Money blog: Major lender cuts mortgage rates; Spanish cities announce plans to end Airbnbs (2024)

Taylor Swift fans have taken to social media to complain at paying hundreds on tickets for her Wembley shows only to end up with a restricted view.

While the reviews of the show have been glowing, many were less than impressed with ticket sellers failing to say whether certain seats had "restricted" views - which usually makes a ticket a bit cheaper.

One said...

Another fumed at the blocked view despite the £200 price...

It comes after a fan who saw Swift in Glasgow at the start of the month complained after parting with £680 only to have "a lovely view of a tent"...

Betting tips scrapped on flagship BBC show

BBC Radio 4's Today programme has scrapped its daily horse race betting tips, its host has announced.

Amol Rajan said the "break in tradition" would not affect major race days, with the broadcaster still set to offer tips for the biggest events in the calendar.

"We will very much continue to cover horse racing, as we do so many other sports, not least through interviews with leading lights in the racing world," Mr Rajan said.

"And we will sometimes continue to broadcast from the big ticket events like the Grand National festival, or Cheltenham Gold Cup week."

Want to earn triple Nectar points?

Sainsbury's is offering the incentive for customers with electric vehicles who choose to charge up with them via their new "Smart Charge" bays.

From today until 31 August, Sainsbury's customers can collect 3x Nectar points on Smart Charge transactions when they add their Nectar account number before purchase.

To do so, customers need to scan the QR code on the Smart Charge charging unit after they pay and add their Nectar card number on the web page provided. Points will be added to customers' accounts once they have paid.

Getir shareholders back break-up of food delivery group

Investors in Getir, the food delivery group that is abandoning its UK operations, have approved a break-up of the company that will trigger a fresh capital injection of up to $250m (£197.5m).

Sky News has learnt that Getir, which is based in Turkey, held an extraordinary general meeting yesterday at which shareholders backed plans to split it into two independent companies.

Read more of our city editor Mark Kleinman's exclusive here...

Restaurants, cafes and hotels have been told to immediately withdraw meat products dubbed "unsafe" by the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

Hospitality operators in London and South East England were issued the food safety alert for meat supplied bya cutting plant in Swanley, Kent.

"We have alerted Environmental Health, Trading Standards Services and Official Veterinarians to take action to remove meat and meat products manufactured by Block and Cleaver from the market," the FSA said in a statement.

"These products... may not have been produced in accordance with GB food law requirements and therefore may be unsafe."

These products may have incorrect use by dates, are subject to traceability breaches and should not be eaten as they were not prepared in line with food safety and hygiene legislative requirements.

All of the following products should be withdrawn immediately:

Over the weekend, hundreds of flights from Manchester Airport were cancelled due to a major power cut.

Passengers flying from Terminals 1 and 2 were told not to go to the airport, while those already inside faced huge delays.

Flights finally started departing this morning, but what are your rights if yours has been cancelled?

Watch: Travel disruption after Manchester Airport power cut

Here's what you need to know

Your flight is covered by UK law if it departs from a UK airport, arrives at a UK airport on a UK or EU airline, or arrives at an EU airport on a UK airline.

Under UK law, if your flight is cancelled, the airline must either give you a refund or book you on an alternative flight - either with them or a rival airline.

It is up to you whether you still want to travel at that time - or reschedule your holiday for a later date.

If another airline is flying "significantly sooner" than yours is able to offer, you may have the right to be booked onto a rival flight, but this has to be negotiated with the company.

What are the airline's policies?

As well as being covered under UK aviation law, each airline has its own cancellation policy for customers.

EasyJet allows customers to either switch to another flight for free, choose a voucher for the full value of the booking, or request a refund.

Ryanair passengers can either claim a full refund or change to an alternative flight, while TUI passengers with cancelled flights should receive a full refund within 14 days - and you may also be entitled to compensation.

British Airways passengers are offered a full refund, while Wizz Air allows passengers to request a refund or rebook onto the next available flight.

If you have booked through a tour operator or travel agent, they will have their own policies.

What if you've booked a package holiday?

If your flight is cancelled, and you've booked a package holiday, you have the same rights as any other passenger, according to trade association ABTA.

You also have additional rights regarding the rest of your holiday.

Typically, your travel company will contact you in advance to re-arrange your flights.

But, if you're at the airport when the flight is cancelled, you should contact your travel company to talk through your options, ABTA said.

If your flight can't be rearranged and your holiday has to be cancelled, or new arrangements are made that result in a significant change to your holiday, then the travel company must offer an alternative holiday if they can.

If not, they must offer a refund of the full package price, not just the flight part.

Generally, a change of more than 12 hours on a 14-night holiday is considered a significant change.

Barclays has announced rate reductions across a number of its mortgage deals, with brokers suggesting more lenders could follow suit in the coming days.

The high street bank said the new rates will be available from tomorrow.

Here are some of the deals:

• Two-year fixed deal with 90% LTV and no product fee will go from 5.76% to 5.48%
• Two-year fixed deal with 60% LTV and no product feewill be reduced from5.13% to 4.88%
  
• Five-year fixed deal with 90% and a £999 product fee will decrease from4.90% to 4.85%

Broker and director of R3 Mortgages Riz Malik said borrowers should expect further reductions from other high street lender this week thanks to improving market pricing.

"Barclays is the first lender of the week to improve selected mortgage products but my suspicion is that it won't be the last," he told Newspage.

Simon Bridgland, director at Release Freedom, said the deals were "sizzling hot" - and he thinks more lenders will follow this week.

"Things look set to heat up not just in our skies but in mortgage rates, too. Expect more lower fixed rates to continue to appear in the days ahead," he added.

Justin Moy, managing director at EHF Mortgages, said the positive move was thanks to Barclays passing on swap rate improvements to customers.

Edit: A couple of hours after Barclays' move,MPowered Mortgages also announced cuts across its product range.

If you're wondering what swap rates are, you can read our explainer here...

Barcelona will ban holiday apartment rentals by 2028 in a drastic move to tackle soaring housing costs.

Mayor Jaume Collboni said he will scrap the licences of the 10,101 flats currently approved for short-term rentals, and the properties will go on the market for residents to rent or buy.

"We are confronting what we believe is Barcelona's largest problem," he said.

The boom in short-term rentals in Spain's mostvisited city has caused rents to rise by 68% and house prices to increase by 28% in the past 10 years, Mr Collboni added.

While the move aims to help locals, hotels could also stand to benefit.

The opening ofnew hotels in the city's most popular areas was banned by afar-left party governing Barcelona between 2015 and 2023, but Mr Collboni has signalled he could relax the restriction.

The move comes after Madrid announced an immediate ban on new holiday rentals in a bid to tackle over-tourism

The Spanish capital decided to stop granting holiday rental licences temporarily, with the suspension expected to last until 2025.

Similar restrictions have already been enforced across the Canary Islands, Lisbon and Berlin.

Princess Diana's family home has gone on the market for the first time in 22 years - but interested buyers should note it comes with a £10.95m price tag.

The four-story property in Mayfair, London, has a reception hall, a drawing room, a library, two bedroom suits with walk-in wardrobes and ensuite bathrooms, and private underground parking.

If you're worried about the stairs inside such a tall house, don't be - it also comes with a lift connecting all levels.

The top floor is a self-contained suite, with a bedroom, sitting room, terrace, dressing room and bathroom.

There's also two bedrooms on the lower ground floor, accompanied by two bathrooms, another dressing room and a kitchen.

The house is where Princess Diana was first introduced to the al Fayed family at a lunch party in 1996.

Her stepmother, Raine Spencer, had encouraged her to get to know the family, including Dodi al Fayed, who she had a brief relationship with until they died in a car crash in Paris in 1997.

Mrs Spencer was at 24 Farm Street when she was told about Diana's death.

Since the early 2000s, the house has belonged to the founders of Pyms Gallery in Mayfair, Alan and Mary Hobart.

But after Mr Hobart's death in 2021 and Mrs Hobart's death earlier this year, it is now being sold on the instructions of their executors.

"With its aristocratic and royal connections, we anticipate significant interest in this house from discerning buyers around the world. It is a trophy home with an illustrious history," said Danish Arif, head of Mayfair sales at estate agents Chestertons.

By James Sillars, business news reporter

Let's start the new week by looking at the prospects for oil prices.

They're up by around 14% since 4 June - by 3% since last week alone - and standing at levels last seen in April.

It has left Brent crude at $85 a barrel.

If sustained, this level could prompt small rises at the fuel pumps in the coming weeks.

The outlook for Brent is currently coloured by a multitude of factors.

In support is the wealth of global hostilities, such as the war in Ukraine and the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Worries about demand, particularly in China, are providing some kind of check.

We'll have a clearer idea of the path for oil later this week, with analysts noting that it could go either way.

The FTSE 100 is starting the week on the back foot after a 0.4% decline on Friday.

It is trading at 8,234 - down three points.

Some of the negative sentiment has been linked to continuing worries about a delayed US interest rate cut and the snap parliamentary election in France.

The latest polls give the National Rally party of Marine Le Pen a clear lead ahead of the first round of voting on Sunday.

Upwards pressure on the FTSE is coming from consumer-facing stocks amid evidence that spending is picking up after a spring dominated by foul weather.

Typical first-time buyers are paying around £400 more per month for their mortgage than five years ago, Rightmove has found.

The average mortgage payment for those who have just stepped on the property ladder has risen by 61% since 2019, from £667 to £1,075 per month.

The property website calculated the monthly amount based on first-time buyers having a 20% deposit, a 25-year mortgage term and five-year fixed deal at an average rate, which by its calculation is currently about 5.04%.

Asking prices for a typical first home, with two bedrooms or fewer, has also increased to £227,757 - 19% more than 2019.

The North West had seen the biggest jump at 33% since 2019, while London has seen the smallest percentage rise of just 6%, Rightmove found.

"As rates have increased over the last five years, the amount that a typical first-time buyer is paying each month on a mortgage has outstripped the pace of earning growth," said Tim Bannister, Rightmove's property expert.

"Some first-time buyers are looking at extending their mortgage terms to 30 or 35 years to lower monthly payments, or looking at cheaper homes for sale so that they need to borrow less."

Our Money team reporter Katie Williamsexplored this issue last week. You can read her piece below...

Amazon is planning a major revamp of its loss-making Alexa - but the new tech could come with a monthly fee.

Dubbed "Remarkable Alexa", according to insider sources, the updated device would use conversational artificial intelligence technology.

The tech upgrade would mean the speaker could order you a takeaway from Uber Eats, write an email and perform other more complex tasks.

It could also eliminate the need to repeatedly say "Alexa" during a conversation, offering more personalisation, the sources told Reuters.

But a more powerful Alexa could mean people will have to pay a $5 (£3) monthly fee to access it.

The sources said there was currently no plan to introduce the service as part of the Prime membership, which customers already have to pay for.

Amazon's chief executive, Andy Jassy, has taken a personal interest in seeing Alexa revamped, promising a more "intelligent and capable" device to shareholders back in April.

An update may also be critical for Amazon tokeep up with rivals such as Google, Microsoft and OpenAI, which have all seen a positive reaction from their recently released AI chatbots.

However, the sources cautioned the plans for Alexa, including price and release date, could be altered or cancelled altogether.

That wouldn't be unusual. Amazon has been plagued by false starts in developing AI.

The company had reportedly been working on several devices last year, such as Alexa-enabled homeenergy consumption trackers and a carbon monoxide detector, which still haven't come to market.