New Rules To Boost Home-Based Businesses

Entrepreneurs will have more freedom to begin a business from home under new measures to be announced by the Government.

They include legislation which will make it simpler to run a company from a rented property and new guidance on business rates.

There will also be updates to planning guidance to make it clear that planning permission will not normally be required to run a home-based business.

Business minister Matthew Hancock said: "It's this spirit of personal endeavour and self-determination that is driving our economic recovery.

"But home businesses don't just fire up the economic engines and create jobs, they turn dormitory towns into living communities, they keep our streets safer, and by driving down car emissions, cleaner too.

"We'll give people the confidence they need to run a business from a rented home, making sure that the majority of home businesses are exempt from business rates and our aspiring entrepreneurs have the information they need to start up and grow."

Under the measures a new model tenancy agreement will be made available to landlords.

The law will also be changed so landlords can be confident that agreeing to a business within their property will not undermine their tenancy agreement.

Liz Peace, chief executive of the British Property Federation, said it firmly supported the removal of "unnecessary barriers" to setting up at home.

"At least some of the kitchen table businesses of today will expand and become the commercial property space-seekers of tomorrow," she said.

"We therefore have an interest in ensuring that the law and our sector is adapting to modern business practice and supporting UK entrepreneurs at every stage of their business development."

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UK Growth Hits Fastest Annual Pace Since 2007

The annual rate of UK economic growth has been revised upwards to 3.2% - its fastest pace since the end of 2007.

The announcement was made by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) as it confirmed GDP growth of 0.8% in the second quarter of the year.

While that figure represented no change on its original estimate, the ONS said it had measured a stronger performance in the construction sector than previously calculated in its wider revisions.

It confirmed that the service sector - which makes up more than 75% of GDP - remained the main driver of Britain's economy between April and June, expanding by 1%.

Much of this has been attributed to consumer spending despite huge pressure on budgets because of weak wage growth - a situation that had been tipped to ease during 2014 but has worsened again in recent months.

The ONS confirmed on Wednesday that wages shrank at an annual rate of 0.2% in the second quarter while the main measure of inflation rose to 1.9%, meaning the gap between wages and price rises was widening further.

The Bank of England has now made the weak pay issue a core factor in its discussions over the timing of an interest rate rise.

The UK's resilient GDP growth is in sharp contrast to economic fortunes in the euro area.

It was confirmed on Thursday that Germany's GDP was in decline and French growth was stagnating.

Chief UK economist at Citigroup, Michael Saunders, told Sky News he was not overly concerned that the woes being experienced by the country's biggest trading partners would damage the UK's recovery.

He said the suro had been "in economic terms, something of a zombie for a number of years now" and backed calls from France for the European Central Bank (ECB) to provide stimulus.

"The ECB will eventually get around to QE (quantitative easing) - five years too late - I think they're going to do it in the next couple of quarters and that will give some boost but it really is a sad story of multiple policy failures in the euro area," he said.

"Even if it gets a bit better I don't think it will get a lot better in the euro area."

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Npower's Profit Plummets By Almost 40%

Npower has become the latest of the so-called big six energy suppliers to announce a double-digit drop in profits.

The company reported a pre-tax profit of £109m for the first half of the year, dropping 38% from £176m for the same period in 2013.

Npower said it represented a profit of just £14 per customer account in the six months to June and the fall was due to its investment in energy efficiency and increased costs in improving customer service levels.

It comes after consumer group Which? revealed that Npower received the most amount of complaints of the 'Big Six' in the first quarter of the year with 83 complaints per 1,000 customers during the period.

Npower was deluged with complaints relating to a new billing system - a situation it has repeatedly said it is putting right.

Last month the energy Ombudsman said complaints about energy companies had soared to their highest ever level in the first half of the year.

On releasing its financial results Npower said: "Since the end of last year the company has substantially cut the number of customers who are billed late, and is now billing 96% of its customers on time.

"Total number of complaints received by Npower in Q2 2014 has been reduced by over 18% compared to Q1."

As well as increased spending on customer services, Npower said investments around the Energy Companies Obligation (ECO) strategy, had also cost the company.

The ECO was introduced by the Government last year to reduce the UK's energy consumption.

Npower said it had spent millions of pounds installing energy efficiency measures in homes across Britain and saw higher costs in the first half of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013.

It said it has invested a total of £324m into Britain so far this year, predominantly into renewable energy projects.

Npower is not alone in reporting falls in first half profits.

On Wednesday, E.ON UK announced its pre-tax profit for the period fell by 31%, while Owner of British Gas, Centrica, last month revealed it saw a 26% decrease in its profit.

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New Rules To Boost Home-Based Businesses

Entrepreneurs will have more freedom to begin a business from home under new measures to be announced by the Government.

The measures include legislation which will make it simpler to run a company from a rented property and new guidance on business rates.

There will also be updates to planning guidance to make it clear that planning permission will not normally be required to run a home-based business.

Business minister Matthew Hancock said: "It's this spirit of personal endeavour and self-determination that is driving our economic recovery.

"But home businesses don't just fire up the economic engines and create jobs, they turn dormitory towns into living communities, they keep our streets safer, and by driving down car emissions, cleaner too.

"We'll give people the confidence they need to run a business from a rented home, making sure that the majority of home businesses are exempt from business rates and our aspiring entrepreneurs have the information they need to start up and grow."

Under the measures a new model tenancy agreement will be made available to landlords.

The law will also be changed so landlords can be confident that agreeing to a business within their property will not undermine their tenancy agreement.

Liz Peace, chief executive of the British Property Federation, said it firmly supported the removal of "unnecessary barriers" to setting up at home.

"At least some of the kitchen table businesses of today will expand and become the commercial property space-seekers of tomorrow," she said.

"We therefore have an interest in ensuring that the law and our sector is adapting to modern business practice and supporting UK entrepreneurs at every stage of their business development."

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Bank Gives Latest Signal On Rate Rise Timing

The governor of the Bank of England has said that weak wage growth will be more closely watched in relation to the timing of interest rate rises.

At a news conference to outline the Bank's quarterly Inflation Report, Mark Carney insisted that rises in bank rate - when they began - would be limited and gradual and he believed the financial markets broadly shared that timetable.

Economists and markets are expecting the first increase - from its historic low of 0.5% - either late this year or in early 2015.

A key factor in the decision-making timetable will be the public's ability to absorb interest rate rises, given current weak wage growth. 

Just an hour after it was confirmed that pay including bonuses slipped 0.2% in the second quarter compared to a year ago, the Bank announced it had slashed its forecast for wage growth in 2014 from 2.5% to a below-inflation 1.25%.

The Report signalled that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which sets bank rate, would place an increasing emphasis on the weak pay data in deciding when to raise interest rates.

Mr Carney refused to go further, insisting there would not be a "magic number" for wage growth that would prompt a hike.

The Bank's predictions for the wider economy were better, with UK growth figures upgraded from 3.4% to 3.5% for 2014 and unemployment was expected to drop more quickly, falling below a rate of 6% this year.

One factor supporting those who would argue for an earlier rate rise was a quicker-than-expected narrowing in the key measure of wasteful spare capacity - or slack - in the economy.

Mr Carney said it had fallen to around 1% of GDP, despite the fall in real wages, due to strong employment numbers.

He told reporters: "In light of the heightened uncertainty about the current degree of slack, the committee will be placing particular importance on the prospective paths for wages and unit labour costs."

Sterling fell more than 1.5% against the dollar in the wake of the governor's comments.

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Wages Fall For First Time In Five Years

British workers earned less between April and June than they did in the same period last year, deepening the cost of living squeeze.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) charted average weekly earnings, including bonuses, fell by a yearly 0.2% over the three months.

The change marks the first time wage growth has been negative since the recession of 2009.

When the effects of bonus payments were stripped out, pay rises remained weak and still well below the 1.9% rate of CPI inflation.

It showed growth at an annual rate of just 0.6% between April and June - the lowest growth in regular pay since records began in 2001.

Commenting on the negative earnings figure, the ONS said it continued to reflect a cut in income tax in April 2013, which prompted many firms to delay bonus payments.

In its quarterly inflation report, the Bank of England halved its forecast for wage growth in 2014, from 2.5% to a below-inflation 1.25%.

The Bank has in the past cited weak wage growth as a reason for keeping interest rates at their historic low of 0.5%.

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Iain Duncan Smith, speaking to Sky News, blamed the fall in wage growth on bonuses in the financial sector and pointed to wage rises of over 1% in sectors such as manufacturing and retail.

Adam Corlett, economic analyst at the Resolution Foundation, said that unless there is an unprecedented surge in wages over the next six months it will be "almost impossible for average real pay in 2014 as a whole to exceed last year's".

The ONS also published data on the unemployment rate over the same period. It fell as expected to 6.4%, down from 6.5% a year earlier.

Between April and June, there were 30.6 million people in work, 167,000 more than for January to March and 820,000 more than a year earlier.

There were 2.08 million unemployed people, 132,000 fewer than for January to March 2014 and 437,000 fewer than a year earlier.

Mr Duncan Smith welcomed the fall in unemployment and told Sky News the youth unemployment rate had fallen at its fastest rate for 30 years.

Shadow Employment Minister Stephen Timms instead said: "While today's fall in overall unemployment is welcome, it's extremely worrying that the figures have shown pay falling far behind inflation, and the change in regular pay being the lowest ever on record".

In a separate report, the ONS also said that there were 153,000 Romanians and Bulgarians employed in the UK between April and June, an increase of 13,000 from 140,000 in the previous three months.

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Ladbrokes Profits Halve Despite World Cup Surge

Ladbrokes profits have halved in the first six months of 2014, but it claims to now be ready for growth.

The gaming company cited its restructuring in preparation for the World Cup as the reason for its decline in pre-tax profit, which fell 49.7% to £27.7m.

It was also hit by "customer-friendly results" from football in January and horse racing in June.

Ladbrokes says it has delivered on all its key operational objectives for the first half of the year, which included switching its gaming products to a new system and replacing 9,000 gaming machines with more sophisticated models.

Once these restructuring changes are taken into account, operating profit was £56.8m, down 33.7% from the same period in 2013, broadly in line with market expectations.

Chief executive Richard Glynn will hope that this is enough to reassure Ladbrokes shareholders, who have raised concerns in recent weeks over the company's performance.

Betting in this year's World Cup was up 20% on the previous tournament in 2010.

Mr Glynn called 2014 "the Mobile World Cup", as 1100% more gamblers placed their bets over their mobile devices.

An improvement in Ladbrokes's digital division will be welcomed by the markets, ahead of a 15% online betting tax set to be introduced in December.  

Mr Glynn said high street betting "offers a resilient source of cash flow despite a challenging trading and regulatory environment", as Ladbrokes completed 46 store closures of the 50 to be shut down this year.

The company has chosen to focus on football as its priority market, as it claims "horse racing still struggles to attract younger betting customers".

The Ladbrokes share price was up 1% in lunchtime trading.

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L&G To Stun City By Quitting Insurers' Body

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

Legal & General (L&G), Britain's biggest pension fund manager, will stun the City on Wednesday when it discloses that it is terminating its membership of the insurance industry's flagship trade body.

Sky News has learnt that L&G is expected to make a statement declaring that it has decided to cease being a member of the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

As a major player in the UK general insurance market, L&G's decision is likely to trigger a heated debate across the industry, which employs approximately 320,000 people.

The reasons for L&G's decision were unclear on Tuesday night, although City sources speculated that the recent separation of the ABI's investment affairs mandate, which is responsible for engaging with companies on issues such as corporate governance, was likely to have been one factor.

Investment UK, another body, is to assume oversight of institutional shareholders' interaction with listed companies, a dialogue in which L&G's fund management will play a leading role.

L&G is also understood to believe that it will be able to lobby more effectively on significant issues affecting its business if it does so on its own.

L&G's move away from the ABI will mean that Nigel Wilson, the company's chief executive, will step down from the trade association's board, which until two years ago was chaired by Mr Wilson's predecessor, Tim Breedon.

A competitor of L&G criticised its move to walk away from the ABI, accusing it of grandstanding and warning that it could undermine the industry's ability to influence key policy areas in the UK and further afield at a time when the insurance sector faces a tough new regulatory regime.

Mr Wilson has been an outspoken critic of a range of Government policies, such as its approach to infrastructure investment and insurance regulation.

Reporting strong financial results last week, he argued that the UK should quit the European Union unless it could negotiate a superior settlement for itself with Brussels.

The ABI, which is led by Otto Thoresen, its director-general, has around 300 members which collectively account for more than 90% of the UK insurance market.

In recent months, it has taken a lead on negotiating issues such as the creation of Flood Re, a new body to insure homes at significant risk of flooding, and the rising cost of premiums for young drivers.

The ABI's board also includes prominent insurance industry bosses such as Stephen Hester, chief executive of RSA, and Paul Geddes, who heads Direct Line Group.

An ABI spokesman said it would issue a statement about the situation on Wednesday, while L&G declined to comment

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'Pay Before You Die' Inheritance Tax Plan

People suspected of trying to avoid inheritance tax could have to pay before they die under proposals being considered by ministers.

HM Revenue & Customs could demand "accelerated payment" where savers are using potentially illegal avoidance schemes.

The measures - at the consultation stage - are a response to concern that growing numbers of people are using trusts to shield their estates from inheritance tax.

But Stuart Phillips, of tax planning firm the Private Office, said the policy could have "unintended consequences".

HMRC says the proposals will only affect a small minority of wealthy people

"The concern is that the Revenue takes a highly aggressive stance, just like with the film schemes for which celebrities have been under scrutiny, and terrifies families who have been engaging in legitimate tax planning that has been used for many years," he told The Daily Telegraph.

"I'm apprehensive that large-scale action could have unintended consequences."

Inheritance tax is levied at 40% on the value of an estate above the £325,000 threshold. Married couples can combine their allowances.

The Tories pledged to raise the threshold from £325,000 to £1m at the last election, but the policy was blocked by the Liberal Democrats.

A HMRC spokesman said: "We are seeking views on tackling inheritance tax avoidance schemes. This is an ongoing consultation and no final decisions have yet been taken.

"The proposals in the consultation paper will only affect a small minority of wealthy individuals who actively seek to avoid inheritance tax.

"Couples would still be able to leave up to £650,000 tax free to benefit their children or grandchildren."

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Care Giant Races To Avert £500m Sale Collapse

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The parent company of HC-One, one of Britain's biggest nursing home operators, will hold crunch talks this week aimed at preventing the collapse of a £500m sale of the business.

Sky News has learnt that NHP is expected to meet with representatives from Credit Suisse, the Swiss banking giant, which is taking legal action to stall the auction in an attempt to secure repayments to bondholders.

HC-One, which owns and operates approximately 220 sites previously run by the now-defunct Southern Cross group, had been on the verge of agreeing a sale to Formation Capital, a US-based healthcare investor.

Credit Suisse has warned that it will pursue further legal avenues to derail the sale without a string of assurances from the company and its partners by August 15.

The legal tussle, which the Swiss bank believes is necessary to protect its financial interests, has thrown the future ownership of the UK's third-biggest care home operator into fresh doubt.

HC-One, whose parent company is carrying more than £1.3bn of debt, has about 10,000 residents across its estate and employs roughly 14,000 staff.

Formation, which declined to comment, is said to have told the selling shareholders that its offer will lapse shortly without a resolution of the impasse, although it is unclear whether it will abandon its interest altogether after that point.

It is reported to have pledged to invest tens of millions of pounds to fund new homes and modernise existing ones.

Anchorage Capital, a Wall Street hedge fund which is another HC-One creditor, is also trying to delay the sale.

Analysts speculated that regulators could seek to intervene if the situation deteriorated to the extent that stakeholder confidence in HC-One was undermined.

In a statement issued to Sky News on Monday, NHP said it had halted the sale process because of the dispute and is "engaging with Credit Suisse and other stakeholders with a view to resolving the issue and completing the sale of the group as soon as practicable".

An insider said the row would not have an impact on patient care and pointed to more than £80m invested in HC-One since November 2011.

"The sale process represents the next phase of ensuring HC-One remains a stable, debt-free and fully funded organisation, committed to providing the kindest possible care," the statement said.

"We are deeply disappointed that Credit Suisse has taken this action at this late stage."

The row could trigger a renewed debate about the extent of private sector involvement in crucial healthcare services after more than a decade of debt-fuelled takeovers of care home and hospital operators.

Southern Cross's collapse in 2011 under a toxic combination of mounting debts and rising rents sparked recriminations between ministers, landlords and care home operators.

The parent of HC-One, which is chaired by Chai Patel, the healthcare tycoon behind The Priory rehab clinics, also said that without a resolution of the dispute, it would consider selling the business through an alternative process.

This would involve selling the underlying assets themselves - the 221 care homes - rather than the shares in the companies which own them.

In response, Credit Suisse said it supported the work undertaken by Mr Patel to stabilise the business, adding in a statement: "Any contractual disputes between CS and other transaction parties relate to the holding company of HC-One and will have no bearing on the day-to-day operations of HC-One itself."

Dr Patel and other directors are reported to be in line for a £5m bonus if the company is sold.

Deutsche Bank, which was appointed by Capita, the special servicer, to run the auction, could not be reached for comment.

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