Government borrowing fell to £7.7bn in October, official figures show, down £0.2bn from a year earlier.

The Bank of England will wait until after the general election to raise interest rates as the threat of a resurgent eurozone crisis hangs over the UK economy, according to a leading thinktank.

Savings of up to £1m in collapsed banks are to be protected under new proposals from the Bank of England intended to avoid a Northern Rock-style run on a financial institution. The £1m limit will apply only to money temporarily deposited in a bank, for instance from a house sale or insurance claim, and will last for six months.

In the wake of a rare tactical victory for the White House, Barack Obama on Wednesday evening defended his threat to use controversial presidential powers to prevent companies from avoiding US taxes.

Campaigners last night demanded David Cameron scrap his savage welfare reforms after the number of emergency food parcels handed out soared to more than a million.

Companies claw back almost two-fifths of cash paid out to shareholders since start of financial crisis

Britain’s credit standing has suffered a further blow after Fitch became the second international agency to strip the country of its AAA rating.