LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s most senior civil servant published his private advice to former prime minister Gordon Brown on Thursday to fend off a charge by Brown that he had rejected an inquiry into allegations of phone hacking at Rupert Murdoch’s UK newspapers.

The unusual step by Gus O’Donnell, head of the Civil Service and the Cabinet Office, which advises the government, was a measure of the political heat generated by the scandal in Britain, whose current prime minister David Cameron has said politicians of all parties had been under Murdoch’s spell.

LONDON (Reuters) – Unions will be making a “colossal mistake” if they push ahead with threats to stage the biggest strikes in nearly a century over public cuts and pension reforms, Treasury minister Danny Alexander said on Sunday.

Alexander infuriated unions last week by announcing that public workers will have to work later in life and pay more for their pensions even while talks on the proposed changes are still taking place.

LONDON (Reuters) – Unions will be making a “colossal mistake” if they push ahead with threats to stage the biggest strikes in nearly a century over public cuts and pension reforms, a senior minister said on Sunday.

Treasury minister Danny Alexander infuriated unions last week by announcing that public workers will have to work later in life and pay more for their pensions even while talks on the proposed changes are still taking place.

LONDON, June 19 (Reuters) – British unions will be making a
“colossal mistake” if they push ahead with threats to stage the
biggest strikes in nearly a century over public cuts and pension
reforms, a senior minister said on Sunday.

Treasury minister Danny Alexander infuriated unions last
week by announcing that public workers will have to work later
in life and pay more for their pensions even while talks on the
proposed changes are still taking place. [ID:nLDE75G0JJ]

LONDON (Reuters) – Interest rates on new two-year fixed mortgage deals for buyers with healthy deposits fell to their lowest since records began in May, data showed on Thursday, offering some relief for hard-pressed house buyers.

The average rate on 2-year loans where buyers borrowed three-quarters of their home’s value fell to 3.47 percent from 3.66 percent in April, the lowest since the series began in 1995, Bank data showed.

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s goods trade deficit with the rest of the world narrowed more than expected in April, although the improvement was driven by a sharp fall in demand for consumer goods, rather than any big improvement in exports.

The Office for National Statistics said that the goods trade gap narrowed to 7.389 billion pounds in April from 7.708 billion in March, lower than analysts’ forecasts for a deficit of 7.55 billion pounds.

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s goods trade deficit with the rest of the world narrowed more than expected in April, although the improvement was driven by a sharp fall in demand for consumer goods, rather than any big improvement in exports.

The Office for National Statistics said that Britain’s goods trade gap narrowed to 7.389 billion pounds in April from 7.708 billion in March, lower than analysts’ forecasts for a deficit of 7.55 billion pounds.

LONDON (Reuters) – Recruiters filled permanent and temporary vacancies at the slowest pace in seven months in May, a survey showed on Wednesday, adding to worries about the strength of the economic recovery.

Research for the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and accounting firm KPMG showed private sector job creation slowed at a time when the government hopes companies will pick up the slack left by public cuts.

LONDON (Reuters) – Recruiters filled permanent and temporary vacancies at the slowest pace in seven months in May, a survey showed Wednesday, adding to worries about the strength of the economic recovery.

Research for the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and accounting firm KPMG showed private sector job creation slowed at a time when the government hopes companies will pick up the slack left by public cuts.

LONDON (Reuters) – Retail sales fell unexpectedly in May house prices lost ground in the spring, surveys showed on Tuesday, as low wage growth and worries about the economy led consumers to tighten their belts.

The readouts added weight to concerns that the recovery is struggling to gain traction just as a far-reaching government austerity programme kicks in, and they should deter the Bank of England from raising interest rates from record lows any time soon.