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British Gas has reopened its hardship fund for non-customers today (July 1) with grants worth up to £1,500 for struggling households. The British Gas Energy Trust for Individual and Families closed in the spring but is now accepting applications once again. To be eligible for help, you need to live in England, Scotland or Wales and be in debt to your energy company (not specific to British Gas). You must also not have more than £1,000 in savings and have received help from a money advice agency. The easiest - and the free way - to do this is through a charity. The main ones who will help you with energy bills are National Energy Action , Home Energy Scotland and Citizens Advice . Are you worried about affording your energy bills this winter? Let us know: [email protected] Finally, to get help through British Gas, you must not have received a grant from its Energy Trust within the last two years. You can see full eligibility criteria and … [Read more...] about British Gas reopens hardship fund TODAY with free energy bill help worth up to £1,500

Parents have resorted to dipping into their children ’s savings to afford to pay for the soaring cost of household bills , a poll has found. According to a survey for The Telegraph , Britons are lifting £8.5m a day from their children as the sprialling rate of inflation - which recently hit a 40-year high - continues to top up already sky-high domestic costs. The poll revealed that families had withdrawn almost £300 on average from their children’s savings so far this year. It found a third of the 2,000 people questioned had raided their children’s funds this year and suggested a total of £1.4bn has been withdrawn so far. Almost a quarter said they had extracted the funds to pay for increasingly expensive food shops, one in four said they had done so to help pay for exorbitant energy bills, while 6 per cent said they used their children’s savings to pay for travel. More than a quarter said they had either reduced the amount they were keeping aside for … [Read more...] about Parents dipping into children’s savings to pay soaring bills, poll finds

A disabled man is having to sell his late wife’s possession in order to keep his head above water as inflation bites. Jason Alcock said he is struggling to make ends meet amid the cost of living crisis hitting people up and down the country. The 51-year-old from Stoke-on-Trent lives with autism, ADHD and bipolar disorder, conditions which make finding work extremely difficult. With the price of everyday goods  rising at levels unmatched in 40 years, he is faced with making heartbreaking decisions to pay the bills. His wife Paola died in 2018 after being diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Jason has resorted to raising funds from treasured items she left behind to stay afloat. He said: ‘I worked out I’ve sold £8,000 worth of stuff in the last three years to survive. ‘Paola had a Star Wars collection, she used to do a lot of crafts. All those kinds of things, her old phones and tablets and everything like that, that’s all been sold. ‘A lot of the … [Read more...] about Disabled man had to sell late wife’s Star Wars collection to pay the bills

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday urged the public to face the country's economic problems together, as inflation in Europe's leading economy remained stubbornly high. Scholz published a new video in his weekly podcast, admitting that rising prices were troubling many citizens . He called for the population to "link arms and stick together." Just days after data showed prices rose 7.6% in June compared to a year earlier, Scholz said he would convene a meeting of experts to tackle the cost of living crisis. The chancellor said he has invited trade unions, employers, the central bank (Bundesbank) and academics for a summit that kicks off Monday at the chancellery in Berlin. The campaign, dubbed "Concerted Action," echoes similar efforts by former West German chancellors in the 1960s and 1970s. One-off payments proposed instead of wage hikes Economists and politicians have mooted several ideas in recent days to ease the burden on personal budgets. Labor Minister … [Read more...] about Scholz: Germans must ‘stick together’ over cost of living crisis

Some 700,000 Ukrainian soldiers are now actively participating in defending the country, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a televised interview on Saturday. In comparison, Russia deployed anywhere between 100,000 to 190,000 troops when it launched its invasion on 24 February, with the exact numbers of currently active units unclear. Meanwhile, the Moscow forces continued their assault in the east after claiming victory in Mariupol on Friday as the last Ukrainian defenders holed up in Azovstal laid down their arms. Read more about the day's developments in our live blog below. 05.21.2022 10:03 Saturday's key points: Russia suspended its gas delivery to Finland on Saturday morning in response to the country's NATO membership bid. The Russian military says it has fully taken over the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol after the last Ukrainian fighters gave themselves up. Earlier, Moscow said more than 1,900 Ukrainian fighters … [Read more...] about 700,000 soldiers defending Ukraine now, Zelenskyy says, as battles rage in the Donbas

Graeme Hart says he was a “terrible” student who was encouraged to leave school as soon as he turned 15, but once he found what he loved – business and commerce – there was no stopping him. Now 67 and New Zealand’s richest man, Hart says he looks back on his early experiences and on reflection finds them “entirely predictable”. A very independent person, he didn’t enjoy school, but outside of the classroom he had a “wicked” work ethic, and was always working after school and in the school holidays. He funnelled his energy into buying and fixing up cars, pulling apart engines in the family lounge and filling the garage with tools and cars. So after the career guidance counsellor at Mt Roskill Grammar took him aside and suggested he might like to leave school the following day on his 15th birthday, it was a natural transition to get an apprenticeship as a panel beater. READ MORE: Business Hall of Fame: Kiwi entrepreneurs honoured New Zealand's richest person donates … [Read more...] about ‘You can smell where the money is’: Graeme Hart and his innate sense of commerce

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak have told Brits the government is ‘on your side’ when it comes to the spiralling cost-of-living crisis. But with food and petrol prices reaching fresh highs, plunging millions into financial distress, some might find their assurances hard to stomach. In an op-ed for the Sun on Sunday , the prime minister and chancellor outlined what they are calling ‘the single biggest tax cut in a decade’, worth £6 billion. Their measures include ‘a council tax rebate, a cut in fuel duty, at least £400 for every household to help with energy bills and at least £1,200 for the eight million most vulnerable ­households’. Mr Johnson and Mr Sunak said that when the National Insurance (NI) threshold rises this Wednesday from £9,880 to £12,570, it will save up to £330 a year for 30 million people. They claim the change will lift 2.2 million ­people out of paying any NI or income tax on their earnings. ‘We know it’s tough but we want you to know that … [Read more...] about Boris and Rishi announce £6,000,000,000 cost-of-living tax cut

Published 6 days ago Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Related Topics Russia-Ukraine war Leaders of the world's seven richest nations have promised to support Ukraine "for as long as it takes" on the second day of a summit in Germany. In a statement, the G7 group also said that Russia must stop blocking food from leaving Ukraine's ports. Addressing the summit via video-link, Ukraine's president appealed for more heavy weapons from Western allies. G7 leaders are under pressure to be united in their approach against increasing Russian aggression. "We will continue to provide financial, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support and stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," they said in a strongly worded statement on Monday. "We remain appalled by and continue to condemn the brutal, unprovoked, unjustifiable and illegal war of aggression against … [Read more...] about Ukraine war: G7 pledges to stay with Ukraine until the end

How many of us have tried to improve our diet only to throw in the towel just days or weeks down the line? There are so many tips out there about what foods to eat - and which to avoid - it can be mind-bogglingly difficult to find out what works the best for you. As such it can all become rather overwhelming, but thankfully help is at hand. Before putting things right with your diet, it's vital look at what's wrong with it. Here, nutrition expert Lauryn Lax at BreakingMuscle.com outlines the main reasons why your diet isn’t working - and how to fix it. Want to get the latest health news direct to your inbox? Sign up for the Mirror Health newsletter HERE A great addition to your diet - avocados are rich in potassium, fibre and vitamins B, E and C ( Image: Getty Images) You’re not eating enough fat Diets that exclude or drastically limit fat tend to replace all those missing calories with carbohydrates, which sets you up to ride the blood sugar … [Read more...] about Nutrition expert explains why your diet isn’t working from stress to not chewing

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka on Sunday extended school closures for one week because there isn't enough fuel for teachers and parents to get children to classrooms, and the energy minister appealed to the country's expatriates to send money home through banks to finance new oil purchases. A huge foreign debt has left the Indian Ocean island with none of the suppliers willing to sell fuel on credit. The available stocks, sufficient for only several days, will be provided for essential services, including health and port workers, public transport and food distribution, officials said. ”Finding money is a challenge. It’s a huge challenge,” Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera told reporters. He said the government has ordered new fuel stocks and the first ship with 40,000 metric tons of diesel is expected to arrive on Friday while the first ship carrying gasoline would come on July 22. Several other fuel shipments are in the pipeline. But he said authorities are … [Read more...] about With no fuel and no cash, Sri Lanka keeps schools closed