Consumers could be set to benefit from a new report analysing the main risk they face in the financial services sector over the next 12 to 18 months. The Retail Conduct Risk Outlook report, produced by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), says consumers could face the effects of a slower economy, lower interest rates and poor returns. According to the findings of the FSA, many people are attempting to tackle these obstacles by saving more, shopping around and paying off debt.

The result is that for many consumers, one of the major risks being faced is the danger of buying and being sold unsuitable products. These products can range from those that a too risky to those products they do not understand or those that fail to meet their individual circumstances. The report also looks at the wider external factors on the economy, the pressures facing certain firms and the overall impact on consumers.

The FSA hopes the findings will help firms to understand, reduce and avoid risks. Martin Wheatley, FSA managing director, said: “Consumers rely on financial firms and their products to provide them with vital services – literally the means to run their lives. They need to be able to trust that the products they buy work for them and that they are getting a fair deal.”

The FSA believes that early intervention is crucial in any instance of mis-selling.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has stepped up its campaign against cyber criminals with the launch of a new cyber crime team designed to tackle tax fraud. This new team has been launched in a bid to protect the exchequer from any attempted fraud from cyber criminals adopting sophisticated ways to target HMRC’s repayment systems.

Under the plans, the new cyber crime team will protect both HMRC and taxpayers from criminals while building on HMRC’s current cyber counter-fraud capabilities. The new initiative will make up a key element of HMRC’s new Cyber Crime and Security Strategy. High calibre analysts, technical experts and investigators have been recruited to the team to help protect HMRC and its customers from fraud.

The new team will provide HMRC with expert advice and analysis on how best to keep services secure, while aiding criminal investigators with their technical expertise. David Gauke, the exchequer secretary, said: “In the last year alone, customers reported over 200,000 bogus emails purporting to come from HMRC. HMRC is getting ahead of the curve – taking forward what it is already doing in a better way.”

The FSA does not regulate tax advice. Tax rules are subject to change.

Mortgage lending levels are on the rise compared with numbers from last year, according to the latest figures from the Council for Mortgage Lenders (CML).

According to the new data released today (March 13th), 35,600 loans, worth a total of £5.3 billion, were taken out for house purchases in January.

This represented an increase on numbers recorded over the same period last year, with an increase of 22% by volume and 23% by value compared with 2011. These numbers were down on those recorded in December 2011 though, with a decline of 25% by volume and 24% by value.

Paul Smee, director general of the CML, remained unconcerned by the dip though, noting that the decline was part of a seasonal pattern in the mortgage market. “We traditionally see a substantial fall in lending figures at the start of the year, reflecting the lack of enthusiasm by buyers to move house during the post-Christmas months,” he said.

Instead, Mr Smee was wholly positive about the year-on-year rise in house purchase lending. “The year-on-year rise in house purchase lending suggests that lending levels are generally rising although we expect the trajectory to be bumpy rather than smooth this year.”

The value of your investments – and the income from them – can fluctuate and it is possible that you might not get back a significant amount of your investment. Past performance is not a guide to future performance and may not be repeated.

Business and enterprise minister Mark Prisk has reiterated the coalition government’s focus on providing support to entrepreneurs in the UK.

The comments come after the MP revealed that the UK had reached a significant milestone in mentoring support for entrepreneurs.

Mr Prisk revealed that the government had reached a key milestone in mentoring support at the first Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Liverpool.

The event is the first of its kind to be held in Europe and will see a week of activities, championing entrepreneurial spirit, take place in Liverpool.

Speaking at the event, the MP announced that the Get Mentoring initiative to recruit 15,000 volunteer business mentors had now passed the halfway mark with over 7,500 signed up.

Once these volunteers have been trained, this group will join 11,000 mentors already available through the mentorsme.co.uk portal, which was launched last year.

With 4,000 of the Get Mentoring volunteers already trained, that brings the total available number to 15,000.

Business and enterprise minister Mark Prisk said: “The government is committed to making the UK the best place in the world to start and grow a business.

“It’s encouraging that so many people are signing up to be business mentors and that we are continuing to get the support of influential entrepreneurs who are joining our campaign to boost business mentoring across the UK.”