The UK government has upped the rate of its planned tax on Britain's banks, draft legislation revealed today.

British House prices fell by 0.7% during October as buyers continued to stay away from the market, figures showed today.

Britain's banks will pay an extra £2.5bn (€2.81bn) in tax a year by 2012 under draft legislation published today in a British government move to repair some of the damage caused by their role in the financial crisis.

Britain's biggest banks are planning to launch a multimillion-pound fund to bolster smaller businesses, it was reported today.

Analysts cast doubt today on the credibility of the stress tests applied to European banks.

House prices in the UK fell for the first time in 10 months during February as the market was hit by winter weather and the end of the stamp duty holiday, figures showed today.

The head of the UK's biggest bank hit out at the "inflated" bonus culture today and predicted smaller payouts for the industry in future.

House prices in England and Wales jumped by 1.7% during July - the biggest increase for five years, figures showed today.

The number of mortgages approved for house purchase in the UK rose to a 15-month high of 35,235 during June, the British Bankers' Association said today.

UK house prices dived by a record 16.6% during the past year, Britain's biggest building society said today.

Finance Minister Brian Lenihan has said the Government's scheme to guarantee the financial security of six Irish-owned banks may be extended to other financial institutions operating in Ireland.

The London market was on the back foot today as falling commodity prices put pressure on blue-chip stocks.

The number of mortgages approved for house purchase in the UK dived by 23% during June to hit a new record low, figures showed today.

The British property market showed signs of stabilising last month after figures today revealed a surprise increase in January house purchase mortgage approvals and a hike in remortgaging activity.

The Bank of England could be given powers to offer secret financial help to failing banks under plans outlined today, to avoid a repeat of the Northern Rock debacle.

Telecoms giant Vodafone saw shares soar to a six-year high today, helping lift the wider London market by 1.5%.

The FTSE 100 Index closed the year on the back foot but the fall was not enough to take the shine off annual gains of almost 11%.

The FTSE 100 Index has fallen another 81.0 points to close at 5086.6.