Money blog: Blue Light discount anger as teachers added; pound falls for four straight weeks (2024)

Heathrow says a drop in passenger numbers is down to a government scheme that charges non-visa connecting travellers £10 to pass through the airport.

It said the electronic travel authorisation (ETA) had been "devastating for our hub competitiveness" - accounting for a 90,000 drop in passengers.

The chairman of Asda says he is "embarrassed" by the supermarket's recent decline.

The retail giant reported a 2.1% drop in like-for-like sales in the first half of the year.

Asda has also lost market share since it was acquired by the Issa brothers in 2021.

Lord Rose told The Telegraph he was "slightly embarrassed" and did not like "being second, third or fourth".

Card Factory has teamed up with food delivery app Just Eat to offer customers the chance to get greetings cards delivered to their door as quickly as a takeaway.

The partnership is live in 19 stores across the UK, including Liverpool, Manchester and London, and is set to be extended.

Rioting caused sales to plummet as much as 40% in areas where rallies, protests and riots were rumoured to take place last Wednesday, according to a hospitality association.

Businesses reported footfall was down by as much as 75% in some locations, while sales fell by 10% across the country, UKHospitality said.

Shops closed down, events were cancelled in city centres, and customers stayed away, working from home and cancelling day trips to coastal towns.

"These figures are startling and show the enormous impact the riots, and threat of further disorder, have had on our high streets and communities," saidKate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality.

"Bustling, vibrant city centres were turned into ghost towns as the public stayed at home and businesses shut."

A flooring company which trades out of John Lewis has collapsed into administration, resulting in the loss of around 200 jobs.

The Floor Room, a sister firm of Carpetright, closed concessions in 34 John Lewis shops on Friday and appointed administrators PwC.

A message on the company's now-closed website confirms the company has ceased trading and will not complete outstanding orders.

The accounting firm said management at the collapsed company had "exhausted options to secure further funding or a potential sale" prior to calling in administrators.

Some 201 employees are losing their jobs as a result of the move.

What are your rights?

If you've paid for an unfulfilled order, or want to return an item, a lack of shops mean you have to file a claim with administrators PwC to join a list of creditors owed money – but there's no guarantee you'll get your money back.

Credits and debits

You can file a claim with your debit or credit card provider to recover lost funds:

• Credit card:If you bought any single item costing between £100-£30,000 and paid on a credit card,the card firm is liable if something goes wrong.If any purchase was less than £100, you may still be able to get your money back via chargeback;

• Debit card:Under chargeback, your bank can try to get your money back from The Floor Room's bank. However, be aware that this is not a legal requirement and it can later be disputed and recalled back.

The battle to bring down inflation is not over, a Bank of England ratesetter has warned, as she urges Britons not to be "seduced" into thinking the country is out of the woods.

Catherine Mann, an external member of the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), said she was still worried inflation could rise again despite it coming down to the 2% target.

She told the Financial Times that pay growth (currently way above inflation at 5.7% with updated figures due this week) could pose a problem, with companies still expected to make increases to wages and prices.

"That says to me right now I'm looking at a problem for next year," she told the newspaper.

"There is an upwards ratchet to both the wage-setting process and the price process and... it may well be structural, having been created during this period of very high inflation over the last couple of years," she added.

"That ratchet up will take a long time to erode away."

Ms Mann was one of four members of the nine-strong MPC who voted to keep interest rates at 5.25% last month - and it sounds like she isn't likely to shift position ahead of September's rate decision.

A revamped Waitrose store in north London will reopen soon with fancy new features - including a parmesan bay - as the upmarket grocer unveils its new store concept.

The John Barnes store on Finchley Road has undergone a major six-week refurbishment and is set to reopen on 21 August.

According to Retail Gazette, the store will have a number of new features including a new look and feel bakery, an in-branch baguette station and even a "dedicated parmesan bay".

The supermarket chain said it would also be the first to have a hot wok counter serving ready-to-go meals.

The John Barnes site is being used as a tester for its new concepts, it added.

On Friday we reported on teachers being given access to the Blue Light discount scheme - which appeared to elicit a backlash on social media...

We had scores of reader comments - all but one onside with the backlash (see below).

This morning, we asked our followers on LinkedIn for their view. The poll is still active, but the results so far suggest a level of support for teachers...

The discrepancy between the way people are voting on LinkedIn and the comments here in the Money blog could be interpreted in several ways. Sky News could be followed by different demographics on the two platforms, or perhaps it is that those who feel most angry at something are far more likely to leave a comment.

Whatever the explanation, here's a selection of comments that sum up the general feeling in our inbox...

If you change it to key workers then you would have to open it to shop workers, waste disposal workers, plumbers and electricians.

Dave

Blue light is in the name. Shift workers who work long unsociable hours in a responsive role. Pure greed by the administrators of the scheme.

Shawhome

How long have teachers been an emergency service? I don't remember them being on the front line during COVID. I haven't seen them during the riots.

Swiftrider

Teaching is NOT an emergency service. I'm a carer to a child and get paid peanuts, no Blue Light card for me.

Joseph Morgan

As a gas emergency engineer who is safeguarding life and property who has an hour from the reported time to get to the gas escape... we get there quicker than the ambulance service and occasionally police but we can't get a Blue Light card. Just wondering why?

Senseirick

Teachers do a good job, but to actually class them as blue light is shameful. When was the last time a teacher went home and wept after loosing a patient or had to stand in a line behind a shield getting bricked by a mob? Or being shot at in a foreign land?

Ianstu

Farmers feed the nation, when will they be entitled to a Blue Light Card?

Greatauntbleach

An emergency service is available 24 hours a day. 365 days per year. Teachers are not. They are valuable in society, absolutely, but they are not an emergency service with a blue light.

Joanna Clark

Wow. 30 years as a prison officer, working very unsociable hours, getting abused, assaulted. Nowhere near the amount of time off that teachers get. Police, NHS, armed services deserve this, not teachers.

Noslop17

We did have one correspondent backing teachers - and of course our inbox is still open if you want to share your view...

Good to see teachers getting the Blue Light card as an essential service for children's future - and also what about teaching assistants, lunch supervision and school club staff. If schools shut, the whole country is affected, especially parents not working, during strikes or bad weather.

Southwest lady

Blue Light hits back

Blue Light Card hit back on Friday, saying: "Teachers are not just educators; they are mentors, guides and inspirations that are helping shape the future for our children. They are fully deserving members of our blue light community."

What kind of offers can a Blue Light card get you?

There's too many to list but among the offers is 12% off at Fenty Beauty and 15% off at Bose.

Users can also get a £30 gift card if they spend more than £1,000 at British Airways or a £110 voucher if they sell their car via Carwow.

Or if getting fit is more your thing, you can get 50% off an annual subscription to the Body Coach.

The pound last week completed its fourth consecutive weekly fall against the US dollar – something that will have worried British tourists heading to the US this summer.

Since hitting a high for the year of $1.3044 on 17 July, sterling slipped to a low of $1.2662 last Thursday, but has since rallied to as much as $1.2782 this morning.

Against the euro, the pound has traded similarly. It hit a peak of €1.1927 on 17 July but then fell to as low as €1.1584 last Thursday before rallying to as much as €1.1703 today.

The reason for these reverses is pretty straightforward.

Since the Bank of England cut interest rates on 1 August, for the first time since 2020, the markets have started to price in the prospect of at least one further interest rate cut between now and the end of the year. That obviously has implications for the pound.

It is important to put this recent weakness into context.

Until last month, sterling had been one of the best performing currencies globally so far this year, hitting its highest level for a year last month. That reflected the strength of the UK economy which, during the first half of this year, had been the best performing economy in the G7.

So the recent weakness, such as it is, is really not that remarkable – and analysts still think, all other things being equal, that the "bull case" for sterling remains intact.

By Sarah Taaffe-Maguire, business reporter

It looks set to be a quieter week on the markets compared with last week which started with a global market sell-off prompted by fears of the US economy being in recession and worries of tech company performance.

But there'll be plenty of new information for investors to chew over as latest inflation, economic growth and employment data is released over the coming four days.

As stock market values rebounded, so too did the benchmark oil price. A barrel of Brent crude now costs $80.09, greater than at any point last week, spelling more expensive fuel refilling for motorists.

The pound has come off the highs against the dollar seen earlier in the summer. One pound now buys $1.2768. Similarly it is weaker against the euro with £1 equal to €1.1689.

Both of the UK's major stock market indexes started the week up. The Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) 100 index of most valuable companies on the London Stock Exchange rose 0.57%, while the larger and more UK-based FTSE 250 index was up 0.34%.

Compensation for customers experiencing poor service from their water providers is to more than double under new government proposals.

The plans will see compensation paid in more circ*mstances - including automatic payments for people who are told to boil their water in certain areas or when firms miss scheduled appointments.

Earlier this year, residents in the Devon town of Brixham were told to boil their water for eight weeks after the local supply was hit by a parasite outbreak.

People affected by an incorrect notice telling them their supply will be interrupted could also see their payout rise from £20 to £50, while those being reimbursed for internal flooding from sewers could see a maximum payment of £2,000 rather than the current £1,000.

It's hoped the proposals - which are now subject to an eight-week consultation - will "turn the tide on the destruction of our waterways", Environment Secretary Steve Reed said.

Every Monday the Money team answers your Money Problems or consumer disputes. Find out how to submit yours at the bottom of this post. Today's question is...

I had a frustrating issue with my kids' swimming lessons. We had to pay in advance, but when your child says they don't want to go any more, that's it, they don't go. I asked the club if we can get a refund for the remaining month that they won't attend but the club just say, 'Your child is eligible to come for the next four weeks.' Doesn’t seem quite fair.

Richard Wallace, West Sussex

Hi Richard, we can understand why this doesn't seem fair. You are trying to cancel with what sounds like a reasonable amount of notice and yet you're getting nowhere.

This is a common occurrence and many readers will have been in a similar situation.

The law says that you can cancel a service you've booked online or by phone (or by mail order) within a 14-day cooling-off period.

This might be a cleaner or electrician or surveyor.

This cooling-off period also applies if a business approached you away from their premises if the service costs £42 or more.

The bad news in your case, though, is that the above does not apply to accommodation, delivery services, vehicle hire or - and this is the relevant one here - leisure or catering activities for specific dates.

In these cases, you'd be relying on their being a generous cancellation policy - so you should check their T&Cs.

It might not be a dead end, though.

You should try to negotiate with them - it's generally accepted this can be done when a cancellation charge seems unfair or when a business is withholding more money than needed to cover their losses.

Ask them if they're part of a trade association, which you could request help from in negotiating.

Beyond this, they might be a member of an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) scheme. Again, it's worth asking. If not, you could choose a Trading Standards-approved ADR scheme yourself to approach.

We suspect the sums involved here are not big enough for you to consider going to court - but if this was an avenue you wanted to explore here or in future, keep records of all the above steps.

As a last resort you can take your case to the Small Claims Court in England and Wales - or use the respective legal routes inScotland and Northern Ireland.

Further help

The Citizens Advice consumer helpline is a great resource - it's0808 223 1133. You can also usean online form.

If you're in Northern Ireland, contactConsumerline.

This feature is not intended as financial advice - the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about. Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute via:

• The form above - you need to leave a phone number or email address so we can contact you for further details;
• Email news@skynews.com with the subject line "Money blog";
• WhatsApp us here.