The value of the properties owned by buy-to-let investors is catching up on
the total amassed in workers’ pension schemes
At £1,250bn, the value of the flats and
houses owned by almost two million small-time landlords is catching up
on the £1.6 trillion total amassed in workers' pension schemesPhoto: Alamy
The value of property owned by Britain’s growing army of buy-to-let investors
is fast approaching the value of the entire workforce’s pension savings
built up over decades of employment.
At £1.25 trillion – £1,250bn – the value of the flats and houses owned by
almost two million small-time landlords is catching up on the £1.6 trillion
total amassed in workers’ pension schemes.
And while traditional pension saving is complex and unpopular with many, the
phenomenon of buying-to-let is now growing at its fastest rate ever, spurred
by rising rents and house prices and cheap mortgages.
The Government’s recent pension changes, which will apply from 2015 and enable
savers to spend pension proceeds freely, are expected to add to the boom.
The trend is causing concern among policymakers and commentators, not least
because many landlords are said to be failing to plan or prepare for
setbacks such as interest rate increases and tax liabilities.
A
law that requires children to help with household chores and respect
their parents? In Spain, it could become reality. A draft law set before
Parliament last month would mandate just that. Extreme? Perhaps. But
it’s doubtful many parents complaining — and it might not be so
far-fetched. After all, Spain’s husbands already have legal obligations
to do chores and help with childcare. Spain certainly isn’t the only
country to adopt or consider such unusual measures. Here’s a closer look
at the Spanish law as well as some other surprising work–related rules
and norms that have come into force around the globe in the last few
years, including cutting off after-hour email and measuring employee
waistlines. Click through the images above to read about the others. The
measure in Spain that would require kids to help out around the house
is currently just a draft law, but it lists the responsibilities and
obligations of children to include “participating in family life,
respecting their parents and siblings” and “co-responsibility in caring
for the home and performing household chores according to their age and
regardless of their gender." No punishments or penalties are listed for
failing to comply, though. Montse Reguera, a teacher in Madrid and
parent, said the section of the draft law regarding chores and respect
made her laugh when she read about it and that she thinks it’s
unnecessary. “As any other families in the world, Spanish families have
their own rules, unwritten moral rules and private rules that children
learn as they grow up,” she said. Husbands in Spain already have legal
language holding them accountable for housework. A 2005 addendum to the
marriage contract used in Spanish civil ceremonies stipulates men are
required to shoulder household duties, as well as help care for children
and elderly family members. (Thinkstock)
Google sets up 'right to be forgotten' form after EU ruling
Google has launched a service to allow Europeans to ask for personal data to be removed from online search results.
The move comes after a landmark European court ruling earlier this month, which gave people the "right to be forgotten".
Links to "irrelevant" and outdated data should be erased on request, it said.
Google said it will assess each request and balance "privacy rights of the individual with the public's right to know and distribute information".
"When evaluating your request, we will look at whether the results include outdated information about you, as well as whether there's a public interest in the information," Google says on the form which applicants must fill in.
Google said it would look at information about "financial scams, professional malpractice, criminal convictions, or public conduct of government officials" while deciding on the request.
Earlier this month, the BBC had learnt that more than half of requests sent to Google from UK individuals involved convicted criminals.
This included a man convicted of possessing child abuse images who had also requested links to pages about his conviction to be wiped.
On 13 May, the European Court of Justice ruled that links to "irrelevant" and outdated data on search engines should be erased on request.
The case was brought by a Spanish man who complained that an auction notice of his repossessed home, which appeared on Google's search results, infringed his privacy.
On Friday, Google said that EU citizens who want their private details removed from the search engine will be able to do so by filling out an online form.
However, they will need to provide links to the material they want removed, their country of origin, and a reason for their request.
Individuals will also have to attach a valid photo identity.
"Google often receives fraudulent removal requests from people impersonating others, trying to harm competitors, or improperly seeking to suppress legal information," the firm said.
"To prevent this kind of abuse, we need to verify identity."
Less innovation?
However, in an interview given to the Financial Times, Google boss Larry Page said that although the firm would comply with the ruling, it could damage innovation.
He also said the regulation would give cheer to repressive regimes.
Mr Page said he regretted not being "more involved in a real debate" about privacy in Europe, and that the company would now try to "be more European".
But, he warned, "as we regulate the internet, I think we're not going to see the kind of innovation we've seen".
Mr Page added that the ruling would encourage "other governments that aren't as forward and progressive as Europe to do bad things".
Source BBC News
Nigeria’s pension assets hit N4tr
The National Pension Commission (PENCOM) said on Tuesday that pension assets are now in excess of N4tr ─ compared to liabilities of over N2tr before reform 10 years ago.
Mrs Chinelo Anohu-Amazu , Acting director-general of PENCOM, disclosed this to the media in Abuja. The news conference is to herald the African World Pension Summit to be held in Nigeria in July.
Anohu-Amazu said more than 98,000 workers had retired so far and were receiving retirement benefits “as and when due”. “In the past, they joined long queues, in fact some even died in the process, in terms of safety, the pension fund assets are ring-fenced,” she said. According to her, the pension journey has been very challenging, but when one looks at the success recorded, it is inspiring. “Concerned by the magnitude of issues and lack of transparency in pensions in Nigeria, the then President Olusegun Obasanjo constituted a Pension Reform Committee. “It was the committee’s work that culminated into the PRA 2004. At the time, there were lots of apprehensions on the part of stakeholders. “Their concerns were understandable, considering outcomes of other reforms by government in the past. “Ten years now, I am glad that having seen PenCom’s steadfastness in protecting the interest of retirees, labour is one of our greatest supporters”, she said.
Mr Eric Egginu, Chairman, World Pension Summit, said it was formed five years ago and the focus of this year’s summit was on Africa. Egginu said about 55 African countries would be in attendance, adding that the summit would be the first to be held in Africa. He said that the summit would share ideas and knowledge to improve the pension system on the continent. He said the summit would change the lives of the people and bring about unity, peace and development in Africa and the world in general. According to him, “when we talk of pension, we talk about our lives. Pension is not all about saving money, it is about taking care of our lives.” He said he was happy to be in Nigeria for the summit.
Chairman of Pension Operators of Nigeria and Managing Director of Legacy Pensions, Mr Misbau Yola, said the reform was responsible for the tremendous successes of the scheme.
Source The Cable
Read more at: http://www.thecable.ng/nigerias-pension-assets-hit-n4tr-and-counting/ | TheCable
Can money buy happiness? Should salaries stay secret? (Getty Images)
You’ve heard the
saying, “money can’t buy happiness,” but what if a certain amount of money
actually does make you happier? And don’t people feel unhappy when they learn a
colleague is earning more money for doing the same amount of work?
At the very least,
money, or lack of it, can bring some level of joy or despair.
Felix Salmon, senior editor at Fusion
“Very
few people like to talk about how much money they make — especially not
people who earn a lot of money,” wrote Salmon in his post Why Salaries Shouldn’t Be Secret,
in the wake of news that recently-departed New York Times editor Jill
Abramson had started asking questions about the pay discrepancy between
her and her predecessor. “Since companies tend to be run by people who
earn a lot of money, the result is a culture of silence and secrecy when
it comes to pay.”
There are several surprising reasons “secrecy surrounding pay is generally a bad idea for any organisation,” Salmon wrote.
“For
one thing, secrecy about pay is bad for women, who are worse at asking
for raises than men are. If men secretly ask for raises and secretly get
them, while women don’t, then that helps to explain, at least in part,
why men end up earning more than women,” Salmon wrote. “Secrecy around
pay is also a great way to allow managers to — consciously or
unconsciously — play favorites with their staff.”
“We’ve all
worked in companies, I’m sure, where the only way to get a substantial
raise is to confront management with a job offer from somewhere else,”
he added. “That’s clearly a dreadful way to run a company, since it
gives all employees a huge incentive to spend a lot of time looking for
work elsewhere, even if they’re very happy where they are.”
“If
you work for a company where everybody knows what everybody else is
earning, then it’s going to be very easy to see what’s going on. You’ll
see who the stars are, you’ll see what kind of skills and talent the
company rewards,” he wrote. “You’ll also see whether men get paid more
than women, whether managers are generally overpaid, and whether
behaviour like threatening to quit is rewarded with big raises. What’s
more, because management knows that everybody else will see such things,
they’ll be much less likely to do the kind of secret deals which are
all too common in most companies today.” Bruce Kasanoff, ghostwriter and speaker
Maybe
money does buy happiness. Or some money, that is. At least that’s the
case according to recent research from Princeton, yielded from a survey
of 450,000 people.
The research found that emotional well-being is fully realised at an annual income of about $75,000. But not more.
“In
other words, when it comes to money, there is a glass ceiling for its
ability to bring you happiness,” wrote Kasanoff in his post $75,000 Buys Happiness; More Money Does Not.
“This makes intuitive sense; if you can't afford a decent place to live
or enough food to feed your family, more money substantively improves
your situation. But few would agree with the statement that the happiest
moments of their life was/were when they had the most money.”
The
researchers examined emotional well-being, rather thanlife evaluation,
wrote Kasanoff. “Emotional well-being is what they equate with
happiness. It involves the emotional experiences you have on a
day-to-day basis... being delighted, sad, frustrated, excited, lonely or
fascinated,” he wrote.
What does all of this mean, then, in terms of money and happiness?
“If
you double your salary, say to $150,000, you will probably increase
your intellectual assessment of your life,” Kasanoff wrote. “But
doubling your salary won't necessarily give you more joy, day-to-day. It
won't make you more excited by your work or help you feel closer to
your friends and family.”
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Have your share from the global profit
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level 1
5 Invitees
1 GAS share
level 2
25 Invitees
5 GAS share
level 3
125 Invitees
25 GAS share
level 4
625 Invitees
125 GAS share
level 5
3 125 Invitees
625 GAS share
level 6
15 625 Invitees
3 125 GAS share
level 7
78 125 Invitees
15 625 GAS share
Total
19.531 GAS share
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