Government

Wannabe home buyers with small deposits who want a newly-built property will get a helping hand under a new Government scheme.

The Government could be about to renege on plans to increase some state benefit payments in line with September's inflation rate.

Housing Minister Grant Shapps recently called for lenders to offer 30-year fixed rate mortgages and received a barrage of abuse. Simon Webster, from mortgage broker Facts & Figures, below, says it wasn't all nonsense.

The Government will sell Northern Rock to Virgin Money, to create a combined bank with four million customers.

MPs kept up the pressure for the return of cheque guarantee cards today by suggesting that the Government could consider stepping in with legislation.

Most people aged over 60 can apply now to get help towards their winter energy costs.

The Government says it may consider allowing child trust fund (CTF) holders to convert their money into a junior Isa in future.

First-time buyers struggling to find big deposits should be encouraged back into the housing market with a raft of measures to help them clinch a mortgage deal, a report from businesses recommends today.

British consumers are being ripped off by scams and frauds to the tune of almost £7 billion a year, but official arrangements to protect them are "incoherent and fragmented", a parliamentary report warns today.

The Government is facing two threats of legal action over its plans to halve the subsidies paid for domestic solar electricity.