The re-birth of the British truffle industry?

When I think of truffles, I tend to picture the rolling countryside of Northern Italy or the deeper parts of Germany’s Black Forest. What I don’t picture is the UK. However, that’s a mental picture I may soon have to change, as the first truffle to be cultivated in UK soil for an age has recently been harvested from a humble field in Leicestershire, according to one entrepreneurial plant biologist. Continue reading

Phoenix Life and the art of overcharging customers

Potentially tens of thousands of people holding a Scottish Provident insurance policy could be owed substantial refunds, now that life insurance company Phoenix has finally been forced to admit it has been overcharging its clients. Perhaps ironically, the scandal was only brought to light by the efforts of one retired independent financial adviser who took the time to sit down and analyse the charges on his own policies. Continue reading

FCA Levels Playing Field for Lenders

The Competition and Markets Authority has issued a statement confirming that payday lenders will be forced to publish not only their rates, but also the total amount payable, on at least one City-watchdog-authorised price comparison website. After a gruelling 20-month long investigation into the murky depths of the payday lending market, the CMA has published the final report detailing measures aimed at increasing effective price competition between payday lenders. Hopefully these measures will help borrowers get a much better deal. Continue reading

UK seeing “actual” growth?

It appears the UK is once again on the up, as David Cameron flaunts the news that Britain’s employment rate has reached a joint highest level since 1971. The government has taken this as further evidence that the UK economy is not only still growing, it’s getting stronger too. It’s a sentiment that seems to be mirrored by the market; as the pound strengthens, wages are finally starting to outpace inflation and the standard of living in places outside of London has slowly begun to increase.  Continue reading