Martin Wheatley , the head of the Financial Conduct Authority, will tell a conference that existing rules on how fund managers spend their clients’ cash are failing to bite effectively and are likely to be tightened.
Pension charges could be capped to stop millions of workers facing ‘rip off’
Charges on the pensions of millions of workers could be capped at 0.75 per cent, ministers will announce today, reports The Times.
The move to limit fees on workplace pensions is the government’s latest attempt to show that it is addressing the rising cost of living.
City chiefs say UK must stay in ‘reformed’ EU
City leaders have called for Britain to remain a part of the European Union but insisted that the 28-member bloc must be reformed, reports the Independent.
Ahead of a likely referendum on the issue after the next election, chief executives, chairmen, directors and partners across the Square Mile have warned that an exit from the EU would damage the economy.
Pension deficits halve at FTSE 350 groups
The pension schemes of Britain’s biggest companies are in the best financial shape they have been for the past five years, suggesting that, overall, larger employers are well placed to manage their deficits, according to a study to be released this week, reports the Financial Times.
The study, from actuaries Hymans Robertson, looked at the accounting disclosures of FTSE 350 companies and found that the aggregate deficit, as measured by international accounting standards, had about halved in the year to July 31 – to £58bn from £115bn in 2012.
Energy firms ‘overcharge by £3.7bn a year’
Some of Britain’s biggest energy companies have been accused of raising households bills for no reason and systematically overcharging customers by £3.7bn a year as they were grilled by MPs over their soaring prices and profits, reports The Guardian.
They were taken to task by Stephen Fitzpatrick, the chief executive of small supplier Ovo Energy, who launched a stinging attack on his larger rivals for being “the best filibusters in the business” when it comes to revealing how they make their money.
Cities warn Miliband over HS2 ‘conflict’
Ed Miliband has been told by Labour leaders in big cities in the north and Midlands that he risks “protracted conflict” in his own party unless he throws his weight behind the £50bn High Speed 2 rail line, reports the Financial Times.
The warning came on the day the government published a revised business case for the route between London and the north, scaling back projected benefits but insisting it offered good value for money.
Post Office workers to co-ordinate strike action
The postal network is heading for an even more debilitating shutdown on Monday after 5,500 staff in the Post Office said that they were to follow 115,000 of their former co-workers at the Royal Mail out on strike, reports The Times.
In what looks set to turn into a day of co-ordinated national industrial action, 32,000 members of the Fire Brigades Union are also planning to strike on Monday. The FBU is also striking on Friday. Tens of thousands of lecturers and further education non-academic staff are planning walkouts tomorrow.
