Dear Listener

I began last week’s newsletter with an apology after I misinterpreted something the Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said. This week it was his turn to apologise after making a mistake in the House of Commons. Justifying his cuts in housing benefit Mr Smith told MPs on 9 November

“We now know that, according to the Office for National Statistics, the private marketplace in housing fell by around 5% last year. At the same time, LHA rates, which the previous government had set and left to us, had risen by 3%. There is thus a 7% gap with what is going on in the marketplace." (Hansard 9 November 2010 col 167)

But this week he ‘clarified’ his remarks and confirmed that the source of the rise in private rents was not the Government’s Office for National Statistics at all. Rather the information had come from the website www.findaproperty.com. His spokesman claimed later that he had meant to say ‘national statistics’ not ‘Office for National Statistics’. But so far no explanation of why a rise in housing benefit rents of 3% when private sector rents were falling 5% led to a gap of 7% rather than 8%. I suspect it’s a rounding error.

***IN MONEY BOX THIS WEEK***

An Irishman, a Belgian, and an American went into a room…and the Irishman came out with €70 billion. It’s not a joke. Some of it would be your money. If it happens. We ask why, whether, and when?

Many people in the UK have trusted their savings to Bank of Ireland or Allied Irish Bank. And many listeners have asked, in view of the above, how safe is it? (to avoid panic, ‘very’ is the answer but more on the programme).

Floods – another once in a thousand years event (they do seem to come round every year now) has left hundreds of people with several inches of what is politely called ‘mud’ covering their carpets and gardens. What will insurers pay – and will they get cover next year?

Card Protection Plan (see last week) admits some of its agents may have told callers that banks wouldn’t cover their losses from card fraud if they did not take out insurance. But stress that such statements were ‘unauthorised’.

And one woman’s story as she tries to warn her bank in good time that she will have problems paying her mortgage. But the bank….

….find out what it does by listening to Money Box, live on Saturday at 1204. Or catch the repeat at 9pm on Sunday. Or listen again any time on our website www.bbc.co.uk/moneybox. There you can also read web pieces, download transcripts, follow links, and send us stories or ideas you want us to look into and Have Your Say on warning your bank about mortgage arrears – what reaction did you get?

Best wishes,

Paul

PS don’t forget the programme trail on Breakfast on BBC 1 between 0845 and 0900 on Saturday.

e-mail Paul Lewis