Image copyright Getty Images The UK government must “get a grip” on spiralling costs and project delays that have plagued the Sellafield nuclear site, MPs have warned. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said in a report that some decommissioning projects had already been delayed by more than a decade. It said estimated budget overruns had …
Image caption Almost none of the kettles we can currently buy are designed to be repaired and re-used My kettle, that has given sterling service for several years, appears to be hankering after retirement. It’s a situation most of us are familiar with. If not the kettle, you’ll have found yourself with another appliance – …
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption In the US, social mobility is proving elusive for younger generations Do schools help social mobility and fairness? Or do they give even more advantages to the better-off? Even if they can’t make up for all inequalities, at least we might expect them to make the playing field more …
Ten years ago today, Bitcoin was born. A mysterious person going by the fictitious name Satoshi Nakamoto released a paper, saying how his new money would work. It was meant to be a global, digital currency that governments and banks couldn’t interfere with. So, a decade on, who uses it to trade? And why is …
Image copyright Melissa Holloway Image caption Freelancer Melissa Holloway Many self-employed people face a higher tax bill from 2020 when the IR35 rule is extended to the private sector. It will force thousands of contractors and freelancers to pay income tax, as well as National Insurance (NI) at the 12% rate, rather than a lower …
Image copyright Getty Images The final Budget before the UK leaves the EU has been delivered by Chancellor Philip Hammond – preparing the country for what he says is a “new chapter” for the economy. Lots of measures that will affect the money in your pocket have been announced in the speech which lasted for …
Image copyright Getty Images Facebook’s user growth has slowed and revenue failed to meet forecasts, according to the company’s latest results. An average of 1.49 billion people used Facebook’s social media service daily in September, up 9% on last year but below expectations of 1.51 billion. Growth remained flat in the US and Canada and …
The claim: People on the lowest incomes benefit most from Monday’s Budget. Reality Check verdict: The Treasury has not published analysis of whether this Budget will help the richest or poorest the most. The Institute for Fiscal Studies says the poorest will benefit the most as a proportion of their income. The Treasury’s analysis of …
Image copyright Reuters Shares in General Electric crashed by more than 10% following investor concerns about the turnaround prospects at the once-mighty industrial giant. GE admitted that US civil and criminal authorities had widened investigations into accounting practices at the firm. It also reported worse than expected third quarter results. It said that it would …
Image copyright EPA Image caption Steel worker takes a steel sample at a blast furnace run by ThyssenKrupp in Duisburg, Germany Brussels will open an in-depth investigation into the planned merger of Tata Steel and ThyssenKrupp, saying it could cut competition. The European Commission said it was concerned that customers would face higher prices and …