Camelot Group, which holds the licence for the Lottery, passes on cash raised by ticket sales to sport funding groups.

Much of the money which helps to train Britain’s athletes therefore comes from the Lottery, and officials are delighted after the medal haul in Beijing.

The UK Team GB finished fourth in the overall medals table, its best performance in a century.

Quoted by the Daily Telegraph, Dianne Thompson, chief executive of Camelot, said the success and feedback since has been “absolutely wonderful”.

Following a poor showing at the Atlanta Games in 1996, when the UK won only one gold medal, money has been ploughed into Olympic sports.

Millions of pounds of this has come via the Lottery, which will also be the source of billions in funding for the London 2012 games.

Ms Thompson was also quoted by the paper as saying the story of where Camelot’s sporting cash goes has been told for the first time, thanks to the recent success.

More funding is now expected for a wider variety sports after Britain excelled in a small cluster of events including cycling and water-related sports.

Article supported by Physioroom.com, Tennis elbow brace suppliers.

The group said its net profit dropped 61 per cent in the second quarter of 2008 while device sales increased to 13.15 billion Euros (£10.47 billion).

Bosses from the company said they remained “optimistic” over sales prospects.

The firm is now estimated to dominate 40 per cent of the global handset market, up on 39 per cent during the first quarter of this year.

Chief executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said Nokia believed that “devices linked with services” will drive “the next wave of growth.”

The group said it sold 27.1 million devices in Europe, 36.4 million units in Asia-Pacific, 17.6 million units in China and 21.1 million units in the Middle East and Africa.

Other figures also show the average selling prices of handsets produced by the company are decreasing, backing up predictions that the global handset market will grow seven to ten per cent in the next 12 months.

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As the effects of the credit crunch continue to bite into the economy, mortgage approvals for house purchasers in March fell to the lowest level since recent records began in January 1999, with only 64,000 approvals, around 8,000 down from the previous month and only 44% of the comparative figure for the same month in 2007.

Commenting on the sharp drop in approvals, Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (Rics), said that it was hardly surprising given that lenders had been aggressively scaling back in providing finance to homebuyers.

The figures also showed a steep rise in credit card and other forms of lending from the beginning of the year, with a substantial dip in property prices throughout 2008.

The Bank of England further reported that approved remortgaging loans also dropped by 11,000 in March, compared to a cumulative total of 98,000 for the previous month.

There was also a sharp reduction in loans arranged for other purposes, including buy-to-let loans reduced by 6,000 from the previous month’s total to just 57,000.

The total net lending secured against homes was £6.9bn, a figure that contributed greatly to a successive fall in the growth rate, reduced from 9.4% to 9.1% in February.

In a move designed to arrest the current downward trend, leading bankers the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which includes NatWest, has pledged to cut its fixed and tracker rate mortgages by between 0.1% and 0.3% for existing customers in the process of switching deals and for new customers in what appears to be an aggressive attempt to increase its present share of the mortgage market.

The continuing credit crunch – an appellation used to describe the financial state of affairs created by banks becoming less willing or able to lend money, both to each other, as well as to consumers, has obviously precipitated a huge demand for further unsecured and homeowner loans, but appears also to have created a steep learning curve for both lenders and borrowers alike.

There are very strong indicators that lenders will be far more wary of assessing risks when offering new unsecured and homeowner loans, and will not repeat the exercise of casually providing 70% of unsecured loans without even taking proof of income, as the uSwitch financial comparison site reported had indeed been the case in the previous year.

Borrowers, now faced with the current meagre market for unsecured loans, are also becoming more astute, with increasing numbers of consumers researching the terms and conditions of loan companies much more thoroughly, and at least 20% of potential customers now checking their personal credit report before applying for any type of loan, according to figures recently published by the credit report company Experian.

Similarly in the home and car insurance sector, also deeply affected by the current financial climate, consumers appear to be heeding advice to check the validity of all current insurance policies and to cancel those that no longer afford real value. More and more motorists are also shopping around for better value insurance policies and are keenly comparing prices, with 4.9million car and van owners actually switching insurance providers during the previous six months, according to figures from the independent price Monitoring Index published by MoneyExpert.com.

There has also, understandably, been a surge in the demand for debt services, particularly for Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs) and Debt Management Programmes (DMPs), as the effects of the credit crunch continue to eat into consumer’s expenditure.

However the UK Insolvency Helpline, a National debt advisory service for debt advice and debt management, has recently voiced concern at the number of, what it calls, “IVA factories”, that have begun operating in recent years.

The Insolvency Helpline’s social policy team are warning that in some cases consumers are being ‘mis-sold’ IVAs, and that they are currently dealing with around 100 calls a day from members of the public who are being encouraged to take up IVAs by debt management firms, when clearly these arrangements may be entirely unsuitable.

Drivers should take advantage of all discounts that many providers offer, that can significantly reduce the cost of car insurance. Understanding discounts and how they can affect auto insurance premiums can help smart shoppers make better decisions about their coverage and possibly save themselves some money in the process.

Read below to identify possible discounts that could help you save on auto insurance this year. Other than discounts, there may be some other ways for you to save on your insurance premiums. We will go over several discounts that can help with your current situation.

First, there are discounts for Auto Safety features. Certain states will give you discounts for anti-lock breaks. Make sure you know if it is two or four wheel anti-lock break vehicle. Automatic seatbelts and airbags are frequently discounted on your insurance premiums. In most states, a defensive driver class discount may apply. If the principal driver usually 55 years old or older has completed an approved defensive driving class a discount could apply. Keep in mind that most states will only approve this class if it is voluntary meaning that it was not the result of a violation or infraction.

Some insurers will give you a discount for having multiple vehicles. In some cases, this will only apply if you have two or more drivers. If you have a clean driving record, meaning you do not have any tickets, accidents or suspensions in the last three years (some companies require five years) then you could be eligible for a safe driver’s discount.

Many companies will reward you with staying with the same insurance company for many years without any accidents reported. They will offer you a renewal discount. It makes sense, you have carried insurance with a company for several years, and have not had an accident, your insurance company likes you and wants to reward and keep your business. Some companies honor you with a discount if you had prior limits on your previous policy. They discount you because they understand you are a better risk.

Conversely, if you do decided to change insurers a proof of prior insurance discount may apply. Most insurers request at least 6 months of consecutive insurance from the previous insurer. If you are a full-time student who meets certain grade requirements and are unmarried and usually under 25 years of age (some states the age is 21) you could be eligible for a good student discount. If you own a home, including condominium, town home, or mobile home, which is used as a principal residence, a discount could apply. Military personnel either currently active or retired from any branch of the US military a discount could apply. If your vehicle is equipped with an anti-theft device, a discount could apply.

You could lower the cost of your insurance in other ways.
For people who own older cars, it may not be necessary or cost-effective to protect them with collision and comprehensive coverage. By comparing the book value of your vehicle and the premium that the insurer has offered, you may find that it cost as much for the insurance as it does for the vehicle. If the car is worth less than $2,000, you will probably spend more insuring it than it is worth. The whole idea of driving an older car is to save money, so why not get what is coming to you.

In addition, keep in mind that the type of vehicle you buy could greatly affect your premium. A flashy red sports car is usually going to cost more to insure than a mid sized sedan. This is also true of vehicles that are on the list of most stolen. There are many ways that policyholders can save on their insurance. Knowing more about auto policies and premiums can help consumers take advantage of less obvious discounts while ensuring that they have the appropriate protection for their vehicles. The last way to save is to assume more risk. If you chose higher deductible on your Personal Injury Protection or Comprehensive and collision coverage will lower your premium as well. The deductible is the amount of money you have to pay before your insurance company begins paying the rest.

Understanding how discounts affect your insurance rates is important to save you money.

Andy Pratt, spokesperson for Alexander Hall, remarks that people should not be intimidated by reports that lenders in the mortgage sector are tightening their lending criteria.

The effects have mostly been felt by the sub prime sector of the industry. Self-cert mortgage availability has not suffered as a result of the recent credit crunch, he says.

Self-cert mortgages are available to self-employed individuals across Britain.

Pratt maintains that mainstream lenders have seen very little negative fallout. It is non-conforming lenders who have been hit the hardest by the current economic climate.

“All those clients who would have got a self-cert mortgage before have been able to get them even with the credit crunch,” he says.

Self-employed people comprise 13% of the working population.

According to Abbey, a substantial number manage their banking affairs and credit card debt in an irresponsible, slack manner and do not take time to comparison shop. 

The results of the survey were ranked according to a “financial fitness” scale, with extreme financial fitness at 0 and “financial obesity” at 100. 

While only 1 percent scored under 10, the results showed an alarming 46 percent of women and 41 percent of men overweight. 

Sue Hayes, Director at Abbey, encourages people to review their financial portfolio before they begin to pack on the additional weight of holiday expenditures.  She recommends that consumers shop around to find the most advantageous rates and deals.

She points out that, just like a physical work-out, the benefits of financial toning are well worth the effort. 

Abbey’s results indicate that Wales and the southwest are the least financially flabby (42 percent overweight), while the north of England had the highest level of financial weight trouble (46 percent).

London will continue to be the most popular region for property investors, while Scotland and the north of England will show the fastest growth. 

The firm’s research revealed that professional landlords with strong portfolios demonstrated the most financial security, and some were able to save a portion of the income they earned from letting. Not so the traditional home buyer. 

Nearly half of those owning 20 or more properties earned enough to add to their savings.  An additional 40 earned enough through their property dealings that their portfolios provided their entire incomes. More than 70 percent of those surveyed were optimistic about their prospects for the New Year. 

Landlords who owned properties in London saw the highest level of earnings.  The survey of landlords revealed that rents on properties in the central city can be more than four times those of buy-to-let properties in the south-east of England. 

During 2008, rental yields on properties in Scotland should increase nearly five percent. Properties in the north of England should yield an additional four percent, according to the survey. 

Jeremy Claridge, the head of specialty mortgages at Alliance and Leicester, is encouraged that buy-to-let landlords are optimistic about the outlook for 2008. He believes that the property market remains healthy for landlords with a history of success, especially for those in the south-east of the country in spite of the difficult financial situation.

Incentives used to attract potential buyers have dried up, leading to an increase in tenant lettings.  Landlords are seeing benefits from current economic uncertainty. 

RICS reports that family houses are attracting more tenants than flats.  The most recent data shows that over 25 percent of surveyors report an increase rather than a drop in the demand for houses.  In contrast, only 19 percent report an increase in the demand for flats, down from nearly 40 percent in the last quarter. 

Tighter lending standards and increases in interest rates are having an impact on the buy-to-let market, according to RICS spokesman Jeremy Leaf, leading to some uncertainty for landlords. 

Nonetheless, Leaf believes that economic uncertainty and rising rents will benefit landlords.  At the same time, increasing rents will make it more difficult for potential home buyers to raise the necessary capital.  They will find it increasingly difficult to get into the housing market.

Standard Life Bank will drop its Freestyle standard variable rate (SVR) to 7.21 percent, a cut of .25 percent, beginning January 1, 2008. 

HSBC announced that, beginning December 24, 2007, it will lower its variable mortgage rate from 7 percent to 6.75 percent. 

HSBC cut the rate on its tracker mortgage almost immediately following the Bank of England’s decision on December 6 to cut the rate. The bank claims its variable mortgage rate is at least .24 percent lower than many other high street lenders as a result of its latest reduction. 

According to Moneyfacts, the online financial comparison website, 31 lenders have announced changes to their SRVs following the interest rate cut.  Six providers reduced their rates by less than .25 percent. 

The most recent rate reduction compares unfavorably to cuts made in August 2005, the last time the Bank of England lowered rates, according to Lisa Taylor, an analyst for Moneyfacts. 

At that time, 46 lenders announced rate cuts, so the present rate of change seems slow in comparison, says Taylor.

The firm has expressed its confidence in tracker mortgages because they do not “leave borrowers at the mercy of the lender.” Very few lenders reduced their rates in line with the most recent cut in interest rates by the Bank of England. 

Trackers are becoming more attractive for people who want a variable rate, according to Ray Boulger, senior technical manager for John Charcol. 

He explained that many banks do not change their rates in response to the Bank’s rate. The interest on a tracker mortgage, however, will usually be one-quarter of one percent above a fixed-rate, given a good starting point. 

The credit crunch is forcing many lenders to reduce the mortgages in their portfolios to reduce exposure. 

Boulger expects tracker mortgages will continue to be available in the new year. He says lenders probably will not limit them in light of falling base rates. 

Boulger does not expect an increased number of borrowers to change mortgages in 2008. He expects people to make decisions about their mortgage depending on which is cheaper, a discount mortgage or a tracker mortgage.