Hereditary peers to lose their seats in the House of Lords
Hereditary peerages will be abolished before the next king’s speech after a deal was struck granting life peerages to some Conservatives and cross-benchers losing their seats.On Tuesday evening the upper chamber accepted a final draft of the House of Lords (hereditary peers) bill, marking the end of its passage through parliament and clearing the way for it to be added to the statute book.The Lords leader, Angela Smith, confirmed the government would offer life peerages to some of those who would otherwise lose their seats.As a result, the Tories withdrew their opposition to the bill.Since 1999, up to 92 hereditary peers have been able to sit in the upper house and cast their votes in the lobbies but the bill effectively reduces this quota to zero.
Hereditary peers who have not been made life peers will no longer have a right to sit in the Lords once the current parliamentary session ends, expected later this spring,Lady Smith said: “This has never been about the contribution of individuals but the underlying principle that was agreed by parliament over 25 years ago that no one should sit in our parliament by way of an inherited title,“Over a quarter of a century later, hereditary peers remain while meaningful reform has stagnated,We have a duty to find a way forward,”The lord speaker, Michael Forsyth, offered his thanks to hereditary peers for their service in the upper chamber.
Lord Forsyth of Drumlean said: “I would like to thank hereditary peers from all parties and none for their work in the House of Lords over many years.“Whatever views people may have of this constitutional change, it is sad to say goodbye to friends, who in many cases have contributed significantly to debate and scrutiny and to our institutional memory.“Recognising their contribution is not about party politics but acknowledging the value of service and commitment, and I am proud to do so and to thank them.”The king’s speech is expected to take place in the second week of May, days after elections across Britain on 7 May.
British fintech Revolut gets full banking licence
Revolut can finally launch as a fully fledged UK bank after a five-year wait for regulatory approval.The fintech said it had received the all-clear from the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) for a full banking licence, allowing it to offer accounts for retail and business customers.It will start introducing current accounts to a small number of new customers within days, the group said.The move follows Revolut being granted a UK banking licence – with “restrictions” – in 2024, having first lodged its application in 2021.Revolut bosses were said to have grown frustrated with UK regulators, who had been slow to grant a full licence allowing it to hold customer deposits and branch out into more lucrative products such as loans and mortgages
CMA to investigate heating oil suppliers over ‘blatant profiteering’ from Iran war
Heating oil suppliers are to be investigated by the competition watchdog after accusations that firms are “blatantly profiteering” from the conflict in the Middle East by doubling the prices they charge to households.The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it had received “a number of concerning reports” in recent days from consumers reliant on heating oil about suppliers’ behaviour at a time of rising wholesale costs.About 1.7m households in the UK, mostly in rural areas that are not connected to the mains gas network, rely on heating oil to warm their homes, cook food and provide hot water.The CMA will look into consumer complaints about existing orders being cancelled, with customers then offered new quotes at significantly higher prices, and price increases for automated deliveries to customers that are triggered when the fuel in an oil tank drops to a certain level
World’s energy watchdog orders emergency release of 400m barrels of oil to curb prices – as it happened
It’s official: the International Energy Agency has ordered the largest release of government oil reserves in its history to help calm the oil price shock triggered by the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.The world’s energy watchdog said its 32 members had agreed unanimously to release about 400m barrels of emergency crude, a third of the group’s total government stockpiles and more than double the IEA’s previous biggest release.The emergency intervention far outstrips the 2022 release of 182m barrels of oil by IEA countries after Russia’s full-scale invasion of UkraineThe body’s executive director, Fatih Birol, sad: “Oil markets are global so the response to major disruptions needs to be global too. Energy security is the founding mandate of the IEA, and I am pleased that IEA members are showing strong solidarity in taking decisive action together.”The IEA said the emergency stocks would be made available to the global market, which has lost around 15m barrels of crude a day because of a block on trade via the strait of Hormuz, over a timeframe appropriate to the national circumstances of each member, bolstered by supplementary emergency measures from some countries
IEA orders largest ever release of stockpiled oil to reduce crude price
The International Energy Agency has ordered the largest release of government oil reserves in its history to help calm the oil price shock triggered by the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.The world’s energy watchdog said its 32 members had agreed unanimously to release about 400m barrels of emergency crude, a third of the group’s total government stockpiles and more than double the IEA’s previous biggest release.The emergency intervention far outstrips the 2022 release of 182m barrels of oil by IEA countries after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.The body’s executive director, Fatih Birol, said: “Oil markets are global so the response to major disruptions needs to be global, too. Energy security is the founding mandate of the IEA, and I am pleased that IEA members are showing strong solidarity in taking decisive action together
Labor must stop juicing house prices and make buying a home the Australian dream – not negatively gearing one | Greg Jericho
As uncertainty hits everywhere, the Australian housing market continues its usual path upwards.Less than two months ago, I let rip at the IMF for titling its latest World Economic Outlook as “Global Economy: Steady amid Divergent Forces” despite the fact a clueless fool sits in the White House ready to unleash chaos should his blood sugar levels fall too low.If the graph does not display click hereI can’t wait for the IMF’s April update, which will no doubt tell us that the forces remain “divergent” if steady.The war in Iran makes it rather impossible to say what will happen in the economy over the next six months – aside from gas companies profiting off human misery:If the graph does not display click hereBut there is, admittedly, one other constant in our economy: government policy that juices demand for housing will increase house prices and reduce affordability:If the graph does not display click hereOn Tuesday the latest dwelling price figures revealed that, in a shock to no one, the first home buyer 5% guarantee has caused dwelling prices to soar.In the December quarter, the average price of dwellings across Australia rose 2
Porsche to cut more jobs after costly reversal of electric car strategy
Porsche is to cut more jobs after profits were largely cancelled out by a costly writedown on reversing its electric car strategy, as the luxury manufacturer also battled a prolonged sales slump in China.The German carmaker appointed a new chief executive, Michael Leiters, on 1 January after four profit warnings last year that also contributed to it tumbling out of Germany’s DAX stock index.“The streamlining of the company needs to be sharpened and this will lead to further job reductions,” said Leiters on Wednesday. Porsche employs about 40,000 people and has previously said it would make about 3,900 job cuts by 2030.“We will streamline our management structure, reduce hierarchies and cut back on bureaucracy,” said Leiters, adding that more details would come in the autumn
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