During the 2015 post-election Budget, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced that he would be establishing a new dividend tax. Why the change? Under the current system, any dividends received up to the basic rate income tax band (20% band is currently £31,785 on top of the £10,600 or £10,660 personal allowance) would not
Read MoreGiven the current theme of global stock market volatility caused largely by the issues that exist in the Far East, we are providing a brief update addressing the current market volatility and the likely effect on your investments. Current Market Volatility There are concerns over market volatility in recent weeks, with the lack of a
Read MoreWith a weak start to the year and a modest rebound in April it is expected to be another year of below trend global growth. Consequently the end of year forecasts are slightly below last year’s 2.7% (GDP based on current fixed exchange rates). Having said that, despite the US economy’s quarter ‘1’ contraction, recent
Read MoreMany congratulations to Lucy Loughton, who has qualified to practice as a financial adviser. Lucy passed her final exam to achieve the CII’s Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning at the end of May 2015. Peter Blackburn, Director of Loughtons IFA said “This is a tremendous effort by Lucy and the result of 2 years of
Read MoreDefined Benefits (DB) or Defined Contributions (DC) Pension Schemes In the popular press, ‘final salary’, also known as ‘defined benefit’, pensions are often referred to as ‘gold-plated’, the implication being that they are superior to ‘defined contribution’ (money Purchased) arrangements such as Personal Pensions. Many therefore can dismiss the notion of doing anything with a
Read MoreYou are no doubt starting to see a lot of press regarding the proposed pension legislation and enhancements to ISA investments as we head up to the 6th April 2015. Naturally there are concerns and questions being asked, especially in the media and there are those that feel that the government are looking for short
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