MPs warn HMRC cost cutting could lead to another customer service “collapse” July 27, 2016 MPs have slammed HMRC over its levels of customer service, and warned that cutting costs will lead to further lowering of standards. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said in a report today that customer service levels "collapsed" to such a degree last year that at one point in October the average time taken for HMRC to answer the [...]
Trying to sell your property? Here’s everything you need to know about the UK’s housing market after the Brexit vote July 22, 2016 Before the EU referendum, politicians were forecasting a housing market crash. We've now had a fair bit of data post-Brexit – here's everything we know so far. The market is slowing down You can't understand the housing market without looking at transaction volumes. While surveys have suggested asking prices have fallen over the past few weeks and [...]
Damning report slams Mike Ashley for “appalling” practices at Sports Direct July 22, 2016 Top MPs have launched a blistering attack on Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct, branding working practices at the company’s Shirebrook warehouse in Derbyshire as similar to those of “a Victorian workhouse”. The parliamentary Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee, which has been investigating the retailer’s “extremely disturbing” employment practices, publishes its findings today, leaving the company open [...]
Leaving the Single Market would blow a £14bn hole in the public finances July 21, 2016 Before the referendum, George Osborne claimed a Brexit vote would require an emergency Budget of tax hikes and big spending cuts. While the new chancellor has said that he will wait until the Autumn Statement before he makes any changes to fiscal policy, it is unclear what he will choose to do. But what is [...]
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 [...]