29thJul
News article

Eat Out to Help Out scheme set to start

The government's landmark Eat Out to Help Out scheme will start at the beginning of August and run throughout the month.

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The government's landmark Eat Out to Help Out scheme will start at the beginning of August and run throughout the month.

The scheme was announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in his Summer Economic Update. It will provide a 50% reduction for sit-down meals in participating cafes, restaurants and pubs across the UK from Monday to Wednesday every week throughout August 2020.

More than 53,000 outlets have so far signed up to the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.

Those establishments taking part in the scheme will display stickers and posters in their windows. Diners can take advantage of the offer as many times as they like during the month and do not need to present a voucher.

Commenting on the scheme, the Chancellor said: 'Our restaurants, cafes and bars play a vital role in our economy, employing more than a million people. They have been hit hard by coronavirus, so it's vital we do everything we can to help them recover.

'Our Eat Out to Help Out scheme is designed to get more customers through the door, protecting jobs by giving businesses the confidence to retain and hire staff.'

Further information for businesses, including how to register and make a claim, is available here.

28thJul
News article

Government announces review of business rates system

The government has published a call for evidence on the overhaul of the business rates system that applies in England.

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The government has published a call for evidence on the overhaul of the business rates system that applies in England.

The government announced at the 2020 Budget in March that it would conduct a review of the business rates system in England. It is seeking views from businesses, business representative organisations, local authorities, rating agents, others involved in the operation of the system and anyone interested in the business rates or wider tax system.

The call for evidence seeks views on how the business rates system currently works, issues to be addressed, ideas for change and a number of alternative taxes.

Commenting on the issue, Kate Nicholls, Chief Executive at trade association UKHospitality, said: 'Kicking back the revaluation by a further year will give businesses some much-needed breathing room and stability.

'Pushing back should also provide time for reforms to be introduced and a more accurate reflection of property values following this crisis, which has clearly had an enormous impact on trade.'

The government stated that it welcomes views on the multiplier and reliefs sections of the call for evidence by 18 September 2020, to inform an interim report in the autumn.

The call for evidence can be found here.

28thJul
News article

Committee suggests many have 'fallen through gaps in support schemes'

The Treasury Select Committee has found that over a million people have 'fallen through the gaps' of the government's coronavirus (COVID-19) support schemes.

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The Treasury Select Committee has found that over a million people have 'fallen through the gaps' of the government's coronavirus (COVID-19) support schemes.

The Committee has made a series of recommendations to the government to help those in need of support. These include tackling the 'cliff edge' that exists in the design of the Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) by removing the £50,000 cap and finding a practical solution to supporting hundreds of thousands of limited company directors who are missing out on support because they pay themselves in dividends.

The Committee also recommends amending the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) to allow tronc payments made via Pay as You Earn (PAYE) to be included when calculating a worker's pay when assessing entitlement.

Commenting on the matter, Mel Stride, Chair of the Treasury Select Committee, said: 'The Chancellor has effectively drawn a line under helping the million-plus people who have been excluded from support for four months.

'The Chancellor said that the schemes were designed to be open and accessible to as many people as possible, but the Committee remains to be convinced that more people could not have been helped.'

The Treasury Select Committee is calling on the government to enact the recommendations to fulfil its promise of 'doing whatever it takes to protect people and businesses from the impact of COVID-19'.

27thJul
News article

Fifth of small firms expect poor performance in next three months, data suggests

Data published by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has suggested that a fifth of small businesses expect their performance to be 'much worse' over the next three months as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown.

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Data published by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has suggested that a fifth of small businesses expect their performance to be 'much worse' over the next three months as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown.

The FSB's latest Small Business Index (SBI) showed that 23% of the 1,400 business owners polled expect their performance to worsen in the upcoming months. However, 42% expect a relative improvement as lockdown restrictions lift.

Meanwhile, 75% said that COVID-19 is still having a negative impact on their confidence levels.

Mike Cherry, National Chairman of the FSB, said: 'There was a lot to welcome in the Chancellor's Summer Statement where efforts to increase job creation and retention are concerned. That said, given so many small firms are already being forced to reduce headcounts, policymakers will need to keep existing interventions under close and continuous review to ensure they are sufficient.

'They should also be conscious that tax increases for small businesses and the self-employed would risk stifling any nascent recovery.'

27thJul
News article

HMRC outlines changes to VAT treatment of imported goods

HMRC has outlined changes to the VAT treatment of imported goods from 1 January 2021.

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HMRC has outlined changes to the VAT treatment of imported goods from 1 January 2021.

The changes will ensure that goods from EU and non-EU countries are treated in the same way and that UK businesses are not disadvantaged by competition from VAT-free imports.

From 1 January 2021, VAT on imported goods with a value of up to £135 will be collected at the point of sale as opposed to the point of importation. This means that UK supply VAT rather than import VAT will be due on goods.

Online marketplaces involved in facilitating the sale of imported goods will be responsible for collecting and accounting for the VAT, HMRC said.

Business-to-business sales not exceeding £135 in value will also be subject to the new rules. However, where the business customer is VAT registered in the UK and provides its valid VAT registration number to the seller, the VAT will be accounted for by the customer by means of a reverse charge.

The changes also involve the abolition of Low Value Consignment Relief, which relieves import VAT on consignments of goods valued at £15 or less.

More information on the changes can be found here.

24thJul
News article

OTS publishes series of recommendations for simplifying tax system

The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) has outlined a range of measures designed to help simplify the UK tax system.

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The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) has outlined a range of measures designed to help simplify the UK tax system.

In the OTS's latest evaluation and stock take note, which considers its work on corporation tax and the taxation of self-employed people, the Office highlighted taxes it feels can be reviewed by the government in order to reduce the administrative burden on businesses.

In regard to personal service companies, the OTS suggests renewed consideration of enabling a small personal service style business to operate through a UK limited company while being treated as transparent for tax. The stated aim would be to provide a fully recognisable form of limited company, removing it from corporation tax and introducing the 'relative ease of a self-employment style tax calculation'.

The OTS also reaffirmed its support for HMRC doing more to enhance the taxpayer Personal Tax Account (PTA), including integrating it with the Business Tax Account (BTA). It believes this will 'provide an end-to-end tax reporting and payment service and facilitate the simplification of tax administration for self-employed people'.

Additionally, the OTS stated it would welcome the development of a statutory definition of employment for tax purposes.

For more information on the OTS's recommendations please click here.

24thJul
News article

UK economy 'still stuck in first gear'

The UK's economy is 'still stuck in first gear', with many businesses operating at half their pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) capacity, according to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

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The UK's economy is 'still stuck in first gear', with many businesses operating at half their pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) capacity, according to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

The BCC's Coronavirus Impact Tracker found that over half of businesses were suffering from reduced demand. In fact, customer demand and possible future local lockdowns were rated the two top obstacles to maintaining day-to-day operations.

A third of firms said they intend to make redundancies over the next three months, with 13% of businesses having already laid off staff.

Commenting on the survey, Adam Marshall, Director General of the BCC, said: 'Our findings demonstrate that the UK's economic restart is still very much in first gear. Businesses are grappling with reduced customer demand, an ongoing cash crunch and the potential for further lockdowns during an uncertain autumn and winter ahead.

'The time has come for the government to take radical steps to slash the tax burden around employment to help companies pay valued staff, rather than the Revenue.

'A major boost to the Employment Allowance and an increase in the threshold for employers' national insurance contributions (NICs) should both be in the Chancellor's sights if he wants to help viable companies save jobs as the furlough scheme comes to an end.'

23rdJul
News article

Small business confidence begins to bounce back

Confidence in the UK's small business sector is starting to bounce back, according to a quarterly survey conducted by Hitachi Capital Business Finance (HCBF).

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Confidence in the UK's small business sector is starting to bounce back, according to a quarterly survey conducted by Hitachi Capital Business Finance (HCBF).

The HCBF survey reported that the number of UK small businesses predicting growth has almost doubled in just three months, from 14% to 27%.

Following last quarter's report, which saw the percentage of small business owners predicting growth plummeting from 39% to just 14%, the new findings show the highest quarter-on-quarter rise in five years.

The IT/telecoms sector had the highest proportion of small businesses that predicted growth at 44%, while transport and distribution saw the biggest rise in confidence.

Commenting on the report, Gavin Wraith-Carter, Managing Director at HCBF, said: 'We knew last quarter that small business confidence would fall as lockdown started and the scale of the fall was a concern, particularly the steep rise in the number of business owners fearing for their survival. Our new research – just in – shows what an immediate and positive impact the easing of lockdown has had on the small business community.'

23rdJul
News article

FRC urges companies to provide high-quality disclosures on impact of coronavirus

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has urged companies to provide more detailed disclosures on the impact the coronavirus (COVID-19) has had on their firm.

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The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has urged companies to provide more detailed disclosures on the impact the coronavirus (COVID-19) has had on their firm.

In a new review, the FRC stated that although companies provided sufficient information to enable individuals to understand the impact COVID-19 has had on their performance, position and future prospects, some companies would have benefitted from 'more extensive disclosure'.

The Council has reminded companies that they should apply existing accounting policies for exceptional and other similar items to COVID-19-related income and expenditure consistently, and should not arbitrarily split income and expenses between COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 financial statement captions. Companies should also prepare interim reports that provide sufficient information to explain the impact that COVID-19 has had on their performance, position and future prospects, the FRC stated.

Commenting on the matter, David Rule, Executive Director of Supervision at the FRC, said: 'The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on businesses is pervasive but also differs across sectors, geographies and individual companies.

'This review highlights how important it is for company reporting to explain not only how COVID-19 has affected company performance but also how it might affect a company's future prospects.'

22ndJul
News article

Treasury outlines agenda for modernised digital tax system

The Treasury has outlined the next steps in its plan to create a 'modernised digital tax system fit for the 21st century'.

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The Treasury has outlined the next steps in its plan to create a 'modernised digital tax system fit for the 21st century'.

The Treasury said that HMRC's Making Tax Digital (MTD) initiative will be gradually extended. Currently, businesses above the VAT threshold of £85,000 are required to comply with Making Tax Digital for VAT (MTD for VAT).

From April 2022, the initiative will be extended to all VAT-registered businesses with turnover below the VAT threshold. From April 2023 MTD will apply to taxpayers who file income tax self-assessment tax returns for business or property income over £10,000 annually.

The MTD changes will affect the way that taxes are reported, not the level of tax that is collected. They will help to minimise avoidable mistakes, which cost the exchequer £8.5 billion in 2018/19.

Commenting on the issue, Jesse Norman, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said: 'We are setting out our next steps on MTD . . . as we bring the UK's tax system into the 21st century.

'MTD will make it easier for businesses to keep on top of their tax affairs. But it also has huge potential to improve the productivity of our economy, and its resilience in times of crisis.'