The heads of more than 30 charities have urged the Government not to restrict access to personal independence payments, on the eve of key changes to the benefit.
In the last hour, America’s Federal Reserve has raised its benchmark interest rate for the second time in three months, a sign that the US economy is growing healthier.
Just a week after his very first budget, an embarrassing U-turn by the Chancellor, as he dropped plans to increase national insurance for the self employed. Philip Hammond had been facing an outcry over the tax hike, including from many Tory MPs who accused him of breaking a manifesto pledge.
Conservative MP Anne-Marie Trevelyan and Labour shadow minister for work and pensions, Debbie Abrahams.
Helia Ebrahimi
Philip Hammond’s U-turn on National Insurance contributions for the self-employed is not just politically humbling for Number 11 but, critics charge, deeply worrying for the future of the public purse.
Gary Gibbon
On Monday, as Article 50 legislation cleared Parliament, we saw a demonstration of the weakness of the Tory “centre left” who wanted to soften Brexit. Today, with the reverse of Philip Hammond’s National Insurance hikes, we saw the Tory pro-Brexit Right assert their strength (yet again).
For rail travellers, those dreaded three words: bus replacement service. That’s been the story for thousands of rail travellers today as staff at Merseyrail, Northern Rail and Southern Rail walked out in a dispute over driver-operated trains.
Joining us from his constituency in Stevenage, the Conservative MP Stephen McPartland and here in the studio Torsten Bell from the Resolution Foundation.
The Institute of Fiscal Studies comes out in support of the plan to raise national insurance contributions for some self-employed workers. It said the government HAD broken its manifesto pledge, but had been foolish ever to promise not to raise the tax in the first place. Helia Ebrahimi reports.
In the last Spring budget tomorrow few big shifts or radical changes are expected from the Chancellor.
Labour MP Angela Eagle, former shadow business secretary whose Merseyside constituency includes many workers at the Vauxhall plant, and Lord Howard, former leader of the Conservative party.
For a shade under £2bn, French car makers Peugeot have snapped up General Motors’ loss-making European business, including Britain’s Vauxhall.
The Chancellor has said he’ll take a cautious approach to public spending in this week’s Budget – despite the fact that improved economic forecasts suggest he’s going to receive a multi-billion pound tax windfall.
Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley has snapped up the upmarket lingerie firm Agent Provocateur – which had been placed into administration.
Workers are still being held back because of the colour of their skin. That’s according to a report commissioned by the government. It claims workers from ethnic minorities aren’t progressing at the same rate as their white counterparts and says the economy could be boosted by 24-billion-pounds if companies stamped out racial inequality.