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Gavin Oldham

Financial Outlook for Personal Investors: Child Trust Funds — Public Accounts Committee Hearing Part 2

Gavin Oldham
Original Broadcast:

The Financial Outlook for Personal Investors

Financial Outlook for Personal Investors: Child Trust Funds — Public Accounts Committee Hearing Part 2
Young adults with Child Trust Funds are personal investors, but over 40% of them don't know it. On Thursday 18th May the Public Accounts Committee met to find out more: this is the second half of their hearing following the March 2023 publication of a National Audit Office landmark report and its investigation into the Child Trust Fund scheme. Witnesses who took part were, for HM Revenue and Customs, Jim Harra and Emily Antcliffe, and for The Share Foundation, Gavin Oldham and Anthony Walker. Members of the Public Accounts Committee (all MPs) who attended were Dame Meg Hillier (chair), Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Deputy Chair), Olivia Blake, Flick Drummond, Peter Grant, Jill Mortimer and Nick Smith. The hearing ran for over an hour and a half: this is the second 48 minutes.

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Georgie Frost

This Is Money: Should we stop dragging people into tax designed for the rich?

Georgie Frost
Original Broadcast:

This is Money

This Is Money: Should we stop dragging people into tax designed for the rich?
Almost five times as many people will soon be paying 40% tax than in the early 1990s, when it was seen as a tax bracket reserved for the rich, the Institute for Fiscal Studies warned this week. It said that fiscal drag triggered by freezing the higher rate tax threshold would pull 7.8 million people into its net by 2027. The study suggested that the threshold would have to be almost doubled from its current level, at £50,271, to almost £100,000 to return the tax band to the level intended for it. Alongside the report, came the IFS’s warning that 40% tax had stopped being the preserve of high-earning professionals and was now hitting electricians, plumbers, teachers, nurses and more. The taxman nabbing 40p of every pound earned from a pay rise rather than 20p comes at a time when workers are running to stand still, with inflation at just above 10%. So, is it time the government stopped taxing by stealth and using tools like fiscal drag – instead raising thresholds with inflation or wages? And is it time to hike the higher rate threshold and pull people back down to basic rate tax? Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert discuss the thorny issue of tax and who counts as wealthy. The debate moves on to inheritance tax – another levy designed for the very rich but now hitting the wealthy middle classes. Why is IHT so unpopular when most don’t pay it and does it need reform? Plus, how much have you lost to inflation, will you get Nationwide’s new £100 Fairer Share bung, and finally, would you buy food two years past its best before date for big savings?

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Georgie Frost

This Is Money: How high will interest rates go — and why are they still going up?

Georgie Frost
Original Broadcast:

This is Money

This Is Money: How high will interest rates go — and why are they still going up?
And there it was, another interest rate hike. Another quarter point move up seems almost commonplace now, but cast your mind back to the era after the financial crisis and we had to wait nearly ten years for the base rate to climb above its 0.5% 'emergency level'. It cut first and then base rate got all the way to the heady heights of 0.75%, before it was cut again when Covid hit. Yet, less than 18 months since the Bank of England started raising rates in December 2021, base rate has rocketed from 0.1% to 4.5%. The rate itself is still relatively low in historic terms, but the magnitude of the rise is not. So, are the Bank's ratesetters right to keep voting for hikes, has the full pain been felt yet, and why would you do this when all the forecasts suggest inflation is soon to nosedive? Georgie Frost, Tanya Jefferies and Simon Lambert discuss the latest rate rise and how high interest rates will go. Plus, is the return of the 100% mortgage absolute madness, a helping hand for trapped renters, or something in the middle of all that? Why people should claim pension credit or help their friends or relatives? And finally, not only will it lack the crisp one-liners of Succession, but an inheritance drama is not something you want to get into, so how can people avoid one?
Guest:

Tanya Jefferies


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Georgie Frost

This Is Money: How can we build more homes and make them better?

Georgie Frost
Original Broadcast:

This is Money

This Is Money: How can we build more homes and make them better?
A row over housebuilding has erupted again. Labour leader Keir Starmer has said he would bring back a 300,000 annual housebuilding target, after Rishi Sunak scrapped it. Meanwhile, some backbench Tory MPs are reportedly unhappy about their party ditching that target in the first place – with the number having featured in the 2019 Conservative Party manifesto. At the same time Michael Gove has been cheered in many quarters for blocking a development in Kent, as it was deemed to be poor quality and ugly, but is now being taken to court by developer Berkeley Homes over the decision. So, what can we do about housebuilding and how do we get ourselves out of this mess – especially as the younger generation are squeezed out by high house prices and rents? Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert dig into the myriad problems with UK housebuilding and what can be done to build better homes that people want to buy and have near them. Is the answer just bringing back targets or is it more complicated than that? Is not wanting housing developments Nimbyism if there’s a failure to build well and deliver infrastructure? How can we convince local communities to back new housing? All this and more come up for debate. Also, if you are in the fortunate position of being able to buy a home but are worried about falling house prices and locking into high mortgage rates, what should you do? Sam North, of eToro, joins us for the latest market update, including the reaction to the Fed's latest rate rise. Will a new crackdown on scams finally stop the fraudsters? And finally, we said it was coming. The 5% savings rate is back, but should you get one?
Guest:

Sam North


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Georgie Frost

This Is Money: Home improvement snakes and ladders: How to add value - and how to lose it

Georgie Frost
Original Broadcast:

This is Money

This Is Money: Home improvement snakes and ladders: How to add value - and how to lose it
What's the best home improvement plans, if you're thinking about selling? Has the dust now settled following the banking sell-offs — is it a good time to invest now? Will Schroder's UK private/public trusts ever be able to shake off the Neil Woodford legacy? Georgie Frost and Simon Lambert discuss these issues, and the This Is Money 'Best Buy' savings table.

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Adam Cox

Modern Mindset: Modern Mindset: Emilio Rimini on Brits Attitudes Towards Switching to Eco-Friendly Products

Adam Cox
Original Broadcast:

Modern Mindset

Modern Mindset: Modern Mindset: Emilio Rimini on Brits Attitudes Towards Switching to Eco-Friendly Products
Adam Cox is joined by Emilio Rimini, Director at The Green Company, to discuss new research which suggests mixed feelings amongst the British public when it comes to maintaining environmentally conscious shopping habits during a cost-of-living crisis. Emilio explains the misconceptions around budget shopping in an environmentally friendly way and provides tips on how to be more environmentally conscious when shopping. https://www.thegreencompany.online/
Guest:

Emilio Rimini


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Georgie Frost

This Is Money: It's got easier to win big on the Premium Bonds but should you invest?

Georgie Frost
Original Broadcast:

This is Money

This Is Money: It's got easier to win big on the Premium Bonds but should you invest?
Premium Bonds are a national institution and their prize-giving place in British savers' hearts was only cemented further through the low interest rate years. But now interest rates are on the rise and Premium Bonds offer not only the chance to win £1 million but also a much better rate of return. The average prize fund rate on Premium Bonds has reached the heady heights of 3.3% - going head-to-head with top easy access savings deals. But what many savers may not realise is that their chance of winning a big prize of £100,000 or £50,000 has got much better too. So, is it time to back Premium Bonds even further, or would you be better off with a standard savings account? Georgie Frost, Sam Barker and Simon Lambert look at the numbers and the pros and cons. Plus, an even better return of up to 4.6% is offered now by five year fixed rate savings accounts, but are they worth going for and choosing over stocks and shares? This week brought yet more news of annoyingly high inflation, as CPI stubbornly stuck above 10%; but why are food prices still rising so rapidly, are supermarkets or producers cashing in, and what can you do about it? And finally, supermarkets have a new loyalty card wheeze - lower prices for those with them and more expensive groceries for those without. Sainsbury's Nectar Prices has followed Tesco's Clubcard Prices and now the Co-op has member prices too. Is this enough to change Simon's mind on loyalty cards?
Guest:

Sam Barker


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Adam Cox

Modern Mindset: Steven Bailey on Outdoor Wood Care

Adam Cox
Original Broadcast:

Modern Mindset

Modern Mindset: Steven Bailey on Outdoor Wood Care
Adam Cox is joined by Steven Bailey, from Barrettine, to discuss why it is so important to care for wood outside, and the environmental issues that should be considered when doing so. Steven explains the best time of year to carry out woodcare projects, and how to save grey wood. www.bestwoodcare.co.uk
Guest:

Steven Bailey


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Adam Cox

Modern Mindset: Anthony Eskinazi on New Data Revealing Higher Demand For Parking Than Currently Available

Adam Cox
Original Broadcast:

Modern Mindset

Modern Mindset: Anthony Eskinazi on New Data Revealing Higher Demand For Parking Than Currently Available
Adam Cox is joined by Anthony Eskinazi, Founder & CEO of JustPark, to discuss why there is such a high demand for parking in light of new research findings which suggest demand is higher than the current supply. Anthony explains how rented parking spaces could be part of the solution, and can earn the public additional passive income. https://www.justpark.com/
Guest:

Anthony Eskinazi


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Georgie Frost

This Is Money: How long should you fix your mortgage for - and what next for rates?

Georgie Frost
Original Broadcast:

This is Money

This Is Money: How long should you fix your mortgage for - and what next for rates?
As if buying a home wasn’t enough of a lottery, borrowers are now facing a major gamble on their mortgage. Whether buying or remortgaging, they need to work out how long to fix for and try to assess what might happen next to interest rates. On the basis that even the world’s top economists and investors didn’t spot the past year’s sudden interest rate spike coming and can’t agree on what central banks will do next, that’s a tough task. Five-year fixed rates are cheaper than two-year fixed rates, but borrowers worry they risk locking in at higher rates for longer. Meanwhile, trackers are pricier but could fall if the base rate comes down, although there’s not much agreement on when the Bank of England will stop hiking or how swiftly it will lower rates when it eventually does. Georgie Frost, Helen Crane and Simon Lambert discuss the great mortgage gamble and what people can do. Also, the house price hotspots of the past decade – and why living in a place where home values has doubled may not be a good thing. Simon takes a look at UK shares, why they are considered cheap and whether they are a decent investment or not. Helen talks through her latest 'Crane on the Case' and how it involved a loyal BA customer locked out of a staggering number of Avios points and getting a raw deal from the airline on sorting it out. And finally, here is a test of your age: how well do you remember the Ford Orion, Austin Maestro and Vauxhall Nova — and did you ever believe that one day they’d be classic cars?
Guest:

Helen Crane


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