The National Living Wage is set to rise from £8.91 per hour to £9.50 in the Budget according to some sources A 6.6% increase in the minimum wage for all those aged 23 and over - more than twice the current 3.1% rise in the cost of living. The rise is recommended by campaign group the Living Wage Foundation.
This article if from the Office for National Statistics written by Sarah Crofts is the Head of Analytical Outputs for the COVID-19 Infection Survey. As well as providing estimates on infection levels and antibodies, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey (CIS) collects information from participants on their vaccination status, providing some insight into vaccine effectiveness on variants, including Delta.
Bitcoin's journey into mainstream finance has reached another major milestone - and another record price. The cryptocurrency was trading at US$66,975 (£48,456) following the launch of an exchange traded fund (ETF) in the US which has dramatically increased bitcoin's exposure to investors.
Major phone networks have agreed to automatically block almost all internet calls coming from abroad if they pretend to be from UK numbers, Ofcom has confirmed. Criminals have been using internet-based calling technology to make it look like a phone call or text is coming from a real telephone number.
Office for National Statistics Blog by Darren Morgan is ONS Director of Economic Statistics. Many of the UK's key indicators have seen dramatic movements as a result of the pandemic, making it hard to see underlying trends.
If we are to build a greener, fairer and more equal society in the wake of COVID-19, it's time for rich countries to end their practice of dumping plastic waste in developing countries. This not only harms the environment but disproportionately affects the women and girls who tend to clear it up.
Zeeshan Syed, economics expert at the University of Salford Business School, comments as Chancellor Rishi Sunak puts the finishing touches to his budget, set to be announced on Wednesday. Zeeshan said: "Jobs at a record high, national debt levels declining, housing prices soaring, and a public ever more confident is the picture of post-covid UK.
The total volume of online job adverts grew by 2% on 15 October 2021 from the previous week to 143% of its February 2020 average. "Transport, logistics and warehouse" remains the category with the highest volume of job adverts relative to its February 2020 average level, with the volume now over four times higher than the period shortly before the first UK lockdown, according to data from Adzuna.
2,240 new cases of COVID-19 reported 23,055 new tests for COVID-19 that reported results 10.3% of these were positive. 0 new reported death(s) of people who have tested positive (noting that Register Offices are generally closed at the weekend).
In most of our analysis of education spending, we focus on spending in England to ensure comparability. In this observation, we expand our analysis to show the level and changes to school spending per pupil across the four nations of the UK.
Earlier last week, markets reacted to comments by the governor of the Bank of England by bringing forward their expectations of when interest rates will rise. Bank Rate currently sits at an ultra-low 0.1% and hasn't exceeded 1% since January 2009 but markets are now pricing-in an increase at next month's MPC meeting and expect rates to reach 1% by next summer.
Details of the Scottish Government's COP26 programme have been announced, kick-starting three weeks of action to secure an ambitious climate deal at COP26 in Glasgow. The First Minister will make two key note addresses this week - setting out the Scottish Government's ambitions for COP26 on Monday before opening the UN's Conference of Youth on Thursday.
Stuart Black, who will take up the post in January 2022, has led the economic and community development agency's Moray team since February 2020. Earlier this year, he took on additional responsibility as HIE's lead area manager, co-ordinating the work of eight locally-based teams around the region.
Press reports suggest that the Chancellor is planning an overhaul of the UK's system of alcohol duties. The current system, which raises about £12 billion a year, is certainly ripe for reform.
2,528 new cases of COVID-19 reported. 26,807 new tests for COVID-19 that reported results 9.9% of these were positive.
Care workers rally at Holyrood to "Fight for Fifteen" as pay campaign ramps-up ahead of national care service consultation close Care workers rallied at the Scottish Parliament this weekend (Saturday 23 October) as they stepped up their fight for £15 an hour social care minimum wage. GMB invited the media, public and politicians to come and listen to the testimonies of members from across the care industry, detailing their experiences and struggles of care delivery before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the need for substantial pay increases.
The UK is set for its biggest ever current-year economic growth upgrade next week as a result of a smaller-than-forecast pandemic hit, and a faster-than-expected pandemic recovery, but rising inflation will squeeze both the Chancellor's borrowing windfall and family budgets this autumn, according to new research published today (Tuesday) by the Resolution Foundation. The Uncertainty Principle examines the UK's economic and fiscal outlook and what this means for the big policy decisions facing the Chancellor as he prepares to deliver his Budget and Spending Review next Wednesday.
Commenting on the latest inflation figures for September, which saw CPI fall slightly to 3.1 per cent (down from 3.2 per cent in August but up from 0.4 per cent in February) and CPIH fell to 2.9 per cent (from 3.0 per cent in August), but with further increases due over the coming months, Jack Leslie, Senior Economist at the Resolution Foundation, said:"Today's inflation data tells us both about the cost of living pressures today, and the pressures coming down the line as it is normally used to uprate benefits and set income tax rises next April. "Inflation fell back this month temporarily as the effects of last year's Eat Out to Help Out artificially raised last month’s inflation outturn.
Rapid COVID-19 community testing will be available in Wick from Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October. Read this carefully as this is a different testing centre to the one already at Riverside, Wick.
The largest IT service centre in Europe opens in Scotland creating hundreds of jobs with a £225 million investment over the next five years. In a boost for the Highlands, two new sites in Nairn and Inverness have opened this week, as part of a new Defence IT support contract, creating jobs for over 250 people in the local area and boosting the local economy.
