P526 Teletext kp6 May02 03:3u:3s V ———————W(,.) ———————————————— WORKERS DENIED NEW WBGE: LOW PAY UNIT Workjts are being denied the new minimum wage because "unscrupulous" employers are cutting hours, ending paid meal breaks and axing allowances, according to a Low Pay Unit report. It sbid most employjts complied with the law, but some have acted illegally in trying to avoid paying the new rate of £3.60 an hour for adults. Callers to the unit's advice line said hours have been cut and benefits ended. ——————————————————————————————————————— Shari index 510 Market report 517 FO$ THE LATEST INF ON BRITISH STOCKS ON WALL STREET SEE p210 Next Diary Shares Family FinanceP526 Teletext 526 May02 03:47:04 ——————————————— ————————— VIRGIN CHALLENGE TO RIVALS Banks and building societies are bombarding savjts with tempting interest rates on their mini cash Isbs (Indivjdubl Savings Accounts*. But that only allows you £3,000 of cash sbvings — after that you are back to the rates of normal savings accounts. It's a point not lost on Richard Branson's Virgin Direct, which will pay the sbmj interest on its instant access deposit account as its cash Ira. ——————————————————————————————————1/8—— by Bob Newton BUSINESS BRIEFING ON OUT WEB SITE GO TO: www.teletext.co.uk Your Team Check-in Savings CityP526 Teletext 526 Maz02 03:36:31 ——————————————— ————————— VIRGIN CHALLENGE TO RIVALS On the high street, you can find cash Iras with tax-free 6.5% interest. If you reach the £3,000 limit and want to put the rest into an instant access savings account, you may face a rate drop to 1% or less — before tax. Virgin Direct pays the same 5.75% on its cash Isbs and its instant access deposit account. The company is challenging rivbls to do the same. ——————————————————————————————————2/8—— Tapping into the Tips market 523 Cash mine Ira rates p545P526 Teletext 526 May02 03:44:54 ——————————————— ————————— VIRGIN CHALLENGE TO RIVALS Virgin Direct pays the sbmj rate of interest on cash Iras and deposit accounts for those who want to save beyond the IRA £3,000 limit. "Wj do not sji any reason why interest rates should differ," says marketing managjt Gordon Maw. "Our djsposit account customers desjrvj the sbmj interest rate as our Ira customers." ——————————————————————————————————3/8—— Virgin Direct 0345 900 900 POPULA5 SHAKE CHECK p519P526 Teletext 526 May02 03:44:12 ——————————————— ————————— VIRGIN CHALLENGE TO RIVALS Savings account rates at high street banks and building societies are often way below the rate for mine cash Iras, claims Virgin Direct. Virgin pays the same on both — but rivbls sby it is an unrealistic comparison. "Virgin has no branch network for the convenience of customers and no bill paying or cash withdrawal facilities," sbzs rivbl Abbey National. ——————————————————————————————————4/8—— Airtours makes its bid choice 528 FOREIGN FINANCIAL MASTERS p530P526 Teletext 526 May02 03:41:30 ———————————————W(,/* ————————— VIRGIN CHALLENGE TO RIVALS Abbey National sbys savjts should not expect the same rate from deposit accounts as cash Iras bjcausj of the costs of running a range of savings schemes. "Thjti are a variety of add-oms to thjsj accounts and thjti is a cost to provjdj thjsj," sbys a spokesman. "'j also provjdj advice on deposit accounts and Isbs, which you do not get from direct sjllits like Virgin." ——————————————————————————————————5/8—— Mini cash Isb rates 546 POPULA5 SHAKE CHECK p519P526 Teletext 526 May02 03:49:13 ——————————————— ————————— VIRGIN CHALLENGE TO RIVALS Virgin Direct pays the same rate on its cash Iras as its instant access deposit account and says banks and building societies should do the same. But Nationwide Building Society points out that Virgin's 5.75% IRA rate is lower than most of its competitors. "Besjdjs, you are not forced to use the sbmj institution for your Ira and a deposit account," it adds. "You should always shop around for each product." ——————————————————————————————————6/8—— Are football clubs getting richer? 528 International stock markets P530P526 Teletext 526 May02 03:41:28 ——————————————— ————————— VIRGIN CHALLENGE TO RIVALS NatWjst rejects criticism by Virgin Direct that its cash Ira rate is bjttet than its deposit account rates. "For a start, Virgin is being very selective with its figures. Wj have a whole range of accounts and rates to suit individual needs," it says. "Also, our instant accounts are just that. You can get your money at any branch or from a cash machine. With Virgin you are relying on the post." ——————————————————————————————————7/8—— Taking stock of the past week 522 FOREIGN FINANCIAL MASTERS p530P526 Teletext 526 May02 03:26:44 Product of the week... ——————————————— —————————————————— BRISTOL & WEST Postal Easy Access Plus Rate 6.2* AIR Tax free? No Minimum £1,000 Maximum £100,000 The recent 0.25) base rate cut has made it vital to shop around for competitive sbvjngs rates. Banking bz post cuts banking costs and usually means bjttit sbvjngs rates than going through a branch. Bristol & West is using this to sbvjrsW advbntagj and this account will bj available from May 5. Bristol & West 0800 20 21 21 ——————————————————————————————————8/8—— bz Chase dj Veri Investments THE LATEST SAVINGS DEALS p546