27 Oct 2021

Within his Budget speech, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the government’s intention to create high-wage, high-skilled jobs of the future.

The Chancellor stated that the Budget and Spending Review will continue supporting people into work, with over £6 billion of funding for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) over the next three years to help people earn more and gain the right skills.

Additionally, in its latest report, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) altered its prediction for economic growth in 2021 to 6.5% – a significant rise when compared to its previous forecast of 4%. The OBR also expects unemployment to rise only modestly to 5¼% this winter.

Meanwhile, the OBR has reduced its estimate of the scarring effect on the UK economy caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic from 3% to 2%. It stated that the vaccine roll-out has permitted the economy to re-open ‘largely on schedule’, despite continuing high COVID-19 infection rates.

Output in 2021 has recovered faster than the OBR had expected at the time of the last Budget in March, helping to boost tax revenues. The strong recovery has also helped to reduce the cost of pandemic-related support, the OBR found.

Nominal GDP has also been revised up by 4.1% for 2025/26, relative to the figures announced in March.

Business groups have reacted to Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s 2021 Autumn Budget speech.

14 Jul 2021

Retail sales bounced during the spring with the quarter from April to June showing record growth, according to the latest figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

Sales in the second quarter of 2021 rose 28.4% from a year previously and were up 10.4% from 2019.

June’s sunny weather and the Euro 2020 football tournament helped to boost trade, the BRC said.

But the BRC warned that many retailers still faced ‘strong headwinds’ as the UK economy recovers from the pandemic.

In June, fashion and footwear did well, while the start of the Euro 2020 football championship provided a boost for TVs, snack food and beer.

BRC Chief Executive Helen Dickinson said: ‘The second quarter of 2021 saw exceptional growth as the gradual unlocking of the UK economy encouraged a release of pent-up demand built up over previous lockdowns.

‘In June, while growth in food sales began to slow, non-food sales were bolstered by growing consumer confidence and the continued unleashing of consumer demand.

‘With many people taking staycations, or cheaper UK-based holidays, many have found they have a little extra to spend at the shops, with strong growth in-store in June.’

The Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE) has stated that the recent changes to the rules relating to off-payroll workers, commonly known as IR35, ‘undermine the self-employed at the worst possible time’.

The changes to IR35 took effect on 6 April 2021, and shift responsibility for making the decision on employment status on each contract away from contractors and personal service companies (PSCs) and on to the client receiving their services. This has already been done in the public sector.

Research carried out by IPSE found that 50% of contractors planned to stop contracting in the UK once the changes took effect unless they could secure contracts unaffected by them. 24% are planning to seek contracts abroad; 12% plan to stop working altogether; 17% will seek an employed role; and 11% are looking to retire within the next year.

Additionally, 24% of contractors said their clients are planning to blanket-assess all their contractors as ‘inside IR35’.

‘The changes to IR35 would do serious harm to the self-employed sector at the best of times, but now they are adding drastic, unnecessary damage to the financial carnage of the pandemic – undermining the UK’s contractors at the worst possible time,’ said Andy Chamberlain, Director of Policy at IPSE.

‘The crucial problem with IR35 is still its complexity: in fact, it is so complex that HMRC has lost the majority of tribunals on its own legislation. And there remains serious doubts about the CEST tool HMRC designed to supposedly cut through this complexity.’

HMRC has confirmed it will be contacting potential claimants for the fourth Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant this month.

The tax authority will send communications by email, letter or within the online service to individuals based on their tax returns. The fourth grant will be 80% of three months’ average trading profits, to be claimed from late April 2021.

Payment will be in a single instalment capped at £7,500 in total and will cover the period February to April 2021. The scheme has been extended to those who have filed a 2019/20 self assessment tax return prior to 3 March 2021.

Claimants must have been impacted by reduced activity, capacity and demand, or have been trading previously and temporarily unable to do so. The online service to claim the fourth grant will be available from late April 2021. All claims must be made on or before 1 June 2021.

There is no requirement that an earlier SEISS grant has been claimed to be able to claim the fourth grant. Applications for the fourth grant can be made here.

If you require help with an application or need a compliance review on your eligibility, please contact us.

04 Mar 2021

Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered his 2021 Budget speech yesterday, outlining a range of financial measures designed to boost the UK economy once the current coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown ends in England.

Mr Sunak’s speech unveiled a raft of changes, including an extension to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) until September; a super-deduction providing allowances of 130% on most new plant and machinery; an extension of the stamp duty holiday until 30 September; and £5 billion in restart grants to help boost businesses once the lockdown comes to an end.

Further details regarding the announcements made by the Chancellor featured in the official press releases. Our comprehensive Budget Summary outlines the key measures, including some of the less-publicised changes that may impact upon your business or personal finances.

See the full report here http://certaxsunderland.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Budget-2021.pdf

08 Dec 2020

An analysis carried out by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has suggested that businesses lack detailed official information on the rules that are set to take effect once the Brexit transitional period ends on 31 December.

The BCC found that businesses have insufficient information in regard to 24 critical areas. This is ‘undermining their ability to prepare for change’ on 1 January, the business group stated.

According to the BCC, firms still do not know what rules of origin will apply at the end of the transition period, preventing them and their customers from planning and potentially creating unprecedented new administration and costs. Additionally, only limited guidance is available on the procedures for the movement of goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, and there is no information on how UK tariff rate quotas will be administered or how businesses can access them beyond the transition period.

Commenting on the issue, Adam Marshall, Director General of the BCC, said: ‘With just weeks to go, businesses need answers, and they need them now. Posters and television adverts are no substitute for the clear, detailed and actionable information businesses require to prepare for the end of transition.

‘None of the issues businesses are grappling with are new. They have all been raised repeatedly over the past four years, from tariff codes and rules of origin through to the movement of goods from GB to NI.’

On 25 November Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered his latest Spending Review to the House of Commons, and stated that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has caused ‘lasting damage’ to the UK economy.

The economy is forecast to shrink by 11.3% this year and is not expected to return to its pre-pandemic size until the end of 2022. Government borrowing is also expected to rise to its highest level ever outside of wartime. The Chancellor revealed that the government has already provided £280 billion to help the UK combat COVID-19, and said that ‘the costs of inaction would have been higher’.

Mr Sunak said: ‘We have a responsibility, once the economy recovers, to return to a sustainable fiscal position. This is an economic emergency. That’s why we have taken, and continue to take, extraordinary measures to protect people’s jobs and incomes.’

In the Spending Review, the Chancellor announced a number of measures, including increases to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) rates. The NMW will rise to £8.36 per hour from 1 April 2021, whilst the NLW will rise to £8.91 per hour and will be extended to 23 and 24-year-olds for the first time.

The Chancellor also announced that 1.3 million public sector workers will see their pay frozen in 2021/22; the overseas aid budget will be reduced by £4 billion; and a new £4 billion ‘levelling up’ scheme that will fund the upgrading of local infrastructure across the UK.

The government has updated and enhanced the self-employed grant scheme, making this more generous than previously. This recognises the increased impact of coronavirus, amnd the lockdown through November.

The grant will be increased from the previously announced level of 40% of trading profits to 80% for November 2020. This therefore increases the total level of the grant from 40% to 55% of trading profits for 1 November 2020 to 31 January 2020.

For full details please see below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/self-employment-income-support-scheme-grant-extension/self-employment-income-support-scheme-grant-extension

In view of the November lock-down, the government has announced the following additional support measures for business. More detialed guidance in relation to the various schemes is expected shortly.

• Job Retention (Furlough) Scheme – extended to 2nd December – paid at 80% for all hours not worked (either full or part-time)
• Local authority administered grants for those businesses required to shut, or severely affected by the lock-down.
• Increase in the Self-Employed income support grant from 20% to 40% of earnings

More details can be found here

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/furlough-scheme-extended-and-further-economic-support-announced#:~:text=News%20story-,Furlough%20Scheme%20Extended%20and%20Further%20Economic%20Support%20announced,and%20further%20economic%20support%20announced.