Julian Knight



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Full name: Julian Knight

Area of interest: Personal finance

Journals: The Independent on Sunday

Email: [mailto:j.knight@independent.co.uk j.knight@independent.co.uk]

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Career: BBC News Finance & Consumer Affairs Reporter; joined The Independent in September 2007 Current position/role: Personal finance editor


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Remit/Info: Personal finance issues

Section: Business on Sunday: money / invest & save

Role: Personal finance editor

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Email: [mailto:j.knight@independent.co.uk j.knight@independent.co.uk]

Website: Independent.co / Money

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Day published: Sunday

Regularity: Weekly

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Articles: 2011

 * Who will rid us of the curse of the 'chugger'? - I counted eight "chuggers" – a mixture of charity collector and mugger – with bright purple NSPCC shirts, along Kensington High Street on Friday morning - 13th November
 * Where's the port in this euro storm? - Greece's meltdown and other crises within Europe are leaving investors wondering where to turn. Julian Knight investigates the options - 6th November
 * Banning commission won't kill off financial advice - Two-thirds of private investors would turn their backs on independent financial advisers if they started charging fees, finds insurer Legal & General - 30th October
 * what we need is a rapid move to a citizen's pension'' - The nettle has been grasped and we're on the way to a fairer state pension system, but let's get there quickly - 16th October
 * Quantitative easing is just teasing savers and pensioners - Printing £75bn is supposed to help the banks lend more, but they didn't last time and it has a cost - 9th October
 * It's time for some real competition in annuity offers - Imagine you're about to retire and are one of the minority who has regularly saved into a private pension - 2nd October
 * Don't be fooled by the simplicity of exchange traded funds - The UBS fiasco should serve as a warning on ETF's complexity. Chiara Cavaglieri and Julian Knight report - 25th September
 * Let’s hope others follow npower’s smart-meter lead - At last, a consumer victory as firm says installation will not be used to sell other products in our homes - 18th September
 * accidental gap year could be just what students need'' - Thousands of students are going to find themselves taking what I call an "accidental gap year"; namely they were set to go to university but there was no place for them this year - 28th August
 * we scour the final frontier for growth?'' - As the big 'emerging' markets do the hokey-cokey, the tiny ones come to the fore – but they're risky - 21st August
 * young rioters to the lions? I'd rather we trained our teenagers'' - Nouveaux Nazis is what I call them. People who espoused right-on liberal views last week but post riots want the return of the cane and National Service, just for starters - 14th August
 * politicians be able to avert credit crunch part two?'' - The world's governments that bailed us out in part one now need bailing out themselves - 7th August
 * rate dive will hit millions of retirees short'' - The fall in gilt yields will reduce pension incomes, so it's more important than ever to choose the right product - 7th August
 * ghost of 2008 just won't be laid to rest – so here's what you can do'' - Those who didn't have their heads in their hands were working their BlackBerry keypads overtime - 30th July
 * for junior ISAs, but they won't help cash in moribund Child Trust Funds'' - 1.01 per cent – that is the average amount a children's savings account is paying, according to Which? - 24th July
 * long last, moves to stop will-writers robbing the dead'' - Lots of people are daunted by the thought of making a will - 17th July
 * morally bankrupt policies are penalising Britain's prudent savers'' - The elderly parents of a close friend of mine are selling the family home they have owned for donkey’s years not because they are too infirm to live there, want to downsize or fancy a little cottage by the coast - 10th July
 * last – a little overdue justice for Equitable policyholders'' - After a decade of delay and stalling, the first compensation cheques are finally arriving - 3rd July
 * Greece avoiding the inevitable?'' - While money is being thrown at the indebted country, Julian Knight warns it's your pension and investments that are at risk - 26th June
 * OFT to rein in debt management firms'' - Put the words "debt" and "free" into a search engine and you will come up with no fewer than 60,000 results most of which are are fee chargers - 12th June
 * right to investigate airlines' levy on credit cards, but it'll cost us'' - The cost to the airline Monarch of ditching debit-card fees could be higher than you'd think - 5th June
 * me. The black hearts at the BoS can't complain about their £3.5m fine'' - I am going to ask you to put yourself in the shoes of a Bank of Scotland financial adviser for a moment - 29th May
 * Land of the rising middle classes'' - Fund launch looks to make the most of the country's newly minted professionals - 22nd May
 * need a little mutual assistance here'' - The building societies had their annual shindig in Birmingham last week and you would think that their mood would be upbeat - 8th May
 * let's get nostalgic for 1981 and all that'' - At big moments it's not unusual to get a little nostalgic and look for parallels with the past - 1st May
 * on PPI drags banks back into society'' - The result of last week's judicial review to order lenders to put right the wrong of massive and systemic mis-selling of payment protection insurance is not just a victory for consumers but for society as a whole - 24th April
 * the IBC's new bank rules will affect your wealth'' - There are winners and losers in the banking commission's interim report on reform, but what does it mean for the investor? - 17th April
 * rises to hit interest-only mortgages'' - The cost of borrowing cannot remain this low for much longer - 10th April
 * the 40 per cent club? What a drag'' - I'm not sure if the new tax year, which starts on Wednesday, represents the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end. After three years of mostly fiscal expansion in a bid to pump-prime the UK economy, this week marks the end of the expensive financial experiment as the tax calendar flips over from 2010-11 to 2011-12 - 4th April
 * the siren call of emerging markets'' - Exciting growth is enticing, but there are pros and cons to investing in the new economies – and it pays to tread carefully - 20th March
 * timebomb? Call the forces of political correctness'' - You work longer and you pay more – you probably knew the drill before Lord Hutton released his report into public sector pensions last week - 13th March
 * will be losers, but we have to iron out sex inequalities'' - So after seven years of dire warnings from the insurance industry it's finally happened; gender pricing has been banned - 6th March
 * dotcom bubble about to burst? No, not yet ...'' - I'm old enough to have started working as a financial hack at the tail-end of the late Nineties dotcom boom, when bunkum phrases such as "first-mover advantage" and "new economic paradigm" were being banded around by wannabe internet millionaires and their friends in the City, trying to rush any old rubbish to market - 20th February
 * Which? wades in, perhaps we can end card-handling fee con'' - £36 in fees for one airline booking when the real cost is 20p? It's consumer abuse, pure and simple - 12th February
 * just crying out for a consumer champion'' -Martin who? You could be tempted to ask when the chief executive of the new CPMA – the replacement for the failed FSA – was announced the other day - 6th February
 * the poor fraudster trying to play a blinder in these enlightened days'' - Christopher Farrell – a former Apprentice candidate – was, it turns out, a dodgy mortgage broker - 30th January
 * The Barmy Army's wonga needs a boost well before 2014'' - It's only when you go abroad that you realise just how much poorer we are than before the credit crunch - 23rd January



Articles: 2010

 * opportunities leave me standing at the bus stop'' - I could be writing this from a villa in Provence or a yacht moored in the Seychelles, but I'm not – I'm in freezing London seemingly spending half my life waiting for buses struggling through the now-black slush - 26th December
 * country needs you to spend, spend, spend. Don't'' - Your country needs you to spend when you should be saving. Saving for what? Towards paying back those debts that most of us acquired over the past two decades of living beyond our means. I will explain why later - 19th December
 * next debt-laden generation can forget about owning their own homes'' - Students will graduate owing colossal amounts of money, which they will be paying off well into their thirties - 12th December
 * isn't just the absence of corruption'' - 5th December
 * the toothless energy regulator learnt how to bite?'' - Ofgem, it seems, has had enough of the pricing tactics of the energy companies - 28th November
 * 'Never had it so good' gaffe costs Young his job. But he was right'' - I'm glad Lord Young has gone, but not for his "never had it so good" gaffe - 21st November
 * let the lenders have another go at the mortgage punchbowl'' - It is only through regulating at the sharp end of product generation that we can get any real idea what a mortgage company's book is worth when under stress - 7th November
 * last, a true citizens' pension is on the cards'' - Make no mistake; the legacy of Gordon Brown's chancellorship is unravelling - 31st October
 * ex-offenders bank accounts will help them – and us'' - Amid all the talk of pensions and defence, some of the most savage cuts were lost in the shouting – those to the Justice ministry - 24th October
 * at last on child benefits and pensions'' - You probably feel a little poorer this weekend than last. First there was George Osborne's mismanaged announcement scrapping child benefit for higher rate taxpayers and then there was Lord Hutton's report on public-sector pensions - 10th October
 * to blame for the cuts? Look in the mirror'' - 'It's all the banks' fault." This is a familiar refrain trotted out by politicians, journalists and many men or women in the street - 3rd October
 * says 'nay', but our out-dated council tax badly needs a rejig'' - Of course the Tories will never touch local government finance again – it did for Thatcher remember - 26th September
 * real scandal isn't payday loans, it's the attitude of the banks'' - If high-street lenders were more flexible, hard-up people wouldn't be forced into the arms of bandits - 15th August
 * short-term saving could leave people open to a tough retirement'' - Chiara Cavaglieri and Julian Knight discover the dangers of reducing or even stopping your pension payments - 1st August
 * to the 'anti-bank', but it's only for the few'' - Amid much fanfare, customer-friendly Metro opens its doors – just the one branch so far, and that's in London - 1st August
 * ageing population must be less ageist'' - We've known for several years that we will have to wait longer for our state pension, but the goalposts were moved once again last week with the confirmation that the Government wants first men and later women to work till 66 from 2016 - 27th June
 * doesn't matter if we pay now or next year, this Budget will hurt'' - At first glance, Chancellor George Osborne has two options in this week's Budget, either to go for the tax rises and cuts that are needed now, or to reveal just a proportion as a down payment to keep the markets sweet - 20th June
 * have decisive action on banking and probate'' - I don’t know who it was who said that “a camel looks like a horse designed by committee”, but it sums up talking shops pretty well. Today, Which? has released its report into the future of banking, drawn up by, yes, a committee - 13th June
 * rise in capital gains tax? It's only fair'' - Tory MPs are wrong to oppose reform of CGT – an increase won't penalise ordinary folk, but it will close a fat-cat tax loophole - 6th June
 * is here, so how do you live with it?'' - The stock market, once it has settled down after the euro affair, may be the investment answer - 23rd May
 * is happy now but our pensions could wipe the smile off his face'' -T he broadest smile in Downing Street wasn't Clegg or Cameron last week but Iain Duncan Smith as he walked to his first cabinet meeting - 16th May
 * with pensions is not enough'' - The demographic time bomb that awaits us means a serious overhaul is needed. Are politicians up to it? - 9th May
 * with pensions is not enough'' - The demographic time bomb that awaits us means a serious overhaul is needed. Are politicians up to it? - 2nd May
 * has priced a hung parliament into share prices'' - Julian Knight and Chiara Cavaglieri look into the likely financial consequences of a close result on Thursday - 2nd May
 * up to the big tax bite...it will hurt'' - CGT, VAT, PAYE: The new government has no choice but to address the UK's massive deficit by picking our pockets - 25th April
 * weathercock is not up to the Chancellorship'' - Not everyone would want Vince Cable in No 11 - 11th April
 * drinkers, smokers and wealthy take biggest hit'' - Cider drinkers, smokers and the wealthy were the big losers from this pre-election budget, while the major headline-grabbing measure was a two-year stamp duty holiday for first-time buyers purchasing property under £250,000 - 25th March
 * panic. Take these 'shock' house price statistics with a large pinch of salt'' - Many organisations seek publicity by trotting out monthly figures, but it's the long-term trend that matters - 7th March
 * agents don't need licensing, says the OFT. Is it right?'' - "About as useful as a chocolate fireguard" was one reaction I received to the Office of Fair Trading's report into estate agents - 22nd February
 * sellers have agents, why can't buyers?'' - Hiring a helper can make purchases easier and cheaper -21st February (with Alessia Horwich)
 * shoot the minister when he's talking sense on debt'' - Politicians have gone out of their way to stem repossessions, and they deserve some credit - 14th February
 * Treasury doesn't trust the public, and we lose out as a result'' - It should drop the compulsory pension annuity purchase for a start - 7th February
 * FSA fiddles while debt-laden souls burn'' - City watchdog needs 'stop now' powers to put a quick end to lenders' unfair or exploitative practices and shift the burden of proof - 31st January
 * investors' survival guide'' - As the spectre of a double-dip recession looms, where can you safely put your money? Or – maybe – even make it grow? - 31st January
 * mind the PR, postal gold is a mug's game'' - Now, 2010 may only be just over three weeks old, but there is already a frontrunner for The Independent on Sunday bare- faced-cheek-of-the-year award - 24th January
 * and his team must put consumers before soundbites'' - John McFall MP, the longstanding chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, has been named consumer champion of the year by Which? for "holding banks to account over the financial crisis". But what have all these chinwags with the bankers actually achieved, and what has the Treasury Select Committee done for me, a consumer, lately? - 17th January
 * banks? It can only be good news for customers'' - If high-street giants feel a chill, that will be the bearded one breathing down their necks - 10th January
 * house prices? It's like herding cats'' - Apparently, I don't make "good" radio. I had a call from a radio station and was asked the question I always get asked at every dinner party as soon as the guests find out what I do: "What will happen to house prices?" The presenters could barely disguise their disappointment that I turned out to be that most annoying of guests – a "fence sitter" - 3rd January



Articles: 2009

 * in denial, and we'll all pay the price'' - Greece’s ‘lies’ have led to it being shorted by hedge funds, while Ed Balls, is among those peddling myths in the UK - 13th December
 * the name of charity, get rid of chuggers'' - on walking into work I meet the manipulative face of modern charity; the teams of chuggers – a mix of charity collector and mugger – working the High Street - 22nd November
 * recognise the 'specialness' of the live-in partner'' - It's a difficult one Should people who are cohabiting have the right to claim the estates of their loved ones when they die in the same way bereaved spouses or civil partners do? - 1st November
 * hiked up mortgage fees – what a fix'' - Buried in the Bank of England's most recent report into lending trends – yes, I do need to get out much more – is both good and bad news - 25th October
 * was the house price crash for you, Darling?'' - History shows that our property-market problems are far from over - 4th October
 * moves to ease the charity crunch'' - 27th September
 * banking's share bounce last?'' - Britain's banks may have come back from the brink but should investors still watch their step? - 13th September
 * call is not important to us''' - Pity poor customer services – we're all trapped in phone hell - 6th September
 * mortgages – they're really not OK'' - Something like one in five mortgage holders in the UK are on interest-only deals, according to Moneysupermarket.com. Now that's more than I thought were on this type of mortgage - 23rd August
 * Lord Myners? Try telling that to homebuyers'' - Mortgage market reality couldn't be more different - 16th August
 * West? It's so old. Best look East for better returns'' - Most advisers will tell you to limit your exposure to emerging economies, but they're behind the times - 9th August
 * house prices are up? Well, not in the real world'' - the total number of sales is still only around half the level you'd expect to see in even a modestly rising market - 2nd August
 * we have to ring the changes in life insurance'' - And, while we're about it, let's get rid of commission-based selling, too - 19th July
 * they may be, but sale and rent-back schemes are here to stay'' - I don't like sale and rent-back schemes – firms promising to buy homes from people who are behind with their mortgage repayments at a knock-down price on the proviso that they become a tenant - 12th July
 * on, Mr Cameron, let's have some answers'' - As the Tory leader glides towards No 10, pensions are in crisis and the banks up to their old tricks. So, we say, forget PR, we want the truth, however harsh - 5th July
 * haven or marketing gimmick?'' - Guaranteed equity bonds look good to the cautious, but they could cause another mis-selling scandal - 5th July
 * the land of the rising sun about to emerge from the dark at last?'' - Japan's economy may be shrinking at a frightening pace, but investors should not turn their backs on the former powerhouse - 21st June
 * a lot, Sir Fred. Now please slither into history'' - So The Shred gives up part of his pension; we're still furious, but it's time to move on - 21st June
 * the soft soap, this plot to wipe debt is just greedy'' - Escaping what you owe on credit cards is a long way from refusing to pay bank charges - 14th June
 * day, another pensions chief – and it will all end in tears'' - So yet another Work and Pensions secretary bites the dust. This time around, James Purnell has chosen to take the long walk off a short pier in a bid to be a latter-day Michael Heseltine. He may get his wish as far as Gordon Brown going is concerned, but he's definitely no Hezza - 7th June
 * great stink rises – and it's not just expenses'' - Forget about paying for moat cleaning, trouser presses and second homes, the MPs' pensions pots are the real scandal - 24th May
 * market rally mean happier times for private investors?'' - Retailers, builders and even banks have seen their share prices rise. It could be a flash in the pan – or the start of something much bigger - 17th May
 * makes no sense'' – banks are just in for the hard sell - 10th May
 * embrace the new austerity, it might even be fun'' - Don't let the recession get you down. You can save money but still keep your living standards high - 3rd May (with Chiara Cavaglieria)
 * business is bleeding, but guess who still denies it?'' - Some 120 businesses a day folded in the first quarter. How many could have been saved by their banks? - 3rd May
 * break is the only bright spot in 'consolidation' budget'' - 26th April
 * end is nigh. So be brave, Chancellor'' - what will this Labour Government choose to do facing death at the polls in a year's time or sooner? - 19th April
 * cut is glimpse into a poorer future'' - Sadly, Aon's decision to slash the amount of cash it pays into its employees' pensions is the shape of things to come. It's the next stage in a process which is seeing the rolling away of pension benefits just as we are all living longer and our expectations of what our living standards should be are extremely high - 12th April
 * was too nice to the likes of Cattles'' - The banks should be forced to serve the poor - 5th April
 * our banks must think the unthinkable'' - Mortgages of three times salary may not be set in stone. But lenders – get used to interference - 29th March
 * mortgage free-for-all opened the door to crime'' - 15th March
 * island of prosperity as storms ravage world housing'' - As property investors and people hoping to retire abroad struggle to find a safe haven in the slump, St Lucia could offer a solution - 8th March
 * licence to print money won't put pensioners at their ease'' - the Government's decision to follow the financial path trodden in the past by the Weimar Republic and Robert Mugabe and in effect print an extra £75bn could have a far more damaging long-term effect on pension pots - 8th March
 * stores set out stall to bag more bank customers'' - As the image of high-street institutions falls into disrepair, supermarkets move to expand their range of financial products, with Chiara Cavaglieri - 8th March
 * offered a way out of the gloom'' - With exchange traded funds, you can leave the underperforming mainstream of shares and move into more exotic areas - 22nd February
 * fund managers are the new British Leyland'' - Growing up, British Leyland was always held up as a model of inefficiency with its constant disputes, poorly made products, third-rate management and working practices out of the automotive dark age - 22nd February
 * banks were never going to listen to Cassandra'' - Paul Moore, like the ancient Cassandra, was always doomed to be ignored. HBOS was caught in the same mad mindset as almost every other major corporate player in banking and beyond - 15th February
 * 'Utterly pointless'. Are HIPs breaking the back of the housing market?'' - As the rules are tightened for home information packs, Julian Knight asks if they can help sellers and buyers - 8th February
 * won't be the big lenders throwing the next party'' - Some of the UK's biggest banks are now little more than dead men walking. For many, last week's horror losses signalled the death of the banking model that emerged at the end of the last century, based on surging levels of personal debt - 25th January
 * can drive away a bargain – or find they're on a highway to hell'' - Plunging prices are tempting motorists to auction rooms. But there are pitfalls for the unwary - 18th January
 * ministers wriggle to avoid Equitable payouts'' - If the Government had not tried to squirm out of its responsibilities five years ago, there might have been enough cash to compensate all policy holders - 18th January
 * bonds: the only 'hot' story in town'' - the returns from firms needing to raise money could offer an antidote to meagre savings rates and turmoil on stock markets - 11th January
 * hail the recession for making finance sexy'' - 11th January
 * up pensions: give more tax relief to those who need it'' - In the glamour stakes, let's face it, pensions come somewhere below the Toilet Duck - 4th January



Articles: 2008

 * rescue? Save us from false promises'' - Struggling borrowers are being invited to put their faith in a government scheme hatched in haste and providing no details - 7th December 2008
 * be lulled into thinking that with-profits policies are safe'' - Legal & General has proudly announced that its sales of with-profits policies are up 167 per cent in the past year. Bully for them. But what are we to read into this? - 30th November 2008
 * Gordon, but we won't splash your giveaway cash'' - Put simply, millions are worried for their future, and when you're worried, you don't go out and splash the cash on sofas, cars and property - 26th November 2008
 * never a good time to be mis-sold a policy'' - Instead of moaning, PPI firms should focus on making their products fairer - 16th November 2008
 * you get the pitchforks and torches ...'' - Don't be too hard on the bankers over interest rate cuts; it's the money market rate that counts - 9th November 2008
 * choice? It's an illusion, as mortgages disappear'' - Only about half a dozen banks and building societies are really lending, the rest may ostensibly have products available but they are deliberately over-priced to deter - 2nd November 2008
 * give control over rates back to the politicians'' - I can remember chancellors cutting rates in the run-up to an election - 26th October 2008
 * watchdog can’t see straight for looking two ways at once'' - If the Financial Services Authority existed solely to protect consumers, maybe it would have been quicker to spot the problems in Iceland’s banks - 12th October 2008
 * where's the safest place to put our cash?'' - As the financial crisis deepens what are the choices for savers and investors who want to ensure that they won't be caught out by banking collapses or market crashes - 5th October 2008
 * - now 'long term' is forever'' - 5th October 2008
 * Are we saving enough for our retirement? We don't want to think about it and we don't plan ahead, though the costs can be huge'' - the options for funding help in our old age - 28th September 2008
 * costs - Brits who put less money where their mouth is'' - 7th September 2008
 * the Chancellor gives you, inflation will take away'' - 7th September 2008
 * This kite had holes even before Labour tried to fly it'' - I never thought kite flying could be classed a dangerous sport, but last week's attempt by the Government to float the idea of a stamp duty holiday was extremely perilous - 10th August 2008
 * The state pension kiss of life is followed by the kiss of death - 3rd August 2008
 * Mortgage sharks and home loan hustlers - 27th July 2008
 * We have to wake up to wills before it's too late - 20th July 2008
 * No happy ending in sight for the victims of Equitable Life - 13th July 2008
 * Shop cheaply, save in style and foil inflation - 22nd June 2008
 * Is Tesco's cover the finest? Use your loaf - 15th June 2008
 * A billion reasons why this racket won't be buried - 8th June 2008
 * Flood warning: how long will insurers step into the breach? - 1st June 2008
 * Getting hitched? Don't tie yourselves in financial knots - 25th May 2008
 * The road to housing hell is littered with good intentions - 18th May 2008
 * Comparison sites need policing – but with a light touch - 11th May 2008
 * Let's call these 'advisers' what they are – salesmen - 4th May 2008
 * ''The lesson is, you can't make up tax as you go along' - 27th May 2008
 * What price an insurer's reputation in this sorry tale of airport angst? - 20th April 2008
 * Car hire - I should have covered all the angles instead of winging it - 13th April 2008
 * Beware of the penalties. It's the revenge of the credit cards - 6th April 2008
 * Why waste a chance to give a child a financial head start? - 30th March 2008
 * Remember the mortgages of yesteryear? You soon will - 23rd March 2008
 * No wonder we can't be bothered with equity ISAs - 16th March 2008
 * Better pensions for the less well-off: is that flying a kite? - 9th March 2008
 * Where is the advice for those who need it most but can afford it least? - 2nd March 2008
 * The borrowers who've been sacrificed to salvage a bank - 24th April 2008
 * A free offer is no way to come to a life-changing debt decision - 17th February 2008
 * Don't let house repossessions slip in through the back door - 10th February 2008
 * Our politicians must sacrifice much more on pensions - 20th January 2008
 * The seriously ill shouldn't have to suffer insurers' prejudice - 13th January 2008

