavin Oldham in August to the leading City of London think-tank Z/Yen.

Click link for slides for presentation

Every child in the UK born between 1 Sept 2002 and 2 Jan 2011 has a Child Trust Fund (CTF). But one child in six has lost contact with the money. Gavin Oldham, Chairman of The Share Foundation – which runs the Junior ISA & Child Trust Fund schemes for children in care for the Department for Education - is trying to re-connect them. He talks through the CTF, how to track an account down, and what a child can and can’t do with the money.

In a new partnership with publishers Harriman House, Share Radio has produced its first audiobook 'Superinvestors', written by Matthew Partridge and read by some of Share Radio's best known presenters. 'Superinvestors' lays bare the investing secrets of legendary investors - from early 20th-century figures such as Benjamin Graham and John Maynard Keynes, through to more modern names such as Anthony Bolton and Warren Buffett.

How you can help young people in care prepare for adult life by supporting The Share Foundation’s ‘Stepladder of Achievement’ programme.

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