Category: Business

A new ban on tenant fees could push costs of more than £80 million onto landlords, government figures have shown. The tenant fees bill, which was published on 2 May 2018, includes a ban on all fees charged to tenants apart from rent, deposits, and certain necessary costs. A government impact assessment confirms that “the … Continued

Four out of five entrepreneurs in the UK believe the government could do more to support their small business, research claims. Aldermore surveyed 1,799 people, including 642 small business owners, and found 79% of respondents believed existing initiatives did not provide enough support to SMEs. Apprenticeship levy funds go towards the training of apprentices, but … Continued

Almost half of small and medium-sized businesses have struggled with late payments in the last year, according to research by the Institute of Directors (IoD). Of the 787 business leaders surveyed, 48% have faced issues with late payments since April 2017. Almost a third (31%) said this was the result of an “excessively bureaucratic payments … Continued

Legislation was introduced some time ago now with the aim of encouraging businesses to increase investment in innovative activities, R&D tax reliefs offer significant benefits for businesses advancing science and technology. These reliefs significantly reduce the corporation tax bill, or if loss – making can generate tax credit repayments. However it is estimated that 10% … Continued

Food and drink businesses raised £22 billion from exports in 2017, a record high according to government figures. UK food and drink firms are now exporting products to 217 countries around the world, with whisky proving the most popular – bringing in £4.5 billion last year. This was followed by sales of salmon (£720 million), … Continued

The government has started the process to reverse the so-called ‘staircase tax’ to ease the pressure on Small businesses. Communities secretary Sajid Javid published draft legislation, which stands to benefit thousands of small business owners, to abolish the measure. The loophole was first introduced after the Supreme Court ruled that an office spread over more … Continued

Research and development (R&D) tax credit claims by small businesses climbed to £1.345 billion in 2015/16, according to HMRC. The revenue recently released R&D data for the previous financial year that shows claims increased from £1 billion in 2014/15 to hit another record high last year. The total number of claims for R&D credits in … Continued

A range of measures designed to boost business and productivity were announced in Autumn Budget 2017. Amid a background of discontent surrounding business rates, chancellor Philip Hammond revealed future increases will be determined by the Consumer Prices Index measure of inflation from April 2018. The measure comes into effect two years earlier than originally planned … Continued

HMRC has published revised advisory fuel rates for company cars, applying from 1 September 2017. The rates are to be used only where employers either reimburse employees for business travel in their company cars, or require employees to repay the cost of fuel used for private travel. These rates apply from 1 December 2017. You … Continued

The number of private sector businesses in the UK hit a record high of 5.7 million at the start of 2017, according to government figures. Annual statistics from the Department for Business, Industry, Energy and Strategy showed a year-on-year rise of 197,000, compared to the same time in 2016. The number of firms in 2017 … Continued