Obiturtary of the high street and other companies - UPDATED
Please follow the link to see updated list of high street and companies that have gone in administration since January 2008
Obituary of the high street and other companies
Showing posts with label recession. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recession. Show all posts
Sunday, 19 July 2009
Latest figures confirm the Great British Recession
July 2, 2009
LONDON: The recession is now on a par with the very worst year of the Great Depression. Revised figures on Tuesday uncovered the full extent of Britain's economic contraction.
The economy shrank by 4.9 per cent in the year to the first quarter of 2009, the Office for National Statistics said. The fall in gross domestic product was far greater than previously calculated, as the government statistician realised the full scale of the fall in company activity.
"Clearly this is now the worst peacetime recession since the 1930s," said economist Michael Saunders of Citigroup. The worst contraction then was a year of about -5 per cent and "this year will not be hugely different".
The contraction in GDP during the first quarter alone was 2.4 per cent - the previous estimate was 1.9 per cent. This was the biggest one-quarter fall in 35 years.
read full article at The Sydney morning herald
Ten US banks fail recession test
May 8 2009
US banks would need a total of £50 billion in additional funds to survive if the recession deepens, the results of government "stress tests" showed.
An assessment of the robustness of the sector found that 10 of the 19 largest banks would need to find extra capital to see them through the bad times.
Bank of America faces the largest potential shortfall of £23 billion.
It joined a list of institutions that also includes Citigroup and Wells Fargo.
The stress tests were designed to gauge whether America's 19 largest banks have enough capital to see them through a deepening of the recession.
After Bank of America, Wells Fargo was found to have the second largest shortfall of £9.1 billion, followed by GMAC with a potential £7.6 billion black hole.
Citigroup is being asked to raise an additional £3.3 billion to make it secure. Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase and American Express were among the nine banks deemed not to need to raise additional funds.
The stress tests were designed to help regulators assess the ongoing financial stability of US banks.
They look at two models of the economy going forward - one in which unemployment reaches 8.8% next year and house prices drop a further 14%. In the second scenario, joblessness rises to 10.3% and property slips another 22%.
Banks facing a shortfall under the model will have to come up with a plan to raise additional capital by mid June.
If they cannot do so independently, they may have to turn to the government's £466 billion financial bailout fund.
sourced from Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News
Saturday, 18 July 2009
Indicators of economic depression ending-- Google searches vs. job losses
read the full article at examiner.com
Larry Summers, Obama's top economic advisor has summed up the state of the economy today in what Forbes online is calling "promising", but somewhat "obscure" signs of recovery.
The Job Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan
- "Earlier this year traders were betting there was a one-in-six chance that the Dow would fall below 5,000, he said. Now they say it's one-in-a-hundred.
- The chances that corporate bonds will default has fallen by a third.
- And Google searches for 'economic depression,' which surged to quadruple their normal levels, have since returned to normal. (A growing number of economists do believe that the recession has ended or will end in coming months.)"
read the full article at examiner.com Read more...
Theatre and the recession
Hi
I went to the theatre this week to the premier of ENRON, a theatrical production based on the actions and collapse of the giant sized company ENRON.
As I though some of your might find this quite interesting i have created a new page entitled ENRON. As I live in Britain the whole Enron thing back in 2001 didn't really mean much, but know we are in the economical problems that we are looking back at began is interesting.
please follow this link ENRON
UK economy shrinking at fastest rate in more than 50 years
Downward revisions to official statistics show output fell 2.4% in the first three months of the year and the recession started three months earlier than thought
The recession facing Britain is even deeper than had been thought and started more than a year ago, it was revealed today.
National income fell in the first quarter of this year by 2.4%, the biggest drop since 1958, as the Office for National Statistics revised its initial estimate of 1.9%.
The figures are much worse than expected. Extended to the whole year, the drop in output in the January to March period is now equal to 4.9% – the worst since records began in 1948.
"We hope the recovery comes as soon as possible but sadly we now know this recession has been longer and deeper than we had thought," said shadow chancellor George Osborne.
"This also means that in the future unemployment will be higher and Labour's debt crisis will be even worse."
Although GDP fell 2.4% in the third quarter of 1979 and first quarter of 1974, statisticians said these were rounded from 2.36% or 2.37%. The figure for this year was exactly 2.4%.
The revision is one of the biggest ever made by the ONS and it said the reasons were changes to its estimate of the construction and services sectors.
The ONS also revised down its figure for the second quarter of last year to -0.1% from zero, meaning the recession started earlier than previously thought. And the fourth quarter of 2008 figure was revised down to a fall of 1.8%.
"The recession, which now begins in the second quarter of 2008 rather than the third, is now thought to be quite a bit deeper than previously thought, and is looking ominously like the early 1980s vintage," said Danny Gabay of Fathom Consulting.
Critics of the Bank of England who called for big interest rate cuts in the first half of last year, will feel justified by the data, since the Bank's monetary policy committee argued into last autumn that there was little likelihood of a recession occurring and delayed rate cuts until October. In fact, the economy had entered one last spring.
Separately, the Trades Union Congress said that while there were signs of "green shoots" in the economy, this was more to do with an easing of the pace of the fall in output rather than that a big recovery was under way.
"This recession is already worse than the 1990s one and is likely to be worse than that of the 1980s," said Richard Excel, TUC labour market expert. "It has been very severe and we are probably only half way through. It will be quite some time until employment and growth return to pre-recession levels."
Paul Gregg, labour market expert from Bristol University, noted that unemployment had started rising earlier in this recession than in previous ones and was "encouraged" that monthly rises in the claimant count appeared to be slowing down.
sourced from The Guardian
We are in a recession, we have a labour goverment so that all strike
Cadbury workers 'vote on strike' | |||||
Cadbury workers begin voting on possible strike action on Saturday, according to the union Unite. Ballot papers consulting on action will begin to arrive at the homes of workers at the UK's best-known chocolate maker, it said. Unite claims that Cadbury is breaking a long-standing pay deal with workers at its Bourneville, Chirk, Marlbrook and Somerdale plants. About 1,300 people work across the sites, the union said. The ballot will run to 18 August, it added. sourced from THE BBC
| |||||
Sunday, 7 June 2009
NEW blog in development
[caption id="attachment_571" align="aligncenter" width="310" caption="allaboutgrub"]
Hi all, I have been developing a new blog please come and visit it
allaboutgrub.wordpress.com
- this blog is all about food, ingredients and where to buy good quality food from - add a marker to my allaboutgrub map to tell others about great places to eat out or places to buy great food from -
"go on share your food experiences with others"
Read more...Friday, 22 May 2009
the list
MPs' expenses:
Full list of MPs investigated by the Telegraph
All of the MPs named by the Telegraph's investigation into how politicians -
from Gordon Brown's Cabinet to backbenchers of all parties -
exploited the system of parliamentary allowances to subsidise their lifestyles and multiple homes.
The Houses of Parliament in Westminster:
MPs' expenses:
PA MPs' expenses investigation in depth
Gerry Adams and four other Sinn Fein MPs claimed more than £500,000 over five years even though they refuse to attend Parliament
Adam Afriyle has not made any claims on his second home allowance
Douglas Alexander spent more than £30,000 doing up his constituency home – which then suffered damage in a house fire.
Michael Ancram put the cost of having his swimming pool boiler serviced on his parliamentary allowances. He has agreed to repay the money
James Arbuthnot claimed from the public finances for cleaning his swimming pool at a country residence. He has agreed to repay the money
Hilary Armstrong was told that allowing the Labour Party to pay for and run a computer at her taxpayer-funded home could make her “politically vulnerable”
Ian Austin split a claim for stamp duty on buying his second home in London into two payments and tried to claim it back over two financial years.
John Austin claimed more than £10,000 for redecorating his London flat, which was 11 miles from his main home, before selling it for a profit.
Vera Baird claimed the cost of Christmas tree decorations
Ed Balls and wife Yvette Cooper “flipped” the designation of their second home to three different properties within two years
Norman Baker asked if he could claim for a bicycle and a computer so he could listen to music and email family and friends
Greg Barker made a £320,000 profit selling a flat the taxpayer had helped pay for. He has agreed to repay £10,000.
Margaret Beckett made a £600 claim for hanging baskets and pot plants
Hilary Benn claimed only £42,113 on his second homes allowance in four years
Richard Benyon did not claim on his second homes allowance in 2007/08
Sir Paul Beresford, who works up to three days a week as a dentist, designated his west London property, which includes his surgery, as his second home on his parliamentary allowances
Liz Blackman went on last-minute shopping sprees before the end of each financial year, in an apparent attempt to make sure she claimed as close to maximum expenses as possible
Tony Blair re-mortgaged his constituency home and claimed almost a third of the interest around the time he was buying another property in London
Hazel Blears did not pay capital gains tax on a property she sold despite having told the Commons authorities it was her second home. She has since agreed to paid the tax but denied any wrongdoing.
Crispin Blunt told to stop claiming Commons allowance on his home because his children live there
Tim Boswell claimed only £22,230 on his second homes allowance between 2004 and 2008
Ben Bradshaw used his allowance to pay the mortgage interest on a flat he owned jointly with his boyfriend
Tom Brake did not claim on his second home allowance between 2004-8
Kevin Brennan had a £450 television delivered to his family home in Cardiff even though he reclaimed the money back on his London second home allowance
James Brokenshire claimed just £368 on his second homes allowance in 2007/8 and nothing in the preceding three years
Gordon Brown's house swap let the PM claim thousands
Nick Brown claimed £18,800, without receipts, in expenses for food over four years amid total expenses of £87,000
Chris Bryant changed second home twice in two years to claim £20,000
Andy Burnham had an eight-month battle with the fees office after making a single expenses claim for more than £16,500
Paul Burstow doesn't claim for a second home although he is entitled to
Alistair Burt claimed £1,000 too much in expenses for his rent, but was allowed to keep the money.
Dawn Butler, the Labour whip, over-claimed £2,600 in rent on her constituency home.
Stephen Byers claimed more than £125,000 for repairs and maintenance at a London flat owned outright by his partner, where he lives rent-free
Vince Cable forgoes the second home allowance, but asked whether he could claim backdated payments of the London supplement instead
David Cameron limited his claims to mortgage interest payments and utility bills. He will repay the only maintenance bill he claimed - £600 for the removal of wisteria
Menzies Campbell hired a top interior designer to refurbish his small flat in central London at taxpayers’ expense. He will repay the £1,490.66 cost of an interior designer
Ronnie Campbell claimed a total of £87,729 for furniture for his London flat
Ben Chapman deliberately over-claimed for interest on the mortgage of his London house by about £15,000 with the approval of the fees office, documents seen by the Telegraph suggest. He is facing possible suspension from the PLP
David Chaytor admits claiming almost £13,000 in interest payments for a mortgage that he had already repaid. He has been suspended from the Parliamentary Labour Part
James Clappison owns 24 houses but billed more than £100,000, including thousands for gardening and redecoration
Kenneth Clarke managed to avoid paying the full rate of council tax on either of his two homes by effectively claiming that neither is his main residence. He has agreed to pay the full rate in future but defended his past behaviour.
Nick Clegg claimed the maximum allowed under his parliamentary second home allowance
David Clelland claimed for the cost of “buying out” his partner’s £45,000 stake in his London flat
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown “flipped” his second home designation from London to his Gloucestershire home, before buying a £2,750,000 house.
Harry Cohen claimed thousands of pounds for redecorating his second home before selling it and charging taxpayers £12,000 in stamp duty and fees on a new property
Michael Connarty sold some of the contents of his London home to
Jim Devine, a close colleague, before charging the taxpayer thousands of pounds for goods delivered to addresses in Scotland.
Yvette Cooper and husband Ed Balls “flipped” the designation of their second home to three different properties within two years
Stephen Crabb claimed his “main home” was a room in another MP’s flat, after buying a new house for his family at taxpayers’ expense
Tam Dalyell attempted to claim £18,000 for bookcases two months before he retired as an MP
Alistair Darling's stamp duty was paid by the public
Ed Davey did not claim on his second home allowance between 2004-8
Ian Davidson paid £5,500 to a family friend to renovate his flat and then took him shooting with members of the House of Lords
David Davis spent more than £10,000 of taxpayers’ money on home improvements in four years, including a new £5,700 portico at his home in Yorkshire.
Jim Devine bought Michael Connarty's furniture on expenses
Pat Doherty and four other Sinn Fein MPs claimed more than £500,000 over five years even though the Sinn Fein MPs refuse to attend Parliament
Alan Duncan spent thousands from his allowance on gardening, including repairs to his lawnmower. He has agreed to repay £5,000
Philip Dunne has not made any claims on his second home allowance since 2005/06
Angela Eagle claimed just £155 a month mortgage interest on her second home for a period and even underclaimed for council tax
Maria Eagle claimed thousands of pounds on refurbishing a bathroom at one of her flats just months before switching her designated second home to a property with a higher mortgage
Natascha Engel went on a shopping spree within months of being elected, spending thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ cash
Lynne Featherstone did not claim on her second homes allowance in between 2004 and 2008
Frank Field claimed just £44,338 on his second home allowance between 2004-8
Caroline Flint claimed £14,000 for fees for new flat
Barbara Follett used £25,000 of taxpayers' money to pay for private security patrols at her home
Andrew George used parliamentary expenses for a London flat used by his student daughter. He also claimed hundreds of pounds for hotel stays with his wife. He has said he will repay £20 for a hotel breakfast
Michelle Gildernew and four other Sinn Fein MPs claimed more than £500,000 over five years even though the Sinn Fein MPs refuse to attend Parliament
Cheryl Gillan bought dog food using her allowance but agreed to pay it back after being contacted by the Telegraph
Julia Goldsworthy spent thousands of pounds on expensive furniture just days before the deadline for using up parliamentary allowances. She has promised to pay back £1,005 for a leather rocking chair
Helen Goodman claimed for a week's stay in a cottage in her constituency over a bank holiday
Michael Gove spent thousands on his London home before "flipping" his Commons allowance to another address. He has agreed to repay £7,000
Chris Grayling claimed for a London flat even though his constituency home is only 17 miles from the House of Commons. He has agreed to stop doing so
James Gray successfully claimed £2,000 for the future redecoration of his “second home” on the day that he moved out.
John Gummer's gardening, including the removal of moles from his lawn, cost the taxpayer £9,000
Mike Hall claimed thousands of pounds in expenses for the cost of cleaners, cleaning products and laundry bills for his London home
Fabian Hamilton declared his mother’s London house as his main residence while over-charging the taxpayer by thousands of pounds for a mortgage on his family home in Leeds
Nick Harvey had to be reminded twice by parliamentary officials to submit receipts with his expenses claims
Alan Haselhurst charged the taxpayer almost £12,000 for gardening bills at his farmhouse in Essex, his expenses claims show.
David Heathcoat-Amory’s gardener used hundreds of sacks of horse manure and the MP submitted the receipts to Parliament
Nick Herbert charged taxpayers more than £10,000 for stamp duty and fees when he and his partner bought a home together in his constituency
Douglas Hogg included with his expenses claims the cost of having the moat cleared, piano tuned and stable lights fixed at his country manor house. He has agreed to repay £2,200 for the moat clearing
Geoff Hoon established a property empire worth £1.7 million after claiming taxpayer-funded expenses for at least two properties. He also did not pay capital gains tax on the sale of his London home in 2006.
Phil Hope spent more than £10,000 in one year refurbishing a small London flat. He has promised to pay back £41,000 to the taxpayer
Kelvin Hopkins claims just a fraction of the available second-home allowance by taking the train to Westminster from his home town
David Howarth has not made any claims on his second home allowance since 2004/05
Chris Huhne regularly submits receipts for bus tickets and groceries including pints of milk, fluffy dusters, lavatory rolls and chocolate HobNobs. He has promised to pay back £119 for a trouser press
Glenda Jackson did not claim on her second homes allowance between 2004 and 2008
Stewart Jackson claimed more than £66,000 for his family home, including hundreds of pounds on refurbishing his swimming pool. He has agreed to repay the costs associated with his pool
Brian Jenkins claims little or no mortgage interest for his property in London
Alan Johnson claimed just £43,596 for his second home in 2004-8
Diana Johnson claimed nearly £1,000 to cover the cost of hiring an architect for a decorating project at her second home
Helen Jones claimed £87,647 in second home allowances for her London flat between 2004 and 2008
Gerald Kaufman charged the taxpayer £1,851 for a rug he imported from a New York antiques centre and tried to claim £8,865 for a television
Alan and Ann Keen claimed almost £40,000 a year on a central London flat although their family home was less than 10 miles away
Ruth Kelly has claimed more than £31,000 to redecorate and furnish her designated second home in the past five years. She claimed thousands of pounds in expenses to pay for damage caused to her home by flooding, although at the time she had a building insurance policy.
Fraser Kemp made repeat purchases of household items over the space of several weeks.
Julie Kirkbride's husband Andrew Mackay resigned as David Cameron's aide after it emerged that the two MPs were making claims that meant they effectively had no main home but two second homes, both funded with public money.
Greg Knight, an MP with a collection of classic cars, claimed £2,600 in expenses for repair work on the driveway at his designated second home
Susan Kramer did not claim on her second home allowance between 2004-8
Andrew Lansley spent more than £4,000 of taxpayers’ money renovating his country home months before he sold it. He will repay £2,600 of decorating fees
Oliver Letwin repaired a pipe beneath his tennis court using taxpayers' money. He has agreed to repay the money
Julian Lewis attempted to claim £6,000 in expenses for a wooden floor at his second home
Ian Lucas made £45,000 profit when he sold a London flat on which he had claimed second home expenses
Lord Mandelson faces questions over the timing of his house claim which came after he had announced he would step down
Andrew Mackay resigned as David Cameron's aide after it emerged that he and his wife Julie Kirkbride were making claims that meant they effectively had no main home but two second homes, both funded with public money.
David Maclean spent thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money renovating a farmhouse before selling it for £750,000.
Angus MacNeil, the MP whose police complaint triggered the cash-for-peerages inquiry, tried to charge the taxpayer for his drinks bills, a chocolate bar and hundreds of pounds of "petty cash".
Fiona MacTaggart claimed just £3,392 on her second homes allowance in 2007/08
Shahid Malik claimed £66,000 on his second property while paying less than £100 a week for his main house. He has resigned as justice minister pending an investigation
Judy Mallaber rarely claims for food
John Maples declared a private members’ club as his main home to the parliamentary authorities. He claimed the maximum second home allowance on his family house while apparently not having a “main” property to maintain
Bob Marshall-Andrews claimed £118,000 for expenses at his second home, including stereo equipment, extensive redecoration and a pair of Kenyan carpets.
Rob Marris claimed just £11,973 on his second homes allowance in 2007/08
Gordon Marsdon claimed just £9,739 on his second homes allowance in 2007/08
Michael Martin used taxpayers' money to pay for chauffeur-driven cars to his local job centre and Celtic's football ground
Francis Maude claimed almost £35,000 in two years for mortgage interest payments on a London flat when he owned a house just a few hundred yards away. He has agreed to stop claiming for a second home
Theresa May claimed just £4,288 on her second home allowance in 2007/08
Tommy McAvoy claimed £86,565 in second home allowances between 2004 and 2008 for his flat in Westminster
Steve McCabe over-claimed on his mortgage by £4,059 during the course of two years
Sarah McCarthy-Fry tried to claim a pair of £100 hair straighteners on her parliamentary expenses.
Ian McCartney spent £16,000 furnishing and decorating his designated second home but paid the money back two years later
Martin McGuinness and four other Sinn Fein MPs claimed more than £500,000 over five years even though the Sinn Fein MPs refuse to attend Parliament
Patrick McLoughlin, the senior MP asked by David Cameron to scrutinise Tory expenses, claimed £3,000 for new windows at his second home.
Michael Meacher claimed just £32,825 on his second homes allowance between 2004-8
David Miliband's spending was queried by his gardener
Ed Miliband claimed just £7,670 on his second home allowance in 2007/08 Ann Milton did not make any claims on her second home allowance in 2007/08
Austin Mitchell claimed for security shutters, ginger crinkle biscuits and the cost of reupholstering his sofa. He has offered to donate his old sofa coverings to make amends
Madeleine Moon spent thousands in furniture shops near her Welsh constituency house and claimed the money back on her London designated second home allowance
Margaret Moran switched the address of her second home, allowing her to claim £22,500 to fix a dry rot problem. She has agreed to repay the money while insisting she acted within the rules. She could face an investigation for allegedly using Commons stationery to keep neighbours away from her fourth property in Spain. She also billed the taxpayer for nearly £4,000 in legal fees in settling a dispute with one of her staff and faces a challenge at the next general election from Esther Rantzen .
Elliot Morley claimed parliamentary expenses of more than £16,000 for a mortgage which had already been paid off
George Mudie claimed £62,000 in expenses for his London flat in four years, while having a mortgage of just £26,000.
Chris Mullin, a former minister, watches a 30-year-old black and white television at his second home and claims the £45 cost of the licence on his expenses
Conor Murphy and four other Sinn Fein MPs claimed more than £500,000 over five years even though the
Sinn Fein MPs refuse to attend Parliament
Paul Murphy had a new plumbing system installed at taxpayers’ expense because the water in the old one was “too hot”
Lembit Opik had to pay £2,499 for a 42-inch plasma television after purchasing it while Parliament was dissolved
George Osborne was rebuked by the Commons authorities for using public money to fund his "political" website. He also claimed money for a chauffeur-driven car which he has agreed to repay
John Prescott claimed for two lavatory seats in two years James Purnell avoided paying capital gains tax on the sale of his London flat after claiming expenses for accountancy advice
John Redwood has admitted being paid twice after submitting an identical £3,000 decorating bill on his second home allowance
Alan Reid claimed more than £1,500 on his parliamentary expenses for staying in hotels and bed-and-breakfasts near his home
John Reid used his allowance to pay for slotted spoons, an ironing board and a glittery loo seat
Angus Robertson successfully appealed to the fees office when they turned down his claim for a £400 home cinema system
Geoffrey Robinson has not made any claims on his second home allowance since 2004/05
Peter and Iris Robinson both claimed expenses based on the same £1,223 bill when they submitted their parliamentary claims in 2007
David Ruffley claimed for new furniture and fittings after “flipping” his second home from London to a new flat in his constituency
Joan Ryan spent thousands of pounds on repairs and decorations at her constituency home before switching her designated second home to a London property
Alex Salmond claimed £400 per month for food when the Commons was not even sitting
Martin Salter has not made any claims on his second home allowance since 2004/05
Grant Shapps claimed just £7,269 on his second homes allowance in 2007/08
Jim Sheridan used his allowances to reclaim the cost of a 42-inch plasma TV, leather bed and hundreds of pounds worth of furniture.
Clare Short claimed thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money to which she was not entitled within months of standing down as a Cabinet minister
Michael Spicer claimed for work on his helipad and received thousands of pounds for gardening bills.
Anthony Steen claimed £87,000 on country mansion with 500 trees. He has announced he will step down at the next election
Jack Straw only paid half the amount of council tax that he claimed on his parliamentary allowances over four years but later rectified the over-claim
Jo Swinson included receipts for eyeliner, a “tooth flosser” and 29p dusters with her parliamentary expenses claims
Robert Syms claimed more than £2,000 worth of furniture on expenses for his designated second home in London, but had it all delivered to his parents’ address in
Wiltshire Sarah Teather did not claim on her second homes allowance between 2004 and 2008
Don Touhig spent thousands of pounds redecorating his constituency home before “flipping” his allowance to a flat in London
Kitty Ussher asked the Commons authorities to fund extensive refurbishment of her Victorian family home
Ed Vaizey had £2,000 worth of furniture delivered to his London home when he was claiming his Commons allowance on a second home in Oxfordshire.
Keith Vaz claimed £75,500 for a second flat near Parliament even though he already lived just 12 miles from Westminster
Sir Peter Viggers included with his expense claims the £1,645 cost of a floating duck house in the garden pond at his Hampshire home. He has announced he will step down at the next election
Theresa Villiers claimed almost £16,000 in stamp duty and professional fees on expenses when she bought a London flat, even though she already had a house in the capital. She has agreed to stop claiming the second home allowance
Claire Ward, the MP responsible for keeping the Queen informed about Parliament, submitted monthly expense claims for hundreds of pounds of "petty cash" while claiming maximum allowances
Tom Watson and Iain Wright spent £100,000 of taxpayers' money on the London flat they once shared
Steve Webb sold his London flat and bought another nearby, while the taxpayer picked up an £8,400 bill for stamp duty
Shaun Woodward received £100,000 to help pay mortgage
Bill Wiggin claimed interest payments for a property which had no mortgage
David Willetts, the Conservatives' choice for skills minister, needed help changing light bulbs. He has agreed to repay the bill
Alan Williams claimed just £5,221 on his second homes allowance in 2007/08
Phil Willis spent thousands of pounds of public funds on mortgage interest payments, redecoration and furnishings for a flat where his daughter now lives.
David Winnick claimed just £36,354 on his second homes allowance between 2004-8
Sir Nicholas Winterton and his wife Ann claimed more than £80,000 for a London flat owned by a trust controlled by their children
Ann Widdecombe claimed just £858 on her second home allowance in 2007/08
Rob Wilson did not claim on his second homes allowance between 2004 and 2008
Phil Woolas submitted receipts including comics, nappies and women's clothing as part of his claims for food Iain Wright and
Tom Watson spent £100,000 of taxpayers' money on the London flat they once shared
Derek Wyatt billed 75p for scotch eggs
Richard Younger-Ross spent £1,235 on four mirrors and bought 'Don Juan’ bookcase
sourced from The Telegraph
Saturday, 7 March 2009
Recession
rom recession in more than a decade and a half. One yardstick is at least two quarters of negative economic growth - and Britain has not had even one three-month period of falling output since 1992.
This unbroken record has allowed Gordon Brown to boast that the economy is enjoying its longest spell of sustained growth since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century, although reliable quarterly data has only been available for around half a century.
Some economists believe this definition of recession is flawed, since an economy would not be in recession if it contracted by 5% in the first quarter, expanded by 0.1% in each of the following two quarters and then contracted again by 5% in the fourth quarter.
It would, however, be deemed to be in recession if it grew by 5% in each of the first and fourth quarters but contracted by 0.1% in each of the second and third quarters. An alternative - and tougher definition - is a full calendar year of negative output.
Given the UK economy has grown on average by 2.5% over many decades, it is rare for gross domestic product (GDP) to fall on an annual basis. There have been only five such years since the end of the second world war: 1974, 1975, 1980, 1981 and 1991.
The United States has its own method of assessing recession, with the National Bureau of Economic Research's business cycle-dating committee making a judgment.
The NBER defines recession as "a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production and wholesale-retail sales". It has not given a definitive ruling on whether the United States is technically in recession now, but analysts believe that it will give its verdict soon.
sourced from The Guardian
Friday, 6 March 2009
US jobless rate increases to 8.1%
The US jobless rate jumped in February to 8.1%, according to official figures from the Labor Department. The number of people out of work rose by 651,000 during the month. Both figures were bigger than expected. The number of job cuts in January was revised up to 655,000 while December's losses were pushed up to 681,000. December's figure was the biggest job loss in a single month since October 1949. The unemployment rate was the highest since December 1983.
Rising unemployment has meant greater demand for free meals President Obama said that the number of jobs lost so far in the recession was "astounding". Speaking in Ohio, he added: "I don't need to tell the people of this state what statistics like this mean," saying that he had signed his economic stimulus package in order to save jobs. The extra 161,000 jobs added to December and January's figures mean that almost two million jobs have been lost in the past three months. A total of 12.5 million people are now unemployed in the US. "It just continues to show the grim state of the labour market, which suggests a deepening US recession," said Joe Manimbo, currency trader at Ruesch International in Washington. Across sectors There were further signs of companies cutting back on their spending with the news that the number of people who wanted to work full-time but were forced to work part-time for economic reasons rising 787,000 to 8.6 million.
The average working week stood at 33.3 hours, matching the record low set in December. Jobs were cut in most sectors, with only government, education and health services adding staff. In the manufacturing sector 168,000 jobs were cut in the month while 104,000 jobs went in construction and 375,000 were cut in the service sector. "The payroll numbers are very weak. With the revisions, we've had significant job losses in the past four months," said Gary Thayer, senior economist at Wachovia Securities in St Louis. "Companies are reducing workers and output in order to bring inventories into line with weak sales." Among the companies that announced big job cuts in February were Goodyear, Estee Lauder, Macy's and General Motors. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress earlier in the week that economic indicators "show little sign of improvement" and suggest that "labour market conditions may have worsened further in recent weeks". | ||
Wednesday, 11 February 2009
Link to blog about recession
Please follow the link below to view a blog relating to the current economic situation
(redirected to a blogger blog)
Downturn and Recession
Read more...Wednesday, 4 February 2009
British jobs for British workers
Deal hope in foreign workers row
 Workers say the action is not racist, but about discrimination against Britons |
A possible deal to end the row over the use of foreign labour at Lincolnshire's Lindsey Oil Refinery will be put to local union leaders and workers later.
The proposal emerged after talks chaired by Acas.
A GMB union source told the BBC the deal could see half of the disputed 200 jobs offered to British workers, but the Unite leader has denied this.
Hope that new 'half-and-half' deal in foreign workers row could end wildcat strikes
A proposed deal that could end the bitter row over foreign workers at an oil refinery will be put to unions today.
Marathon talks aimed at ending a series of wildcat strikes at Lindsey plant in Lincolnshire ended last night with the outline of a possible deal.
Union sources said it involved offering half the jobs of the disputed recruitment contract to UK workers.
Downturn will bring big fall in migrant workers, says CBI
Companies facing decline in demand for goods and services will reduce their use of agency staff, MPs are told
The use of migrant labour in Britain will decline abruptly as companies face a sharp fall in demand for their goods and services, the Confederation of British Industry told MPs yesterday. John Cridland, the CBI's deputy director general, told the Commons home affairs committee that the first response of many firms to the downturn was to reduce their dependency on agency staff, many of whom are migrant workers.
He said that there was evidence that many nationals of new EU states were going home as unemployment rose in Britain and suggested that the flow of skilled migrants from outside Europe would also decline. He added: "I expect that, when we have the next report from the [Home Office's] migration advisory committee on the needs for skilled labour, we will not see the same need for non-EU labour in the same numbers because of the need to provide as many employment opportunities as possible for the unemployed. All I'm suggesting is that the market will correct itself, but what we cannot avoid is a significant increase in unemployment, which is a sad but inevitable consequence of recession."
read full articles Click here Read more...
Monday, 26 January 2009
Global recession claims 67,000 jobs in a day
The depth of the global recession was glimpsed today when almost 80,000 jobs were lost or put under threat in the UK, Europe and US, making it one of the bleakest days in recent memory.
Household names, including electronics retailer Philips, construction equipment maker Caterpillar and drug group Pfizer announced thousands of job losses, with many posts expected to be lost in the UK. Steel company Corus, for instance, is axing 2,500 British workers as it dumps 3,500 worldwide.
Even upper-crust London retailer Fortnum & Mason, which can trace its roots back to 1705, is suffering. It emerged yesterday that the Piccadilly-based department store is looking to cut about 100 of its 530 staff as shoppers seek out cheaper alternatives to products such as its £500 picnic hampers stuffed with champagne, vintage marmalade and smoked salmon.
The scale of the challenge faced by world leaders as they grapple with the worst economic downturn since the second world war was underlined yesterday as Gordon Brown issued a stark warning that the global economy will be undermined unless countries work together to tackle the crisis. The prime minister said the world needed to "ensure that we do not experience a new form of financial protectionism, of mercantilism, of retreat into domestic financial markets".
In the US, where General Motors cut 2,000 jobs, President Barack Obama warned it was imperative that Congress pass his $825bn (£590bn) package of spending and tax cuts as soon as possible. "We cannot afford distractions," he said. "We cannot afford delays in getting legislation to boost the economy through Congress."
New research from the Institute of Directors showed British business leaders are not only pessimistic about their companies' prospects but have recently seen a marked deterioration in performance.
"In previous IoD surveys, companies were saying it's going to be hell out there in the future but we're not doing too badly at present. Now they're saying the problem is much closer to home," said the IoD chief economist and director of policy, Graeme Leach."We're a long way into the financial crisis but the economic crisis is only just beginning."
Managers across the UK, meanwhile, have accepted their own redundancy as "inevitable", according to the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), which has examined recent calls to its helpline. "Quite clearly, any suggestion that there is already light at the end of the tunnel is misplaced," said Ruth Spellman, chief executive of the CMI.
The job losses announced yesterday fell mainly across industry. Europe's largest consumer electronics company Philips is shedding 6,000 jobs after announcing its first loss for half a decade. US mobile phone company Spring Nextel is axing 8,000 and Pfizer is shedding 19,000.
But the biggest losses announced yesterday were from Caterpillar. The Illinois-based manufacturer of heavy-duty earth-moving equipment is cutting almost 20% of its workforce – or 20,000 people. The news has raised fears for the company's 10,000 employees in the UK, which is Caterpillar's largest operation outside the US, and Ireland. It has factories dotted across the UK from Teesside, Leicester and Peterborough to Shrewsbury and Slough. In Ireland its electricity generator business FG Wilson is Europe's largest assembler of generators.
sourced from The Guardian
Monday, 19 January 2009
Updated: Should we help the banks
Click here to see video of Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown says the government will do 'everything it takes' to support the economy
The Guardian's economics editor, Larry Elliott, assesses the government's latest banking bail-out
We I'm in two minds regarding this, I know that we really don't have any choice but I think the banks the should not only loan to business but also loan to the their customers.
Why should we keep or money in banks, their have wasted / loss billions of pounds in bad deals and investments - so why are we having to help out these private companies.
I don't fully understand but if we loss the banks to who economy would crash, but why use tax payers money. The issue I feel the most strongly about is what is the bank doing with this money, and who is it helping. Is this securing peoples own investments, shares and pensions.
Now I privately rent my flat and I use public transport, so these actions taken by the Government - reducing vat and lowering interest rates has not benefited me at all. Transport cost have in increased by up to 10%, rent has not reduced like peoples mortgages. In the present economic situation you are not really able to ask for a pay rise, because if you have a job you are luck.
When the banks were offering 5 times and 100% mortgages, I was unsure because of the finical commitment. But what I feel is the people that over mortgages them self's either knowingly or accidental have been bald out by the government. But people like me who was not sure I could commit to the monthly re payments is know stuck, because the deposits are so high I can't afford to pay my rent, bills and save for a deposit.
I know that this money to the banks is intended to go towards business, but maybe reduce tax on people earning below £25,000 per years, because this will give people money in their pockets to spend in the high street.
Bank shares in free fall despite bail-out
Bank shares plummeted today amid concerns that the latest government package to stabilise banks and encourage lending would not solve the deepening economic crisis.
Royal Bank of Scotland was the biggest faller in the FTSE 100 share index, its price collapsing by more than 66%, to 11.6p, after it warned ofthe largest loss in British corporate history of up to £28bn and its chief executive, Stephen Hester, admitted that full-scale nationalisation of the bank had been considered.
The taxpayer already owns 58% of RBS but this will soon rise to 68% when £5bn of preference shares owned by the government are converted into ordinary shares.
The first day of dealing in shares of the newly created Lloyds Banking Group resulted in a 34% drop to 65p. The bank, which now has more branches than any of its rivals, issued a trading statement insisting that Lloyds TSB had been trading "satisfactorily", while HBOS, which it rescued in a deal brokered by Gordon Brown, had not suffered any "significant change" in its trading position.
Unlike RBS, Lloyds TSB is not asking the government to convert the preference shares it owns in the combined bank into ordinary shares, which means the taxpayers' stake is staying at 44%.
Eric Daniels, the chief executive of Lloyds, said the bank was "continuing its ongoing constructive dialogue" with the government about the wide range of measures announced today. Among them is a plan to sell insurance to banks to help them cap the losses on loans that have turned sour in the credit crunch.
HSBC, the only bank listed on the stockmarket not to have raised any fresh funds, insisted it would not need to use the government insurance scheme.
"HSBC has not sought capital support from the UK government and cannot envisage circumstances where such action would be necessary," the bank said. "HSBC has long been one of the world's most strongly capitalised banks and is committed to maintaining this position."
Shares in HSBC closed down 6.5% at 501p amid persistent talk that it would need to raise funds, which has been widely predicted since analysts at Morgan Stanley said last week that the bank may need as a much as £20bn of extra funds.
Barclays shares – which lost a quarter of their value in a frenzied hour of trading on Friday – recovered many of their losses early on but closed down another 10%, at 88p.
To participate in the government's insurance scheme, Barclays would need to sell preference shares to the government or find cash to cover the cost of the guarantee. John Varley, the bank's chief executive, is thought to be determined not to sell such shares to the government, even though they would not appear on the bank's shareholder register.
The bank has yet to decide whether to participate in the insurance scheme. Varley said he welcomed the range of announcements today. "The government has worked hard to construct practical and extensive measures to help the UK economy," he said. "The programme is made up of a number of important initiatives in the areas of capital ratios, funding and asset protection."
He added that Barclays would work with the tripartite authorities – the Treasury, the Bank of England and the Financial Services Authority – over the coming days "to understand the detail of the programme and to determine how it can be used to best effect on behalf of customers, shareholders and the wider economy".
RBS expects to use the scheme and Hester admitted today that he expected the bank to be "guinea pig". He admitted total nationalisation of RBS had been discussed with the government. "It was discussed as something we all wish to avoid," he said.
Bruce Packard, banks analyst at the stockbroker Evolution, said: "These share price movements tell you that the government has gone around and said the bank bail-out in October hasn't worked and if they hadn't done that I don't think we'd be in this position.
"I'm a banks analyst and I don't want to criticise the government. They did the right thing in the second half of October but I'm not sure they're doing the right thing now." He has a price target for RBS shares of 18p
sourced from The Guardian
UK banking plan faces criticism
The government's latest plan to counter the economic downturn by encouraging lending has been criticised, and sent banks' shares tumbling.
Opposition MPs argued that the government's measures were inadequate and too many details remained unknown.
Meanwhile Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the move, which centres on state insurance for banks, was essential to help protect jobs.
Business leaders have raised concerns over how much the plan will cost.
The latest government package is the second major set of measures to encourage banks to lend to individuals and businesses, as credit remains scarce or expensive to obtain.
The news sent banking shares down sharply, with Royal Bank of Scotland closing down 67%.
The bank's warning that it could see record losses for 2008 compounded worries about the state of the finance sector.
'Turbulent times'
But the prime minister said that without the new schemes, jobs may have been "needlessly" lost at healthy firms struggling to gain access to necessary funding.
"Good businesses must have access to credit," said the prime minister.
"It is because of this that we are taking the action to expand lending."
Shadow chancellor George Osborne said the details of Monday's package remained a "mystery".
Mr Osborne added that the prime minister "hasn't saved this economy and he hasn't even saved the British banks yet".
Liberal Democrat treasury spokesman Vince Cable said the government's latest plans were inadequate, urging instead for the whole banking sector to be nationalised.
"The government must bite the bullet on the public ownership and control of the banks to ensure that lending is maintained to sound companies who can keep the economy ticking over in these turbulent times," he said.
 |  What we've said is 'you've got to lend about £6bn more to businesses and to people' and the RBS Group have agreed to that  Chancellor Alistair Darling  |
The long list of policies includes a scheme to offer insurance against banks losing more money from the bad debts that started the credit crunch.
Meanwhile, the Bank of England is to be able to buy assets direct from firms.
The government would not reveal how much the latest plan would cost the taxpayer.
Four key points
Here are the key points of the government's latest announcement:
• Banks will be able to take up government insurance against their expected bad debts
• The Bank of England will be able to buy up to £50bn worth of assets in companies in all sectors of the economy
• Northern Rock has been given extra time to repay its loans from the government
• The government is increasing its stake in RBS to nearly 70% from 58%. RBS also said it was set to report a huge loss for 2008, with asset write-downs of up to £20bn.
Insurance plans
Under the insurance scheme, banks will agree with the government the amount they expect to lose from particular debt.
The Treasury will then sell insurance against about 90% of the institutions' additional losses from the debt.
Chancellor Alistair Darling told the BBC that banks taking out the insurance would have to make "very specific legally binding agreements to lend more money".
Under the Bank of England's new role, it will be able to buy up to £50bn of high quality assets, such as bonds and loans, directly from companies
Northern Rock extension
There have also been changes to the terms of previous bank rescues.
The government has given Northern Rock longer to repay its loans from the government.
There was concern that the timetable for repaying the loans was forcing Northern Rock to reduce its mortgage lending too quickly.
Separately, RBS said it had agreed with the Treasury to swap the £5bn of preference shares the government holds for new ordinary shares, increasing the government's stake from 58% to nearly 70%.
The swap will reduce RBS's annual payments to the government as preference shares have a higher guaranteed rate of return than ordinary shares.
sourced from The BBC
Read more...
Sunday, 18 January 2009
UK jobless 'to reach 3.4 million'
Unemployment will soar to 3.4 million as the financial crisis deepens, forecasters predict ahead of official jobless figures this week.
The Ernst & Young Item Club says the number of those out of work in the UK will pass 3.25 million by the end of 2010, and hit 3.4 million in 2011.
"All of the economic statistics are now in free-fall," it said in its forecast.
It warned the next 12 months would see the UK economy suffer its largest contraction since 1946.
The UK's gross domestic product would shrink by 2.7% in 2009 and another 0.5% the following year, the Item Club said in its latest report on the UK economy.
The official unemployment total reached a 10-year high of 1.86 million last October and some analysts expect the figure to increase to two million when new figures are published on Wednesday.
'Depression' warning
The group says that inflation and interest rates will stay close to zero, helping pensioners and those with tracker mortgages.
However, it said these conditions will do little to aid the housing market, set to fall 22% more over the next 18 months as it remains starved of finance for new mortgages. Meanwhile banks will be unable to lend to companies and consumers until the US sorts out its own banking problems.
"The government has failed to stop bankers hoarding cash and it seems this panicky behaviour is spreading out to the rest of the economy," the group warned.
The Item Club predicts that business investment will fall by nearly 17% this year, dropping almost another 6% in 2010 as worried company treasurers sit on cash.
In addition, consumer spending is expected to shrink 2.6% in 2009 as employees fearing for their jobs become "much more cautious" consumers.
sourced from The BBC read full article Read more...
UK recession set to be confirmed
The UK is set to go into recession on Friday 23rd January 2009
The Press Association
The UK's slide into recession is due to be confirmed on Friday when output figures for the fourth quarter of 2008 are released.
The contraction in Britain's economy for the final three months of the year follows a 0.6% decline in GDP for the third quarter - a 'technical' recession as defined by two successive quarters of negative output.
Experts, including the deputy Governor of the Bank of England Sir John Gieve, have warned that the contraction will be sharp.
Most economists are forecasting that the economy shrank at double the pace seen the previous quarter.
A 1.2% decline in GDP would be the worst performance since the third quarter of 1990, at the height of the last recession, when GDP also fell 1.2%.
However, some experts are warning that the decline could be as much as 1.3%, which would be the biggest fall in more than 28 years.
GDP would last have fallen by more in the second quarter of 1980, when it plunged by 1.8%. The annual rate of output in 2008 is also set to make for grim reading in what will be a far cry from the 3% seen in 2007.
It will also make the Treasury's initial forecasts for growth of between 2% and 2.5% look woefully optimistic.
This year is predicted to be far worse, with the economy forecast by some to shrink by 2% or even closer to 3% in what could be the biggest decline since the Second World War.
In a week dominated by economic news, inflation figures are also due out on Tuesday and minutes of this month's Bank of England interest rates meeting will follow on Wednesday.
The reduction in VAT together with the recession's impact on demand and firms' pricing power is set to have pulled inflation down again sharply, to 2.6% in December.
The predicted drop in the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) marks an exceptionally steep decline on the 4.1% seen in November and will likely lead to further fears over deflation.
article sourced from The Press Association
Read more...Saturday, 17 January 2009
Crimes increase as a recession looms
As the recession takes hold, we can expect crime especially theft to increase. Mostly this theft will be shop lifting. As supermarkets are seeing significant increases in shop lifting, this will only increase as we get further and further into the recession. But if someone is stealing to feed their family, should we be more lenient on them.
But will the supermarkets cover this loss or will it be passed onto the consumer.
Shoplifiting for food soars as recession looms
Shoplifting in supermarkets has increased by more than a third since the economic downturn began to bite, according to some of the biggest stores.
Essential items like baby food are among the items being stolen most often as thieves increasingly steal out of necessity rather than greed.
At stores belonging to Iceland, the frozen food specialist, the most popular product for thieves is a leg of lamb followed by cheese, bacon and coffee.
At Tesco, the country's largest retailer, thefts are up by more than a third (36 per cent) this year and at Marks & Spencer the problem is also increasing.
Retailers say shoplifting has increased in previous recessions and they are taking extra security measures this time including electronically tagging food.
Stephen Robertson, director-general of the British Retail Consortium, said: "Retailers are preparing for an upsurge in offences and are extending crime prevention methods, for example, placing electronic security tags on expensive cuts of meat."
sourced from The Telegraph read full article
The recession crimewave
The recession puts police on the back foot as official figures show offences in 31 police forces are on the rise.
By Mark Hughes, Crime Correspondent and Ben Russell, Home Affairs Correspondent.
Robbery and burglary are on the rise across the country, almost doubling in some areas, according to figures that provide the first evidence that the economic downturn is fuelling crime.
Figures obtained by The Independent from police forces across England and Wales show that cases of burglary or robbery rose in 31 of the 43 forces in the final four months of the year in comparison with the same period in 2007. In those 31 areas an extra 5,572 crimes of burglary and robbery were committed in the final months of 2008, compared with the previous year.
Forces such as Greater Manchester, Suffolk, Gloucestershire and Cumbria all saw increases of between 20 and 50 per cent. Lincolnshire police saw the biggest rise, a 97 per cent increase in robbery between September and November – the most recent three-month period collated by the force – compared with the same three-month period the previous year.
sourced from The Independent read full article
Friday, 16 January 2009
High street hit by Downturn
The economic downturn has seen high profile failures such as Woolworths, and High Streets across the country are worried about falling sales.
Founder on Lush talks about the downturn from the BBC
Founder of Lush Cosmetics Mark Constantine explains why British retail has taken a turn for the worse.
Read more...
Thursday, 15 January 2009
Sales soar at Primark
Primark sales sour over the Christmas period. As the rest of the high street suffer Primark sales increase.
Article
Primark has enjoyed another successful Christmas, with sales soaring by more than a fifth as its cut-price chic continued to appeal to shoppers.
Parent company Associated British Foods said today that total sales at the fashion store rose by 21% in the final 16 weeks of last year.
The sharp rise was partly attributed to Primark opening six new stores during the year, but the group said like-for-like sales growth, which excludes new space, was "very strong" at around 4%.
Primark's performance provides further evidence that shoppers are becoming increasingly thrifty as the recession hammers consumer confidence – a trend that sent clothing sales falling sharply at Marks & Spencer.
Primark fired several suppliers in 2008 following allegations that they were using child labour. But this week, allegations emerged that one of its UK suppliers was subjecting its workers to sweatshop conditions, with illegal immigrants receiving just half the minimum wage for 12-hour days, seven days a week.
read full article sourced from the Guardian Read more...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
