Perspective News

Browsing posts from July 2011

25 Jul

The future of pensions

Against a background of political wrangling about pension reform, a growing number of UK individuals face an uncertain – and uncomfortable – retirement. According to a survey conducted by Prudential, 35% of UK individuals who plan to retire in 2011 will have an income below the poverty line. The Joseph Roundtree Foundation estimates a single[.....]

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19 Jul

Northern Rock – three years on

The annual “Mansion House” speeches delivered by the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Governor of the Bank of England (BoE) often prove controversial, and 2011 was no exception as Chancellor George Osborne announced plans to sell off Northern Rock. Northern Rock was rescued by the taxpayer in 2008 following a spectacular collapse in 2007[.....]

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07 Jul

CPI vs RPI

In June 2010, the coalition government announced that, in future, state and public service pensions would increase in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rather than the Retail Prices Index (RPI). The change, announced in an Emergency Budget, aims to help the government cut the UK’s sizeable budget deficit. CPI does not include housing-related[.....]

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01 Jul

UK House Prices

The UK housing market remains lacklustre and property prices appear unlikely to show a marked improvement in the immediate future. The Land Registry reported house prices posted a monthly increase of 0.8% during April, the first time since January 2011 the figure has been above zero and the largest growth since January 2010. This follows[.....]

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