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Vince Cable, the new Business Secretary, has promised ?there is going to be a restructuring? of banks.

The calculation, the first to assess the combined effect of proposed changes to capital, liquidity, funding and tax rules, comes just days after Michael Geoghegan, HSBC chief executive, warned that early implementation of the controls could trigger a second credit crunch and tip the global economy back into recession.

The research also coincided with a promise by the new business secretary, Vince Cable, that “there is going to be a restructuring” of the banks. In hard-hitting remarks, he insisted the coalition Government’s inquiry into breaking up the banks would result in major changes.

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Tags: Banks, Banks £208bn

Scientists from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries survey the beach at Port Fourchon, Louisiana. Photo: Reuters

Storms may scuttle clean-up efforts, force containment vessels to retreat, or propel spilled crude and tar balls over vast expanses of sea and beach, scientists said.

Meteorologists say that climate conditions are ripe for an unusually destructive hurricane season, the storm-prone period that runs from June 1 to the end of November in the Gulf. Oceanographers say that could hurt the clean-up.

“If a storm comes into this situation it could vastly complicate everything,” said Florida State University oceanography professor Ian MacDonald.

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Coalition government plans to double capital gains tax (CGT) – possibly including Lib Dem proposals to cut the threshold from £10,100 to £1,000 – are “legalised theft”, according to Mark Dampier of independent financial advisers Hargreaves Lansdown.

While many may be tempted to bark at the moon, the question here and now is what to do about it. The answers are a bit long but this is a complex and – for those affected – important subject.

Investors with substantial portfolios of property and/or shares who have not protected them in tax shelters – such as trusts, individual savings accounts (Isas) or pensions – face the daunting possibility that HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) may grab half their gains.

This

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Tags: Capital Gains, Capital Gains Tax, Gains Tax, Tax