Government promises of “fiscal neutrality” are a red herring: Changes to business rates are going to hurt firms November 18, 2015 Last week, Britain’s biggest high-street retailers publicly urged the government to reform its business rates regime ahead of next week’s Autumn Statement. Many find the current system complicated, unfair to small business and counterproductive to UK growth. Calls for reform have now reached fever-pitch. The government has pledged that any reforms to the current business [...]
The boardroom and the slave: These are the actions firms need to take August 26, 2016 This autumn, executive boards should expect to see slavery and trafficking as compulsory board agenda items, with the introduction of Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act. The statement Large UK companies are required to publish an annual statement, signed by a director, detailing actions taken to eradicate modern slavery within its organisation and its [...]
George Osborne delivered a Budget that backs Britain’s Millennials March 23, 2016 They're nearly 14m strong and the largest cohort in our workforce. From the factory floor to the trading floor, the Millennial generation or “Generation Y” – those born between 1980 and 2000 – are at the heart of Britain’s economic success story. Among their ranks are Britain’s growing number of apprentices, young professionals, first-time buyers, [...]
Government approves Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant but with revised conditions September 15, 2016 The government approved plans to build the controversial £18bn Hinkley Point C project, but with revised conditions. The move, which paves the way for the UK's first new nuclear power plant in a generation, includes measures to ensure French utility giant EDF remains the controlling partner during the construction phase. Whitehall will also be able to intervene in the sale of [...]
2016 London mayoral election: Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith gets housing boost from Prime Minister David Cameron January 4, 2016 Prime Minister David Cameron has given Conservative candidate for mayor of London Zac Goldsmith a boost today by announcing that he will amend the national government's housing bill to address concerns over a lack of affordable housing in the capital. Cameron said that he is incorporating an amendment put forward by Goldsmith to create a binding [...]
Budget 2016: Industry groups warn chancellor George Osborne against hiking insurance premium tax as EY Item Club urges against planned £4bn in spending cuts March 14, 2016 Leading industry groups are pleading with the Treasury to give British businesses a break at this week’s Budget, as chancellor George Osborne eyes up a major tax hike on insurance premiums and higher tax revenues from Britain’s biggest banks. The AA warned over the weekend that the chancellor is considering raising the basic rate of [...]
McAfee cybersecurity report: Mobile banking apps are exposing us to cyber attacks December 15, 2015 Badly designed mobile apps are quickly becoming one of the biggest leaks exposing our personal data to cyber crooks, according to fresh security research from McAfee showing that threats are now being detected at the rate of five per second. Hackers are exploiting the weak security coding practice used in many mobile apps, and this [...]
Khan vows to press ahead with TfL sales despite value for money warnings August 23, 2016 London mayor Sadiq Khan has vowed to press ahead with the sale of Transport for London land, despite warnings his affordable housing plans will mean the sale comes in below market value. Khan was warned earlier this week to warn that TfL is required to seek the best possible price when selling off assets like [...]
Landlords opting to be companies after Osborne shakes up buy-to-let with stamp duty hikes and mortgage interest claim caps December 3, 2015 The Chancellor's recent changes to the buy-to-let rules have caused landlords to rush to incorporate. According to figures released today by Kent Reliance, a quarter of the demand for buy-to-let mortgage finance the banking company receives now comes through limited companies. Across the total buy-to-let market, Kent Reliance predicts that 56,800 buy-to-let loans will be issued [...]
George Osborne’s tinkering has made the UK tax system more complicated than ever March 18, 2016 After eight Budgets and six Autumn Statements, we have a pretty good idea of what kind of chancellor George Osborne is. According to the Office for Budget Responsibility’s policy measures database, before Wednesday he had made 585 separate tax policy changes at these so-called “fiscal events”. There had been 165 income tax changes, 107 corporation [...]