Flooding Fund: £2.3bn To Protect 300,000 Homes

Flooding Fund: Â£2.3bn To Protect 300,000 Homes

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 02 Desember 2014 | 14.47

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More than 1,400 projects will receive a share of £2.3bn to protect against flooding for 300,000 homes.

But environmental group Friends of the Earth has suggested that figure is not high enough and there is still a £500m shortfall in the flood defences budget in the next parliament.

The spending includes major investment in areas including the Humber Estuary, with £80m set to be spent, and £196m for the Thames Estuary.

Ministers will also commit to spending £15.5m on flood defences in Somerset in the next six years - including £4.2m on the Somerset Levels which were hit badly by flooding last winter.

The Government has come under fire over funding for flood defences.

Danny Alexander MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said: "We all saw the destruction and heartache caused by flooding last year and that is why this investment is vital to build up Britain's defences for the future.

"The projects we are announcing today will protect some of the country's most at risk locations ensuring that we will be as prepared as possible for future severe weather."

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Gallery: Somerset Flooding - Before & After

Before: a farm in West Yeo, near Bridgewater on the Somerset Levels. Pic: Bing maps

After: The flooded farmland in West Yeo

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Before: The village of Moorland near Bridgewater on the Somerset Levels. Pic: Bing maps

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After: Flooded properties in Moorland

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Before: Walton-On-Thames, Surrey

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Officials said the six-year programme, announced ahead of the Autumn Statement on Wednesday, would help prevent more than £30bn of economic damage.

Other projects which stand to benefit include more than £17m going to Tonbridge, Yalding and surrounding communities in Kent; £73m for a barrier at Boston, Lincolnshire; £42m for the Oxford western conveyance scheme and £47m for coastal defences in Rossall, Lancashire.

Friends of the Earth (FOE) said documents from regional flood and coastal committees showed there were £1.6bn of viable projects that were not getting the go-ahead.

FOE Campaigner Guy Shrubsole said: "A year after Britain's wettest winter ever, the Chancellor's leaked flood defence plans simply don't hold water.

"Faced with rising sea levels, the Government needs to be investing far more in flood defences to protect households and prevent climate change from the outset."

Shadow environment secretary Maria Eagle said: "Communities at risk of flooding won't buy Government spin on what is simply a re-announcement of capital funding confirmed a year ago.

"This is not new money - at the beginning of this Parliament David Cameron cut the flood protection budget by over £100m a year. As a result we are playing catch up on flood defences."

:: Watch Sky News for the Chancellor's Autumn Statement live on Wednesday, 3 December, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 132 and Freesat channel 202.

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Written By Unknown on Senin, 01 Desember 2014 | 14.47

Britain is slowly getting back on its feet, but the recovery is still doing little to heal the public finances.

In the space of a year, the jobless rate in the UK has reduced rapidly, from 7.6% a year ago, to just 6% now.

Unemployment is back to pre-crisis levels and more people in work should mean more taxes and national insurance flowing to the Exchequer.

The Chancellor had certainly been counting on that cash to reduce shortfall between its resources, and its spending commitments.

Even the Government's accountants had predicted a 7% rise in income tax receipts for this year.

Yet the current tally shows they are only up about 0.4%.

Still, the tax year isn't over yet and the Office For Budget Responsibility expects tax receipts to be what they call "end-loaded" in 2014-15.

That is partly due to the shifting tax band brackets and a glut of self-assessment payments they expect to pour in after the deadline in January.

However, over the past year alone, factors such as weaker-than-expected wage growth, lower-than-expected residential property transactions and lower oil and gas revenues make it unlikely that either the Chancellor's or his accountants' expectations will be met.

Especially if you then factor in the lasting effects of the past six years.

Over the course of the financial crisis many highly paid jobs, like banking, have been lost and not yet replaced.

Meanwhile, the newly created jobs have been low paid and more workers are classed as "self-employed" - with both these groups paying less tax.

You will have noticed your tax free allowance has risen - to £10,500.

And with wage growth virtually stagnant, fewer workers are moving into higher tax brackets.

That all eats into the Chancellor's take.

This leaves the Treasury with far less revenue than predicted - and forced to make cuts and borrow more.

That's just what we expect George Osborne to do in the Autumn Statement on 3 December.

:: Watch Sky News for the Chancellor's Autumn Statement live on Wednesday, 3 December, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 132 and Freesat channel 202.

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Cyber Monday: Retailers Brace For Online Surge

Retailers are preparing for another half-a-billion-pound online shopping surge on Cyber Monday today.

The event is the online-only follow-up to Black Friday, which saw bargain hunters spend £1.6bn across the high street and internet.

Card payment firm Visa said £600m of the £1.6bn raked in was spent on the internet.

Amazon, Currys and Tesco are among the big players lining up new deals and hoping their websites hold up to the virtual stampede.

Electronics retailer ao.com predicts today will be its best ever day of sales, with televisions and small kitchen appliances expected to be the best performing categories, and is offering a host of fresh deals.

Amazon.co.uk is planning to release hundreds of limited "lightning deals" which offer discounts for a specific period, with new offers coming online every 10 minutes.

Some sites, such as Currys, Argos and Game, crashed under the demand on Friday - the biggest ever online shopping day in the UK, according to Visa.

Visa Europe chief Kevin Jenkins said: "Compared to Black Friday last year online spend on Visa cards increased more than 30% and high street spend by about 20%.

"Heading into Cyber Monday we're likely to see a further £500m spent online, peaking in the early evening as workers return home and log on."

But security experts have warned consumers to be wary of cyber crime and take basic precautions as they shop.

Giovanni Ruberto, online security expert at Intel Security, said: "Cyber Monday is set to be the biggest online shopping day this year, and of course the bad guys know this.

"Whilst consumers are logging on from their laptop or smartphone to grab a bargain, you can bet cybercriminals will be doing all they can to trick unwitting consumers to hand over credit card information and personal details."

Recent years have seen online shopping peak on the first Monday in December.

It is thought to be down to many people's last payday before Christmas falling on the previous Friday and a weekend spent browsing the shops before buying online.

However, some retailers have been criticised for whipping people into a shopping frenzy and not having proper security at Black Friday events.

Shoppers were filmed arguing and fighting each other for cut price televisions, with witnesses saying some bargain hunters behaved "like animals".

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Dr George Carey on Sunday called the supermarkets "irresponsible" and said the event "serves no useful purpose".

Black Friday was introduced in America on the day after Thanksgiving and is thought to have been given its name because brisk business was said to have helped retailers back into profit - into the black.

The event was introduced to this country by Amazon in 2010.

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BG Group CEO Sees Share Package Cut By 53%

Oil and gas exploration giant BG Group has cut the pay package, originally worth up to £25m, for its incoming chief executive.

Helge Lund's share award has been revised downwards by some 53%, from around £10m to about £4.7m.

He will continue to receive a salary, pension and benefits package of £15m.

Last week the Institute of Directors warned that the pay deal for the new CEO was "excessive" and "inflammatory" and urged shareholders to vote against the deal.

The share award reduction now means the proposal does not have to be approved by shareholders, and is within policy guidelines formulated last May.

Mr Lund takes over BG Group in early 2015, after previously turning Norway's Statoil into a publicly-traded company.

The share award turnaround comes as the price of oil continues to fall.

Brent crude is down 40% since mid-June and approaching five-year lows.

However forecourt prices have only dropped 6% during 2014, according to the AA motoring group.

Despite the downward pressure on prices, potentially increasing the use of motor vehicles, fuel sales have dropped in the last year.

The AA said October sales were down 20% on the same month last year, even though pump prices were 8p a litre cheaper.

The declining sales strikes another chord of concern for the Government, as it sees reducing tax and duty receipts as a result.

Chancellor George Osborne has seen income tax revenue remain static, confounding a forecast 7% rise as the jobless count drops.

More follows...

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US Jobless Rate At July 2008 Low Of 5.8%

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 08 November 2014 | 14.47

The US jobless rate has hit its lowest level since July 2008, with the economy creating 214,000 net new jobs in October.

The fall in the rate from 5.9% in September was unexpected - and highlighted some greater resilience in the labour market as more people joined the workforce.

The data was released just three days after voters, frustrated by the economy, gave President Barack Obama a kicking in the midterm elections.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 231,000 new jobs last month but the performance meant that job growth, following revisions, has now exceeded 200,000 in each of the last nine months, sufficient strength to keep the economy on a higher growth path.

It expanded at an annualised rate of 3.5% in the third quarter, despite early signs of weaker global demand.

The market focus was on wages, in addition to the core job numbers, as employment gains on their own will probably not be enough to convince the Federal Reserve to start raising interest rates before the second half of 2015.

Kept at near-zero since December 2008, economists expect the Fed will want to see real evidence of rising wages before raising rates so not to risk choking off economic recovery.

The Labor Department data said average hourly earnings rose only three cents last month, leaving the year-on-year change below pre-recession levels at 2%.

The participation rate, or the share of working-age Americans who are employed or at least looking for a job, increased to 62.8% while the employment-to-population ratio also rose to its highest level since 2009.

World stock markets barely moved in reaction to the figures - seen as a crucial indicator of US economic strength - with the data doing little to alter rate rise forecasts.

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Royal Mail In Stand-Off Over MPs' Inquiry

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

Royal Mail has been secretly resisting pressure from MPs for it to appear alongside rival postal operators as part of a new probe into competition in the industry.

Sky News has learnt that Royal Mail made representations to the Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Select Committee requesting that it should not be forced to give evidence during the sale session as Whistl and UK Mail.

Sources said that Moya Greene, Royal Mail's chief executive, would appear before the Committee on 26 November, adding that the MPs had refused to bow to the company's desire for it to appear separately.

The row is the latest development in Royal Mail's efforts to persuade politicians and regulators to commit to reforms that it says are necessary to protect the Universal Service Obligation (USO), which obliges it to deliver to every UK address for a fixed price.

"This decision might make good theatre but it won't make for good analysis of the issues," a source said on Friday.

The BIS Committee announced the launch of its inquiry in September following complaints from the privatised Royal Mail that its ability to meet its USO obligations is being undermined by the expansion plans of Whistl, the rebranded TNT Post.

Sky News also understands that Dave Ward, a senior official at the CWU union, has also been asked to appear before MPs this month, while Ed Richards, Ofcom chief executive, will give evidence in early December.

The hearings will mark the latest phase of an intensive period of lobbying by Ms Greene, who has been vocal in her criticism of the industry's regulatory regime.

Last month, she and her chairman, Donald Brydon, attended an Ofcom board meeting to warn that a review of postal markets planned for the end of next year must be accelerated to safeguard the USO.

Since listing on the stock market as part of its contentious £3.3bn privatisation last year, Ms Greene has complained that Whistl's expansion plans could cost Royal Mail £200m in lost revenue by 2017.

Ofcom is expected to decide whether to bring forward its assessment shortly.

Reiterating previous statements on the issue, a spokesman for the regulator said: "Protecting the universal service is at the heart of Ofcom's work, and our own evidence clearly shows that the service is not currently under threat.

"We are listening to the views of Royal Mail and other parties regarding competition in the market. We would assess any emerging threat to the service quickly, in the interests of postal users."

Royal Mail's shares have had a bumpy ride since last autumn's sale by the Government.

They initially surged, leading to accusations that Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, had cost the taxpayer £1bn by underpricing them.

However, the UK regulatory framework, an impending financial settlement with French competition authorities and the growing impact of greater competition - exemplified by Amazon UK's recent launch of a same-day delivery service - have weighed on Royal Mail shares in recent months.

On Friday, they were trading at just over 462p, down 20% during the last 12 months but exactly 40% higher than the price at which they floated last year.

Taxpayers continue to own 30% of Royal Mail, although there is little prospect of a sale of the remaining shares ahead of next year's General Election.

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PM Trying To 'Fool' Public Over EU Surcharge

The Prime Minister has been accused of "trying to take the British people for fools" for claiming the UK has managed to wrangle a 50% reduction on the £1.7bn EU surcharge.

Chancellor George Osborne said Britain would now pay the European Union just £850m of the original demand.

Mr Cameron described it as a victory for Britain and praised the Chancellor for securing the deal.

But shadow chancellor Ed Balls claimed the deal had not saved the UK "a single penny" and accused the pair of "trying to take the British people for fools".

"By counting the rebate Britain was due anyway, they are desperately trying to claim that the backdated bill for £1.7bn has somehow been halved," he said.

Video: Has Surcharge Really Been Halved?

"But nobody will fall for this smoke and mirrors."

The demand was made by Brussels after a recalculation of Britain's gross national income in relation to other EU states.

Mr Osborne said the deal, struck after meeting finance ministers in Brussels, was "far beyond what anyone expected us to achieve".

He said it meant the bill would be paid in two interest-free instalments after next year's election.

"Instead of footing the bill we have halved the bill, we have delayed the bill, we will pay no interest on the bill and if there are any mistakes in the bill we will get our money back," he said.

Video: Cameron: 'Good News' On EU Bill

But political opponents, including UKIP, claimed the reduction had been achieved only by bringing forward a rebate to which the UK would have been entitled anyway.

UKIP leader Nigel Farage wrote on Twitter: "Osborne trying to spin his way out of disaster. UK still paying full £1.7 billion, his credibility is about to nose dive."

Sky's Europe Correspondent Robert Nisbet said it appeared the EU would still get the full £1.7bn as a result of what he said some would call "clever accounting".

"Next year there will be two instalments that will equal £850m that will be paid to Brussels by the UK and it will get its rebate in full. So far, so good," explained Nisbet.

"But what will happen in 2016 is that an extra rebate based on increased VAT receipts will be used to settle the rest of the bill.

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"That allows the EU to claim it's getting its money, the UK to claim it's negotiated a great deal for Britain and for opposition parties to cry foul."

A Number 10 source insisted there was "no guarantee the rebate would have applied to this" before the deal was struck, and added: "Our view is that this is a very good deal."

However, Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan suggested the devil was in the detail, saying: "The EU sticks us with a bill. Ministers double it, apply the rebate, return to the original figure and claim victory. We're meant to cheer?

"Britain is worse off in absolute terms, but a straw man has been knocked down. A prelude to how the pro-EU side will fight the referendum."

Mr Osborne said EU rules would now be changed forever "so this never happens again", claiming he had got his counterparts to agree to change the system for calculating adjustments to member states' contributions.

Video: How Is The UK Seen In Europe?

The PM had earlier warned there would be a "major problem" if Brussels insisted on Britain paying the bill in full.

Mr Cameron went on the offensive after a meeting with other European leaders in Finland, saying Britain would not pay "anything like" the full amount ahead of a looming 1 December deadline.

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Petrol Price Cuts Demanded By Treasury

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 07 November 2014 | 14.47

A failure by petrol firms and supermarkets to pass on the full benefit of falling oil prices to customers filling up at the pumps would be an "outrage", a Cabinet Minister has warned.

Treasury Chief Secretary Danny Alexander has demanded guarantees from fuel companies and distributors that they were doing all they could to pass on the price cuts to hard-pressed motorists.

His comments came as Asda announced it would be cutting the price of petrol and diesel by 1p to 119.7pm and 123.7p a litre.

Asda said it was the first time its petrol had gone under 120p a litre in four years.

Video: Chancellor On Petrol Prices

It triggered a supermarket price war and Sainsbury's and Tescos quickly followed suit with 1p cuts of their own.

At a speech in Aberdeen, Mr Alexander said consumers felt petrol prices rise "like a rocket" when oil costs went up, but fall "like a feather" when they came down.

And he said people would "rightly be angry" if they felt prices were not coming down as much as they should.

Brent crude slumped as low as $82 (£51) a barrel earlier this week, its lowest level in just over four years due to concerns about over-supply.

The Liberal Democrat frontbencher will say: "Especially in the current economic circumstances people would rightly be angry if they feel that pump prices don't fall as much as they should on the back of falling oil prices."

However, investigations into the failure to pass on the fall in the price of oil has been inconclusive.

Video: 'We Still Pay Too Much For Fuel'

Mr Alexander has written to the industry's major players "seeking their assurance that they are doing all they can to pass on the benefit of falling oil prices as quickly as possible".

He said: "When the price of oil falls, the public have a right to expect pump prices to fall like a stone, not a feather."

Motoring organisations were quick to say there was more then Government could do that just put pressure on oil firms.

RAC Foundation director Professor Stephen Glaister said: "It is encouraging that Mr Alexander shares the concerns of the nation's drivers but in a way he is passing the buck.

"The biggest driver of pump prices remains the Government. Well over 60% of the price is tax."

AA president Edmund King said: "They themselves could do more.

Video: Cuts: A Loss Leader Or Real Deal?

"First, policies to help strengthen the pound by just 10 cents against the dollar would double the potential for a 2p-a-litre fall in the price of petrol to 4p.

"Secondly, the Government's failure to introduce fuel price transparency, showing the relationship between oil, wholesale and pump prices, has helped no one."

Shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Chris Leslie said: "Of course it's right that drivers should benefit from falling oil prices with lower prices at the pumps.

"But since 2011 people have paid 3p more on every litre of petrol because the Lib Dems broke their promise and backed the Tories in raising VAT."

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