Coronavirus: Government slams ‘breath holding’ advice amid fake news crackdown March 30, 2020 Specialist government units have been forced to rubbish claims that holding your breath for 10 seconds is a test for coronavirus amid a surge in misinformation about the pandemic. Number 10’s Rapid Response Unit identified the claim in posts circulating on Facebook and Whatsapp that claimed to come from a board member at Stanford Hospital. [...]
Coronavirus: The tax questions facing those stuck in the UK March 26, 2020 Covid-19 is impacting everybody in one way or another, including those who were not expecting to be UK tax residents but now find themselves unable to leave the country. City A.M. asks Helen Jones, a tax partner at BDO, the key questions that need answering for those stuck in Britain during the pandemic. What residency [...]
Deliveroo founder urges PM to back takeaway sector during coronavirus crisis March 23, 2020 The founder of the food delivery app Deliveroo has urged the government to relieve the pressure on supermarkets during the coronavirus crisis by funding a public information campaign explaining the safety of takeaway outlets. Will Shu has written a letter to the prime minister to say that the package of economic support announced by the [...]
HMRC to give ‘special treatment’ to expats stuck in UK due to coronavirus March 23, 2020 HM Revenue & Customs has issued advice to British expatriates stuck in the UK due to coronavirus over tax residence rules. The tax authority will allow special treatment to be given to expatriates that face risking their non-residence tax status through being stuck in the UK longer than anticipated. The Financial Times reported that British [...]
Coronavirus: What does the chancellor’s support mean for businesses and employees? March 22, 2020 The Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced an unprecedented package of measures on Friday to support businesses and employers coping with the economic shock of coronavirus. What is available to companies and employees? How do they access this support? And where are the gaps in provision? Coronavirus business interruption loan scheme Focused on smaller businesses with a [...]
Coronavirus wage bailout: Government to cover 80 per cent of workers’ salaries up to £2,500 March 20, 2020 The government will pay up to 80 per cent, or £2,500, of the salaries of British workers hit by the UK coronavirus crisis in a huge wage bailout. Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the extraordinary measures today after Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered all pubs and restaurants, cafes and gyms to shut their doors tonight and [...]
IR35: Businesses welcome delay, but many have already cut contractors March 18, 2020 Businesses may have welcomed the delay of the IR35 reforms but some have already laid off contractors and abandoned projects in anticipation of the changes. Last night, chief treasury secretary Steve Barclay announced that the tax reforms would be pushed back by one year, less than a week after the measures were confirmed in the [...]
Pub industry warns Boris Johnson that lockdown measures put ‘hundreds and thousands of jobs’ at risk March 16, 2020 The UK pub industry has tonight written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson warning him that the government’s guidance that members of the public should avoid going to bars and pubs presents the sector with an “existential crisis”. In a letter from British Beer and Pub Association chief executive Emma McClarkin, the industry warned that “thousands [...]
Railway industry in talks with government over emergency coronavirus measures March 15, 2020 The government is in talks with the rail industry over a range of steps to protect franchises against falling passenger numbers due to the coronavirus outbreak. According to the BBC, at a meeting of industry figures last week it was revealed that numbers had fallen by up to 18 per cent on certain lines, although [...]
Fury as IR35 is confirmed in 2020 Budget March 11, 2020 The business community hit back at Chancellor Rishi Sunak after he confirmed that reforms to IR35 were going ahead in today’s Budget. IR35 is a change to Britain’s tax laws that will clamp down on avoidance by targeting contractors for companies who are, in practice, providing the same service as employees. The change is likely [...]