Theresa May launches consultation into forcing firms to report ethnicity pay figures October 11, 2018 KPMG, WPP and the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are among a number of businesses to have signed up to a new charter by Theresa May that aims to improve the recruitment and progression of ethnic minority employees. Alongside the charter the Prime Minister has also launched a consultation into mandatory ethnicity pay reporting, following last [...]
City Moves for 23 November – who’s switching jobs at Sthree, Saxo Bank and Savills? November 23, 2018 Who’s on the move? SThree SThree, the international STEM specialist staffing business, is pleased to announce that Denise Collis has been appointed in the newly-formed role of employee representative non-executive director, with effect from 1 December 2018. This appointment is an early adoption of recently announced changes to the UK Corporate Governance Code, due to [...]
Property in the Budget: First-time buyers to benefit from shared ownership stamp duty relief as Help to Buy extended October 29, 2018 The Chancellor unveiled a raft of new property measures today, including a further £500m for the housing infrastructure fund and stamp duty relief for first-time buyers that is extended to shared ownership homes worth up to £500,000. The government will also extend a revised version of its Help to Buy scheme until 2023, but for first-time [...]
Critics accuse Bank of England of using its forecasts to play with politics November 28, 2018 The Bank of England sparked a row today after publishing analysis of its ‘worst case Brexit scenario’ just 13 days ahead of a crucial Parliamentary vote on Theresa May’s deal. The controversy was sparked when governor Mark Carney unveiled the Bank’s latest ‘stress test’ assessment of the UK’s ability to withstand dramatic economic shocks, including [...]
Long-term economic growth is a prize both parties should be fighting for October 30, 2018 Ah yes, post-Budget week. That time when a modest tax change here or a spending announcement there generates reams of analysis about who’s been made “better off” or “worse off” at the stroke of the chancellor’s pen. When, for a second, the decision to try to implement VAT on warm takeaway foods or announce a [...]
Experts pour cold water on CMA’s proposals for joint audits in first Beis committee hearing January 15, 2019 Audit academics and investment managers have called for caution over recommendations by the competition regulator to shake-up the audit sector. During the first in a series of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Select Committee hearings, held today, witnesses warned that the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) recommendation could risk unintended consequences for auditing. Led by [...]
Britain’s economic growth is being stifled by visa red tape November 7, 2018 Political momentum is building to take a fresh look at visa restrictions on international recruitment of skilled people. The most media coverage has rightly been given to the refusal of 1,500 doctors, which the NHS desperately needs. But the government’s strict attitude to migration is causing problems across business professions and public services. The [...]
Company directors could face fines or jail time for flouting pension rules June 26, 2018 Unscrupulous directors who play fast and loose with their company pension scheme could face time in prison and unlimited fines under new measures tabled by the government today. A consultation was launched today by minister for pensions and financial inclusion guy Opperman which will impose harsher penalties for directors who deliberately or recklessly put funds [...]
What can we expect from a pre-Brexit Annual Budget? October 24, 2018 The Budget is the biggest date in the UK’s financial calendar where the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, will deliver the government’s plans for tax and spending for the 2019/2020 financial year, starting in April next year. The Budget is a little unconventional this year as it usually falls on a Wednesday, but all you trick-or-treaters will [...]
Accountants can save the world (really) October 18, 2018 Last week, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a landmark report due to be presented to governments at the Conference of the Parties in December this year. Its conclusions are stark – global carbon emissions must start to reduce well within 12 years if we are to prevent potentially catastrophic climate change [...]