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The 2021 Budget will feature everything from booze, fuel and cigarettes to wages, housing and Britain's Covid response. Rishi Sunak is set to focus on four themes - "support, vision, recovery, honesty" - when he addresses the nation in his annual statement next Wednesday. The Tory Chancellor is tipped to extend furlough, the Stamp Duty cut and other Covid support by three months, and the £20-a-week Universal Credit uplift by six months. He will unveil grim financial projections on Britain's economy and begin to sketch a vision for how it'll be made better post-vaccine - with grants of up to £18,000 for lockdown-battered firms to reopen. He could announce a string of other measures to help the economy recover - though some of these, like schemes to push people back into shops and restaurants, may not come until later. And aides promise he'll be "honest" about the need to claw back £280bn of Covid spending - as corporation tax could be hiked and income tax allowances … [Read more...] about When is the 2021 Budget – and what will be in it? Stamp duty, furlough and more

Halfords has announced it will pay back £10.7m in furlough scheme cash to the government after enjoying better than expected sales at the start of this year. The cycling and car parts business said trading remained "volatile" and hard to predict as lockdowns continued but told investors it now expects full-year profits could nearly double. The Treasury has spent tens of billions of pounds supporting the wages of workers temporarily laid off due to the coronavirus crisis, though retailers that have been allowed to remain open during lockdowns have come under pressure to give money back. Where jobs have been lost across the UK economy Halfords has benefited from a boom in demand for cycling products as people are forced to stay at home but the restrictions have weighed on its car business. In its latest update the retailer said it "continued to experience a volatile trading environment" in the seven weeks to 19 February but that overall sales had been … [Read more...] about COVID-19: Halfords to pay back furlough cash as cycling sales surge

Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, will this week welcome a report that will call for major reforms to the London stock market's listings regime in a bid to encourage more technology 'unicorns' to go public in the UK. Sky News has learnt that a review headed by Lord Hill, a former EU commissioner, will recommend allowing tech entrepreneurs to retain greater control of their companies by formalising the creation of dual-class share structures. Lord Hill's review will be published on Wednesday, alongside the Budget , according to insiders. One source said on Monday that Lord Hill had considered calling for the creation of a new high-growth segment on the London Stock Exchange to act as a focal point for tech companies with listing aspirations, although it was unclear whether this would be included in his final report. Mr Sunak commissioned the report in November, arguing that the UK's departure from the European Union at the end of last year would give it greater freedom … [Read more...] about Rishi Sunak to hail Budget ‘big bang’ to lure tech giants to London market

Britain's biggest lenders will this week unveil proposals for a not-for-profit company to oversee the industry's attempt to bolster competition through a system known as 'open banking'. Sky News has learnt that UK Finance, the sector's principal trade association, will publish a report on Tuesday setting out its plans to comply with a series of requirements imposed by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) five years ago. City sources said the report would be an important step towards entrenching open banking as a permanent feature of the industry landscape. Known as the CMA9, banks including Barclays , HSBC and NatWest Group were the subject of a CMA order in 2016 following an investigation into the personal current account and SME banking markets. The watchdog concluded that the UK's biggest banks were not competing hard enough for customers' business and that open banking "should deliver a new, secure option for customers". Advertisement … [Read more...] about UK’s biggest lenders to unveil plans for ‘open banking’ rollout

Britain's leading share index has risen sharply on the prospect of more help for the housing sector in Rishi Sunak's Budget later this week, as well as a boost for government stimulus in the US. The FTSE 100 was up by about 2% - or more than 100 points - in morning trading, with builders such as Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Barratt Developments leading the way. It was part of a global rally for stocks following the approval by the US House of Representatives on Friday of President Joe Biden 's $1.9trn coronavirus pandemic relief bill. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Businesses react to chancellor's promises In London , the rally for house builders came after it was revealed over the weekend that a scheme to guarantee 95% of mortgage loans for first-time buyers will be announced in the Budget . They are also in line to benefit if, as reported, the chancellor extends a stamp duty holiday announced last … [Read more...] about Budget: FTSE 100 rallies as Chancellor Rishi Sunak plans help for home buyers