July Budget 2015: Small business group wants tax reform June 28, 2015 British small businesses are calling on chancellor George Osborne to reform and simplify the tax system in next week’s emergency budget. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has asked the government to “widen the scope of reform to radically simplify the tax system and improve incentives to encourage investment”. The small business group praised the [...]
George Osborne insists £12bn in welfare cuts will go ahead June 22, 2015 Chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne has said that he will push ahead with plans to cut £12bn in welfare spending, despite previous reports that Conservative party campaign promises would be reined in under the new government. Writing with work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith in The Sunday Times, Osborne said that he would [...]
Retailers send George Osborne their budget wish list June 21, 2015 British retailers are calling on the chancellor to eschew the living wage and introduce new measures to boost productivity in next month’s emergency budget. In a new submission to chancellor George Osborne, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said that it wants the government to “work with the retail industry to ensure that employees are [...]
George Osborne and Iain Duncan Smith promise £12bn cuts to welfare budget June 21, 2015 The government has promised to slash the welfare bill by £12bn each year, the day after tens of thousands of people took to the streets of London to protest against austerity. Chancellor George Osborne and work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith said the cuts would reform "the damaging culture of welfare dependency" and ensure [...]
Budget 2015: Institute of Chartered Accountants says George Osborne should simplify taxes June 15, 2015 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) is calling upon chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne to simplify the tax code in his forthcoming summer Budget. With the Conservative Budget just three weeks away, the ICAEW said today that the government’s previously-announced plans to cut red tape and reduce costs to British [...]
Britain’s ageing population will ruin the budget surplus plan, says OBR June 11, 2015 Britain's ageing population will throw a spanner in the works for George Osborne's new budget Surplus Rule. According to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), a rise in the proportion of people over working age will wipe out surpluses unless changes are made to taxes and spending. Read more: The world's ageing population is [...]
First Minister’s Questions: Scottish government brands Osborne’s budget cuts “unacceptable” June 11, 2015 John Swinney, deputy first minister of Scotland, has said that austerity measures proposed by George Osborne are "utterly unacceptable". Mr Swinney said that he believes the chancellor's budget reductions are unacceptable, urging Osborne to reconsider and find alternatives. Earlier, George Osborne announced that £3bn of savings would have to be made for this financial year. [...]
Labour’s Liz Kendall has “no problem” with a budget surplus June 11, 2015 Labour leadership candidate Liz Kendall has said she has "no problem" with aiming for a budget surplus, a policy the government wants to enshrine in law, which commentators say is a political move designed to pressure the Labour party. Read more: UK budget since 1986: There has been deficits for 22 of 30 years "Labour should [...]
George Osborne to mandate government budget surplus in the “good times” – but when was the last budget surplus? June 10, 2015 George Osborne will say tonight that he intends to force future governments to run a budget surplus in order to "prepare for an uncertain future". In a major speech in the City of London tonight, the chancellor will announce that he will enshrine in law the need for future governments to run an overall budget [...]
Mansion House speech: George Osborne says budget surplus will be a legal mandate June 9, 2015 Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne will use a major speech in the City tonight to introduce a new law requiring future governments to run an overall budget surplus. “The result of this recent British election, and the comprehensive rejection of those who argued for more borrowing and more spending, gives our nation the [...]