Sunak to face questions on budget after vowing to build ‘stronger economy’

Published

3 years ago

October 27, 2021

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Rishi Sunak will hit the airwaves to sell his budget later, after it was warned that the chancellor’s economic set piece will leave the poorest families “far worse off”.

Having vowed to build “a stronger economy for the British people” after the coronavirus crisis in his address on Wednesday, Mr Sunak will face questions about his plans for the nation’s finances in a series of broadcast interviews.

MPs will also get the chance to give their views, with the budget debate continuing in the Commons.

The chancellor warned of “challenging” months ahead due to the continuing COVID pandemic and rising inflation as he delivered his budget.

Promising to provide “help for working families with the cost of living”, Mr Sunak announced he would lower the taper rate of Universal Credit from 63% to 55%.

The move means that, for every extra £1 someone earns, their Universal Credit will be reduced by 55p rather than 63p.

Mr Sunak also announced a new post-Brexit system of alcohol duties, including a lower rate of tax on draught beer and cider to boost pubs.

And with petrol prices having hit a record high across the UK, the chancellor cancelled a planned rise in fuel duty.

In a bid to support high streets, Mr Sunak unveiled a new year-long 50% business rates discount for businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors.

Given the budget was delivered amid the backdrop of a continuing cost of living crisis that is putting pressure on household budgets, particular attention was paid to measures to try to ease the strain on people’s finances.

But delivering its snap assessment of the chancellor’s budget, the Resolution Foundation suggested the bottom fifth of households will be worse off to the tune of £280 a year because of welfare cuts and tax increases.

The think tank said a typical worker on £29,000 could also end up worse off as rising inflation – which is predicted to peak at 4.4% in March – will “all but end income growth next year” as the cost of living goes up.

Torsten Bell, chief executive of the Resolution Foundation, said the reduction in the Universal Credit taper would “soften, rather than tackle, the cost of living crisis facing millions of families across the UK today”.

He continued: “The welcome £3bn boost to Universal Credit will have offset some of the losses from the £6bn cut that took effect earlier this month.

“But while some higher-earning couples on Universal Credit are likely to be better off, the poorest families in the UK will still be far worse off over the coming months.”

The Institute for Fiscal Studies, which will deliver its full verdict on the budget later, said people will not necessarily feel better off.

“Inflation is going to head up to 4%, even 5%. We have big tax rises coming next April,” said the research institute’s director Paul Johnson in the immediate aftermath on Wednesday.

“The economy’s not really growing very fast, so it’s likely on average people’s incomes will only be crawling over the next three, four, even five years and certainly some people, particularly those whose wages don’t go up as fast, will be feeling worse off.

“So this is not a period of people feeling better I’m afraid.”

Labour’s shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said “never has a chancellor asked the British people to pay so much for so little”, describing the budget as a “shocking missed opportunity by a government that is completely out of touch”.

“As he hits working people with the highest sustained tax burden in peacetime, he’s giving a tax cut to bankers who like to take short-haul flights while sipping Champagne,” she said.

“After taking £6bn out of the pockets of some of the poorest people in this country, he is expecting them to cheer today at being given £2bn to compensate.”

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who tested positive for COVID on Wednesday morning and therefore missed the budget, accused Mr Sunak of doing “nothing about the cost-of-living crisis”.

In the wake of the budget, the Office for Budget Responsibility said the overall tax burden was at its highest since the early 1950s, towards the end of Labour Prime Minister Clement Atlee’s time in Downing Street.

The chancellor acknowledged this in his budget speech, telling MPs: “I don’t like it, but I cannot apologise for it, it’s the result of the unprecedented crisis we faced and the extraordinary action we took in response.”

And in a bid to reassure Tory MPs, Mr Sunak added: “By the end of this parliament, I want taxes to be going down not up.”

The chancellor later addressed the 1922 Committee of Conservative backbenchers – and it is understood he tried to further reassure them on this point, telling them that he wants to use “every marginal pound” in the future to cut taxes rather than increase spending.

Politics

Government to decide on ‘postcode pricing’ plan for electricity bills by summer

Published

5 hours ago

April 24, 2025

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Government to decide on 'postcode pricing' plan for electricity bills by summer

The government will decide by the summer on controversial proposals to charge some households more for their electricity than others, Sky News understands.

The energy secretary Ed Miliband has been mulling over plans for “zonal pricing”, which would see different regions of the country pay different rates, based on supply and demand levels in the local area.

The idea is to attract industry to build in low-cost areas, and incentivise new electricity generation in regions where people need it most.

Supporters say zonal pricing could lower everyone’s bills to some extent by making the system more efficient – but some would fall more than others.

Critics, including renewable energy generators, warn the plans would create a postcode lottery for bills and put investors off certain areas, risking jobs.

It is not yet clear how the changes would be passed on to household bills. But it could see people in the south of England pay much more than those in parts of Scotland – though not, the government hopes, more than they do now.

Mr Miliband is expected to make his recommendation to fellow government ministers in the coming weeks, before the government decides either way by the middle of this year.

They are keen to resolve the issue – which was also considered under the last Tory government – before businesses start bidding for fresh renewable power contracts in summer.

UK still ‘vulnerable and exposed’

It comes as the UK government hosts a summit on energy security in London today, lobbying other countries to leave fossil fuels behind.

Mr Miliband said the government’s push to generate more clean power at home was as much about energy security as it was about fighting climate change.

“As long as energy can be weaponised against us, our countries and our citizens are vulnerable and exposed,” he said in a speech.

But he also said North Sea oil and gas would “continue to play an important role” in the UK energy mix, fuelling campaigners’ fears it may yet allow the Rosebank oil and gas field to go ahead, despite hurdles in court and the government’s own concerns.

Mr Miliband quoted a message from King Charles that said the “transition to more sustainable energy sources can itself lead to more resilient and secure energy systems”.

Trump’s representative invokes God

US President Donald Trump’s junior representative at the summit, acting assistant secretary Tommy Joyce, quoted the Bible in his address.

He urged delegates to “remember God’s golden rule, and that is that we should love our neighbour as ourselves”.

That means helping them out of poverty through access to affordable energy, according to Mr Joyce.

About 750 million people in the world still have no access to electricity, and team Trump says American oil, gas and coal are the answer.

However, a report by RMI suggests that new wind and solar are the cheapest option for new electricity in 82% of the world – though for some countries are hard to finance upfront.

Mr Joyce also continued Trump’s ongoing attacks on climate policies, criticising what he described as “so-called renewables” and the “net zero agenda”.

‘Most delicate debate’

Before the summit, a senior UN official said the idea that the switch to clean power compromised energy security and affordability “is just not true”.

“We really need to dispel this notion,” said the source, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “If you are dependent on volatile and expensive fossil fuel imports, fossil fuels equal energy insecurity.”

A senior official from Brazil, which in November is hosting the COP30 UN climate summit, also this week said there had been a “rather successful” attempt by some to frame energy security and the switch to clean energy as a question of “either/or”.

“We don’t believe it is.”

He called it “one of the most delicate debates” of the moment.

Politics

Upbit and Bithumb suspend Synthetix token deposits, citing sUSD risks

Published

7 hours ago

April 24, 2025

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Upbit and Bithumb suspend Synthetix token deposits, citing sUSD risks

South Korean exchanges Upbit and Bithumb have suspended deposits for Synthetix (SNX) tokens after it was flagged by the Digital Asset Exchange Alliance (DAXA) for potential risks.

DAXA, the self-regulatory organization establishing industry standards for South Korean exchanges, designated SNX as a cautionary item.

Assets receiving this designation typically undergo rigorous evaluations to determine whether trading can continue or if delisting is necessary.

Exchanges may take action, such as adding a warning tag to the asset and urging investors to take caution when engaging with it. Trading platforms can also perform additional measures, like blocking deposits or suspending trading support temporarily.

Upbit and Bithumb block SNX deposits

In response to the designation, the biggest exchanges in South Korea said they are blocking deposits for SNX tokens on their platforms.

Upbit announced that it had added a trading caution ticker and suspended token deposits. The exchange said it had been monitoring the developments related to the Synthetix USD (sUSD) depegging. It added that this event may damage investors through potential volatility, as SNX is used as collateral for sUSD.

The exchange added that it had determined a lack of use cases for the asset, which may cause investors to suffer losses. Upbit said it would conduct a comprehensive review to decide whether to delist the asset or resume normal operations for the token.

Bithumb has also blocked deposits for SNX and added a cautionary tag for the token. However, the exchange said this decision could be overturned depending on internal circumstances. If the reason for the designation is resolved, Bithumb said it would lift the restrictions.

Korbit and Coinone also published investor alerts to caution traders. The two exchanges added cautionary tags to SNX tokens to alert investors who may want to trade the token.

Cointelegraph reached out to Synthetix for comment but did not get a response by publication.

sUSD struggles to recover dollar peg

On April 10, the sUSD stablecoin dropped to a five-year low of $0.83 after struggling to maintain its dollar peg in the first quarter of 2025. With the stablecoin being collateralized by the project’s native asset, Cork Protocol co-founder Rob Schmitt compared the token to Terra USD (UST), which collapsed in 2022. However, Schmitt said that sUSD has a “more manageable” debt system.

On April 18, the stablecoin dipped further to $0.68, with SNX falling by 26% in a 30-day period. A Synthetix spokesperson told Cointelegraph that their team has short, medium and long-term plans to mitigate the risks.

On April 21, Synthetix founder Kain Warwick threatened SNX stakers with “the stick” if they didn’t take up a newly launched staking mechanism to fix the sUSD depeg. The executive said they may put extra pressure on stakers if they don’t see enough momentum on the newly implemented mechanism.

Since the warning, sUSD prices increased by 27%. On April 24, the stablecoin briefly reached $0.87. However, the token has still failed to recover its dollar peg.

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Politics

Shaquille O’Neal reaches settlement in FTX lawsuit, terms remain secret

Published

7 hours ago

April 24, 2025

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Shaquille O’Neal reaches settlement in FTX lawsuit, terms remain secret

Shaquille O’Neal has settled with investors who claim losses from the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, according to an April 23 filing in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

The settlement amount remains confidential, with terms expected to be disclosed after investors formally request preliminary court approval, according to court documents.

O’Neal and other celebrities and athletes were accused of promoting FTX and allegedly contributing to investor losses by endorsing the now-bankrupt exchange.

The case is part of a broader multidistrict litigation effort, where investors are seeking up to $21 billion in damages from FTX insiders, advisers and promoters, far exceeding the $9.2 billion available through bankruptcy proceedings.

Other celebrities embroiled in similar legal troubles for their roles in FTX include NFL quarterback Tom Brady, supermodel Gisele Bündchen, billionaire investor Kevin O’Leary, former NBA player Udonis Haslem, David Ortiz, Naomi Osaka and others.

Notably, FTX investors faced challenges in serving O’Neal with legal papers during the early stages of the lawsuit over his promotion of the collapsed exchange.

Lawyers representing the victims described O’Neal as “running from the lawsuit,” after multiple failed attempts to deliver court documents. Legal teams reportedly spent months trying to reach the NBA legend, resorting to creative methods, including attempting service during NBA games and at his residences.

O’Neal finalizes $11 million settlement over Astrals NFT project

The settlement with FTX investors comes as O’Neal recently agreed to pay $11 million to resolve a class-action lawsuit tied to his involvement in the Solana-based Astrals NFT project.

In May 2023, O’Neal was served with the Astral NFT lawsuit during an NBA game at Miami’s Kaseya Center, formerly the FTX Arena. The class-action lawsuit involved his promotion of the Astrals NFT project, alleging that the NFTs promoted by O’Neal were unregistered securities.

In August 2024, a Miami federal court judge ruled that O’Neal would need to defend some of the claims brought against him in the case.

Astrals is a Solana-based project featuring 10,000 NFTs, a metaverse called Astralworld and a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) with a governance token called Galaxy.

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