Original Broadcast: The Bigger Picture
Political commentator Mike Indian discusses the latest delay in the Rwanda Bill, asking if the flights will ever get off the ground. In the light of Iran's drone and missile attack, he wonders how much influence the UK has, or should seek to exert, over Israel. Is the rebellion over the smoking bill about freedom or manoeuvering for post-election power? And he assesses Liz Truss's book.
Guests: Mike Indian
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Original Broadcast: Thought for the Week
The core of the problem with unclaimed, adult-owned Child Trust Funds (of which there are over £2 billion waiting to be claimed) is with accounts opened by HMRC. That's why The Share Foundation has proposed a 'default withdrawal at 21' process, based on the young person's National Insurance number. Danny Kruger MP took part in the CTF conference in Westminster on Tuesday 5th March, and two weeks later in a Westminster Hall CTF debate, and supported this initiative which could release £1/4 billion each year to help these young and predominantly low-income young adults. Background music: 'Waiting' by Andrew Langdon
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Original Broadcast: This is Money
Older people received another boost to the state pension this week taking the full rate to over £11,000 a year. This year's increase of 8.5% was thanks to the triple lock commitment - a guarantee the state pension will rise each year by the higher of CPI, wages or 2.5%. What does the future hold? While there is plenty of speculation the state pension may become means tested, in reality it could be incredibly hard to implement. Tanya Jefferies, Georgie Frost, Helen Crane and Lee Boyce talk state pensions – and how they compare to other countries. And sticking on the theme, there is another delay for the Government’s new online state pension top-up service. When will it launch? NS&I has a four-day IT meltdown that makes it a struggle for customers to log-in – and it suggests to one that she may have a ‘time drift.’ What does this bizarre explanation mean? Crane is on the Case once more, this time Eon is in the firing line after it insisted a part-time dance teacher used £95,000 worth of energy … in a month. And who on earth would hold an American Express card in their wallet with an APR 704.6%? Lee has the answer.
Guests: Tanya Jefferies,Helen Crane
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Google is the latest tech company to host a conference full of AI pronouncements. Asit Sharma and Deidre Woollard discuss why the market is smiling on Alphabet lately, how Google’s announcements show the company’s AI ambitions and what Blackstone might buy next. Then, 17 minutes in, Robert Brokamp interviews Steve Chen, the CEO of NewRetirement, on what savers often miss about retirement. Companies discussed: GOOG, GOOGL, BX, MSFT, AZMN. Host - Deidre Woollard; Guests - Asit Sharma, Robert Brokamp
Guests: Asit Sharma,Robert Brokamp
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James Rhee is the former CEO of Ashley Stewart, a professor, entrepreneur, and the author of “red helicopter — a parable for our times: lead change with kindness (plus a little math).” Mary Long caught up with Rhee for a conversation about: an unlikely turnaround at a retailer serving plus sized, moderate income black women, eing kind versus being nice, when liabilities can become assets and vice versa, and real world goodwill versus the accounting version. Companies mentioned: NVDA. Host - Mary Long; Guest - James Rhee
Guests: James Rhee
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Driving in difficult conditions can challenge your comfort zone: do extreme weather conditions, fast or heavy traffic or darkness bring on anxiety for you? If you believe you can't handle difficult situations, if anxiety amplifies — this episode could be for you. Adam Cox uses a Virtual Reality headset as a metaphor of disassociation, helping to build resilience resources and to generate confidence for handling challenges which can trigger anxiety.
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Original Broadcast: The Bigger Picture
Professor Tim Evans discusses the way in which an ageing population and fewer young people is creating huge problems for our economy. Money is not necessarily the answer. We are running up the down escalator and public services must be reformed. He considers an article which points out how even our top institutions and economists don't understand money and how it is lent into existence from thin air. Lastly, he recaps an article from an American think tank which points out how 1990s libertarians almost inadvertently started developing early forms of digital cash before the arrival of the internet.
Guests: Professor Tim Evans
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Original Broadcast: The Business Of Film
James Cameron-Wilson reports on a box office down 36%, with blockbusters maintaining the four top spots. Dev Patel's directorial debut Monkey Man comes in at #5, a violent film about a hustler with a score to settle. Although it has kinetic energy, it lacks humanity and is derivative and wearisome. Worse is The First Omen at #6. Incredibly similar to the plot of Immaculate, it's a horror film with no sense of credibility. James much preferred the Amazon Prime superior remake of Road House with Jake Gyllenhaal as a charming bouncer. Directed by Doug Liman, it's more complex and interesting than the original and, while violent, it also has a great deal of humour.
Guests: James Cameron-Wilson
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Original Broadcast: Gadgets and Gizmos
Steve Caplin admires a Singapore company offering electric rental vans. In Denmark, they are developing drones that can recharge from power lines. Japanese scientists are experimenting with drones that can become a rolling wheel on land as well as fly. Hyundai are producing a robot that can deliver tea and post and cope with lifts. A new multitool lets you select the tools you would find most useful. Imperial College has grown a vegan leather shoe from bacteria which even dyed itself. And in Australia, they've found they can retrieve criminals' DNA from air conditioners.
Guests: Steve Caplin
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Original Broadcast: The Financial Outlook for Personal Investors
Russ Mould of A J Bell explains why inflation – and the risk-free rate – are so important for pricing in markets. Expectations for interest-rate cuts being scaled back as inflation persists have helped gold reach record levels as investors look for stores of value. But Russ points out that silver has had less attention and is relatively cheap in comparison with gold. If there is a shift in the mood music, could it be silver's turn for a run?
Guests: Russ Mould
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