News Archive - May 2013
National Insurance allowance to boost SME job creation - 28.5.2013
One in five small businesses is feeling optimistic about growth and expansion following the Government's announcement to
introduce a £2,000 allowance towards employer National Insurance contributions (NICs).
The research from Direct Line for Businesses found that a third of businesses also plan to recruit additional staff to take advantage of the reduced cost of employment via the Employment Allowance scheme.
The new allowance will come into effect from April 2014 and is estimated to take 450,000 of the UK's smallest businesses out of paying employer NICs.
Jazz Gakhal, head of Direct Line for Business said it was encouraging to see so many businesses keen to expand: "The Government's decision to reduce the financial burden for small companies is a welcome boost for owners and managers across the country. Given SMEs account for over 99 per cent of all private sector businesses in the UK, the health of this sector is vitally important."
Announcement the Employment Allowance in Budget 2013, Chancellor George Osborne said: "For the person who's set up their own business, and is thinking about taking on their first employee, a huge barrier will be removed. They can hire someone on £22,000, or four people on the minimum wage, and pay no jobs tax."
Helen Dickinson, director general of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), welcomed the change, saying: "We called for a time-limited national insurance holiday, as an easy way to encourage businesses to take on young unemployed people. Existing incentives are cumbersome and not being taken up."
We can advise on a range of business allowances. Talk to us to find out more.
introduce a £2,000 allowance towards employer National Insurance contributions (NICs).
The research from Direct Line for Businesses found that a third of businesses also plan to recruit additional staff to take advantage of the reduced cost of employment via the Employment Allowance scheme.
The new allowance will come into effect from April 2014 and is estimated to take 450,000 of the UK's smallest businesses out of paying employer NICs.
Jazz Gakhal, head of Direct Line for Business said it was encouraging to see so many businesses keen to expand: "The Government's decision to reduce the financial burden for small companies is a welcome boost for owners and managers across the country. Given SMEs account for over 99 per cent of all private sector businesses in the UK, the health of this sector is vitally important."
Announcement the Employment Allowance in Budget 2013, Chancellor George Osborne said: "For the person who's set up their own business, and is thinking about taking on their first employee, a huge barrier will be removed. They can hire someone on £22,000, or four people on the minimum wage, and pay no jobs tax."
Helen Dickinson, director general of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), welcomed the change, saying: "We called for a time-limited national insurance holiday, as an easy way to encourage businesses to take on young unemployed people. Existing incentives are cumbersome and not being taken up."
We can advise on a range of business allowances. Talk to us to find out more.
Inflation falls to 2.4 per cent - 23.5.2013
An early Easter and lower air fares also helped drive down inflation from 2.8 per cent in March. It is the first drop since September 2012.
Economists had expected the consumer price index to fall by a more modest 0.1 or 0.2 per cent.
The only notable upward contributions came from food and non-alcoholic drink prices.
Inflation on the new CPIH index - which takes into account owner and occupier housing costs - grew by 2.2 per cent in the year to April 2013, down from 2.6 per cent in March.
The decrease in inflation will come as welcome news for individuals, easing household finance pressures and slowing the rate of erosion on savings pots.
Economists had expected the consumer price index to fall by a more modest 0.1 or 0.2 per cent.
The only notable upward contributions came from food and non-alcoholic drink prices.
Inflation on the new CPIH index - which takes into account owner and occupier housing costs - grew by 2.2 per cent in the year to April 2013, down from 2.6 per cent in March.
The decrease in inflation will come as welcome news for individuals, easing household finance pressures and slowing the rate of erosion on savings pots.
Businesses say high streets 'can be revitalised' - 17.5.2013
More than half (53 per cent) of independent retailers in England think that their town centre is performing 'poorly' but 70 per cent think that better relationships with local authorities would improve the situation, according to research from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).
A number of initiatives for revitalising high streets and town centres were supported by the firms surveyed by the FSB, including:
- businesses relocating to town centres (60 per cent)
- flexible opening hours (38 per cent)
- more 'pop-up' stores (37 per cent)
The national policy chairman of the FSB, Mike Cherry, said: "Reviving town centres from decline is possible with the right measures from councils and local authorities. We want improved dialogue and co-operation between independent retailers and their local decision-makers, so they can work jointly on improving their town centres. Attracting new businesses and shoppers is one way to ensure the survival of small businesses, which is why we are supporting Local Business Week and its pledge for shoppers to buy three things on their local high street."
The FSB is calling for UK shoppers to support Local Business Week, which promotes shopping on local high streets, and is calling for fair business rates through its Keep Trade Local campaign.
A number of initiatives for revitalising high streets and town centres were supported by the firms surveyed by the FSB, including:
- businesses relocating to town centres (60 per cent)
- flexible opening hours (38 per cent)
- more 'pop-up' stores (37 per cent)
The national policy chairman of the FSB, Mike Cherry, said: "Reviving town centres from decline is possible with the right measures from councils and local authorities. We want improved dialogue and co-operation between independent retailers and their local decision-makers, so they can work jointly on improving their town centres. Attracting new businesses and shoppers is one way to ensure the survival of small businesses, which is why we are supporting Local Business Week and its pledge for shoppers to buy three things on their local high street."
The FSB is calling for UK shoppers to support Local Business Week, which promotes shopping on local high streets, and is calling for fair business rates through its Keep Trade Local campaign.
Remove age cap on start-up loans, says adviser - 13.5.2013
TA report by the Prime Minister's adviser on enterprise, Lord Young, has recommended removing the age cap on the Government's loan scheme for start-ups.
Since its launch in September 2012, the Start-Up Loan Scheme has provided more £16 million worth of loans to start-up businesses, as well as access to mentoring support. In January, the qualifying age limit was raised from 18-24 to 30.
In his report on growing micro businesses, Lord Young recommends that the age cap of 30 should be removed altogether in order to extend 'the benefits of the scheme to all start-ups.'
Other recommendations from Lord Young's report include :
- Abolish pre-qualification questionnaires on public sector contracts under €200,000 and create a 'single market' for doing business with the public sector
- Establish a £30 million Growth Voucher programme to encourage more small firms to get specialist help in areas such as marketing and online growth
- Encourage and incentivise business schools to take a greater role in the local economy and help SMEs grow with a national 'Supporting Small Business Charter'
- Include private sector SME advice at the Government's GOV.UK website and allow third party providers to rebuild and improve the advice that was previously available at the closed Business Link website
- Market Government schemes to support new and developing businesses more effectively, with proper resources and targeting of the small firms that need them most.
Commenting on the report, the principal adviser for enterprise at the Confederation of British Industry, Hayley Conboy, said :
"Lord Young rightly identifies that the Government needs to earmark funding to effectively market existing finance and support schemes. Most firms simply don't know what's available, so the new Business Bank will play a crucial role in raising awareness.
We support the recommendation to open up more government contracts to smaller firms by cutting out the requirement for them to complete a pre-qualifying questionnaire, as most smaller firms don't have the capacity to handle this."
Since its launch in September 2012, the Start-Up Loan Scheme has provided more £16 million worth of loans to start-up businesses, as well as access to mentoring support. In January, the qualifying age limit was raised from 18-24 to 30.
In his report on growing micro businesses, Lord Young recommends that the age cap of 30 should be removed altogether in order to extend 'the benefits of the scheme to all start-ups.'
Other recommendations from Lord Young's report include :
- Abolish pre-qualification questionnaires on public sector contracts under €200,000 and create a 'single market' for doing business with the public sector
- Establish a £30 million Growth Voucher programme to encourage more small firms to get specialist help in areas such as marketing and online growth
- Encourage and incentivise business schools to take a greater role in the local economy and help SMEs grow with a national 'Supporting Small Business Charter'
- Include private sector SME advice at the Government's GOV.UK website and allow third party providers to rebuild and improve the advice that was previously available at the closed Business Link website
- Market Government schemes to support new and developing businesses more effectively, with proper resources and targeting of the small firms that need them most.
Commenting on the report, the principal adviser for enterprise at the Confederation of British Industry, Hayley Conboy, said :
"Lord Young rightly identifies that the Government needs to earmark funding to effectively market existing finance and support schemes. Most firms simply don't know what's available, so the new Business Bank will play a crucial role in raising awareness.
We support the recommendation to open up more government contracts to smaller firms by cutting out the requirement for them to complete a pre-qualifying questionnaire, as most smaller firms don't have the capacity to handle this."
CBI publishes tax principles for businesses - 8.5.2013
A statement of principles that sets out steps UK businesses should take in order to improve the transparency and understanding of their tax affairs has been published by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).
In the area of tax planning, the CBI recommends that British businesses operating in the UK should :
- only engage in reasonable tax planning that is aligned with commercial and economic activity and does not lead to an abusive result
- respond to tax incentives and exemptions, where appropriate
- interpret the relevant tax laws in a reasonable way consistent with a relationship of "co-operative compliance" with HMRC
- in international matters, follow the terms of the UK's Double Taxation Treaties and relevant OECD guidelines in dealing with such issues as transfer pricing and establishing taxable presence, and should engage constructively in international dialogue on the review of global tax rules and the need for any changes.
Regarding transparency and reporting, the CBI recommends that businesses should :
- be open and transparent with HMRC about their tax affairs and provide all elevant information that is necessary for HMRC to review possible tax risks
- work collaboratively with HMRC to achieve early agreement on disputed issues and certainty on a real-time basis, wherever possible
- seek to increase public understanding in the tax system in order to build public trust in that system.
The CBI's director-general, John Cridland, said: "UK businesses make a huge tax contribution to the UK economy, paying £161 billion this year - almost a third of total tax receipts. But companies need to do a better job of explaining their tax affairs to the public. We are encouraging all companies to explain why they pay what they do in a straight-forward and accessible narrative, ideally on their website."
In the area of tax planning, the CBI recommends that British businesses operating in the UK should :
- only engage in reasonable tax planning that is aligned with commercial and economic activity and does not lead to an abusive result
- respond to tax incentives and exemptions, where appropriate
- interpret the relevant tax laws in a reasonable way consistent with a relationship of "co-operative compliance" with HMRC
- in international matters, follow the terms of the UK's Double Taxation Treaties and relevant OECD guidelines in dealing with such issues as transfer pricing and establishing taxable presence, and should engage constructively in international dialogue on the review of global tax rules and the need for any changes.
Regarding transparency and reporting, the CBI recommends that businesses should :
- be open and transparent with HMRC about their tax affairs and provide all elevant information that is necessary for HMRC to review possible tax risks
- work collaboratively with HMRC to achieve early agreement on disputed issues and certainty on a real-time basis, wherever possible
- seek to increase public understanding in the tax system in order to build public trust in that system.
The CBI's director-general, John Cridland, said: "UK businesses make a huge tax contribution to the UK economy, paying £161 billion this year - almost a third of total tax receipts. But companies need to do a better job of explaining their tax affairs to the public. We are encouraging all companies to explain why they pay what they do in a straight-forward and accessible narrative, ideally on their website."
