The latest UK figures for unemployment show the highest number of people without a job since 1994, with 2.68 million out of work. The figures, released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed some discouraging statistics including:

- 29.7% of youths aged 16 – 24 unemployed

- 8.4% of the economically active population unemployed

- 0.3% rise in umemployment on the previous quarter, a rise of 118,000.

- There were 2.68 million unemployed people

- Highest number of unemployed people since 1994

If you’re employed in the private sector you may be surprised to read that both regular pay and bonuses rose by 1.9% on the same period last year. Of course this is cold comfort for many who face the threat of redundancy and not much good to public sector workers but it does show some positive movement.

Any early signs of a smile emerging may be wiped off your boat race by the predictions of leading analysts, declaring that the UK has already slipped back into recession. On the plus side, it’s the Olympics this year and what better than a national showcase to bind the multi-cultural societies of our great nation (if you’re not proud about your country, it couldn’t help).

Banks throughout the UK and other regions in Europe continue to face substantial losses. As they attempt to get their finances back under control, many people believe that they are going to be charging higher fees. They will likely face added pressure as new regulatory pressures.

Consultants from Pricewaterhousecooopers said that there is almost no way that banks would not begin creating new fees. However, they also said that the practice may not have to continue indefinitely. Another trend may counteract the increase in bank charges. As competition increases in the banking industry, banks are probably going to have to limit the fees they charge.

Pricewaterhousecooopers is not the only analyst to suggest such a trend. Another report was issued by the Confederation of British Industry. That report suggested that there was a significant fallout from the banking crisis in the Eurozone. As the debt crisis continues to infect the UK banking system, the local banks will need to find new ways to address it. The CBI report corroborates the findings of Pricewaterhousecoopers, further arguing that the banking crisis is going to get significantly worse. The only way they believe the banks can shelter themselves from the fallout in the Eurozone is to charge higher fees to their customers.

Over the most recent quarter, the banks posted much higher earnings. Nonetheless, austerity measures and the EU debt crisis are going to have a significant effect on the future of the banking system. Analysts have no way of predicting when there will be another major fallout and whether or not the banks will need to take more drastic action.

Regardless of how they intend on handling the crisis in the Eurozone, the banks are probably going to feel the need to charge more money as they try to increase their financial position. A number of different banks are still implementing a number of bank fees and even some of the newer banks are getting ready to start setting up programs that are going to charge their customers.

While Barclays and Santander continue to charge a number of fees to their customers, newer companies such as Virgin Money are also charging their customers for a number of the privileges they have instituted.

UK customers are still looking for alternative solutions. Many may consider transferring their accounts to credit unions the same way American customers did when they got frustrated with the fees they were being charged by Bank of America. However, these transitions are unlikely to happen overnight and they will probably be forced to contend with a number of high fees for the time being.

If we reported on every discrepancy that was made by an insurer, bank or lender then it would be all we ever wrote about, but a recent fine imposed by the FSA is definitely worth mentioning. The Combined Insurance Company of America (CICA) has been hit with a fine of £2.8m for employing a ‘high-risk’ pay scheme that governed the wages of their sales agents.

The City watchdog slapped CICA with a £2.8m fine

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) said that the way sales staff earned their money led to customers being at risk of being treated unfairly when buying accident and sickness insurance. As a result of the findings, CICA has agreed to look into the way customers are treated and pay compensation to where appropriate.

Most of CICA’s policyholders were self-employed or small business owners with the FSA citing the following business failures that led to the fine:

- Sales staff with less-than-adequate qualifications and missing references

- Failure to ensure that sales staff had the knowledge to provide appropriate advice

- Paying sales agents on a commission-only basis was deemed ‘risky’

- Customer complaints and rule-breaking sales staff where not dealt with adequately

The above issues combined with the £2.8m fine (reduced from £4m after an early settlement) and FSA ruling has resulted in CICA not taking on any new business since October last year.

As 2012 begins and the focus of our nation shifts towards the arrival of the worlds greatest athletes, new figures from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) have revealed that 2011 was just as Olympic as 2012 promises to be. In the first 10 months of last year more than £1 billion in mis sold PPI compensation was paid out according to the financial watchdog, that’s £2,739,726.03 refunded each and every day.

The banks are starting to seriously regret mis selling PPI. There's plenty more people to claim and lots of money to be paid out.

As 2011 progressed; more was paid out each month with the latest figures, for October, revealing it to be the highest month yet for redress with firms paying out £268 million to claimants, that’s £8,645,161.29 paid back every day. However, unlike the 204 countries that take part in the Olympics, just 16 unnamed companies were responsible for the £1 billion in compensation, with the same companies accounting for 92% of all PPI claims in the first six months of 2011.

With over £1bn paid out in 2011 and press coverage increasing, the level of PPI compensation paid out in 2012 is set to smash last years total. When the banks gave up the fight against mis sold PPI it was estimated that more than three million people were in line for compensation. By the end of 2011, 104,597 more people had complained about PPI, but overall; less that 1 million people have been paid out. Despite this, the total bill for mis sold PPI is on target to reach the early forecasts of around £8 billion.

It’s great news that more people are getting back the money that are owed. All we want to know is: were we one of the 16 companies? We’ve definitely helped a lot of people get their money back!

Many service providers such as airlines and retailers have been charging excessive credit card fees to their customers. Often, these fees could exceed £12. The cost of the actual transaction was about 60 times less than that. The Treasury said these fees must be continued.

Mark Hoban from the Treasury said that these providers have been abusing this practice for some time. In fact, many of them have gone so far as to charge more for the credit card fee than the product itself.

One of Hoban’s colleagues said that customers have become very frustrated with the way they have been ripped off by these providers. After listening to their resentment and frustrations, the Treasury has decided things need to be changed.

According to new policies, a new law will need to be in place by year’s end to ensure these credit card fees are put to an end. He said that these institutions have been deceptive as to how they are implementing these fees. As a result, customers are misled as to how much they are going to pay. Due to the fact that some institutions charge more for a credit card fee than another, credit card holders may not realize that they are actually paying more for one service over another.

In fact, the cost of purchasing tickets at some airlines has grown substantially in the past seven years. In some cases, the fees have increased 15 times over or more. The Office of Fair Trading is on board with making sure these practices are put to a stop. They said that airline passengers alone are paying nearly £300,000 pounds every day. Therefore, when these new changes are put into place, they want businesses to be fair and react to them in a timely manner.

The OFT first learned of the extent of the damage these fees have to customers back in June. They have been working on finding a fairer policy ever since.

Hoban said that the UK will be the first country in Europe to implement such a law. He believes that other countries will follow the UK’s lead and ban the use of credit card fees as well.

According to a recent report, banks have charged travelers about £20 million in fees to buy foreign currencies. A statement from Consumer Focus said that this practice must come to an end after facing criticism from the Office of Fair Trading.

Speakers from Consumer Focus have found that the fees the banks charge are typically around 1.5-2% of the amount of currency being exchanged. However, the exchange rate for travelers using debit or credit cards can be closer to 5%. This has enabled banks to get over £1 billion pounds in fees off of these travelers. These fees have been hidden within purchases that were made abroad and many customers have been completely blindsided by the fees the banks imposed on them while they were traveling to the UK.

The banks were charging these fees to customers every way they possibly could. Even travelers who brought prepaid cards into the UK ended up paying a number of fees on their purchases. Apparently, travelers didn’t have any possible way to escape these fees before the OFT decided to get involved and get the banks to withdraw them.

The biggest conspirators in this case have been five of the biggest banks in the UK. Many UK citizens weren’t surprised at all to find out that Barclays, Santender and Lloyds were among the companies have had to face criticism from the OFT and a number of consumer advocacy groups. These banks have all agreed to drop the bank fees they have been charging. Many other banks operating in the UK and abroad do not charge any such fees, so this may help them be more competitive in the long run.

In addition, the banks have agreed to be more open about their policies on the charges they issue to foreign travelers. Although this sounds like these banks are turning over a new leaf, Consumer Focus and a number of other critics aren’t sure their scruples have changed. Many feel that the banks are just going to increase fees on other services to make up for the waved travelers fees.

It’s hard to believe that it’s already been three years since the meltdown of our economy and the subsequent bank bail out. Yet today, well over 1000 days later, we still find ourselves in the midst of a crisis that threatens to bankrupt a handful of European countries and dramatically change our economic structure for the foreseeable future.

Japanese consumers took it slow in the 90's, as their economy saw little growth

While the bail out sured up the banking sector and gave investors confidence, it did little to increase consumer confidence or reduce future unemployment rates. But it must be said that we’re not at risk of collapse, we may face a 90′s Japan-esque decade of very low growth, but it’s still growth and there’s very little chance of things going the way of Greece or Italy.

The problem, that’s been well highlighted, is our economy’s dependence on the banking sector instead of more reliable (but less glamorous) industries such as manufacturing and exporting physical goods. The Office of National Statistics (ONS) ‘Blue Book’ reports that the financial sector accounted for 31.9% of Gross Value Added (GVA) to the British economy, yet in size it only makes up 5.1% of it.

The Banking sector is small in size but unmatched in economic contribution

The result is a financial sector that employs few people and produces nothing that can be bought by other countries but contributes massive tax receipts. The major problem is that, unlike Germany who’s Mittelstand makes niche items of a high quality that will always be in demand somewhere in the world, our banking sector can collapse simply due to a lack of confidence.

But, that’s our bed so to speak and unless we have a radical rethink on the structure of our economy; we’ll be sleeping in it for a while yet. So, with the banking sector (and our economy) still in need of protection, David Cameron made a decision on Friday to go against a new EU proposal to place bank charges on financial transactions that could see financial institutions upsticks and leave the City.

Cameron veto'd the FTT in Brussels on Friday

The new Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) would be a tax on every purchase or sale of stocks or bonds or whatever financial product by a bank. Like any tax, if we all pay then it’s fair, but the problem is 75% of the total tax paid through FTT would be paid by banks located in the UK. This would leave banks with no real incentive to base themselves in the City of London and could see them leave, taking huge tax payments with them and damaging our economy.

That’s why Cameron veto’d it, but he’s going to have to explain himself to his right, sorry, left-hand man, Nick Clegg and other MP’s later today, many of whom fundamentally disagree with the veto, fearing it may distance us from Europe. Such an outcome could mean difficulties with trade, relations and important economic ties, which could also spell disaster as Europe is by far our largest trading partner.

Clegg and Cameron don't see eye-to-eye over the EU veto

So, going with the FTT or against it has implications but whether we support it or not the EU can vote in favour of the new charges and force them upon us. It’s difficult to know what will happen with FTT but the bigger question is what will happen to the Euro Zone and the EU as a whole. The fallout from FTT may well shape a new EU and the inability to save Greece, Italy and even Spain could see them leave the single currency, as could their unwillingness to continue with austerity cuts and tax hikes.

While these outcomes are unknown, one thing is for sure – the next five years will see a major shake up of the European Union and the Euro Zone and anyone who tells you they know exactly what’s going to happen is either back from the future or a fool.

Overdraft fees have created a lot of tension and mistrust among banking customers. Fortunately, the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills has announced a decision to make sure policies on overdraft fees are easier for customers to understand. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has setup a voluntary agreement with the banks that will help create a fairer system for customers.

The new policies will apply to all current customer accounts. The banks are going to be committed to making these terms clearer and easier to understand for their customers to understand. One of their first initiatives is to increase transparency. In accordance with these agreements, the banks are going to start sending out reports to their customers, informing them of what they are spending on their accounts. All major banks have agreed to release these reports annually.

Additionally, the banks have agreed to help prevent customers from overdrawing their accounts. They will send a warning to customers, notifying them when their account balance is close to zero. This should be enough to give customers a heads up that they will either need to add funds to their account or cut back on their withdrawals.

In the long run, these initiatives should do a lot to help customers keep their accounts within normal limits and reduce the chances of an overdraft. Robert Lloyd, executive director of Which? is optimistic with these initiatives. They are clearly a step in the right direction and should be sufficient to keep customers from paying more exorbitant overdraft fees. However, Lloyd states that customers clearly do not trust banks right now.

One concern raised by Lloyd and his colleagues is the scope to which these new terms apply. Do they only apply to overdraft accounts, or do they apply to all bank accounts? Clearly, these questions need to be answered. Lloyd and the other executives at Which? insist the banks be required to provide more data as to how they use their current bank accounts.

Banks have been charging significant bank fees for several years. Although there have been a number of ways customers can fight to get their money back, these fees have been largely accepted as a fact of life. However, there may be some light at the end of the tunnel yet.

Customers were starting to believe that bank fees couldn’t possibly get any better. They peaked at 25 pounds for a single overdraft. Just when things seemed like they couldn’t get any better, the decision of a long-standing legal battle was finally made.

Customers took these banks to court, arguing that the banks resorted to unfair trading practices. The Office of Fair Trade took an interest in the number of customers that were making these allegations. The Office of Fair Trade decided to issue a legal settlement against the banks, forcing them to change their policies on overdraft protections.

The courts sided with the OFT. Unfortunately, the victory was short-lived. The banks appealed the decision, and high courts ruled that the OFT did not have legal grounds to assess these cases. The lower court’s decision was thrown out and the OFT and disgruntled customers were back to square one.

Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mark Hoban wants to look out for the interests of consumers. He said that customers came to the watchdog agencies, insisting that the charges were unfair. They felt the banks often left their terms ambiguous and demanded clearer terms.

Ministers are willing to stand by voluntary measures to change the practices. The other solution requires changing the law itself, which the banks would fight and any decision would be appealed. Although this seems to be the path of least resistance, many people criticize the government’s attitude towards the situation. Critics insist that relying on banks to make voluntary changes to their policies on overdraft fees will create the change they are looking for.

Bank charges have actually dropped significantly in the past few months, when they topped 40 pounds for a single overdrawn transaction. Although this shows some improvement, customers feel their is still a long ways to go. Interest rates are now nearly one third of the principal on overdraft balances. As a result, the public’s confidence in banks is seriously dwindling.

Fortunately, arrangements are being coordinated with the British Bankers Association to improve the system. Customers are being given more control over their accounts and should be able to substantially reduce their balances in the near future.

Banks have stopped charging debit card fees to their customers, which is something that customers have worked long and hard for. However, after all the petitions and fights to end the debit card fees, these customers are less than satisfied with the outcome. Unfortunately, the fees are probably not going to end anytime soon and customers are just as irate as ever.

While many customers are intend on openly protesting, others have decided that they are going to protest in a more subtle way. They are just moving their money out of their bank accounts and putting it in credit unions.

This movement is something they have been considering for some time now. In a recent BBC article, Lorin Oberweger mentioned how she had been planning on moving her money out of her bank account for the past three years. Like many other customers, she wanted to put her money somewhere where big corporations had less influence. Credit unions provided that safeguard for her, in addition to offering lower rates.

According to a founder of a firm that specializes in delivering financial solutions to consumers, approximately a third of all people think about changing their banks. Historically, only about a tenth of customers ever take the leap to do so. That trend has changed in recent years. Over the past few years, twice as many people have left their banks due to raising fees or declining standards of service.

The Alite group conducted a survey of customers from the United Kingdom, the United States and France. They wanted to see what customers thought about their banks. This survey revealed that customers’ trust in banks dropped to the lowest level ever in 2009. Clearly, they have become even more frustrated in more recent years.

Plenty of things have taken place over the past few years that have caused the feelings of resentment that customers are experiencing. The banks may be coming to realize that customers are willing to limit their power. Bank of America tried to implement a new policy on charging customers a monthly fee to use their debit cards. The bank revoked the fee just over a month later.

However, customers have not limited the banks’ power to the point where they are going to be able to make a serious difference any time soon. According to Tim Pannel of Financial Marketing Solutions, it would take more than 40,000 customers joining the Bank Transfer Day group on Facebook before the banks got the message loud and clear. The banks are going to keep implementing these charges until customers decide to take a more definitive stand on the issue.