George Osborne to overhaul Sunday trading hours in biggest shakeup for 20 years July 6, 2015 Shops and supermarkets could be allowed to open for longer on Sundays in one of the biggest shakeup of trading laws in 20 years. Chancellor George Osborne will use tomorrow’s Budget to unveil plans to devolve powers to mayors or councils to decide for themselves what the rule over trading hours should be in their [...]
Two more bad arguments for why Britain needs a mandatory living wage July 6, 2015 With £12bn of working age welfare cuts expected in this Budget, Conservative voices are clamouring for the “living wage” to be used as a means of reducing in-work poverty. In the past week, two celebrity former advisers to the Prime Minister, Steve Hilton and Rohan Silva, have argued the government should boost the national minimum [...]
George Osborne needs a long-term plan for taxation July 6, 2015 “Don’t tinker with taxes” is a consistent cry from business. True, few will bemoan a change that benefits them, but it’s hard to overestimate how much firms value certainty in their tax affairs. It’s difficult to plan ahead if you don’t know what your costs are likely to be. Yet we now effectively have two [...]
July Budget 2015: Boris Johnson says cut top tax rate and introduce living wage July 6, 2015 Boris Johnson has said he thinks the government should cut the top rate of income tax from 45 pence and simultaneously make some of Britain's biggest companies pay the living wage. The London mayor argues only boosting the income of society's richest individuals is unfair, and should be matched with pay increases for low-paid employees [...]
George Osborne says emergency July Budget will see £12bn welfare cuts July 5, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne has said that he has identified all £12bn of welfare cuts that he needs to make as part of the government’s plan to balance the budget in three years. “We have found that £12bn of savings in welfare that we said we’d be able to find,” Osborne said yesterday in an [...]
July Budget 2015: Pressure mounts on government to back a living wage July 5, 2015 Raising the minimum wage to the so-called “living wage” would lift 6m people out of poverty and generate more than £4bn of additional revenue, according to a new report out today from KPMG. The living wage, as defined by the Living Wage Foundation charity, is £7.85 per hour nationally and £9.15 in London. The national [...]
July Budget 2015: BBC must “make a contribution” to welfare cuts, says George Osborne on Andrew Marr Show July 5, 2015 The BBC “can make a contribution” to the costs of free television licences for the over-75s, George Osborne has said, responding to reports that the broadcaster would be required to stump up millions of pounds to keep the pensioner benefit going. The fee is currently paid by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) but under [...]
July Budget 2015: Make investments easier through tax reforms to create “equity economy”, business leaders urge George Osborne July 5, 2015 George Osborne must make radical changes to the tax system to unlock the investment potential of millions of Brits and inject growth into the economy. The chancellor's Budget, due on Wednesday, should include ambitious reform of the tax system to encourage people to buy a stake in businesses and create an "equity economy", the Institute of [...]
July Budget 2015: George Osborne to cut housing welfare for higher earners July 5, 2015 George Osborne plans to cut housing welfare for those earning higher wages in a move that is expected to raise £250m a year for the Treasury. Those earning more than £30,000, or £40,000 in London, and living in Local Authority or Housing Association properties will have to pay the going market rent, the chancellor will [...]
July Budget 2015: Conservatives to announce end to inheritance tax on properties worth less than £1m July 4, 2015 The Budget will spell the end of inheritance tax on homes worth up to £1m. In the new budget on Wednesday George Osborne is expected to make the announcement, saying it is “only right” that the change be made. Read more: Is the government about to change how it taxes pensions? Exempting homes up to £1m [...]