My thoughts on the proposed exemption on income tax for the State Pension... ‘An absolutely ridiculous policy’: Advisers criticise Sunak's pensioner tax cut citywire.com/new-model-advi…

A first for me, being called an extreme Leftie for daring to suggest that Pensioners should pay more tax...

"It's a big building full of sick people, but that's not important right now"

An idea I can get behind, however likely to negatively impact smaller employers. Most large companies I’ve seen already offer payments of this amount on a match basis for employees. Would suggest it prudent to instead make a forced match offer a better idea…!

🧵 How did Keir Starmer manage to win a landslide majority even though fewer people voted for him than for Jeremy Corbyn in either of his election bids? A quick thread looking beneath the numbers. Let’s start with swing…

Just spoke to a 91 year old client who told me he cycled 30 miles yesterday! I hope I’m that fit when I’m his age!

Fascinating article. Shows how easy it is to bend ESG rules to effectively claim net zero. Amazon, Meta and Big Tech’s bid to rewrite the rules on net zero ft.com/content/2d6fc3… via @ft

Can State Pension experts confirm that the client can't do anything here? Client has 8 years NI contributions, no SP and is born in 1949 so qualifies under old SP. At the moment those born after 1951 can top up from 2006, which, if client could do, would also mean he qualifies

11 years ago to the day I started my career as as a Financial Planner as a fresh faced 18 year old..! How time flies!

It is funny that Kier Starmer has taken a pay cut to be Prime Minister as opposed to his time as DPP. It’s obscene that any civil servant can be paid more than the prime minister, Prime Minister should be paid more than any other public sector worker.

Pension tax planning just got more complicated…

Natural gas: - 58% of electricity generation right now. (Wind+solar = 10%) - 62% over the past 24 hours. (Wind+solar = 6%) - 47% over the past week. (Wind+solar = 15%) Anyone who thinks that we can decarbonise the grid by 2030 with wind and solar is not serious.

Interest rates on the UK government's 30-year debt are currently up at the highest level since 1998

Good news if true! More Brits need to be encouraged to invest sensibly rather than hoard large cash sums.

4⃣ Finally, note that 0.6 million people paid the additional (45%) rate in 2022-23, meaning less than 2% of taxpayers accounted for 34% of total tax. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but remember this whenever anyone cries 'tax the rich!!' as if we're not doing so already!

Unequal distribution of fathers is one of the biggest inequalities in the UK. 95% there for those at the top, mostly not for those at the bottom. My Times column: thetimes.com/comment/column…

The Tariff Act of 1930, put tariffs on 20,000 imports to protect US from foreign competition during Great Depression Imports fell by 66% & exports fell by 61% & US GNP fell by 20% before it was abandoned with the view that tariff protectionism didn’t work Will it be different