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Relief at HMRC’s reversal of helpline closures
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HMRC’s decision to halt its plans to restrict taxpayer helplines and direct people to online services instead has been met with relief by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). The tax authority had announced that it was closing its self assessment helpline for six months every year. It was also restricting the opening times of… Read more…
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Jeremy Hunt cuts NICs again in the Spring Budget
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The Chancellor made further changes to National Insurance contributions (NICs) following the cuts made in the Autumn Statement 2023. The rates for NICs will be cut by two percentage points for both employees and the self-employed from 6 April 2024. This will see Class 1 employee NICs reduced from 10% to 8% from 6 April… Read more…
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Business groups say challenges remain despite encouraging Budget
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The UK’s business groups warned that challenges remain despite the Chancellor delivering an encouraging Spring Budget. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said that while the cut to NICs would ‘boost jobs’ it had failed to ‘shift the dial’ for business. Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the BCC, said: ‘Following the Autumn Statement this Budget was always set to… Read more…
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New HMRC R&D tax relief guidance ‘could be clearer’, says ICAEW
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New guidance from HMRC on Research and Development (R&D) tax relief ‘could be clearer’, according to the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). HMRC’s draft guidance covers the restriction applying for contractor payments and payments for externally provided workers (EPWs) where the R&D activity takes place overseas; and the new rules for contracted-out… Read more…
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Bank holds interest rates as inflation and economy show improvement
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The Bank of England held interest rates at 5.25% despite continued falls in the rate of inflation and a return for growth for the UK economy in January. The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by eight to one to hold the base rate at 5.25%, the fifth month in a row that it has… Read more…
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HMRC’s services having a negative impact on SME productivity
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The productivity and efficiency of SMEs is suffering as a result of poor HMRC services, according to members of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). In a survey of ACCA members, 66% said that poor HMRC services were having a negative impact on their clients, with small businesses ‘bearing the brunt’ of this issue.… Read more…
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New measures aim to ‘break the spell’ of fraudsters
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New measures aim to ‘break the spell’ of financial fraudsters by giving payment providers more time, according to draft legislation published by the government. Until now, payment service providers such as banks have generally been required to process payments by the end of the following business day, giving a limited timeline to investigate and alert… Read more…
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The National Minimum Wage is the single most successful economic policy in a generation, says think tank
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The introduction of the UK’s National Minimum Wage (NMW) in 1999 is the single most successful economic policy in a generation, according to the Resolution Foundation. The NMW has increased the pay of the UK’s lowest paid workers by £6,000 a year compared to their earnings simply rising in line with typical wages, says a… Read more…
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Mortgages for the over 60s – what’s possible?
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When it comes to getting a mortgage, age can be an important factor. Those over 60 and post-retirement may find it particularly difficult to find a lender that will work with them. This is for a number of reasons, mainly due to the drop of income that happens after leaving work, as well as the… Read more…
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