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This month’s explainer is replaced by an annual favourite; the GFY Crowdsourced Gift Guides. A series in which we look to you for the best gift ideas and purchases of 2024.

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£923

That’s the estimated average Brits are expected to spend per person on gifts, food, travel, and socialising this Christmas, according to Finder. This totals a huge £46.4 billion nationwide.

Kier’s 6-point-plan for change + reactions

On Thursday, Dec 5, the Prime Minister delivered his ”Plan for Change” at the Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire.

What is the Plan for Change?

According to the Gov.UK press release, the Plan for Change by the PM sets out the specific milestones that the government will deliver on to achieve its national mission to drive real improvements for the working people.

What were the key promises from the plan for change?

📢Introducing Keir’s Starmer’s 6 Milestones for a Mission-Led Government

1. Raising living standards in every part of the United Kingdom, so working people have more money in their pocket, as we aim to deliver the highest sustained growth in the G7.

2. Building 1.5 million homes in England and fast-tracking planning decisions on at least 150 major economic infrastructure projects - more than the last 14 years combined.

3. Ending hospital backlogs to meet the NHS standard of 92% of patients in England waiting no longer than 18 weeks for elective treatment.

4. Putting police back on the beat with a named officer for every neighbourhood, and 13,000 additional officers, PCSOs and special constables in neighbourhood roles in England and Wales.

5. Giving children the best start in life, with a record 75% of 5-year-olds in England ready to learn when they start school.

6. Securing home-grown energy, protecting bill payers, and putting us on track to at least 95% clean power by 2030, while accelerating the UK to net zero.

What is the deadline to deliver these milestones? 👊

Other Promises of No Tax Rises 💰

When asked about tax rises, the Prime Minister stated that it wasn’t the plan, however, there could be unforeseen circumstances in the future requiring this.

 What’s the reaction? 👀

1. Raising Living Standards

• Gary Smith, GMB Trade Union: Approved, emphasising the need to prioritise workers' rights and end low pay by fully implementing the government's plan to make work pay.

• Abby Jitendra, Joseph Rowntree Foundation: Warned that the metric would fail unless rising rental costs were accounted for.

2. Building 1.5 Million Homes

• Polly Neate, Shelter: Stressed the need for social housing, urging a focus on delivering 90,000 social rent homes per year and enabling councils to build affordable homes.

3. Putting More Police on the Beat

• Kemi Badenoch, Conservative Leader: Criticized the plan as an "emergency reset" and accused the government of misleading the public about police numbers.

4. Getting Kids School-Ready

• Natalie Perera, Education Policy Institute: Supported the initiative but called for a focus on reducing educational inequality and child poverty including Childcare provision.

5. Decarbonising the Electricity Grid by 2030

6. Treating 92% of NHS Patients Within 18 Weeks

• NHS Providers: A survey revealed scepticism among hospital leaders, with 71% doubting the feasibility of the targets.

• Ed Davey, Liberal Democrats: Criticized the omission of GP service plans, arguing that neglecting GPs undermines efforts to reduce hospital waiting lists.

The ‘Girl Boss’ is Dead:

Exploring the Financial Implications of the

‘Soft Girl’ Trend

You might have heard of the ‘soft girl’ microtrend which has been on TikTok in various forms for a few years now, but has recently had wider attention after gaining popularity in Sweden - a country typically known for its progressive policies and workplace gender equality efforts.

What is the trend?

The ‘soft girl’ typically rejects a high-pressure or 24/7 work culture and either scales back their responsibilities or quits a job completely.

Instead, she focuses on self-care. Other interpretations of this trend are not as work-focused, but might include making choices like a simpler daily routine or low-impact workout schedule.

Other adjacent microtrends include:

🤫 ‘quiet quitting’ (keeping your job but doing the bare minimum)

💸 ‘lazy girl jobs’ (finding a job with stability, limited responsibility, and clear boundaries). 

Another unrealistic trend?

What are the financial implications?

Bitcoin blowout: cryptocurrency hits $100k for the first time

+ the $600m lost harddrive  

Why the Trump turnaround?

This U-turn is likely partly down to his bromance with long-time crypto advocate, Elon Musk.

He’s also nominated Paul Atkins, a crypto lobbyist and supporter, as the new head of the US department responsible for regulating the financial services industry.

The appointment signals a future of looser US crypto regulations, which will make it easier and more attractive to trade. 

Should I invest? 🤔

According to the FCA's latest research, 12% of UK adults now own crypto, up from 10% in previous findings.

It's looking good for crypto... 

Trump’s presidency starts next year, and investors expect crypto to be part of his plans for the redesign of the US economy, so it’s likely we’ll see a lot more from crypto in the near future.

📒 Regulators like the FCA have started to get involved, sharing their plans to regulate crypto, suggesting they expect it to stick around.  

👀But what should I look out for? 👀

Be very careful - crypto is extremely volatile and more sensitive to market manipulation (fake news and leaks that cause investors to buy or sell, driving the price up or down) than conventional stocks, funds or ETFs.

It’s also largely unregulated in the UK, so if something goes wrong, you won’t be protected. 

In other Bitcoin-related news:

The council won’t give access because of environmental concerns, so Howells is now resorting to legal action, looking to sue the council for almost £5m.

A BBC investigation has uncovered troubling cases of financial and property mismanagement involving a law firm based in Essex, Craybeck Law, and one of its partners, Ron Hiller. Vulnerable individuals, primarily elderly people in south-east England, described losing control of their money and property after granting Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) to Mr. Hiller.

These agreements, intended to safeguard people by allowing trusted individuals to manage their affairs, instead led to instances of:

• Bank accounts being locked and inaccessible to the owners.

• Large, unexplained cash withdrawals.

• Properties being sold below market value.

• Clients being left in the dark about charges and financial decisions.

The BBC reviewed 30 cases, revealing a concerning pattern of exploitation, a lack of transparency, and potential conflicts of interest in how Craybeck Law operated under Ron Hiller’s guidance.

What is a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)?

A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document through which an individual (the "donor") appoints someone (the "attorney") to make decisions on their behalf. This can cover:

• Financial matters: Managing bank accounts, selling property, or paying bills.

• Health and welfare: Decisions about medical care and living arrangements.

LPAs are designed to protect vulnerable individuals, allowing trusted parties to act in their best interests.

Case studies 🧓

Urgent Calls for Reform ✊

The cases involving Craybeck Law have exposed weaknesses in the Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) system, prompting calls for urgent reform. Key issues include:

• Increased Oversight: Better systems to flag attorneys with unusually high caseloads or repeated complaints.

• Transparency: Mandatory detailed financial reporting by attorneys.

• Qualifications: Stricter standards to prevent unqualified individuals from exploiting vulnerable clients.

• Conflict of Interest: Banning attorneys from acting as both LPA holders and executors to improve accountability.

The 2024 Crowdsourced Gift Guides

It’s GFY’s annual gift guide series! A crowdsourced project where we look to you for the best gift ideas and purchases of 2024.

How the lists work

• You submit the best purchases you've made and gifts you've received on Instagram stories.‍

• We count responses and list up to 10 items per price range.

• Where possible, we find an independent retailer to link to in addition to a mainstream retailer. See the 'Indie' link for this.

• Where affiliate links are available, we will use them but this will not inform what is featured.

• We have found the best prices at the time of publication.

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Sources/Read More:

Keir Starmer’s Plan for Change

• Read More on GOV.UK/Missions and Here 

• Read More on BBC

• Read More on House of Common

The ‘Girl Boss’ is Dead: Exploring the Financial Implications of the ‘Soft Girl’ Trend

• Read More on BBC News

• Read More on MarieClaire

• Read More on Standard

• Read More on Scottish Widows

Bitcoin blowout: cryptocurrency hits $100k for the first time + the $600m lost harddrive 

• Read More on CNBC

• Read More on Bloomberg

• Read More on Reuters

• Read More on BBC

• Read More on Yahoo Finance

• Read More on Fidelity

• Read More on FCA

• Read More on FCA

• Read More on The New Yorker

^{A Broken System? The Case for Strengthening LPA Protections}

• Read more on BBC News

• Read more on The Independent

• Read more on Gov.UK