Category: Business

At a time of political and economic uncertainty, the announcement of several substantial measures in the Budget on 29 October 2018 came as a surprise for many businesses. In fact, the Budget was met with an overall positive reception from industry groups, with the FSB calling it the Chancellor’s “first small-business-friendly Budget”. A range of … Continued

The overwhelming majority of small businesses that applied for finance in the first six months of 2018 were successful, statistics show. UK Finance commissioned market research firm BDRC to carry out its SME Finance Monitor Q2 2018 and found 85% of small businesses in the UK secured finance in the first half of the year. … Continued

The NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator gives businesses the power to start, scale and succeed via 12 hubs and other satellite locations across the UK. More than 5,000 have already passed through the fully-funded programmes and as of 2017 more than 80% were still trading. Liverpool is to become the first satellite location to host a bespoke … Continued

VAT creates the biggest administration burden for around two-thirds of businesses in the UK, research from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has claimed. The report, which polled more than 1,100 businesses of all sizes, found that 64% were bamboozled by an array of rates and rules to comply with VAT legislation. This percentage is … Continued

Pressure is mounting on the government to reform the apprenticeships system, following recent apprenticeship levy statistics. The Institute of Directors (IoD) has joined the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) in urging the government to address ongoing problems with the levy. Apprenticeship starts were down 25% for the seven months to February 2018 compared with the … Continued

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