Ill-health or disability is forcing one in eight people to stop working before they reach the state pension age, according to the TUC.
The union found almost half a million people have had to leave work for medical reasons within five years before they were due to retire. In March the Government announced an independent review into the state pension age. The Government said it already provides support for ill or disabled workers. Research by the TUC, however, points to a significant north/south divide. In the south west of England, just one in 13 people blamed sickness or disability for leaving work. However, that figure rises to one in seven in the north of England, Scotland and Wales and one in four in Northern Ireland. Those in the lowest-paid jobs or in manual work are also twice as likely to stop working for health reasons than managers or professionals. Student accountsRBS and NatWest customers who had student accounts dating back to 2002 will learn whether they are owed compensation by 1 November.
The bank said that tens of thousands of customers had been charged for extended overdrafts that were supposed to be interest-free. They included student customers from 2002 to March this year. The bank said it would use public databases to find those who have moved home. Food prices Shop prices fell again last month, providing a boost for consumers but dealing a fresh blow to retailers, The Times reports. Prices on the high street dropped by 2 per cent in August compared with a 1.6 per cent decline in July, according to an index compiled by the British Retail Consortium and Nielsen, the market research company. Food deflation hit a record, with prices down by 1.1 per cent, against 0.8 per cent in the previous two months, while non-food deflation accelerated to 2.5 per cent from 2.2 per cent in July. Promotions, low oil prices and a global supply glut of wheat were all putting pressure on goods. Homeowners The latest research from Lloyds Bank has revealed that homeowners are gradually starting to feel more optimistic about the time it will take them to move into their long-term family home. While four out of five homeowners believe that they will have to wait longer to achieve their long-term aspiration than they would have a decade ago, the report shows that the number of homeowners thinking that has fallen steadily from 2012. Similarly, while this year’s study shows that four in 10 believe the uncertain housing market has had an impact on housing aspirations, this number has fallen from 2012. Service sector The UK service sector returned to growth in August, according to PMI survey data from IHS Markit and CIPS. The index rebounded to 52.9 in August, from 47.4 in July. A reading above 50 indicates growth. But Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, whose forecasts tend to be more negative than many of its rivals, says the UK is ‘still on course for a sharp slowdown in Q3’. Finally… With the 2016 summer transfer window now closed, European clubs selling players to England have reaped the benefits of a weak pound. Clubs selling players post-Brexit have raked in an extra 12 per cent on players due to sterling’s dramatic decline against the euro. Foreign exchange specialists Caxton FX have examined how much money has been lost by UK clubs who decided to purchase players after the referendum. Manchester United were hit the hardest, effectively awarding Italian club Jeventus a cool €10.5 million (£8,887.909) through their post-Brexit purchase of Paul Pogba, adding even more revenue to the world-record transfer deal. Chelsea Football Club also felt the pinch, paying an extra £4 million for David Luiz and Georges-Kevin Nikoudou. Meanwhile, online estate agents, MakeUrMove, have compiled the first ever Premier League Property table. The figures show that the two Manchester clubs alone spent enough money on players to buy over 2,000 new homes. It was a similar tale on Merseyside and even in leafy Hertfordshire where Watford could have housed families in over 160 new homes.
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