Harpenden Building Society has launched a new easy access ISA account paying a market-leading interest rate of 5.1 percent. Savings interest rates have dipped in recent months after three consecutive Bank of England Base Rate freezes, but easy access savings accounts and ISAs continue to offer some of the highest returns on the market. Easy […]

Equestrian products group Harry Hall is seeing galloping growth after steering a digital course and developing a club focussed on affordability and financial services. The Bradford-based company includes Harry Hall clothing and brands such as Fieldmasta rugs, Caldene wellington boots and Cottage Craft accessories that are all designed in the UK. Turnover for 23/24 is […]

HMRC is urging the millions of people who are still yet to file their tax return to “act now” or risk facing £100 penalty. The warning comes as the deadline to complete the Self Assessment fast approaches on January 31. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is expecting more than 12.1 million tax returns to be […]

Hundreds of thousands of Octopus Energy customers are set to avoid January’s price cap rise due to the provider’s ‘Saving Sessions’ demand flexibility scheme. Ofgem increased the energy price cap by five percent on January 1, however, energy customers who opt into providers’ Demand Flexibility Schemes can save some money by reducing their usage during […]

HMRC’s death tax grab is on track to beat last year’s record £7.1billion but Jeremy Hunt is unlikely to scrap the levy, an expert has said. Britons paid an estimated £5.7bn in Inheritance Tax (IHT) between April and December 2023, according to HMRC figures published on Tuesday (January 23). Analysts warn IHT receipts are on […]

Whichever party wins the next election will have a “pretty empty war chest” to help deliver its manifesto pledges, an expert has said after the latest government borrowing figures were released. The stark warning comes as figures published on Tuesday (January 23) show Britain’s debt to GDP ratio still at levels not seen since the […]

The Government has urged banks and building societies to retain in-person services as the UK braces for another year of sweeping branch closures. Treasury minister Bim Afolami said in response to a question in Parliament: “It is imperative that banks and building societies recognise the needs of all their customers, including those who still need […]

HMRC collected £5.7 billion in inheritance tax receipts in the nine months from April to December 2023, the latest figures show. This is 0.4 billion higher than in the same period the previous year. The increase of 7.5 percent means the Treasury is on course to take record receipts of about £7.6billion from IHT in […]

Christine Lagarde (right) and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (Image: REX/Shutterstock) The Eurozone has turned into an inescapable “black hole” for its 19 members, a financial expert has warned, a quarter of a century after the launch of the single European currency. The euro was launched in a blaze of publicity on January […]

More than two million people will have their gas and electricity cut-off this winter because they cannot afford to top-up their meter. That is the concern raised by Citizens Advice as it said having no energy would not be a “one-off” for some households. It said 1.7 million people were disconnected at least once a […]