Draft legislation surrounding the pensions bill changes announced in the April 2014 budget has now been published. The Taxation of Pensions Bill states that from April 2015, there will be the option to take multiple lump sums from a pot without having to open a drawdown account. 25% of each lump sum will be tax-free […]
We want you to remain relaxed so are proposing to offer auto enrolment question time in the next month or two. We will dedicate our monthly eshot to a ‘Q and A’ on the subject so if you have a specific question please email Kathy or Tony in the first instance and we will collate […]
We are delighted with the response to the news last month that we have adopted Kashflow as our online accounting and bookkeeping software. We have had several clients sign up to Kashflow already and there was a lot of interest from others amongst you. We now have an introduction to Kashflow video so if you […]
A survey conducted by the Forum of Private Business (FPB) reveals that sme costs have risen by 4.7% in 2014. This is despite the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rate of inflation falling from 2.7% in September 2013 to 1.2% in September 2014. The key factors in increased sme costs were reported to be energy, transport […]
Changing annuities: sales fall more than a third and rates drop in summer 2014 The number of annuities sold fell by more than a third between the first and second quarters of 2014, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI). The figures reveal that 27,902 fewer annuities were sold in Q2 than in Q1 […]
Small businesses will be exempt from an RTI penalty until March 2015, HMRC has announced. HMRC will phase in quarterly penalties for late RTI returns by business size, starting with those who employ 50 or more staff on 6 October 2014. Businesses with 49 or fewer employees will have until 6 March 2015 before penalties […]
According to research by BDRC Continental SME’s are relying less on ‘Core’ traditional finance options (overdrafts, loans and credit cards) today, than in 2012. In Q2 2012, 36% of SME’s were relying on a number of business forms of traditional finance, but that figure has dropped to just 30% in the same quarter of 2014. […]
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) are warning that SME’s are not gearing up to make the most of an ageing workforce. Dianah Worman, public policy advisor at CIPD, said: “Employers are currently missing a trick by not offering flexible working to all employees and by not adapting to the changing needs of […]
Several recent reports that consider the SME business finance market have thrown up a mixed bag of results, suggesting the environment is still less than favourable for seeking additional funding. The reports and surveys run by venture capital firm Albion Ventures and YouGov (on behalf of Simply Business) turned up an array of different messages […]
We know, we know… .. you have got enough to think about running a business, but it is worth knowing that in just 12 months our first payroll clients will have arrived at their ‘staging date’ – the point at which they have to be up and running with auto enrolment. We have been working […]
We will shortly be announcing a new partnership with one of the leading online accounting software solutions. We have spent a lot of time researching the options to ensure we work with the product that is of most benefit to our client base and we believe we have a winner. We will continue our alliance […]