Exclusive: Sharp drop in fines against finance directors as HMRC has ‘bigger fish to fry’ July 20, 2021 The number of penalties issued personally to finance directors at large businesses by HMRC has dropped from 148 to just 20 in a year, according to new data, shared with City A.M. today. Law firm Pinsent Masons said that much of the fall in the number of fines against finance directors is due to HMRC [...]
Number of new businesses in UK increases by 14 per cent despite pandemic impact July 20, 2021 The number of new businesses started in the UK increased by 14 per cent in the last year despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, outpacing the global average of a 6 per cent increase in business start-ups. A study by UHY, the international accountancy network, shows that there were 726,000 new businesses created in [...]
The outlook for business post-pandemic July 16, 2021 As we work towards exiting the pandemic we’ve spoken to insolvency expert, Blair Nimmo CA, on the outlook for businesses post-pandemic. Blair, the former UK Head of Restructuring and Global Head of Insolvency at KPMG, is Interpath’s Chief Executive Officer. As well as leading the strategic direction of the Interpath business, Blair also takes an [...]
End of an era: Liquidators appointed to wind up Philip Green’s Arcadia empire July 13, 2021 The administrators of Philip Green’s collapsed Arcadia have appointed liquidators to wind up the companies, marking the end of an era for the tycoon’s once-booming retail empire. Arcadia operated a number of high street brands across the UK and globally, including Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins, and employed over 13,000 people at its peak. The [...]
Exclusive: Businesses overpaying corporation tax up by 26 per cent to record £11.5bn July 12, 2021 Businesses claimed back a record £11.5bn in overpaid corporation tax from HMRC last year, a jump of 26 per cent from £9.1bn the year before, according to data by accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young, shared with City A.M. this afternoon. The firm stressed it is “extremely likely” that these refunds are merely “the tip of [...]
Rishi Sunak calls on workers to return to the office July 9, 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak says Brits – especially younger workers – should return to the office as pandemic restrictions ease. The Chancellor expressed concerns that staff could lose crucial work experience while the economy returns. He said it was “really important” for younger staff especially, according to the Telegraph. Sunak admitted that working remotely and mostly [...]
HMRC yet to win a single prosecution that’s used an account freezing order July 8, 2021 HMRC yet to win a single prosecution that used an account freezing order
One-in-three working Britons had wages subsidised by government during Covid July 8, 2021 One-in-three of the UK’s workforce had their pay subsidised by the government during Covid-19, new figures from the Treasury revealed today. The figures showed that 11.6m people were on the furlough scheme at some point throughout the pandemic, while 2.9m self-employed people made use of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme. The furlough scheme has seen [...]
Wetherspoons slams government for ‘behaving like Monty Python’s Dennis Moore’ over VAT rates July 7, 2021 Wetherspoons has hit out at the government for what is believes are unfair VAT rates on hospitality businesses, which could make the sector less competitive post-Covid. The pub chain has accused the government of “unfairness” and of ‘robbing the poor to help the rich’ by levying a higher VAT rate on food bought in pub [...]
ICAS urges the UK Government to improve tax administration in ten key areas July 6, 2021 ICAS has published a new report, Tomorrow’s Tax Administration, setting out its top ten priorities for UK Government action to improve tax administration. Why does tax administration matter? Good tax administration is essential, even though it may not feature at the top of many political wish lists. It has a role to play in fulfilling [...]