A former leader of the Labour Party in the UK believes that 50% should be the top rate of income tax.

Lord Kinnock said this would demonstrate the party’s “unerring” commitment to fairness.

The last Labour government raised the upper tax band from 40% to 50% in 2010 in response to the recession but the coalition has since cut it to 45%.

The existing tax on air travel is to be increased, as announced in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement.

Air Passenger Duty for people flying from the UK will go up for the sixth time in as many years.

The increase comes in on 1 April and will hit medium and long-haul flights.

Using pension figures to discern countries where expats chose to stay, Canada holds the number one position.

Expats signing up for their pensions in the countries they live in is one indicator of those who chose not to return to the UK.

The Duke of Westminster, long known as the UK’s richest property owner, has been knocked into fourth place as new money from Asia sweeps into the UK.

As Britain’s super-rich property market continues to boom, London has become “the real estate capital of the world”. The number of prestige houses being built in Westminster more than doubled in just the last two years.

Police were called to clear the public galleries in Portugal’s parliament today as anti-toll protestors took exception to the cursory treatment given to its 14,000 signature petition to have the tolls suspended.
 
Protesters shouted in parliament that the struggle will continue while the government machine stifled any sensible debate on the topic which has become a huge financial embarrassment to the ruling coalition.

The vote was taken along party lines, with some notable exceptions this time, but the day was lost for the redoubtable protestors and the expensive, loss making tolls stay for the time being.

Portugal's parliament today approved a bill that criminalises the mistreatment of pets.

This was a free vote on animal welfare today with no party line pressure put on MPs.

During the debate one of the Algarve’s MPs Cristóvão Norte said the draft law submitted by the Social Democrats “makes history in advancing animal welfare in Portugal."

The Barril Beach Project aims to install a novel type of tourism station on the beach near Tavira with the goal of creating a tourist and recreational space to practice all kinds of beach and sea activities.

The equipment provided will be for a range of activities such as diving, boating, birdwatching, and windsurfing with the aim of eventually erecting a permanent building for marine tourism, culture and leisure.

The chief executive of Caixa Geral de Depósitos, José de Matos, today aligned his bank with the position of the president of the Portuguese Association of Banks (APB) saying that he believes that banks need to offset costs and should be compensated for any imposition of a limit on fees paid by merchants to banks for electronic payments.