Money blog: £70 Mastercard payout for millions; Reeves ends ISA talk; what Canary Islands tourism protests mean for holidays (2025)

All eyes will be on the Office for National Statistics at 7am tomorrow, with inflation data for April due.

Analysts are expecting the consumer price index to rise to 3.3%, little more than a month after it dropped by more than expected to 2.6%.

This measure, also known as CPI, is a key insight into the state of the everyday economy, tracking the cost of essentials such as food, energy and transport.

It's been on a downward trend since the turn of the year, ending January at 3%, before falling to 2.8% for February.

It's been on quite a journey over the past few years, a time that takes in the impact of the COVID pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine - see this graph:

If predictions are correct, and CPI rises to around 3.3%, it would be the highest rate since February last year.

So why's it expected to go up now?

The new figures will cover April, which explains why most observers are braced for a rise.

Let's break that down.

Energy, water and council tax bills rose throughout the UK at the start of this month.

New national insurance contributions kicked in, as did the increased national living wage, with these added costs for employers potentially passed down to the consumer.

Julien Lafargue, chief market strategist at Barclays Private Bank, agreed headline inflation would likely jump above 3%.

"This is driven by a number of one-off adjustments, including the new national insurance contributions and the increased national living wage," he said.

"There is also the impact of Easter, which fell squarely in April in 2025 but was in March in 2024, as well as the lovely weather that the UK has experienced in recent weeks."

What does this mean?

The Bank of England's target is to keep inflation at 2%.

But it's felt that hovering around the 3.3% mark will keep it within an acceptable range.

"All this will make for a relatively noisy report at a time when the Bank of England is eagerly trying to figure what to do next," Lafargue added.

"However, beyond the short-term distortions, we believe the overall direction of travel for UK inflation is lower.

"This should provide the central bank with room to consider at least a couple more interest rate cuts this year, supporting favourable economic conditions going forward."

The average landlord earns less than £20,000 in rental income, while half (52%) earn less than £10,000, research has found.

An Ipsos study commissioned by HMRC found 93% of landlords own property individually, while just 7% own through a company.

More than half of landlords (55%) own one property.

And while the majority of landlords (60%) purchased or bought their property as an investment, a substantial proportion (40%) originally purchased the property to live in, or received it through inheritance or as a gift.

Patricia McGirr, founder at Repossession Rescue Network, told Newspage: "The idea of the fat cat landlord is a fiction. Governments like to peddle this myth to justify increasing legislation and taxation.

"The reality is, most earn less from rent than a part-time barista. This is not passive income. It’s patchy, precarious and under pressure."

She said the rental market is "on a slow bleed to collapse and Whitehall has just removed the life support", with one in three considering selling up.

Data found 24% plan to sell within a year, with 33% aiming to sell within five years.

If this happens, she warned, rents will rise as supply sinks.

There are no plans to cut the limit on the tax-free ISA limit, Rachel Reeves has confirmed.

The chancellor was asked by the BBC if someone would still be able to put £20,000 per year into their account in the future.

She replied: "First of all, very few people are able to save £20,000 a year... we still want people to be able to save, and I'm certainly not going to reduce that limit."

There are several types of account falling under the ISA umbrella, which allow tax-free earnings on interest on up to £20,000 per year.

The most popular are cash ISAs and stocks and shares ISAs.

There was speculation earlier this year that the annual tax-free allowance could be cut to £4,000, in order to encourage people to put their money in investments.

Reeves said she wanted people to get "better returns on their savings", so she was instead looking at the advice financial firms give to their customers.

Millions of Britons could receive up to £70 each following the approval of a £200m settlement against Mastercard.

Consumers will soon be able to receive a chunk of the payout, regardless of whether they ever held a Mastercard, following final approval from the Competition Appeal Tribunal.

You are automatically a member of the class action if you:

• lived in the UK (for at least a continuous period of three months) between 22 May 1992 and 21 June 2008;
• were aged 16 or over during this time;
• bought goods and services (for a non-business purpose) from businesses selling in the UK, irrespective of the means of payment used;
• and were living in the UK on 6 September 2016.

Walter Merricks, the former financial ombudsman, launched his claim after he alleged 46 million shoppers in Britain were ripped off after fees were wrongly levied on transactions made over 15 years between 1992 and 2008.

The fees were paid by retailers accepting Mastercard payments, rather than the consumers themselves. But Merricks claimed shoppers had lost out as retailers passed on these fees in the form of higher prices.

A statement from Merricks said millions of UK consumers could soon register via an online form to receive a payment of between £45 and £70, regardless of whether they have ever held a Mastercard card, he said.

If the expected 5% of claimants (2.5 million people) come forward, then they will receive £45 each. Should fewer claimants come forward, payments will be capped at £70 each.

The deadline for applying will be the end of the year - the claims website is here. The form to lodge a claim isn't live yet, but we'll let you know when it is.

Thousands of people took to the streets of Gran Canaria over the weekend to protest against mass tourism on the islands - will it make a difference if you have a holiday booked to the Canary Islands this summer?

There are seven main islands in the Spanish archipelago (Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro) and its sunny spot close to Africa makes them a popular destinations for tourists from across Europe.

The islands welcomed more than 15.5 million international visitors last year - including 6.3 million Brits.

"Tourism is very important for the Canary Islands, but we have to realise that the collapse is total," Juan Francisco Galindo, a hotel manager in Tenerife, said over the weekend.

It came as officials for the islands travelled to Brussels this week to seek EU funding for affordable housing.

What happened over the weekend?

The islands are home to 2.2 million people. Thousands of them took to the streets of Gran Canaria to protest against a tourism model they say has plundered the environment, priced them out of housing and forced them into precarious work.

A similar demonstration took place in Tenerife last April, with calls to temporarily limit the arrival of tourists.

Protesters are calling for a shift to a more sustainable tourism model that protects the local identity and culture.

What is the problem?

The tourism model in the Canary Islands hasn't been updated since before the tourist boom of the 1980s, when the islands were "trying desperately" to attract investment, local business owner Sharon Backhouse told Sky News last year.

The answer back then was a model that was "incredibly generous" to investors, who only pay 4% tax and can send the profits earned in the Canaries back to the firm's home country, Ms Backhouse explained.

But the model hasn't changed.

That's created a situation where "more and more of these giant, all-inclusive resort hotels" are being built, and the proceeds of this "incredible cash cow" aren't shared equitably with the local population.

A report by the environmental group Ecologists in Action showed more than a third of the population of the Canary Islands - nearly 800,000 people - are at risk of poverty or social exclusion.

What could it mean for tourists?

If you are travelling to the Canary Islands this summer, you may want to keep an eye on the news to avoid any anti-tourist "hot spots" near where you choose to visit, as you may be unlikely to receive a very warm welcome.

There are also a few rules you should be aware of when visiting Spain or Spanish islands...

Tenerife's visitor caps: There is now a daily cap on visitor numbers toAnaga Rural Park in Tenerife, in a bid to protect the natural environment. And for tourists hoping to visit Teide National Park, you will now have to pay an "eco tax".

Tourist Tax:Some regions have tried to implement a "tourist tax", the proceeds of which would be used to offset any effects of over-tourism. But this is rarely that expensive and is usually just paid at the hotel.

Data collection:All hotel owners, private rental providers, campsites and car hire companies are required to collect some personal data within 24 hours of check-in, so don't be surprised if they ask for this. This will include your full name, email address and passport number.

The £98 a day rule:Non-EU citizens, including British tourists, entering any country in the Schengen area can be asked to provide evidence that they have enough money for the duration of their stay. This varies by country but in Spain it equates to just over £98. These rules have been around for a while, but they started applying to UK citizens after Brexit.

Alcohol: The Canary Islands, like other parts of Spain, have banned drinking alcohol and smoking in public places, with on-the-spot fines. This can apply to some beaches.

Rental law:There is also a draft law which aims to implement stricter controls on the expansion of holiday homes, but this is unlikely to really make much impact for several years. Under the law, dubbed the Vacation Rental Law, newly built properties will be banned from being used by tourists for 10 years after construction. It will also prohibit entire residential buildings from being converted into holiday lets.

Check your passport:It doesn't matter if your passport hasn't expired; it needs to have been issued less than 10 years before your arrival date and must be valid for at least three months after you leave Spain. You may have extra time on your passport if you renewed it early, as the Passport Office can add on the extra months, making it valid for more than 10 years.

The Bank of England has been cutting interest rates too quickly, its chief economist has warned.

The pace of interest rate reductions since August last year has been "too rapid" given the balance of risks to UK inflation, Huw Pill said.

Pill was one of the members of the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee who voted against the recent interest rate cut, which brought it down to 4.25%.

He said his vote to hold interest rates at this month's policy meeting was more of a "skip" than a "halt" in rate cuts and expressed concern about inflation persistence, where price rises remain elevated.

Pill, who is chief economist and executive director for monetary analysis and research at the Bank, said interest rate cuts should be "cautious".

Interest rates peaked at 5.25% in August 2023 to try and quell surging inflation, before starting to be cut in August last year.

BySarah Taaffe-Maguire, business and economics reporter

Markets are in much the same place as yesterday morning, but after the official announcement of a new deal between the UK and EU, stocks are slightly up.

The indices of most valuable companies on the London Stock Exchange are up 0.5% for the FTSE 100 and 0.25% for the FTSE 250.

Leading the FTSE 250 is Greggs with a large 7.35% rise in its share price after it posted positive sales that could set it on course for its best ever year (read more on Greggs' success in our 10.12 post).

The pound is in much the same place as yesterday, benefiting from dollar weakness amid fears of rising US debt after rating agency Moody's downgraded the credit rating of the world's largest economy.

One pound will nearly get you $1.34. Against the euro, you can buy €1.18.

Tesco is launching a wedding gift registry that will give lucky couples bin liners, toilet rolls and ready meals.

The supermarket said it had launched six bespoke bundles on wedding registry Prezola in response to the "real needs of modern couples across the UK".

One £39 package includes six months' worth of tea and biscuits, while a dine-in-dates £72 gift consists of Tesco Finest ready meals and wine.

And for the really romantic, a £63 wedding gift includes five packs of toilet roll, two tubes of toothpaste, refuse sacks, kitchen towel, antibacterial hand wash and shower products.

Morrisons shoppers will be pleased to hear it has expanded its loyalty scheme, with More card members now able to earn points with over 300 brands.

To earn points, customers need to log into their Morrisons More app or the website and then click through to a partner retailer to make a purchase. Like with cashback sites, the transaction will be tracked and the points added to their account.

M&S is facing a multimillion-pound lawsuit after customers had their data stolen in a cyber attack.

The supermarket has already assured customers that the stolen information did not include payment or card details or account passwords.

But Thompsons Solicitors has launched a class action claim against M&S for exposing shoppers to the threat of scams by not protecting their data.

BySarah Taaffe-Maguire, business and economics reporter

Greggs is on course to outperform its strongest-ever year as viral products, new ranges and more shops helped boost sales.

The high-street bakery chain is a giant of UK hospitality - last year, analysts at Panmure Gordon said nearly £2 of every £100 spent in the hospitality industry went to Greggs.

Sales are even better in the first 20 weeks of this year, up just shy of 3% on 2024, when Greggs had its strongest performance.

People were buying even more over the past 11 weeks due to "better trading conditions", the baker said, though it "remains a challenging market".

And they'll have more places to buy from as the chain said it would have between 140 and 150 extra outlets by the end of the year.

Selling well was its "viral" mac and cheese, iced tea and lemonade drinks, with pizza boxes also experiencing "strong demand".

Also proving popular with customers "looking for a more substantial and personalised meal" was its made-to-order range, including burgers, wraps and fish finger sandwiches, available in more than 300 shops.

Having already increased prices by around 2%, Greggs said it expected inflation of about 6% in its costs.

ByMegan Harwood-Baynes, cost of living specialist

You can make some decent money switching bank accounts - and these are some of the best offers about at the moment.

TSB: Up to £310

The potential value of this offer is the highest we have seen - though it isn't quite as easy as £310 in your account. What you can earn is...

• £100 upfront
• £15 cashback for six months
• £120 credit towards a hotel via Travel Credits
• Bonus:You also have access to a fixed saver offering 5% on a maximum deposit of £250 a month - maxxed out, that'll earn you £81 a year.

In total, that's £391 of rewards - but you will have a few hoops to jump through.

To qualify, you need to open the account and switch in from a different bank before 19 July. Then spend on the debit card five times and log into the mobile app. Your £100 will then be paid between 2 and 16 August.

To qualify for the monthly cashback, you need to spend on the debit card at least 20 times in the first six months.

To be eligible, you can't have had a switch bonus from TSB since 1 October 2022.

Other banking switches

We are slowly seeing the return of decent banking switch offers.

First Direct: £175
To get the bonus, you need to switch in an account with two direct debits or standing orders, pay in £1,000 and make five debit card payments within 45 days.

You won't get the bonus if you've ever had a First Direct account or opened an HSBC account since January 2018.

NatWest: £150
This account comes with a £2 fee, but you get £5 a month if you pay in £1,250 and you get access to their saver which pays 6.17% a year, up to £5,000.

To qualify, switch in an account and pay in £1,250 within 60 days and log into mobile banking. The cash is then paid within 60 days.

You won't get this if you've ever had a switch bonus from NatWest, RBS or Ulster Bank before.

Co-op bank: £100, plus £25 a month for three months
This one has more criteria to meet - within 30 days of switching, you need to deposit £1,000, have 2+ direct debits, register for online banking or the mobile app, or make 10 transactions with the debit card.

Tip: If a bank requires you to pay in a certain amount to qualify for a bonus, you can transfer that money in and then immediately back out. Unless the small print says otherwise, it shouldn't need to stay in your account for a certain amount of time.

Can you make money from switching banks?

Short answer, yes.

Slightly longer answer, still yes but you have to be quite organised. My husband and I made £1,775 in 10 months by swapping banks 12 times between us.

You have to be on top of what the criteria is needed for each bank switch, as we ended up missing £200 in rewards because we didn't make one switch in time.

We both opened "burner" accounts with Starling, setting up two direct debits before using these to hop around. For direct debits, we didn't do anything crucial, but instead each set up two £5 direct debits to charity (I've also seen people set up two £1 direct debits to their main accounts, which could work too), so we wouldn't end up missing a bill if one of the switches didn't go through properly.