In London, Tube and bus fares are being frozen and prices reduced during rush hour and on Fridays
Rail fares in England and Wales will rise by 4.9% on Sunday, adding hundreds of pounds to annual travel costs for many commuters.
Campaigners said passengers would be “rightly angry” at the latest increase, above the current inflation rate of 4%, despite the government arguing that it had made a significant intervention to keep the fare rise down.
Continue reading...The government says it is still planning to increase salary threshold to £38,700 but Tory backbenchers have called the move ‘deeply disappointing’
Regulated rail fares in England will rise by nearly 5% in March, PA Media reports. PA says:
The Department for Transport has set a cap of 4.9% for increases to most fares regulated by the government, which include season tickets on most commuter journeys, some off-peak return tickets on long distance routes and flexible tickets for travel around major cities.
July’s RPI measure of inflation, which is traditionally used to determine annual fare rises, was 9.0%.
Having met our target of halving inflation across the economy, this is a significant intervention by the government to cap the increase in rail fares below last year’s rise.
Changed working patterns after the pandemic mean that our railways are still losing money and require significant subsidies, so this rise strikes a balance to keep our railways running, while not overburdening passengers.
Continue reading...Government confirms ticket price rises will be delayed until March and will be below retail prices index
Rail fare rises in England will not exceed 9% next year and will be delayed until March, the government has said.
Ticket costs used to increase in January in line with inflation as measured by the retail prices index over the 12 months to the previous July. On Wednesday the Office for National Statistics revealed last month’s RPI rate was 9%.
Continue reading...Around 100,000 civil servants, working in multiple government agencies, have voted to strike in a dispute over pay, pensions and jobs.
According to Pat Leahy, political editor of the Irish Times, the Irish government is doubtful about the prospect of a breakthrough in the coming weeks in the talks on the Northern Ireland protocol.
In his Sky News interview Chris Heaton-Harris, the Northern Ireland secretary, also suggested that large number of politicians in parliament are voting for Matt Hancock to perform “grim” tasks on I’m A Celebrity. My colleague Aubrey Allegretti has the story here.
Continue reading...Staff warily contemplate going back to work as business leaders say it is vital to boost urban economy
With the lifting of coronavirus restrictions in England probably two weeks away, the prospect of returning to offices means the revival of the daily commute.
In a push to bring back more people to town and city centres to boost the urban economy, a group of 50 business leaders, including the Canary Wharf executive chair, Sir George Iacobescu, the bosses of Heathrow and Gatwick airports, the Capita chief executive, Jon Lewis, and the BT chief executive, Philip Jansen, are calling for the government to encourage a return to the office.
Continue reading...An initiative against tax havens has been voted down by states who cannot afford to lose the revenue such status brings
For the time being, the European commission has lost its battle with the EU’s tax havens for greater visibility on how much tax multinational companies pay and where they pay it.
A proposed rule would have forced multinationals to reveal the revenues and profits they make, and how little corporate tax they pay, in each of the 28 member states.
Continue reading...Some major routes to be 208% over capacity by 2022, shows data compiled by Labour
Overcrowding on trains is at the highest level for years, according to official data compiled by Labour showing some major routes are to be 208% of capacity by 2022.
A study of government figures found the most overcrowded services were on average 187% of capacity in 2017, an increase of 25% since 2011.
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