News Archive 2005
Landmark tax ruling could be good news for family businesses
16 December 2005
The long-running case involving husband-and-wife business Arctic Systems has resulted in a landmark victory for Geoff and Diana Jones.
The Court of Appeal overturned previous rulings in favour of HM Revenue & Customs, in a decision that could mean good news for thousands of similar family businesses.
Pre-Budget Report: Changes to business taxes and VAT
6 December 2005
The Pre-Budget Report included a number of significant changes for business taxes and VAT.
Pre Budget Report summary
5 December 2005
Most of the headlines following the Pre-Budget Report focused on the economy, with Chancellor Gordon Brown cutting his forecast of UK growth to 1.75% - compared to the prediction of 3-3.5% growth he made in the March Budget.
SMEs 'need better risk management'
15 November 2005
Small and medium sized businesses in the UK are not doing enough to protect themselves against business risks, according to new research.
Government taskforce to assess cheque clearance times
8 November 2005
The Payment Systems Task Force is to examine the cheque clearance system, to establish whether changes should be made to speed up clearance times.
Small firms urged to apply for business rates rebate
4 November 2005
The Forum of Private Business (FPB) is urging small business owners to apply for a rebate on their business rates.
The Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) scheme, which came into effect on 1 April this year, offers 50% rate relief to business properties with a rateable value of under £5,000.
The relief then decreases on a sliding scale of 1% for every £100 of rateable value, reaching 0% at £10,000.
There is also a 'buffer zone' for properties with rateable values of between £10,000 and £15,000 which meet the eligibility criteria.
To qualify for SBBR, properties must be on the local rating list on 1 April of each year, and business owners must apply to their local billing authority within six months of the end of the chargeable year.
Rex Garratt of the FPB said, 'Many firms are still unaware that they must claim a rebate on the business rates they pay to their local council. It does not come through automatically'.
Small firms loan scheme to target new businesses
7 October 2005
The Government has announced sweeping changes to the Small Firms Loan Guarantee (SFLG) scheme, which will switch the focus of the scheme to start-ups and younger businesses.
Tax accounts for 'more than half' of business profits
15 September 2005
The UK has dropped from seventh to ninth place in the global business ranking, as a result of tax and regulatory burdens, according to a report from the World Bank.
The report, entitled 'Doing Business in 2006: Creating Jobs', suggested that an increase in the regulatory burden, and higher levels of taxation, have made the UK a less desirable place to do business.
'One in five small businesses' missing out on rate relief
6 September 2005
More than one in five small businesses in England are missing out on business rate relief worth millions of pounds, according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).
The new National Minimum Wage rates
1 September 2005
The new National Minimum Wage rates came into effect on 1 October 2005 and following recommendations from the Low Pay Commission, the minimum wage rates are set to rise again on 1 October 2006.
The minimum wage must be paid to all eligible workers, including homeworkers, part-time workers, casual and agency staff, and people working on short-term contracts.
Small firms 'risk a return to the cheque'
23 August 2005
Small businesses which use the BACS payment scheme are being urged to prepare for the switch to a new online system, which will be taking place in December.
BACS Payment Schemes is warning that many small firms are yet to put the appropriate plans into place for transferring to the new BACSTEL-IP system.
Many businesses use the existing system to pay for electronic transactions including payroll and Direct Debit.
Businesses failing to switch to the new system could end up having to pay suppliers and employees by cheque or cash, when the old system is switched off in December.
Read more and download an information pack from the BACSTEL-IP website.
Small businesses 'facing more tax inspections'
15 August 2005
The number of small and medium-sized firms facing tax investigations has risen significantly in recent months, according to a new study.
Small businesses 'spend £65 million a year' on bank charges
21 July 2005
Small businesses in the UK are paying more than £65 million a year in unnecessary bank charges, according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).
Business owners warned over company registration fraud
20 July 2005
Businesses are being urged to take steps to protect their identities, in order to combat the problem of so-called 'company hijacking'.
Enterprise Capital Funds to 'bridge the finance gap' for SMEs
14 July 2005
The Government has launched a new multi-million pound scheme aimed at boosting innovation, jobs and growth for SMEs in the UK.
The 'top five excuses' for late payment
29 June 2005
The Better Payment Practice Campaign (BPPC) has released a list of the 'top five' most commonly used excuses for late payment.
Late payment is a particularly significant problem for small businesses, and the BPPC is offering advice on how to address the 'most common and least credible' excuses.
Small businesses urged to seek advice over tax ruling
31 May 2005
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is urging small businesses to seek professional advice following the recent High Court ruling against Geoff and Diana Jones of Arctic Systems.
Small businesses targeted by advertising scams
26 May 2005
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is warning small business owners to be wary of a series of advertising scams being run by unscrupulous telesales companies.
Good news for labour intensive businesses in North London
North London based accountants and business advisers Robinsons, has welcomed the news that labour intensive businesses across the region could benefit from a reduction in VAT.
Alleviate your Payroll Headache
The management of the payroll function has never been more demanding for business owners. With tax credits, student loans, maternity and paternity leave, sick pay and child maintenance, in addition to the promise of more employment legislation being introduced, the burden to companies who still do their payroll in-house using a software package or paper-based system is enormous.
Payroll compliance can easily become a full time job even for small businesses and getting it wrong can carry severe penalties. Keeping track of payroll regulations and changes, as well as calculating the actual payroll amounts and deductions, can be very labour intensive and restrictive, as it needs to be done to a fixed timetable, explains Joseph Robinson from London, chartered accountants, Robinsons.
Good reasons to outsource
Richard Brattle and Joseph Robinson, directors of on-line accounts, providers of financial outsourcing solutions, reviews how the American philosophy to using outsource companies, is now becoming part of the UK business thinking.
In the last ten years there has been explosive growth in the use of outsourcing both in the US and the UK.
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