The Government has admitted sellers’ packs are unlikely to be introduced until 2004 after it failed to secure a parliamentary slot for the legislation. The compulsory packs, which have come under fire from the housing industry and MPs for their high cost, were scheduled to launch in 2003 but the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions now concedes this is virtually impossible. It says a parliamentary slot is unlikely to be found until next year.
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Section 32 has a role in new regime
Recently, I have been reminded how useful a role the old section 32 buyout policy can play in the new pension scenarios, regardless of whether we are looking at group or individual business.Starting with group business, the trend away from defined-benefit towards defined-contribution business, already well established among small and medium-sized employers, has now become […]
Put new life into business
If you were asked to name a profitable area of financial planning, the chances are that basic life insurance would not immediately spring to mind. But one area of protection planning which IFAs largely miss out on at the expense of banks does fit the bill – business loan protection.Business lending is almost always conditional […]
Moore's code
Holland has been one of the few dark clouds on CGNU's horizon since Norwich Union and CGU surprised many by pulling off their nil-premium merger.CGNU's Dutch fund management business looked to be going well and promised much for the future. But a cursory glance at the company's recent figures shows sales of equity-linked products in […]
Walter Merricks
Lives: Highgate, North LondonBorn: June 4, 1945, in East SussexAge: 56Education: Bradfield College, Berkshire and Trinity College, OxfordCareer to date: Director of Camden Community Law Centre, Writer for New Law Journal, Head of Communications at the Law Society, Insurance OmbudsmanCareer Ambition: “Very happy with whatI am doing now, thank you.”Life ambition: “To win the tennis […]
Artemis Global Select: opportunities in reliable growth stocks …
Good and growing companies are still to be found, Simon Edelsten, manager of the Artemis Global Select Fund, tells Ross Leckie – even in a world marked by low(er) growth and political uncertainty.
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Platforms face difficult second half after sluggish sales
Platforms should brace themselves for a difficult second half of the year as sluggish Isa sales led to a soft second quarter, consultancy Fundscape says. Fundscape’s latest platform market figures show total platform assets – including the advised and direct-to-consumer sectors – grew by £32bn to £604bn in the second quarter of the year. However, […]
DB transfer exposure can nearly double adviser PI, broker finds
Advisers giving defined benefit pension transfer advice can expect to pay nearly double for their professional indemnity insurance premiums at the next renewal than those who do not advise in that area. QPI, which is part of insurance broker PIB Group, says advisers with DB exposure can expect to pay between 2 per cent and 3 […]
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Darius McDermott: Is now the time to give up on equities?
Back in April, I wrote a piece explaining why investors shouldn’t give up on bonds just yet. Given the heightened volatility in equity markets this year, I thought it might be a good idea to take a closer look at this asset class, too. The VIX index, which predicts market volatility and is known as […]