Estate agents in late-night stamp duty deal rush after Autumn Statement tax band change December 4, 2014 It was the early hours of the morning in Hong Kong when the phone rang. The person whose phone was ringing grew angry over the caller’s persistence at such an hour, but any frustration probably subsided when the individual ended the night £20,000 better off than they would have been otherwise. The deal [...]
Former Lib Dem minister Jeremy Browne fires warning shot over Clegg’s Autumn Statement no-show December 4, 2014 While the Tories may have reason to be cheerful with headlines in today's business sections, with pictures of George Osborne at the dispatch box slashing one of Britain's most hated taxes splashed across the newspapers, there was one member of the government who was conspicuous by his absence on the day of the Autumn Statement. [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: Overdoing austerity would be self-defeating – don’t expect balanced budgets soon December 3, 2014 The chancellor issued his election manifesto yesterday, in the form of the Autumn Statement. And the good news for him is that the economic narrative is strong. GDP is now some 3.4 per cent above where it was before the crisis; we have been growing faster than any of our developed competitors. The Office for [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: There’s only one thing on George Osborne’s mind – Editor’s Letter December 3, 2014 George Osborne is the consummate tactician. With 153 days to go to the election, there’s only one thing on his mind, and that’s how to breeze past opposition parties on the journey back to Downing Street. And who can blame him? After all, he’s the one who has kept the economy on the road and [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: Google Tax set to raise £1bn from companies shifting profits overseas December 3, 2014 Starbucks, Apple and Google will pay higher UK taxes under a new tax that looks to stem the tide of multinational companies shifting profits to overseas tax havens. The Diverted Profits Tax, already dubbed the Google Tax, is set to raise over £1bn over the next five years by applying a 25 per cent tax [...]
City Airport expansion is a boost for London July 28, 2016 Recent political events have thrown any decision on UK airport expansion further into doubt. Even before the referendum and subsequent resignation of David Cameron, it was tough to pin down exactly what the government was minded to do about the pressing need to expand capacity in the south east. Throughout the debate (which looks set [...]
The Leap have flourished in pro-entrepreneur Britain December 16, 2015 THE year in politics has been nothing short of astonishing. Defying predictions, we now have a Conservative majority government and Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader, and the gulf between the two main parties is widening faster than thought. Yet there has been one subject on which all parties have been agreed: that entrepreneurs are good [...]
The FTSE’s best two day run since October – London Report November 27, 2015 THE FTSE 100 closed higher yesterday evening as miners made gains, despite BHP Billiton sliding. The UK’s top blue-chip index closed 0.88 per cent up, at 6,393 points, following the 0.96 per cent gain on Wednesday on the back of the chancellor’s Autumn Statement that sent housebuilders’ stocks higher. Glencore led the pack, closing 5.85 per [...]
Tax credit changes: the four ways the House of Lords could vote today October 26, 2015 The government's plans to cut tax credits will face their fiercest opposition yet today as peers consider killing the reforms. The House of Lords is set to debate and vote on four amendments this afternoon to the proposed cuts to in-work benefits, including a “fatal motion” which could stop the cuts altogether but trigger a [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: What does George Osborne’s budget mean for you? From single parents to entrepreneurs December 3, 2014 THE SINGLE PARENT Catherine Gannon, 51 Managing partner of law firm Gannons Gannons Commercial Law continues to perform extremely well as profits and earnings increase on last year. Catherine is commercially savvy and has recently restructured the business from an LLP to a Limited Company due to the new Legislation covering LLPs. This illustrates that [...]