“Number of clients considering ESG drops for a third year”

Oct 16, 2024 | Ethical investing, Investments

An independent (financial adviser’s) view

As you’ll have heard many times, we like to think we champion ethical/sustainable/responsible/shades-of-green investments, at least to a greater extent than many others – see, if you haven’t already, my two recent YouTubes on the subject. ‘ESG’ is one of the many and various names for investments which do less harm than others, and apparently less are considering, for which read actively asking to invest, in this way. And here’s the thing: a majority of advisers still only discuss the ethical/ESG option if the subject is raised by their client, or (and I’ve heard this a few times) will raise in the ‘you’re not interested in…are you?’ Format It’s true, of course, that in the past couple of years investments which exclude oil and arms are likely to have underperformed ‘conventional’ funds. It will not, and has not been, ever thus, however. And the future is the future.

Read more here

“HMRC: ‘digitalising tax process could close gap’”

“HMRC: ‘digitalising tax process could close gap’”

You, like a majority of both taxpayers and accountants, may have been sweating and cursing over a keyboard last week to submit a last-minute tax return. Many by the end of that accursed process will have been shouting ‘bring back paper!’, a vain and pointless hope, I’m afraid.