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Are You Struggling To Make Money Online? Here’s Help
Do you wish there was an easier way to online? Of course we all do. But while there are dozens of ways to online, still 95% of those starting up internet businesses fail.
One of the easiest ways to online is selling digital products. Digital products could be an ebook, an MP3, video or software. Selling these products is fast, easy and commands big profit margins. No inventories to watch, delivery trucks are non-existent and most of all it works 24 hrs a day 7 days a week. Really an entrepreneur’s dream come true.
What are the exact steps involved to online with selling digital products? The following steps have been proven to be effective:
1. Choose the right product.
The first thing that you need to do is get a product that you can sell. Be certain that you choose the right product to sell. In choosing a product, you can either create your own or sell other people’s product. However, you must ensure that the product you will sell is in demand and that it is something that many people want or need.
You may check clickbank.com to see and get a feel of what products are in high demand. If you’ve been in the internet for three to four months and have been subscribing for those newsletters from sites you visited, then you may now have an idea of what topics attract large crowds. Subjects on golf, search engine traffic, weight loss, marketing, adsense, dog training, personal improvement and online have proven well overtime. There are some niche subjects which also have been drawing huge following.
Remember, the number of people looking for that particular topic, product or subject is extremely important. You can’t online if only a handful is interested with that product you are trying to sell. The number of competitors also plays an important role. As much as possible, choose an area with lesser competition. If you’re just starting out, it is hard to compete with guys who are the McDonalds of the industry. If you’re a bit sophisticated, there are tools available to figure this out. You can try the keyword tools and look for topics that have been searched by volumes and volumes. These tools also provide you with the number of competing websites. There is wordtracker.com, inventory.overture.com that you can start with.
If you don’t want to create your own product, you can easily find hundreds of products with master resale rights. What are master resale rights (MRR)? If you own a product with MRR, you have the right to sell it to others and keep all the profit for yourself! With master resale rights, the person who buys from you can also get the resale rights to the product.
There are also products with private label rights. Private label rights give you freedom to alter the product or change the content and put your name on it as the author or originator. You may try warriorforum.com and look at the warrior’s special offer (WSO) for great deals on resale rights.
2. Build your website.
Now don’t scratch you head yet. You will not be building a full blown website but a very simple three page site. The pages are: Sales letter Page, Thank You Page and the Download Page. Trial and completely free web building softwares are available for download. There’s the 123WYSIWYG and NVU which are both easy to use. If you’re not that tech driven then you can hire some college kids in your neighborhood who might be good at building websites. Or you can try elance.com and rentacoder.com to find somebody to do this.
Just focus on your goal to online.
To accept payment, just use Paypal. It’s easy to get. Using the standard Paypal button is okay. Paypal will ask you for the redirect page, in this case, use your Thank You Page. Don't put the download link there. Put an opt-in in box instead. Say that you will send the download link in the email. The opt-in box is extremely important if you want to build a business. You will have the chance to capture customer information here. You can online over and over again once you have a large list of customers.
In the email that goes out after a person subscribes to your opt-in, you will tell them where to download the product. Your download page should contain a link to your product with a few directions on how to download and how to use it. If you are selling an ebook in PDF format, tell them that Adobe Reader is required and point them where they can download it.
3. Generate traffic.
Once you have chosen your product and created your website, you must attract visitors. You cannot online if your site doesn’t have visitors. You can get traffic to your website in many different ways. However, you want to be certain that you bring in the right kind of traffic. What is the right kind of traffic? Targeted! You want visitors to come to your site because they want to, not because they are forced to. You want visitors that are interested in your product.
One of the ways to attract traffic is search engine marketing (SEM). SEM is a set of marketing methods to increase the visibility of a website in search engine results pages. Yahoo and Google are the top two sites where most of the web searches come from. Experts estimate that Google account for 45% of the searches while Yahoo gets 30%. In order to online, your website must be listed in the top 30 results of the search engines. Do you think anyone would bother to look on page 97 of the results? or page 110?
Your site’s ranking on the search engines will depend on how optimized it is with the keywords you choose and the number of competition it has. The lesser the competition for the specific keyword, the higher the chance of your site to get to the top of the search engines and the chance to online is significantly increased.
Another way to get visitors to your site, and this is the quickest one, is by pay per click advertising (PPC). You can try the Google adwords program, Miva and Goclick. Be very careful, however, as PPC advertising may burn your pockets and your plan to online would be affected. Make sure to set your daily budget when doing PPC.
These three simple steps to online when followed would get you the results you want. There are dozens of ways to online. What separates the successful online entrepreneur from a failure is focus and consistency of efforts. Most of the people starting to online get sidetracked with every new program that comes to them. If you want to online, choose one specific way, and then follow that way until you succeed. Don’t jump from program to program. Author is giving ebooks at http://www.homebusinesstoday.name
Alan Ocab specializes in teaching real people how to start profitable Internet businesses. To get instant access to some of his most profitable marketing campaigns, strategies, tools, and resources, visit his work at home website at http://www.grandstart.com.
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House prices fall by 16% year-on-year
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/5139?ns=guardian&pageName=Money%3A+House+prices+fall+by+16%25+in+2008&ch=Money&c3=guardian.co.uk&c4=House+prices+%28Money%29%2CProperty%2CMoney%2CHousing+market+%28Business%29%2CBusiness%2CUK+news&c5=Personal+Finance%2CCredit+Crunch%2CNot+commercially+useful%2CBusiness+Markets%2CProperty+Mortgages+and+Interest+Rates&c6=Hilary+Osborne&c7=2009_01_06&c8=1142568&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Money&c12=House+prices&c13=&c14=&h2=GU%2FMoney%2FHouse+prices" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>House prices fell by 15.9% in 2008, Nationwide said today - the biggest annual drop since the society began publishing its index in 1991.</p><p>December saw a 2.5% fall in prices - the second biggest monthly fall of the year after May, when prices were down 2.6%. The drop follows a 0.4% fall in November, which seemed to suggest the rate of decline was easing.</p><p>The snapshot of house prices from the UK's biggest building society showed that by the end of last year the average price of a UK home had fallen by £29,000 to £153,048.</p><p>Nationwide's figures are broadly in line with those <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/jan/02/halifax-house-prices">published last week by the UK's largest lender, Halifax</a>.</p><p>It reported that prices had dropped by 16.2% over the course of last year, with a 2.2% fall in December alone. Its index put the average price of a home at the close of last year at £159,900 - 20% below its peak in the summer of 2007.</p><p>Nationwide's chief economist, Fionnuala Earley, said 2008 had been a "year of turmoil" in the UK housing market. </p><p>"The disruption in the financial markets worsened throughout 2008 and had larger implications for the real economy than we anticipated a year ago. </p><p>"This time last year we expected the housing market to cool quickly as affordability was poor and economic conditions looked set to weaken, but we did not anticipate the speed of house price falls or the extent of the global and domestic economic slowdown."</p><p>Last month, the society said it would be <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/dec/19/nationwide-halifax-house-price-predictions">ditching its annual forecast for house prices</a> as a result of the uncertain economic outlook.</p><p>Earley today reiterated that position, saying volatile conditions made it more difficult than usual to estimate what would happen to the market over the coming year.</p><p>"In these unsettled times a forecast subject to frequent change could itself add to greater uncertainty," she said.</p><p>However, she said that tighter lending conditions and the fact that homes remained unaffordable for some people suggested prices would have to fall further before significant numbers of buyers returned to the market. </p><p>"In terms of house price expectations, current sentiment of borrowers and lenders is still fairly low," she said.</p><p>"Until the economy and the labour market stabilise, it is hard to imagine households becoming upbeat about the immediate future for house prices and this will hinder the pace of recovery."</p><h2>Looking ahead</h2><p>Nationwide said prices had fallen in all regions of the UK during 2008, although the rate of decline varied hugely. While Northern Ireland recorded a 34% drop in prices, the Scottish market dropped by just 8%.</p><p>In England the largest fall was in East Anglia, where prices were down by 16.6%, followed by London and the south-east where prices dropped by more than 15%. The smallest drop was in the north of the country, where prices were down 11% year-on-year.</p><p>Howard Archer, chief UK economist at IHS Global Insight, said the figures completed "a dismal year" for the housing market. </p><p>He predicts that prices will fall by a further 15% this year, taking the average to £130,091 on Nationwide's measure, and said the data increased the likelihood of further large interest rate cuts. </p><p>"The ongoing deep problems of the housing market maintains pressure on the Bank of England to deliver another deep interest rate cut on Thursday, although mortgage lenders are likely to be increasingly unwilling to pass on much of any further interest rate cuts," he said.</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/houseprices">House prices</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/property">Property</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/housingmarket">Housing market</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Money&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821654010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Money&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821654010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
Polly Toynbee: It might sound appealing, but this is populist poison
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/55063?ns=guardian&pageName=Comment+is+free%3A+It+might+sound+appealing%2C+but+this+is+populist+poison&ch=Comment+is+free&c3=The+Guardian&c4=David+Cameron%2CConservatives%2CEconomic+policy%2CPolitics%2CEconomics+%28Business%29%2CRecession+%28UK%29%2CCredit+crunch+%28Business%29%2CSaving+money+%28Money%29%2CTax+%28Money%29%2CTax+and+spending%2CMoney%2CBusiness%2CUK+news&c5=Personal+Finance%2CCredit+Crunch%2CBusiness+Markets%2CNot+commercially+useful&c6=Polly+Toynbee&c7=2009_01_06&c8=1142531&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Comment+is+free&c12=blog&c13=&c14=Comment+is+free&h2=GU%2FComment+is+free%2Fblog%2FComment+is+free" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>The ideological gap just yawned yet wider as David Cameron sprang into the New Year with tigerish ferocity. The longer Labour is in power, he said, the worse it gets - for the economy, national debt, crime, education, welfare dependency, the health service and family breakdown; all worse, worse, worse. Broken Britain needs an election now when "change is going to come". But president-elect Barack Obama, Cameron is certainly not. As the new president plans a trillion-dollar Keynesian stimulus in the United States economy, Cameron retreats into Thatcher's 1980s. Every time he speaks, he climbs deeper into the recesses of her handbag economics, preaching thrift and a bonfire of public spending.</p><p>He is right that this year things can only get much worse: every economic commentator says so. Any government seeking re-election after a year like 2009 with three million unemployed and gaping black holes in high street shopfronts can expect an uphill struggle. On the face of it, Cameron should walk it with constant finger-pointing - who was at the wheel when the economy crashed? Revenge is a strong voting motive. Superficially, he has all the best lines. The question is whether his phoney economics fool enough of the people enough of the time. </p><p>Yesterday's speech extolled the moral case for saving and thrift, "where government and citizens live within their means, save for a rainy day, waste not, want not". How well that chimes with the current mood, in which the worried rein in spending and even the comfortable indulge in frugality chic. It chimes with the bishops' call for less shopping and more praying. It chimes with commonsense instinct: in hard times pull in your horns, don't borrow, don't spend; hide under the duvet until it's all over. So when Cameron ratchets up the rhetoric by calling the VAT cut "an absolutely criminal waste of public money", plenty of voters will nod in agreement. Labour's £12.5bn cash splurge did feel odd. When Cameron claims: "We are in this mess because of too much government debt", it sounds plausible. When he offers £5bn in tax cuts for penny-wise savers by taking money out of current spending to salt away in savings accounts, that too may seem like prudent policy. All this goes with the grain of human instinct - and Labour has yet to find resonant language to challenge it.</p><p>Cameron's plan for retrenchment is economically illiterate, and would be frighteningly dangerous if he were in power. But it's hard to explain why thrift is not the answer in a punchy political message. Keynesianism is counter-intuitive: he wrote himself about the problem of the "thrift paradox" - persuading people and governments to spend, lend and invest at a time when every fibre of their being urges slamming on the brakes. But let's examine why the Cameron prescription is part populism, part poison and part snake-oil: since he's not stupid, presumably he knows it. </p><p>Take his plan for a loan guarantee to let banks lend again with the state as guarantor. It sounds good - indeed, the government has already said it will do the same, responding to the Crosby report. Cameron's deceit, in his eagerness to cut borrowing, is to pretend he can do it cost-free by raising interest rates enough to cover any losses from failed loans. Nonsense, say those working on the scheme. To make it self-financing, he would have to raise the loan interest rates to many times their present rate, and no one would want them. Guaranteeing loans, some of which would fail, costs some £2bn - but in Cameron's fantasy economics he pretends he can both fix this crisis and cut spending.</p><p>Take his key claim that Britain's debt "puts us in a much weaker position than other countries". Is that true? Ask the independent Institute for Fiscal Studies - by no means always a friend of Gordon Brown's previous economic policies - and here's their verdict: of the G7 richest nations, only Canada has a lower stock of debt than the UK. The US, France, Germany, Japan and Italy have even higher debts than the sizeable 57% of gross domestic product Labour now plans. Compared with all the leading economies, the UK is still only in the middle of the debt table. So yes, we can well afford to borrow more to avoid the worst of this year's cataclysm - and that is the right thing to do. What of Cameron's plan? To make a sudden £5bn cut in spending this April is an anti-stimulus at a time when money needs to be spent. The Institute for Fiscal Studies warns that the only way to cut quickly is to axe whatever is easiest with random destruction, without rational planning. </p><p>Was the VAT cut "a criminal waste"? The IFS says it was the best way to get money out there fast. What of Cameron's plan to encourage saving with tax cuts? Not a bad idea, but absolutely not in the depth of recession. For years the IFS has criticised Brown for adding to national debt by failing to raise enough tax to cover his higher spending in the good years. Now, the IFS's Carl Emmerson says: "But even if he had, that slight cushion would no way have insulated us from this crisis." </p><p>Cameron's proposed cuts in public services would be disastrous in a year like this. He would ring-fence only NHS, schools and defence spending, while from April he would cut planned spending on everything else. But how could he cut Department for Work and Pensions funds as unemployment claimants soar? Why cut the big rise in apprenticeships, just as the young are leaving school to sign on? How do you create jobs if all infrastructure is cut back? (His high-speed rail would take years to set up - and it needs state funds.) During the last Tory government, average capital spending was just 0.6% - while Labour has spent more than 2%, the price of repairing 20 years of public squalor. Labour's plan to bring forward £10bn of capital spending to create 100,000 jobs is a vital necessity.</p><p>Labour relies on real economics winning over the plausible lie in the long run. After all, the Confederation of British Industry, the International Monetary Fund and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development all urge Keynesian policies, with Barack Obama leading the way. Labour's serious problem is that no one will ever be able to prove whether what they did worked: if the recession is less deep, were these debts really necessary? Economists will argue for years, but nobody will ever know how much worse things might have been, had Cameron been in power.</p><p><a href="mailto:polly.toynbee@guardian.co.uk">polly.toynbee@guardian.co.uk</a></p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/davidcameron">David Cameron</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/conservatives">Conservatives</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/economy">Economic policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/economics">Economics</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/recession">Recession</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/creditcrunch">Credit crunch</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/saving-money">Saving money</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/tax">Tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/taxandspending">Tax and spending</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Commentisfree&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821696010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Commentisfree&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821696010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
Cameron offers savings tax cut plus clamp on public spending
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/2975?ns=guardian&pageName=Politics%3A+Cameron+offers+savings+tax+cut+plus+clamp+on+public+spending&ch=Politics&c3=The+Guardian&c4=David+Cameron%2CConservatives%2CEconomic+policy%2CGordon+Brown%2CTax+and+spending%2CPolitics%2CCredit+crunch+%28Business%29%2CSmall+business+%28Business%29%2CBanking+%28Business%29%2CRecession+%28UK%29%2CBusiness%2CBanks+and+building+societies%2CSavings+%28Money%29%2CIncome+tax%2CTax+%28Money%29%2CMoney%2CUK+news%2CPublic+services+policy+%28Society%29%2CPublic+finance+%28Society%29%2CSociety&c5=Society+Weekly%2CUnclassified%2CPersonal+Finance%2CInvestments%2CCredit+Crunch%2CPolicy+Society%2CBusiness+Markets%2CNot+commercially+useful&c6=Patrick+Wintour&c7=2009_01_06&c8=1142525&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Politics&c12=David+Cameron&c13=&c14=&h2=GU%2FPolitics%2FDavid+Cameron" width="1" height="1" /></div><p> David Cameron took the side of savers hit by tumbling interest rates yesterday and promised to abolish tax on the savings income of all basic-rate taxpayers. He also promised to lift personal allowances for pensioners by £2,000 a year. </p><p>Pounded by Labour charges of offering a do-nothing approach to the crisis, the Tory leader said that he wanted to help the "innocent victims" of the recession.</p><p>Cameron also toughened his approach to public spending, by proposing for the first time that its growth in the financial year 2009-10 be cut from 3.4% to 2.6%, saving £5bn. Setting out a plan for Conservative government, he said spending on schools, health, defence and international development would be maintained at Labour's planned levels, meaning projected spending in other departments could grow only 1% in real terms, instead of the 4.1% planned by Labour. Cameron said he did not think 1% unreasonable. </p><p>But his move imposes tight constraints on departments such as the Home Office, Ministry of Justice, business department, and communities department. George Osborne, the shadow chancellor, pointed out that public spending would still be rising by £25bn under the Tory regime, as opposed to £30bn, leading Tory rightwingers to claim that Cameron was not doing enough to break with Labour spending or borrowing. </p><p>The chief secretary to the Treasury, Yvette Cooper, said it was "economic madness" to slow public spending - the Conservatives were isolated internationally, she claimed. Downing Street was last night pointing to reports that Germany is planning a £50bn fiscal stimulus.</p><p>But Cameron is increasingly bold in advocating tighter spending, and has already proposed a lower level than the government plan for 2010-11. The country, he said, was facing a "catastrophic legacy of debt and disrepair"; he sometimes wanted to shake Gordon Brown, he said, to get him to understand his errors.</p><p>Cameron put his proposals in the context of a wider claim about the need for an economy that is more balanced, and not so tilted towards housing, the public sector and financial services. </p><p>He published reports on creating green technology incubators, and buidling the world's first trading market for environmental companies. He also revealed a review into how to give every home ultra-fast broadband within a decade. Brown is proposing a green and digital infrastructure renewal programme this spring.</p><p>The Tory leader's move came ahead of Thursday's meeting of the Bank of England monetary policy committee, expected to cut interest rates to possibly 1%, the lowest since the Bank's formation in 1694. A cut from the current 2% would further damage the interests of savers when savings are at their lowest for 50 years. </p><p>Cameron said: "We need to make a really big change in Britain from an economy built on debt to an economy built on savings. A culture of thrift at the heart of government and a culture of saving at the heart of our economy - these changes will provide strong foundations for the new economy we plan to build."</p><p>Privately, the Tories accept that the cost, and therefore the impact, of abolishing tax on savings for basic-rate taxpayers - £2.6bn - may be too high, since it is based on estimates made at a time when interest rates were much higher.</p><p>The proposal to lift tax on savings income would, the Conservatives say, simplify the tax system, since banks would no longer have to withhold 20% of interest income at source, and people on low incomes who currently do not pay tax at 20% would no longer be forced to apply for their money back.</p><p>In practice, a third of savers already have their savings in tax-free Isas, and yesterday's initiative by the Tories may prompt Brown (planning a tour of English regions starting tomorrow) to raise the maximum amount of income that can be invested in an Isa tax-free, currently £7,200. </p><p>The Tories denied that helping savers would take money out of the economy. They argued that advisers to the Obama administration are suggesting that tax cuts are three times as effective at raising growth as spending increases.</p><p>More broadly, Cameron insisted he was optimistic that his policy package was winning converts: the government's 2.5% VAT cut in December had been "a criminal waste" of £12.5bn of taxpayers' money, saying the government might as well have burnt the cash.</p><p>Cameron also repeated his call for a government insurance scheme to back banks lending to customers and businesses. The Treasury is looking at a similar scheme, but the government will be determined to present any proposal as sharply different to the Conservatives' socialisation of credit.</p><h2>Parties' policies</h2><p><strong>Labour plans</strong></p><p>? Cut VAT by 2.5%at cost of £11bn to stimulate demand.</p><p>? Consider second round of help for banks following £50bn recapitalisation, but put the idea of more government cash for banks on the back burner.</p><p>? Create 100,000 jobs by advancing extra capital investment directed at green jobs and school building.</p><p>? Publish interim report on digital Britain.</p><p>? Encourage ailing firms to switch staff to part-time work and allow staff to train for remainder of time.</p><p>? Consider bringing forward extension of school leaving age. </p><p>? Allow mortgage holders in difficulty to have a two-year interest rate holiday.</p><p>? Consider help for savers in March budget.</p><p><strong>Tory plans </strong></p><p>? £50bn national loan guarantee scheme to help free up credit for business. Focused on short-term credit lines, overdrafts and trade credit - the lifelines all businesses need to keep afloat. </p><p>? £3bn tax breaks to reward companies who take on new staff. </p><p>? Small businesses to enjoy six-month VAT holiday. </p><p>? An environmental stockmarket, where green companies are listed and traded.</p><p>? No tax to be paid on savers' incomes for basic rate taxpayers. Help 5 million taxpaying pensioners by increasing personal allowances. </p><p>? Commission report on how UK households will have access to high-speed broadband internet within next 10 years.</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/davidcameron">David Cameron</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/conservatives">Conservatives</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/economy">Economic policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/gordon-brown">Gordon Brown</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/taxandspending">Tax and spending</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/creditcrunch">Credit crunch</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/small-business">Small business</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/banking">Banking</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/recession">Recession</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/banks">Banks and building societies</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/savings">Savings</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/incometax">Income tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/tax">Tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/policy">Public services policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/public-finance">Public finance</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Politics&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821751010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Politics&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821751010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
Company league tables to reveal male-female pay gap
Government draws up amendment to equality bill which will require firms to publish pay band statistics
Editorial: Give and take
Editorial: Community schemes bankrolled by big City firms are already facing the axe
Report reveals grimy reality of British hotels
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/82037?ns=guardian&pageName=Travel%3A+Mould+on+the+mattress%2C+soiled+toilet+seat+-+welcome+to+tourism%27s+new+boom+sector&ch=Travel&c3=The+Guardian&c4=Hotels%2CUnited+Kingdom+%28Travel%29%2CBudget+travel%2CTravel%2CTravel+and+leisure+industry+%28Business%29%2CBusiness%2CConsumer+affairs+%28Money%29%2CMoney%2CUK+news&c5=Personal+Finance%2CBusiness+Markets%2CBusiness+Travel%2CNot+commercially+useful%2CHotels%2CUK+Travel&c6=Rachel+Williams&c7=2009_01_06&c8=1142451&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Travel&c12=Hotels&c13=&c14=&h2=GU%2FTravel%2FHotels" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>Now that the boutique hotel trappings of Egyptian cotton sheets, walk-in slate showers and elegant dark wood have been adopted by even the most modest places to stay, tourists might think we live in an era of luxury for all. </p><p>But a report from undercover hotel inspectors published today reveals a grimier reality beneath the surface of the British hospitality industry.</p><p>Researchers for Which? Holiday magazine who checked into 16 budget hotels in London and Manchester pretending to be ordinary guests found mouldy mattresses, stained duvets and dirty toilets at some leading chains. Ibis performed "particularly badly", the team said, and Travelodge was also criticised in their report.</p><p>The results of the investigation come as domestic tourism is preparing for a boom, with credit-squeezed holidaymakers tightening their belts, and cost-conscious business travellers trading down.</p><p>Despite these favourable conditions, Which? said it was concerned by the standards of cleanliness it found.</p><p>The team, consisting of a researcher and a microbiologist, said their "most disturbing" discovery was a mattress in the Ibis on Charles Street, Manchester, which was so badly soiled that the cover had started to fray and mould had begun to grow. A duvet at the Ibis on Portland Street in the same city was stained, with the microbiologist suggesting one of the marks was blood. There was "something sticky on the bedside table surface", the report added.</p><p>The Ibis Euston in London was home to the dirtiest toilet the researchers found, with urine and faeces around the edge of the seat and urine streaked down the pedestal, according to the report. On the bedroom floor they observed a stray fingernail and food debris.</p><p>Which? said bathrooms at the five Travelodges it visited were unclean and it was concerned that bacteria found in four of the rooms could indicate poor cleaning.</p><p>At the chain's Gray's Inn Road hotel in London, inspectors found "appalling" levels of dust under the bed. "It was so bad that when we kicked the carpet, dust rose before our eyes and our consultant's footprint was left outlined on the floor. The wall behind the curtains was also thick with ground-in dirt, which contained a handprint streaked down the wall."</p><p>At Blackfriars Street in Manchester, a Travelodge room had mould around the bath, and in Ancoats Street the inspectors found a stained duvet and mattress.</p><p>Which? Holiday's researcher, Amanda Diamond, said the results were a surprise. "When we set out to do the report we really thought we would find nothing; we thought it would be more to do with comparing budget hotel chains, given that the market is growing and more people are looking for cheaper rooms in the current economic climate. We took a microbiologist as a precaution. We certainly didn't expect to find rooms in such poor condition."</p><p>Research published by Travelodge this week suggested that more than half of Britons plan to stay in the UK for their summer break this year. Overseas travel declined by 10.5% in October, according to the Office for National Statistics, and trips to Spain - British tourists' favourite destination by far - fell 15% last year, the Spanish tourism ministry said.</p><p>Whitbread, which owns Premier Inn, plans to double its rooms in the UK to 55,000 within five years while Travelodge hopes to have 55 new properties by 2015 and raise capacity from 24,600 rooms to 70,000 by 2020.</p><p>Lorna Cowan, editor of Which? Holiday, said: "Although this investigation was just a snapshot, it does raise concerns about the cleanliness of some budget hotel chains. It's clear from our research that some of the hotels are getting it right when appropriate cleaning methods are being used. Paying guests should be guaranteed, at the very least, a clean room. </p><p>"There doesn't seem to be one single accepted standard for hygiene in hotels across the UK, and we would like to see this change." </p><p>An Ibis spokesman said: "Ibis treats matters of cleanliness and hygiene as critically important. We were, therefore, very disappointed to see the results of the investigation which showed standards that are totally unacceptable to us. </p><p>"We have clear procedures in place to ensure that housekeeping standards are to the highest levels. Clearly the Which? investigation indicates that those procedures are not being implemented in some cases and we have taken immediate remedial actions to ensure we deliver the standards of cleanliness that all our guests have the right to expect.</p><p>"We have submitted the results Which? obtained to an established independent health and safety consultant, who has confirmed that nothing in those results constitutes a danger to public health."</p><p>A Travelodge spokesman said the chain rejected any suggestion that Which? or its customers should be concerned at the level of bacteria found. "According to a leading independent microbiologist that reviewed Which's findings, the levels of bacteria found were so low that they could not cause any health risk whatsoever.</p><p>"With regard to the isolated incidents of dust, we would like to reassure customers that we immediately remedied these cases through strengthening of cleaning procedures and superior cleaning materials.</p><p>"Our six million customers should always enjoy a good quality stay, so this report has helped us by highlighting a handful of cases where we needed to improve."</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/hotels">Hotels</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/uk">United Kingdom</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/budget">Budget travel</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/travelleisure">Travel & leisure</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/consumeraffairs">Consumer affairs</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Travel&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821916010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Travel&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821916010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
Jill Kirby: David Cameron's proposed tax cuts are sensible, but don't go far enough
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/66558?ns=guardian&pageName=Comment+is+free%3A+Cameron%27s+economic+plan+lacks+vision&ch=Comment+is+free&c3=guardian.co.uk&c4=David+Cameron%2CPolitics%2CEconomic+policy%2CConservatives%2CGordon+Brown%2CMoney%2CTax+%28Money%29%2CSavings+%28Money%29%2CBusiness%2CRecession+%28UK%29&c5=Personal+Finance%2CCredit+Crunch%2CBusiness+Markets%2CNot+commercially+useful&c6=Jill+Kirby&c7=2009_01_05&c8=1142408&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Comment+is+free&c12=blog&c13=&c14=Comment+is+free&h2=GU%2FComment+is+free%2Fblog%2FComment+is+free" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>To make an upbeat speech about the British economy on a bleak January morning in the midst of a painful and deepening financial crisis might seem a task reserved to the recklessly optimistic. Today, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/jan/05/davidcameron-conservatives">David Cameron attempted</a> such a <a href="http://www.conservatives.com/News/Speeches/2008/12/David_Cameron_Britains_Economic_Future.aspx">speech</a>, determined to leaven his stern critique of Gordon Brown's economic policies with "the vision thing".</p><p>As Cameron's Conservatives become more trenchant in their criticism of what <a href="http://politics.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Archive/0,,649666,00.html">Cameron</a> termed "Labour's debt crisis", the edict has gone out that Tories must not appear to revel in the political opportunities provided by the downturn. And the media-savvy Conservative leader knows that audiences will turn away from a negative message. They want to hear some good news.</p><p>Justifiably, they also want to know if ? and how ? a Conservative government would handle things differently. So what is the vision for Britain that Cameron is sketching out? Not exactly utopian, he describes it as "an economy where government and its citizens live within their means, save for a rainy day, waste not and want not". It's also "a better balanced economy where we spread ownership and opportunity" and where we "work to live, not live to work". In other words, there's more to life than money, cherish what you have and don't expect a return to the days of high living and high spending.</p><p>To set us on the path to this new Britain, Cameron ? sensibly enough ? proposes some tax incentives for savers (abolishing basic rate tax for savings) and relief for pensioners (a £2,000 increase in their tax allowance). These are the two large groups whose financial security is damaged by the savage cuts in interest rates that the government and the monetary policy committee seem to consider the tool to get lending moving again (though with little evidence of success so far). The Tory proposals will win plaudits from "justice for savers" campaigners, not least in the right-leaning press.</p><p>Importantly, they provide specific examples of Tory tax cuts aimed at restoring a savings culture, in sharp contrast to the government's spend now, pay later approach.</p><p>The modest nature of the tax cuts makes it relatively easy for the Tories to claim that they will be paid for by restraining spending growth to 1% in all departments except NHS, education, defence and international development.</p><p>Cameron's reference to "2009 spending", however, makes it unclear whether he is promising future Tory restraint or simply recommending government action for the year in hand, and this needs to be spelt out. So, a little cheer for most of us and a few signposts to the spending restraint, tax cuts and good housekeeping that Cameron believes would characterise a future Conservative government. </p><p>Good as far as it goes, but it seems all too likely that the package will be overtaken by events. I suspect it will not be long before Brown is compelled to announce his own real-time spending cuts, as it will become impossible for him to sustain the illusion that public sector Britain can grow while commercial Britain implodes. As Cameron rightly pointed out yesterday, it's "back to the 70s" (or worse) for the government. The Conservatives are whistling the first few bars of the tune to help us out of this mess but their vision needs to spell out much more clearly the shape of a Britain where the public sector is small enough to live within the means of its revenue-producing citizens.</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/davidcameron">David Cameron</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/economy">Economic policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/conservatives">Conservatives</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/gordon-brown">Gordon Brown</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/tax">Tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/savings">Savings</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/recession">Recession</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Commentisfree&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821945010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Commentisfree&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821945010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
David Cameron tax plans: who would benefit?
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/80084?ns=guardian&pageName=Politics%3A+David+Cameron+tax+plans%3A+who+would+benefit%3F&ch=Politics&c3=guardian.co.uk&c4=David+Cameron%2CEconomic+policy%2CPolitics%2CUK+news%2CTax+and+spending%2CTax+%28Money%29%2CMoney%2CBusiness%2CSociety%2CCredit+crunch+%28Business%29%2CSmall+business+%28Business%29%2CBanking+%28Business%29%2CRecession+%28UK%29%2CBanks+and+building+societies%2CSavings+%28Money%29%2CIncome+tax%2CPublic+services+policy+%28Society%29%2CPublic+finance+%28Society%29&c5=Society+Weekly%2CUnclassified%2CPersonal+Finance%2CInvestments%2CCredit+Crunch%2CPolicy+Society%2CBusiness+Markets%2CNot+commercially+useful&c6=Andrew+Sparrow&c7=2009_01_05&c8=1142405&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Politics&c12=blog&c13=&c14=Politics+blog&h2=GU%2FPolitics%2Fblog%2FPolitics+blog" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>David Cameron proposed two tax cuts today, affecting savers and pensioners (and pensioners with an income from savings, who conceivably could benefit twice). As I write it is not entirely clear how many people could benefit, and by how much ? not least because the Institute for Fiscal Studies, which is normally relied upon to produce authoritative figures, suffered a power cut this afternoon (maybe we are going back to the 1970s?). But this is what we know so far:</p><p><strong></strong><h2><strong>Pensioners</strong></h2><p> The Tories would raise age-related personal allowances for pensioners by £2,000. They say that this would benefit those aged between 65 and 74 with pension income and other earnings between £9,490 and £32,930.</p><p>According to the IFS, most pensioners in this category would gain £400 a year. Those near the top or the bottom of the scale would gain less.</p><p>Around 5 million pensioners would benefit. But Labour point out that 60% of pensioners do not pay any tax at all, so the gains would only go to those who were relatively well off.</p><p><strong></strong><h2><strong>Savers</strong></h2><p> The Tories would abolish the basic rate of tax on savings. The Tories say that there are around 18 million people who receive interest from savings who would benefit.</p><p>Given that the Tories say the tax cut would cost £2.6bn, this suggests an average saving of £144 a year. But this figure is almost certainly misleading because some people will have disproportionately large sums saved up. The Tories admit that some individuals could save as much as £7,200 from their tax cut, although they have not said how many.</p><p>Labour say that, according to Treasury figures, anyone with an income worth less than £30,000 a year will benefit by less than £5 a year.</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/davidcameron">David Cameron</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/economy">Economic policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/taxandspending">Tax and spending</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/tax">Tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/creditcrunch">Credit crunch</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/small-business">Small business</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/banking">Banking</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/recession">Recession</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/banks">Banks and building societies</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/savings">Savings</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/incometax">Income tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/policy">Public services policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/public-finance">Public finance</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Politics&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821982010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Politics&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233821982010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
Girlguiding UK launches series of guides to help 16-18 year olds learn life skills
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/22021?ns=guardian&pageName=Money%3A+Credit+crunch+survival+tactics+for+girl+guides&ch=Money&c3=guardian.co.uk&c4=Borrowing+and+debt%2CMoney%2CYoung+people+%28Society%29%2CCredit+crunch+%28Business%29%2CFamily+finances&c5=Personal+Finance%2CCredit+Crunch%2CChildren+Society&c6=Staff+and+agencies&c7=2009_01_05&c8=1142379&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Money&c12=Borrowing+%26+debt&c13=&c14=&h2=GU%2FMoney%2FBorrowing+%26+debt" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>Forget homemaking and knot-tying, girl guides are being issued with tips on financial matters to help them survive the credit crunch.</p><p>In a leaflet for its members, <a href="http://www.girlguiding.org.uk/" title="">Girlguiding UK</a> recommends that they avoid using store cards, shop around for bank accounts and products and protect themselves from identity theft. It also suggests they stop relying on the bank of mum and dad, warning: "Don't assume that your parents will be able to foot the bill for everything you want ? or bail you out when you owe money."</p><p>The advice is included in the first of a series of guides aimed to help 16-18 year olds learn important skills. Money management was chosen as the launch subject after a poll of young members by Girlguiding UK found that 93% thought it was the one skill every girl should have.</p><p>The guide says: "With the recent credit crunch and financial markets in turmoil, we are all going to feel the pinch. By developing good habits now you will be better equipped to manage your money as an adult."</p><p>Staying safe on the streets is the subject of the second guide - produced with the help of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust - after almost all the girls polled revealed they worried about walking home alone after dark.</p><p>Guides are told never to use unlicensed cabs or use mobiles or mp3 players when walking home, to change into flat shoes instead of tottering in heels and to cross the road if they think they are being followed.</p><p>Denise King, chief executive of Girlguiding UK, said: "As UK's largest organisation providing a safe female-only space for girls and young women, we see it as our responsibility to give girls and young women the knowledge to confidently and knowledgeably deal with the new experiences they face growing up.</p><p>"These guides are intended to give girls confidence in dealing with issues they have voiced concern about, helping them to understand and overcome any potential hazards."</p><p>David Whitely a spokesman for the Financial Services Authority said, "This is a very helpful initiative from Girlguiding as we believe it's important for young people to learn the basics on how to manage money early on. They will then have more confidence when it comes to making more important money decisions as they get older."</p><p>Top tips from Guiding's Guide to managing money</p><p>1. Shop around - see which banks are offering the best deals</p><p>2. Avoid the debt trap - be wary of loans, store cards and borrowing off your mates</p><p>3. Bargain hunt and compare prices - can you get it cheaper online?</p><p>4. Forget fashion fads - as Yves Saint Laurent said "fashion fades, style is eternal"</p><p>5. Just the job - get work experience and give yourself a head-start</p><p>6. Don't rely on the bank of mum and dad - everyone's cutting costs</p><p>7. Know your enemy - understand how fraudsters work, shred documents and only use trusted websites</p><p>8. Get geeky - make sure you know your APR from your ISA</p><p>9. Choose wisely - think carefully about your purchases to avoid disappointment on a limited budget</p><p>10. Be restrained - know your budget limits and don't stray beyond them</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/debt">Borrowing & debt</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/youngpeople">Young people</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/creditcrunch">Credit crunch</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/familyfinance">Family finances</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Money&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822007"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Money&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822007010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
Interactive: House price graphs
Trace the ups and downs of UK house prices since May 2006
Iain Dale: While the Tory leader has announced a string of positive economic policy ideas, Gordon Brown has resorted to the politics of the gutter
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/16110?ns=guardian&pageName=Comment+is+free%3A+David+Cameron%27s+saving+graces&ch=Comment+is+free&c3=guardian.co.uk&c4=David+Cameron%2CConservatives%2CEconomic+policy%2CTax+%28Money%29%2CSavings+%28Money%29%2CGordon+Brown%2CMoney%2CPolitics%2CRecession+%28UK%29&c5=Personal+Finance%2CCredit+Crunch%2CNot+commercially+useful&c6=Iain+Dale&c7=2009_01_05&c8=1142323&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Comment+is+free&c12=blog&c13=&c14=Comment+is+free&h2=GU%2FComment+is+free%2Fblog%2FComment+is+free" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>Gordon Brown and his ministers seem to have adopted the Goebbels principle of propaganda, hoping that the more often they repeat an allegation, the more likely a gullible public is to believe it. Over the past month they have repeatedly accused the Conservatives and David Cameron of adopting a "do nothing" approach to the recession, in the hope that Cameron can be made out to be heartless and uncaring. James Purnell's interviews on the Today Programme and 5 Live this morning were classic examples of the genre. Goebbels would have nodded approvingly. </p><p>Ostensibly Purnell was appearing on the programmes to plug government schemes to help people with mortgage arrears, yet he spent most of the time available in both interviews trying to assert that the Conservatives would do nothing and let people wallow in misery. This really is the politics of the gutter, especially when it is so transparently untrue. </p><p>This lunchtime <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/jan/05/davidcameron-conservatives">David Cameron hit back</a> with his latest initiative to help those affected by the recession ? savers. He wants to cut the tax burden for savers and pensioners, who have suffered from sharp cuts in interest rates in recent months. </p><p>This comes on top of announcements on a <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/cameron-pledges-to-freeze-council-tax-1204093.html">council tax freeze</a>, a temporary abolition of stamp duty, a NI cut of 1% for companies with fewer than five staff, a £2.6bn job creation package, cutting corporation tax to 25p, a VAT holiday for small businesses ... I could go on. This doesn't exactly strike me as a "do nothing" policy. But there is one policy which the Conservatives have been urging the government to adopt for several months, and which it has consistently refused to do. And that is to pledge a £50bn loan guarantee scheme for businesses who cannot borrow money or get an overdraft from banks. </p><p>Liquidity and cashflow are the two vital organs of any business. Without them it is impossible to run a business. I wouldn't expect ministers to understand this, seeing as only five out of 350 Labour MPs have actually ever run a business. Yet it now seems as though the government has finally realised that a national loan guarantee scheme is the only way of getting credit flowing again and getting banks to lend to small businesses. </p><p>Next time Gordon Brown and his colleagues accuse the Conservatives of doing nothing I hope the Tories will be rather more forthright in their response. Cameron showed on <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_7811000/7811000.stm">the Today programme this morning</a> that he is more than capable of it. More please.</p><p>But if you are going to attack, you need to have people alongside you who are capable of attacking. Over Christmas there have been further reports that Cameron is considering asking Ken Clarke to join the shadow cabinet. The Sunday Telegraph has speculated that he is being lined up to <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/conservative/3980781/Kenneth-Clarke-could-face-Peter-Mandelson-in-battle-of-the-big-beasts.html">shadow Peter Mandelson</a>. A ConservativeHome survey of Tory members showed that 72% of Tories want David Davis back in Cameron's top team too. If those two couldn't take the fight to the government, it's difficult to think who could. But not everyone shares that view. Andrew Pierce quoted a Tory donor and a shadow cabinet member questioning whether Clarke could be relied upon. These dinosaurs should be ignored. Now is the time for the big beasts to come to the aid of the party. The next 18 months will be full of the political equivalent of bare knuckle fighting. The time for subtlety is long gone.</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/davidcameron">David Cameron</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/conservatives">Conservatives</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/economy">Economic policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/tax">Tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/savings">Savings</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/gordon-brown">Gordon Brown</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/recession">Recession</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Commentisfree&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822050010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Commentisfree&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822050010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
Government extends mortgage help scheme
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/54079?ns=guardian&pageName=Money%3A+Government+extends+mortgage+help+scheme&ch=Money&c3=guardian.co.uk&c4=Repossessions+%28Money%29%2CMortgages+%28Money%29%2CState+benefits%2CFamily+finances%2CMoney%2CHousing+market+%28Business%29%2CBusiness%2CUK+news%2CProperty&c5=Personal+Finance%2CCredit+Crunch%2CNot+commercially+useful%2CBusiness+Markets%2CProperty+Mortgages+and+Interest+Rates&c6=Staff+and+agencies&c7=2009_01_05&c8=1142307&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Money&c12=Repossessions&c13=&c14=&h2=GU%2FMoney%2FRepossessions" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>The government today extended the help available to homeowners struggling to pay their mortgages after losing their jobs in a bid to slow spiralling repossessions.</p><p>Thousands more households will qualify for state help with interest payments after the threshold for qualification was raised and the waiting period slashed by two thirds to 13 weeks.</p><p>The changes, which come into force immediately, mean people with mortgages of up to £200,000 will qualify for income support for mortgage interest (ISMI). Previously, only those with mortgages of up to £100,000 could apply.</p><p>At present, 230,000 households receive cash via ISMI, which is available to those who are already receiving a means-tested benefit, such as income support or income-based jobseeker's allowance. Payments are worth an average of £40 a week.</p><p>The work and pensions secretary, James Purnell, said: "We have changed the rules to make sure even more people can get help with their mortgage payments if they lose their job.</p><p>"We have brought in changes as quickly as possible so people don't have to wait too long for this support. Every time someone loses their job it is a personal tragedy. Jobcentre Plus is on hand to help people get back to work as quickly as possible.</p><p>"But we will do everything we can to give people the real help they need. That is why we will give financial help towards mortgage payments for someone while they are looking for a job."</p><p>Repossessions rose last year, with more than 32,000 borrowers losing their homes by the end of September, and the final figure for the year expected to reach at least 45,000.</p><p>Rising unemployment and the ongoing credit crunch could lead to around <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/dec/18/repossessions-mortgages-debt" title="">75,000 homeowners having their properties repossessed this year</a>, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.</p><p>Lenders have been asked to make sure they only use repossession as a last resort, and the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/dec/05/economy-mortgages" title="">government is working on a second scheme</a> to help householders meet their mortgage repayments in times of hardship.</p><p>The proposal, which will be open to homeowners with mortgages of up to £400,000, will allow them to defer a proportion of their mortgage interest payments for up to two years. It will be available to people who do not claim benefits and will be covered by a government guarantee to lenders.</p><h2>Tough year in prospect</h2><p>Robert Sinclair, director of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, welcomed the announcement, saying 2009 was "likely to be a tough year for consumers and homeowners in particular".</p><p>"This will provide support to a small but important group of people who are vulnerable following job losses in the current economic climate," he said.</p><p>The housing charity, Shelter, welcomed the move, but its chief executive, Adam Sampson, said: "With the majority of mortgages relying on two incomes, today's change in ISMI will not go far enough in helping most homeowners.</p><p>"What we urgently need to see is the detail of the government's two-year homeowner mortgage support scheme, which could make a real difference to people keeping a roof over their head."</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/repossessions">Repossessions</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/mortgages">Mortgages</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/statebenefits">State benefits</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/familyfinance">Family finances</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/housingmarket">Housing market</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/property">Property</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Money&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822111010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Money&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822111010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
How saving money is leading to the rise of the frugalista
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David Cameron woos savers and pensioners with new tax plans
<div><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.15.1/24551?ns=guardian&pageName=Politics%3A+David+Cameron+woos+savers+and+pensioners+with+new+tax+plans&ch=Politics&c3=guardian.co.uk&c4=David+Cameron%2CConservatives%2CEconomic+policy%2CGordon+Brown%2CTax+and+spending%2CPolitics%2CCredit+crunch+%28Business%29%2CSmall+business+%28Business%29%2CBanks+and+building+societies%2CBanking+%28Business%29%2CRecession+%28UK%29%2CBusiness%2CMoney%2CUK+news%2CPublic+services+policy+%28Society%29%2CSociety%2CSavings+%28Money%29%2CIncome+tax%2CTax+%28Money%29%2CPublic+finance+%28Society%29&c5=Society+Weekly%2CUnclassified%2CPersonal+Finance%2CInvestments%2CCredit+Crunch%2CPolicy+Society%2CBusiness+Markets%2CNot+commercially+useful&c6=Helene+Mulholland%2CAndrew+Sparrow&c7=2009_01_05&c8=1142118&c9=article&c10=GU&c11=Politics&c12=David+Cameron&c13=&c14=&h2=GU%2FPolitics%2FDavid+Cameron" width="1" height="1" /></div><p>David Cameron widened the gulf between the Tories and Labour over the economic crisis today by announcing that a Conservative government would abolish income tax on savings for basic-rate taxpayers and raise the tax allowance for pensioners by £2,000.</p><p>In a speech on Britain's economic future, the Tory leader said he would find the £4.1bn necessary to pay for these measures by cutting government spending from the start of the 2009 financial year ? and not just from 2010, as the Tories have already proposed.</p><p>Cameron said the measures were necessary to encourage a culture of savings. Tory officials said that the abolition of the savings tax could save some people with income from savings up to £7,200 a year.</p><p>But Cameron's proposals to cut the rate at which government spending will increase in 2009-10 from 3.4% to 2.6% are likely to be seized upon by Labour as evidence that public services would suffer under the Conservatives.</p><p>Yvette Cooper, chief secretary to the Treasury, branded them as "incoherent" and said Tory plans to cut public spending during a downturn were "economic madness".</p><p>"David Cameron's proposals are very incoherent," she told Sky News. "Clearly he doesn't understand what the economy needs."</p><p>Cameron unveiled his proposals ? which also included plans to promote investment in green technologies and to expand the high-speed broadband network ? less than two hours after <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/jan/05/gordon-brown-economy" title="">Gordon Brown delivered his own speech accusing the Tories of advocating a "do nothing" approach</a> that would be "socially divisive".</p><p>As interest rates have fallen drastically in recent months, there have been an increasing number of complaints from savers who are losing out because the value of their interest payments has fallen. Cameron said that this was "economically stupid and morally indefensible" because the government ought to be encouraging people to save, not punishing them for doing so.</p><p>"We need to make a really big change: from an economy built on debt to an economy built on savings, from a country and government that has lived beyond its means to one that lives within its means," he said.</p><p>"In order to help deal with Labour's debt crisis and help turn Britain from a spend, spend, spend society into a save, save, save society, it is time to abolish income tax on savings for everyone on the basic rate of tax, with top-rate taxpayers continuing to pay the same, and it is time to raise the tax allowance for pensioners by £2,000.</p><p>"We would pay for this change by restricting the growth of public spending in the coming year, 2009-10. While the government has cut back its spending plans from 2010 onwards, so far it has left its 2009 spending plans untouched.</p><p>"I believe this is wrong. The time to start being prudent is now. Why? Because by doing so we can help the victims of Labour's recession and help build the long-term strength of the economy. These two proposals would be more than paid for by maintaining the government's spending plans for the NHS, schools, defence and international development, but restricting other departments to a 1% increase in real terms."</p><p>In an important shift of policy, Cameron announced last year that the Conservatives would not match Labour's public spending plans from 2010-11 onwards. After the publication of the pre-budget report, which outlined slimmed-down spending plans, Cameron said the Tories would still spend less than Labour from 2010 onwards.</p><p>Today's announcements means that the gap between the parties on public spending has become even wider. Under Labour, public spending would increase by 3.4% in 2009-10, but under the Tories it would rise by just 2.6% ? saving £5bn.</p><p>Abolishing the tax on savings for basic-rate taxpayers would cost £2.6bn a year.</p><p>Raising allowances for pensioners would cost £1.5bn a year, and save pensioners up to £400 a year.</p><p>The Tories said that spending on health, education, defence and international development would rise in line with Labour's existing plans. But the rate of spending growth in other departments would fall from 4.1% to 1%.</p><p>Officials said that the party would set out at a later date how this could be achieved without hitting frontline services. They said that the government was already committed to saving £5bn in 2010-11 through efficiency savings. That leaves around £900m for the Tories to play with beyond the changes announced today.</p><p>In his speech, Cameron also said that the Tories would promote investment in green technology by using "green tech incubators" to help entrepreneurs launch green firms and by giving them access to investment through the creation of a "green stock market".</p><p>He also said he wanted Britain to install high-speed broadband more quickly, promising to do "everything we can" to ensure that a majority of the population has access to high-speed broadband within five years and near universal coverage within 10 years.</p><p>Cameron said that he was not proposing "massive state-financed investment". Instead a Tory government would "facilitate" the development by various methods, such as providing regulatory security to investors.</p><p>In response to Labour's charge that the Tories are advocating a "do nothing" approach to the economy, Cameron said: "Labour had better realise that 'do-nothing' is what people are starting to think about them ? because Labour don't seem to be doing much to help the economy at all."</p><p>The Tory leader also used his speech to attack Labour's decision to spend £12.5bn cutting VAT. He said that was "an absolute criminal waste of money" because it had not made any difference to people's spending.</p><p>He also renewed his call for an election this year.</p><p>Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, said: "Gordon Brown and David Cameron are conmen trying to fool the British public. First we have an expensive VAT cut that doesn't help people and now the prime minister announces he will create 100,000 jobs without any idea of how.</p><p>"David Cameron is offering his own fake giveaway. Cutting savings tax will mean someone saving £100 will only get an extra 40p a year. If David Cameron is going to be taken seriously he has to identify what cuts he will make. How many fewer police officers will there be on the street and who will have a smaller pension?"</p><div style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/davidcameron">David Cameron</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/conservatives">Conservatives</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/economy">Economic policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/gordon-brown">Gordon Brown</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/taxandspending">Tax and spending</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/creditcrunch">Credit crunch</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/small-business">Small business</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/banks">Banks and building societies</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/banking">Banking</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/recession">Recession</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/policy">Public services policy</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/savings">Savings</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/incometax">Income tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/tax">Tax</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/public-finance">Public finance</a></li></ul></div><div class="guRssAdvert"><a href="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/click.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Politics&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822262010609270523034"><img src="http://ads.guardian.co.uk/image.ng/richmedia=yes&site=Politics&country=usa&spacedesc=rss&system=rss&transactionID=1231233822262010609270523034" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our <a href="http://users.guardian.co.uk/help/article/0,,933909,00.html">Terms & Conditions</a> | <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/webfeeds/1,,1309488,00.html">More Feeds</a>
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