The housing market was buoyed by mortgage momentum on the eve of the EU referendum July 21, 2016 Mortgage lending rocketed to an eight-year high before last month's EU referendum as the housing market showed few signs of pre-vote jitters Figures released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) showed £20.7bn was dished out to homebuyers and re-mortgagers in June – 16 per cent more than in May. The figure was an eight-year [...]
Turn that frown upside down: Seven reasons Brexit is a good news story July 20, 2016 Brexit is not going to be a bed of roses but I’m not entirely convinced by the doom-mongers. In my view, and that of many others, Brexit came just in time. Europe is going down – fast Since the result, I’ve spoken to a number of economists and City figures. A growing number believe a [...]
Retiring to Europe? You should wait until Brexit negotiations on pensions and healthcare access have concluded July 20, 2016 Many Brits approaching retirement dream of moving to the continent. But Brexit has thrown a spanner in the works. Since the referendum, sterling has plummeted against a basket of foreign currencies, including the euro, and question marks loom over expats’ ability to settle elsewhere in Europe. Things look even more chaotic when it comes to financial [...]
Pension auto-enrolment is getting more UK workers saving for the future July 20, 2016 In a sign that UK workers are starting to save again since the financial crisis hit, new data shows that the total annual pension contributions made in the UK has increased by nearly a fifth since 2010. Analysis of HMRC data by Prudential shows workers paid £9.03bn into pensions in 2014-15, up from the £7.71bn contributed in 2010-11. [...]
Pressure mounting on Andrea Leadsom to publish tax return after reports company with family links used potential tax avoidance measures July 5, 2016 Conservative leadership contender Andrea Leadsom has come under further pressure to publish her tax returns after reports that a company with family links used a potential tax avoidance mechanism. Gloucester Research Limited, owned by Leadsom's brother-in-law and run by her husband, had used an employee benefit trust (EBT) for four years, The Times first reported. Although they [...]
Film tax schemers hit with prison sentences worth more than 36 years July 3, 2016 An HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) investigation into a film tax scheme concluded late last week with a final set of sentences bring the total jail time for those involved to more than 36 years. The scheme, which HMRC states would have cheated the system of £2.2m had it gone ahead as planned, involved false claims of [...]
Now Google’s Madrid offices have been raided by police over its taxes June 30, 2016 Police have carried out a raid at Google's Madrid offices as part of a probe into its tax position. A Google spokesperson said: "We comply with the tax law in Spain, as in every other country in which we operate. We are cooperating fully with the authorities in Madrid to answer their questions, as always." [...]
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) arrests three as part of investigation into suspected £300m corporation tax scam June 29, 2016 Three men have been arrested as part of an investigation into a suspected corporation tax scam, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) announced today. More than 30 HMRC officers carried out morning raids on one business and three residential addresses in the West Midlands yesterday, and computers and business records were seized as part of the [...]
Parliaments across Europe intensify calls for more corporation tax transparency, as Public Accounts Committee unveils open letter asking for just that June 28, 2016 Parliaments across Europe are today urging their respective governments to do more to make tax transparent. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has unveiled an open letter, signed by the chairs of parliamentary finance committees of Germany, Hungary, Finland, Norway and Slovakia, along with senior MPs from the Netherlands, Czech Republic and Bulgaria. The letter calls on governments [...]
Now Microsoft’s UK corporate tax arrangements are under scrutiny June 19, 2016 Microsoft is the latest US tech company to come under scrutiny in the continuing row over corporation tax after it was revealed that it made a deal with UK authorities. The company, founded by Bill Gates, avoided paying £100m in corporation tax it's claimed, by revenue from Britain being recorded in Ireland where the tax rate is 12.5 [...]