This Is Money Show

‘If you've ever wondered how you get triangles from a cow,’ sang British music legends Half Man Half Biscuit, ‘you need butter milk and cheese and an equilateral chain saw. ‘ It’s obvious when you know the answer! But what about the stuff you think you know the answers to… but do you? Really? The Big Money Questions. That’s the name of our fortnightly video presentation with Rachel Rickard Straus and a host of exceptional guests from the worlds of economics, business, the City and the bookshelves. In a departure from our usual round-up of the week’s money events, this week we introduce you to an audio version of the show. The question: What are stocks and shares? And related… What’s the difference between a stock and a share? Is that different from a bond? Why do they exist? Why are they different prices? What makes the prices move? How do you know if it’s worth buying them? Dividends? Huh? Forget the cheese - this stuff is whey too important to ignore. Listen, learn, enjoy.

Wherever your heart lies in the debate about Britain’s role in the world, your head cannot escape the fact that we import a lot of what we consume. From the oil and gas that heats our homes and powers our cars to the hops that add flavour to our pints of beer. And that’s fine when you have a strong currency. Thing is, for roughly a year ours has been devalued by about 20% and it affects the price of just about everything. Prices are going up – the official inflation figures released this week show that in black and white in Excel. But wages aren’t going up. They might be in France and Italy but not in Britain. It means… …well permit Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and the undisputed king of financial common sense, Simon Lambert, to explain exactly what it means. Also on the show. Personal debt is spiraling out of control and set to get worse as our low wage economy bites and interest rate rises now look more likely than they have for a long time. For heaven’s sake don’t let the crooks take what littl

It was meant to be an election about Brexit but it turned into one about new young voters and what they wanted. They wanted change. What they got was a minority Government, a coalition between the Conservatives and Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). But there are five more years until the next election and anyone 14, 15, 16, and 17 years old now will be able to vote in the next one. As well as some 13 year olds. They’re now part of the discussion like never before. Simon Lambert, Georgie Frost and Rachel Rickard Straus discuss how this is likely to affect our finances now and over the next five years. Can this Government even implement anything from their manifestos? How will they tackle impending debt and housing crises? What the hell will Brexit look like? Can they tackle the intergenerational inequality that the new voters clearly crave? Rachel explains the financial and economic plans in the DUP manifesto and how that’s likely to clash with Tory plans. You don’t get stuff li

Would you pay more tax for better health, housing, communications, green spaces, roads, social care, railways, education, defence? Or not? The consensus seems to be that we would if only people felt they could trust the people who spend it on our behalf. It’s a complex and fascinating issue for a country living way beyond its fiscal means - allow Georgie Frost, Simon Lambert and Rachel Rickard Straus to explain. Also on the show… A regular minimum payment to all men, women and children in Britain is the panacea for the fair, just and healthy society we’ve all been waiting for. Isn’t it? Enjoy.

A row that erupted over the Tory manifesto social care plans led to accusations of a dementia tax and a swift U-turn. Voters had previously been told they would get a cap on costs, but instead they got a floor of £100,000 to which their wealth could be whittled down to. The issue highlighted a problem we have in planning our finances - trust. Do you trust the framework that the Government puts in place on social care, pensions, investing and saving to still be there in years to come? That was reflected in Simon Lambert's column this week, looking at a reader who asked whether they could bank on the tax-free pension lump sum continuing to exist when they needed it in future. Simon, Rachel Rickard Straus and Georgie Frost discuss whether we can trust pensions, social care or anything else in this week's This is Money podcast. Also on the agenda, on the show that tells you everything you need to know about money each week, is whether the UK economy is doing well, badly or indifferently, the bank accounts t

The manifestos are out, but which political party would you trust with the UK economy? We look at Labour's plan to hike taxes, the Tories' plan to ditch the triple lock and the Lib Dem's plan to make a bit of cash on the side from selling weed. This week we finally got the triple whammy of what our three main political parties will do, so would any of these plans work and what do people think about them? Simon Lambert, Adrian Lowery and Georgie Frost delve into the details in the latest This is Money podcast. And it's not just the election, also up on this week's show is Lloyds vanishing Avios points, as it moves out of state ownership, the question of whether people should ditch their diesel and whether we should worry about a car finance bubble.

In part two of this week’s podcast, Georgie Frost, Rich Browning and Simon Lambert discuss the inevitability of another global financial meltdown and how we’re going to fix it this time round. Meanwhile, what’s in store in Europe now a former investment banker, Emmanual Macron, is president of France and looking to reinvigorate the European project? Perhaps this an opportunity for investors to make a quick buck or euro away from the uncertainty of the outcome of any Brexit negotiations. Is putting bankers in charge of anything within a decade of them bringing the world financial system to its knees a bit foolhardy? Or is this a case of this time it’s different? World War II was the solution to the Great Depression. Enjoy.

The property data is out and it’s not looking good. House prices fell for the first time in five years. Homes are going for less than asking prices. Yet in some areas you need 17 times your salary to buy a place. Where’s it all going to end? Perhaps moving into tiny mobile sheds on trailers or a boat is the only answer. Or will prices start to tumble? Simon Lambert takes one of his legendary forensic looks behind the figures, joined by Rich Browning and Georgie Frost for a fun debate into the doomsday scenarios. Also on the show… Democracy only survives with a strong opposition. It seems Ed Miliband, former Labour leader, was stronger than his message on the tablet suggested. His idea to cap energy prices has now been adopted by the would-be next Tory government. Is this plan put forward by Theresa May really any different? Or is ‘Marxist meddling’ in the markets by the Conservatives really happening? Strange times. Enjoy.

Shoppers have enjoyed cheap prices off the back of a supermarket price war, but alarm bells were sounded in Sainsbury’s results this week, showing how cost inflation is squeezing its profits. How long is it before supermarkets give up trying to cushion the blow for households and price rises hit? Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost look at what next for our shopping bills and how the big supermarkets are doing, in this week’s This is Money podcast. But how much do we really care about those big chains? It’s independent shops that we say we love and the team also take a look at whether the High Street is changing for the better or worse. Also on this week’s show, we reveal the tax breaks that you just lost as the Government quietly dropped plans to let you earn a bit tax-free on the side. There’s also a look at why 4G mobile is so shonky, rip-off bank charges and whether the house of 0% credit cards will come crashing down. And finally, if you’ve got a parking ticket recently we explain how to bea

The pensions triple lock means that state pensions rise by wages, inflation or 2.5% - whichever is greatest. This promise has raised pensioner incomes but stands accused of being too expensive and has become an election hot potato. Should it be ditched? Simon Lambert, Rachel Rickard Straus and Georgie Frost discuss it on this excerpt from the This is Money podcast.

Plans to massively hike probate fees have been dropped, but was this due to the General Election or the government trying to distance itself from a move that saw a huge backlash? Simon Lambert, Rachel Rickard Straus and Georgie Frost discuss it on this excerpt from the This is Money podcast.

The result of the election on June 8 will determine the financial outcome of Britain possibly more than any other in recent memory. So sit down and listen to Simon Lambert, Georgie Frost and Rachel Rickard Straus explain in simple terms what is at stake. On the agenda: Pension triple lock – if you’ve never really understood this, you will now Energy price cap – that old thing. The only thing left for Theresa May to do to turn into Ed Miliband is to eat a bacon butty badly. Who will fix the housing crisis and how? Is GDP now suffering at the prospect of Brexit - and is it really best way to measure a country’s performance? Elections in Europe – how may they affect our economy? New probate fees ‘the equivalent of paying £20,000 to renew your passport’ have been scrapped – and other great Tory tax u-turns Plus Let’s increase the speed limit to 80mph on motorways. We need something to look forward to. Enjoy.

Brexit this, Brexit that but what about the other stuff we need to worry about. Britain soon gets to vote in another election and inevitably the campaigns surrounding it will be about Brexit. Before you get bombarded with those, this week’s This is Money podcast looks at why Theresa May has even called another election and what that decision means for the economy, the pound and investors? Yet this election should not just be about Brexit, there are other things to consider too. This is Money’s Simon Lambert and Lee Boyce, join Georgie Frost in the Share Radio studios to discuss what they might be. So, if that canvasser rings the doorbell asking for your vote, we run through some of the things from the world of money that you may want to ask them about. (And if Simon’s MP Jeremy Corbyn does come round to ask for his vote, he promises to ask him these questions and report back on the replies.) It’s not all about Brexit and it’s not just about then election though. This week, we also talk about why househ

The price of all sorts is going up this week - from stamps to council tax. This is Money's Rachel Rickard Straus and Lee Boyce play the lucky dip of price hikes - which involves a stop watch, chocolate eggs... and quick explanations of how bills are set to rise. Then it's on to debt - credit card, car... you name it. Is it a worry? Is it a big worry? What's going to happen next? (Spoiler alert - they think it's a worry.) The Lifetime Isa - Lisa - has just launched, so that's next on the agenda. Presenter George Frost and the This is Money team talk through whether Isas have had their day, why Lisas may or may not be a good idea, and the great whopping investing question that it's so easy to forget. And the grand finale... involves a lot of wretching. Well nearly -it would if the team weren't so well behaved. It's the Easter taste test, in which the supermarkets' not-very-finest chocolate eggs and bunnies are compared, as well as four types of hot cross bun.

It was never about economics. But 52% or the 72% turnout voted for the UK to leave the European Union last June and now it’s official. Prime Minister Theresa May has written and delivered a letter that gives the country just two years to renegotiate tens of thousands of laws that took 40 odd years to draw up. It’s about taking control, she said, without expanding what that might mean. In the absence of any credible positive analysis from the 'Leave' fraternity, please allow Simon Lambert, Rebecca Rutt and Georgie Frost to have a go at explaining where our economy now stands. The vote to leave the EU hit the pound immediately and that is likely to continue. Prices of just about everything are rising and are set to rocket. Five percent this year may not sound a lot but cumulatively, petrol, travel, clothes and food make up a lot of what we buy. But on the plus side? Also on the show Britain is in debt, nationally and personally at record levels. Should we be alarmed? The new pound coin is now in

One thousand years ago, life expectancy was about 30 years. In 30 years’ time, someone will be born who could live to 1,000. This causes a problem for the pensions industry and governments. It’s tough enough finding an income for a few months without working, never mind 935 years. This is the kind of problem experts have been grappling with lately and some of the results are emerging. On the table are joys such as working until you’re 105 years old, abolishing the State pension or coming up with ill-conceived alternatives such as the pointless Lifetime Isa. Most likely, if you’re under 30 now, you’ll probably retire at 70, or under 45 and you’ll work till you’re 68. The triple lock guarantee that ensures the State pension rises by inflation, earnings or 2.5% , whichever is higher, could be scrapped because the Government is ideologically against raising taxes to pay for it. Pensioners will be worse off without a solid alternative. Britain’s pensions used to be best in the world. Like a lot of th

What a mess we’re in. Without too much effort this week, we spotted 10 messes. It was made pretty easy with the fallout from Chancellor Philip Hammond’s first go at a Budget making news all week. His attack on small business was up there with some of the made-up-as-you-go-along nonsense from his predecessor. Hammond learned well from George Osborne. Mess 1 The Budget. Last week we wondered if the whole thing was a joke? It was. The main thrust, a rise in National Insurance contributions for people who don’t have a staff job, is in the bin. This leaves a big gap in the Government finances. They tried austerity, cut taxes for the richest, tried taking it out on small business. None of it has worked. What next? Tax needs to rise somewhere. Mess 2 Ill-thought-out tax tweaks from the past come back to haunt policymakers. A change to flat-rate VAT announced in the last Autumn Statement is about to come into force and will be a further blow to small business. Listen for the great VAT explainer on how it wo

It felt like there was something fishy going on during the Budget speech this week. Chancellor Philip Hammond peppered the few official announcements he made with low-rent panto gags and political jibes. Were these a distraction technique? With the benefit of hindsight, it’s clear that trying to be funny was silly Philly’s way of glossing over one of the more ‘spectacularly dumb’ decisions in modern politics. Big banks brought the economy to its knees in the late noughties, why now go after the self-employed and small businesses to shore up the country’s finances with a National Insurance hike? It was a short, sweet kamikaze mission, especially given the manifesto pledge of no increase in VAT, National Insurance or income tax. A U-turn beckons. As ever, This is Money editor Simon Lambert explains exactly what it all means and how National insurance works for the self-employed. Is it time to merge it with income tax? Also, on the show with Georgie Frost and Lee ‘spreadsheet’ Boyce… A pointless, belo

A speech this week from President Donald Trump sent the US stock market soaring to a record high. And where the US goes, the rest of the world follows. The FTSE 100 is also impressing investors. Trump stood at the podium, behaved like an adult and explained a little more about some of his less crazy policies, including the fiscal ones. Cash held offshore could start washing back into America and wind up in the pockets of shareholders, who clearly want a piece of that pie. There’s more to it than that. This is Money’s Simon Lambert explains how it all might work as other pundits ponder whether it’s the euphoria before the fall. A ‘bull run’ is when markets rise. ‘Bears’ usually spoil the party. The gloves are off. Also on the show, featuring Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost: Two more years of miserable savings rates Lifetime Isas – a totally flawed Government plot A new Range Rover ‘for women’ Car insurance premiums are likely to rise because, oh do they really need an excuse? Hateful parking fine

There are a lot of laughs this week as Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost take a sideways look at some of the week’s potty money stories. Banks are in the spotlight because it’s reporting season and there was a mix of good news, shock news and fraud news from Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and the rest. But the pathetic attempts by RBS to lure customers to its headline 0.05% interest-paying cash Isa get taken to pieces by the This is Money team. Also on the show… A trendy new bank backed by the tech entrepreneur, haircut wearer and singing coach on TV’s The Voice, Will. i.am, is paying 2% to its savers. It’s a suspiciously high a rate say our judges. To open the account you have to take a selfie. How many moneyed 60-year-olds will take that seriously? Football. Bloody hell! It’s the metaphor for anything. Could the rise and fall of Leicester City be clever economic forecasting at play? A conversation about the state of our banking sector ensues: Tale of two bail outs – RBS v Lloy